Costa Rica (summer 2005)

This picture was taken along the road in Costa Rica after I had just finished white-water rafting. The trip was by far one of my favorite excursions; I felt like I was going back into time as the current swept us down the river, under hanging bridges and alongside teepees. The currents didn't prove to be too challenging, and I almost finished the entire trip without falling out of the raft. The instructor spoiled my triumph, however, when at the end of the trip he snuck up behind me and threw me into the river!

My Spanish tutor in Costa Rica was a running addict, so she managed to cajole me into running a half-marathon while I was there. All throughout the race, spectators stood by offering words of encouragement and hosing us off with water. Even with the occassional dousing of water, however, I was still overheated. Of course, within 5 minutes of finishing the race, it started to downpour. Just my luck.

For a weekend, my host family took me to their vacation house nearby the "aguas thermales" or the hot springs. It was unbelievably beautiful. Imagine yourself in the middle of a jungle taking a natural bath under the cascading warmth of a heated waterfall. It was amazing - Until ... without warning, the skies opened up and it began to downpour. We knew it was dangerous to stay in the water, but we ignored our commen sense and continued to jump off the cliff we had discovered. Finally, we decided to leave and started the treck back home. 5 minutes into our return home, the trail intersected with the river, and we saw, aghast, that it had completely flooded. The water level had risen several feet; we watched in horror as entire logs were swept downstream by the current. Relieved that I had just escaped death, I was overhwhelmingly grateful to be safely returning home. My feeling of security were soon shaken again, however, when I tripped over a root and my leg plunged down into an insulated mudpit. Fortunately, one of the guys that was walking behind me pulled me out before I burnt myself. Talk about an adventure in the jungle!