I've wanted to go to Costa Rica for several years.  For this year's summer vacation, I decided to spend a week in Costa Rica. I usually plan trips on my own, but for this trip, I had the travel agency Pacific Trade Winds plan my trip. I was able to plan the whole thing online, which was great. To save money, I flew on Spirit Airlines down to San Jose, Costa Rica, changing planes in Fort Lauderdale.
	We landed in San Jose, Costa Rica, on time (11:30 am--Costa Rica is on Mountain time during the summer, two hours later than Michigan), but passport control and customs took a lot longer than I expected. My great English-speaking driver (Heiner Herrera, from Viajes de Aventura) met me around 12:20 pm .  We walked to the parking garage, hopped in the van, and headed out! It was a 2.5-3 hour drive from San Jose to La Fortuna, much of it through countryside, but we also drive through towns.  The towns reminded me of what I'd seen in other areas of the Caribbean. (While my first thought when I saw his windshield was of Togo, Mr. Herrera said he'd had a rock hit the windshield just a few days before and was waiting for the replacement to come in.) I had read negative things about Costa Ricans roads, but the drive to La Fortuna was fast and smooth. (The ride back, in the dark, was bumpier and twistier, but still not so bad.)
This was the van Mr. Herrera drove for my private transfer. Very comfortable!	Yes, I was all alone in the large van!
Just like on many long bus rides, we stopped for a break. This place had a little snack bar, toilets, and souvenirs.	We started on the Pan-American Highway, which is like any US highway.  We turned off that road onto smaller roads to get to La Fortuna.  On the smaller roads, the bridges are only one-car wide, so one side ofeach bridge must yield.  You can see the car on the other side waiting for us to cross.
Here was my first view of the Arenal Volcano as we got nearer to La Fortuna.
Here is the exterior of my hotel: Hotel La Fortuna.	A view of the hotel's sign on the corner.
I walked right in and checked in at this front desk.	I then took the elevator up to the fourth floor.  (I usually took the elevator up and the stairs down.)
First view of the volcano from my hotel window! I had a volcano-view room, and it was wonderful!	I was originally placed in Room 409 (with one bed), but the air conditioner wasn't working, so they quickly moved me to Room 408, which had two beds and an AMAZING air conditioner!
Another view of my room, this time showing the TV and the large window (with the volcano view).	Opposite view of the room, showing the desk (no chair), large mirror, door, and storage (clothing bar with hangers, two shelves, and the safe).  The floor was cool tile.
	The ensuite bathroom was a surprise but functional. The shower had no real barrier to keep the water contained except the shower curtain, but it wasn't a problem (unlike my hotel in Seville, Spain!).
I am not an adventurous eater when travelling.  (In Hong Kong, we ate at McDonald's, Burger King, and California Pizza Kitchen!) During my first few days in Costa Rica, I ate at Taco's Serrano, a fast food place a block from my hotel. On the first night, I got their Cheese Burger combo meal (a big cheeseburger, fries, and a 12 oz Fanta) for 3200 colones ($6.40).  Yum!