Picture: The first race of the women’s Crashed Ice competition
This past week I have seen an extreme winter sporting event and I have also joined the local swim team. The winter event I saw is part of the Redbull crashed ice tour. It is where 4 ice skaters skate downhill at speeds around 50 mph on a course with jumps, curves and also drops. It is also a very dangerous game so much so that they have to keep an ambulance near the track. In this small town of Jyvaskyla this world wide quarter finals are a very big event. It causes quite a hullabaloo.
This week I also joined the local swim team. It’s one out of two here. My first day I was pretty nervous, but then the coach introduced me to everybody (all 7 of them). It was a physically demanding work out. I didn’t know it at the time, but I swam over 3.2 miles that day. Plus I made a new friend! Overall, this week has been amazing. I am finally getting into the groove of things here in the official home of Santa.
It takes me now 15 minutes to get ready for the day.
The highlight of the week is sauna time.
Runners wear regular running clothes even in negative degree weather.
My dad got in trouble for wearing too “large” a style of swim shorts and had to borrow speedo-like swimwear in order to go into the pool.
I like being cold in the snow.
I taught myself some algebra.
I have no problem sharing a room and socks with my brother.
Weetabix and Ribena are sold here too.
I got a hat with a pom-pom on it – which is apparently all the rage here
Anyways, my mom and I have been walking around the lake closest to our house, well until it came available for us to walk across it instead. That was a very scary experience- however seeing some dogs prancing around on the snow-covered ice seemed to calm us down. I came up with the idea to stand and take a picture with the view of the lake, city, and trees; and then repeat it in that exact same spot on the same day, every month. That way we can take a step back and see how much everything here can change over 6 months.
Inclusion in Finland is really not that different than my practice at home. However, one big difference is that all students in gen ed have the right to be supported by special education teachers. At home we reserve special education for only those that qualify for sped services. The reason for this is that the aim in Finland is to prevent existing problems from becoming more serious. They use this specialized support to provide students with the systematic support teachers know that they need so that they can complete their course work successfully and move on.
I was kind of hoping for some sort of radical difference in how things are done in Finland so that I can bring home this new and amazing way to implement appropriate supports for our deserving kiddos. With every observation and interview I keep looking for this magic. Well, no surprise here, but that has led to the realization that it’s not that we need more research of how to make things better; we just actually need to be better at implementing what we already know. And I don’t mean by working harder, instead plain old simple working smarter. (I know not harder because being here in Finland away from some of the usual daily tasks of work I fully recognize how hard every one of my colleagues and I work). This distance from what has been my norm for over two decades leaves me feeling positive that we already have the strategies required to be successful. Now we just need to implement them. So I ask myself, why haven’t we implemented them? Perhaps one reason is “we” wait; we wait for someone else to make these changes to make it better. However, I am coming to grips with it no longer being up to “they” or “them”. It’s time to take some ownership and just do it. I get it, it’s easy for me to say while I am away, and easy to imagine of implementing as I think of how to incorporate back home. But now I am certain that this implementation process needs to be a critical part of my inquiry project.
Note to self: Add figuring out how to implement what we already know into our programs back home 🙂
Evidence based practices/visual supports (board maker in Finnish)
Picture: The view of distant Arenal Lake from the parking lot at Essence Plantation, Arenal
After a long drive that was perhaps only 70 km as the bird flies, we arrived at our home for the next 4 days: Essence Plantation, near Arenal. The drive from Monte Verde was exciting because half of it was on unpaved roads that were in places passable with 4-wheel drive only. The rich red earth was very muddy due to the rains and the route we were to take involved crossing a river crossing without a bridge. This was not a safe option due to the high water. So we spoke to Anthony at the front desk of our B&B before leaving and thrashed out an alternate route that had much less unpaved roads, and turned out to be absolutely beautiful.
The north side of Arenal Lake has to be one of the prettiest drives you could ever make. It seemed to me to be a cross between the best parts of Hawaii, the U.S., and jolly old England. I love smaller two lane roads as they do not dominate the land they pass through. And in Costa Rica this means that dogs standing in the middle of the road (as they did from one end of the country to the other every day we drove) have time enough to casually saunter to the roadside. A few colorful houses nestled in the palms overlooking the lake and the surrounding hillsides, and the occasional dock reached out into the inviting water. Everyone relaxed after the slippery mud sliding drive down from the mountains of Monte Verde. Even Robyn managed to unlatch her fingers from the dashboard where she’d hanging on for dear life. There was one part near the end of this drive where we crossed over the lake on a long causeway with the classic cone-shaped form of Arenal Volcano in the background that took our breath away as it was simply almost too beautiful. A few miles farther on and we reached our destination and were greeted by Banano, the colorful mackaw parrot so named as he liked to scrounge chunks of bananas from the enamored guests at mealtimes.
