We woke up yet again to an amazing view from the window of our hotel on the hill. After a quick breakfast of traditional Costa Rican food. We were soon on our way to ‘Santuario Las Pumas’ the puma rescue centre, which contained multiple different species of animals, including 120 parrots and toucans, and a resident ocelot called Marigordo. Most of the animals had been rescued at a very young age, however, one puma was adopted as an adult and he been on the news because he had been found starved on the side of Routa 1- a busy motorway. The puma was unable to feed himself and still is, and therefore cannot return to the wild. All of the animals in the rescue centre have sad stories like this one, and have a good reason to be there.
After a long drive to Las Hornillas mud baths, which are located in the geothermal area of a dormant volcano Miravalles, we had lunch in a local restaurant. We then jumped straight into the mud baths, and after letting the mud dry, and then washing it off, we relaxed in the hot springs, while enjoying slices of watermelon. Our tour guide explained that most of Costa Rica’s energy was sourced from geothermal energy, therefore this geothermal area is very important to the country.
Having had dry weather until now, as soon as we arrived at the hotel, we had a massive over head thunderstorm, with very heavy rain. Once the rain had died down, we settled down for the afternoon and later enjoyed a lovely dinner.
-Amaya Faulkner