We spent our last few days in Costa Rica hidden in the jungle near La Fortuna and the Arenal Volcano. 

We woke up Sunday at 4 am {that should be a sin on vacation} and drove 6 hours towards the country town of Pital. Carson served in this area so we decided to wake up early so we could go to church with all his old converts and friends. 

At first I was like man...this is waaay to early to be driving that far. But once we started driving on the green mountainous country roads and got to the church at 9am I immediately was so happy with our decision to trek so early in the morning. There is something so peaceful about driving through there so early in the morning.

The LDS church in Pital is held inside a small house with an attendance of about 40 people. It was truly humbling and amazing to be in the presence of these people! My favorite part was seeing everyones face's light up the minute they saw Carson and realized who he was. I couldn't help but tear up multiple times while we were there realizing how much Carson had changed this little branch and how strong it was still going

After church we went over to visit with a woman Carson had baptized and her family. She was gracious enough to cook us lunch and pick us a pineapple for dessert. Pital is known for its fields and fields of pineapple... Carson screamed like a little girl the minute they broke out that pineapple. haha 

I must say Costa Rica pineapple BLOWSSS Hawaii pineapple out of the water.... nothing like it. 

We made a stop to see the apartment Carson lived in in Pital {I was dying at how cute it was} then ran into his old landlord who was so sweet. 

If we had any regrets of the trip is was not staying longer in our TREE HOUSE HOTEL!

It was truly one of the most amazing experience either of us had ever had. Image the cutest little tree house in the middle of the Costa Rican Jungle... they drop fresh squeezed orange juice off on your porch every. single. morning. Birds/Toucans flying around in the trees right next to you. It was AMAZING. 

We were dying because the only thing between you and the outdoors in the shower/bathroom was a screen wall. Showering in nature. It doesn't get more natural than that.  

When you stay in the treehouse you also get a free night hike around their 2 mile property. It was so fun getting to walk around and see all the hidden wildlife... and even had frogs thrown on us by our guide. 

We celebrated our 2nd Anniversary while staying there. The day started out perfect. We woke up to all the birds outside our treehouse and just sat and listened while we drank our fresh juice. We headed down to breakfast that the hotel provided for us {Seriously. you will not find a better hotel or hotel breakfast ever. The managers were so personable and AWESOME. Also the Mango stuffed french toast... just yes.} 

Then headed out on our days plans. 

First stop was La Fortuna Waterfall. 

Next stop was Zip-lining near the volcano and lake. We were DYING because it was the most sketchy zip-line ever. there were no brakes. enough said. Just imagine people flying down a zip-line like a missile... and crash landing with only a rope to stop you. haha

We keep joking that this anniversary is probably going to be impossible to beat because it was such an amazing day. How much better does it get...??

After leaving Quepos we drove north up the coast to Tamarindo, Guanacaste. 

We made little pit stops along the way as well to places like alligator bridge where there are TONS of alligators just hanging out under this highway overpass {highly recommend stopping there}. We also stopped in Jaco. We stayed for maybe a total of 20 minutes... just enough time to figure we hated the beach, and eat a famous Churchill drink. 

 

Tip from the wise... bring your own snorkel gear on your vacations so you can beat the overpriced rentals and you can hop out and snorkel wherever/whenever you want. 

Our last day we decided to stay close and walk the strip of souvenir shops, and hang out at Playa Tamarindo. Carson lived his dream by snagging a surfboard and tried out his hand at surfing. 

Overall, our review of Tamarindo was very good, but not our favorite area of the country compared to others. We are glad we went but almost wish we would have spent 1 less day there and added it onto somewhere else in our trip. I know I may be bold for saying that since this is the most popular area in Costa Rica, but if you love a vacation that is just to hang on a good beach, shop around/eat food, and tourist attractions then you will love this area. Like I said earlier we loved it but we ultimately are more low key people and find other places to be more relaxing. 

Thanks for reading and look for the FINAL Part 3 of our trip coming up later this week! 

We just got back from our vacation in Costa Rica last week. It has always been my dream to go to Costa Rica (even before I met Carson). When I did meet Carson and found out he served his LDS mission in Costa Rica.... I was instantly smitten. Just kidding... but kinda. Really though, once we decided we were getting married we made it a goal as a couple to go back to his mission before we were forced to live real life and grow a family n' stuff. 

So, we decided there was no better way to spend our 2nd anniversary and booked our dream trip. 

We had so much fun planning out which areas of Costa Rica we would go to and narrowed it down to 3 areas of the country and turned it into a road trip.

We flew into San Jose late at night and were so thankful that Milton & Carolina let us stay at their house the first night before we set out on our roadtrip.  If you are familiar with the movie Meet the Mormon's, Milton and Carolina were featured in the movie and have an amazing story living as members of the church, owning a gym, and becoming a professional MMA fighter. Carson lived with them while he was a missionary prior to their movie making days. It was so fun getting to meet them and spend the night talking with them about the days when Carson lived there.

{picture above: Carson in front of the little apartment he lived in in their backyard}

Milton really gave us the royal treatment by taking us to breakfast at the local country club the next morning, drove us sightseeing around the city, and took a stop to see his gym. 

We later parted ways and started our drive south to Quepos. We pit stopped along the way to visit the city of Coronado, one of Carson's areas he also served in. We stopped at the cute blue apartment he lived in, walked around the gorgeous Catholic cathedral he contacted around every day, and went to the little shop he use to get breakfast at every morning for empanadas... and my love for meat stuffed rolls was born. 

Then we stopped by the San Jose temple and met up with the 2 sweetest ladies Daniela and her mother Irene also from an area Carson served. Since it was a Monday we knew the temple would be closed, but somehow Daniela convinced the guard to open the gates for us so we could walk around and take some pictures. Only in Costa Rica can the security guards be so kind... 

A favorite of the trip by far was visiting Manuel Antonio National Park. The beaches were some of the most gorgeous places I have EVER seen, and the monkey's are out of control. It was hilarious just sitting on the beach watching all the monkey's run up to people laying on the beach. I kid you not we saw monkeys run up and steal food right out of people hands. I was guilty of getting attacked and had empanadas stolen right from my backpack... not ok. We haven't laughed that hard in a long time!

Quepos was definitely an amazing place.  It was the most perfect little relaxing town to stay in. It was super low key, but still close to all the "attractions" you could want. We spent our days adventuring, beach hopping, and eating at sodas {Costa Rican restaurant shacks}. And our nights swimming in our pool or sitting on our balcony listening to the rain. It really was a little slice of paradise. 

Look for Part 2 of our trip coming soon!!