The plantation is basically a working farm with good amenities for visitors to enjoy while they explored and learned about the area. Unfortunately, the room we had booked was a very small, dark little cell with nowhere to hang or store our luggage. In fact, there were no windows, chairs, or any improvements at all; just bunk beds. There was a shower and restroom across the way, though. Robyn and I could not see how to make it work, especially as we had to try to make our own food as the restaurant was simply too expensive for us to eat at. Robyn went to the front desk to check to see if there was another option. A short while she came back with the location for a safari-style tent on 15 foot stilts overlooking the jungle for us to look at. It was great, and we moved in lickety-split. So much better; airy, table and chairs, and an outside deck with a covered roof for us to dry laundry. Best of all, it was very spacious and we could hear all the crazy jungle sounds while we relaxed. Leaf cutter ants paraded busily along the worn dirt pathways and following one such colony led us to the shower building. The shower was also piping hot as it was heated by the nearby volcano.
We walked up to the small outside pool on the neighboring ridge and cooled off surrounded by coffee bushes and piña plants (so that’s what they look like before they get to the store!) The daily storm clouds began to gather giving us a few minutes to collect our belongings and walk back to the tent. The downpour that followed had us all grinning at each other nervously as sheets of water thrashed the roof of the tent while the wind tried to pry the canvas from the wooden floor and stilts. Flashes of light and crashing thunder made us feel all the more cozy when it became apparent that the tent would survive another day. Later that evening as the storm grumbled away to the distance, the jungle gradually came alive with whirring, croaking, buzzing, chirruping night sounds that were much louder than we were expecting. Interestingly, they make great background noise to fall asleep to and we all slept soundly until the dawn chorus greeted us with a brand new day.
Banano working his magic with the newcomers…Pineapples – thought they’d be bigger…Meggie on our tent’s veranda
Picture: Old Town Tallinn from Kiek in de Kök (wall/tower defences)
For many people living or visiting Helsinki the option to jump on a ferry and travel to nearby Stockholm, Sweden or Tallinn, Estonia has a lot of appeal as the journey by water is interesting and fun. There’s also no airport security and shenanigans to deal with. As we were in Helsinki, we too decided to take a detour over to the other side of the Baltic Sea and have a look see what Tallinn was all about. We took the last Eckero Lines ferry out of Helsinki at 9:40pm. I was pleasantly surprised that the terminal was very modern and comfortable complete with a large glass-walled waiting area and a busy cafe that seemed to be doing great business selling Finnish and Estonian beer. A sign warning not to bring wild boar meat back into Finland made me chuckle just because of the incongruity of such a sign in my typical daily life. Where have I been going wrong? We boarded some time later amid a somewhat chaotic rush for the scanners at the gate. Mine and Meggie’s eticket chose that moment to not work causing delays and some impatient muttering from those who, I learned later, wanted to claim a good spot to sit or lie down and nap. Onboard, the ferry operators want you to buy something in one of their numerous bars or cafes in order to sit down unless you chose the stairwell which many of the male passengers actually did, making it look like a homeless shelter. However, the staff on both the trip out and back did not appear super vigilant about enforcing the buy-something-to-sit rule. Upon reaching Tallinn, we exited without seeing any customs counter and took an Uber to our airbnb apartment near the old town of Tallinn.
Upon arriving at the apartment very late (our host had kindly waited for us) we were a little worried because the hall and stairwell looked a little derelict. However, inside the the flat was lovely and very comfortable. Phew! The next day, we decided to eat some street food for breakfast at the popular Balti Jaam; an indoor market that houses all kinds of produce, clothing, food, and antique stalls under its large roof. Yet less than 5 minutes after leaving our apartment heading across town towards said market, our noses detected a delicious odor that led us to a small doughnut shop with its owner frying up fresh treats right there at the counter. Ridiculously cheap and enormously tasty. What a good start to the day.
Balti Jaam was located the other side of the old city of Tallinn and so we meandered along the old city’s gorgeous winding lanes and alleys amazed at the many buildings that managed to survive all the way from 500-700 years ago (and through the Soviet bombing near the end of WWII). So pretty! Each street was better than the last and it was with reluctance that we exited on the far side under the towering cliff and old wall that protected the city during its tumultuous history (The Danes, Germans, Swedes, and Russians have all controlled the city at one time or another since the Danes rudely took it from the Estonians.) We reached Balti Jaam just as I thought I’d gotten frostbite on my fingers from removing my gloves too often to take photos. It was much colder than Helsinki, and I think that the closely situated buildings on stone cobbled streets actually keep the temperature lower as the meager sun cannot seem to penetrate the shadows. I warmed my hands on perhaps the best hot pasties I may have ever tasted. They proved to be a very economical meal and we returned a second time the next day to sample different variations. My absolute favorite was the lamb and cheese savory delight, while the kids enjoyed the apple cinnamon. It was great to stroll around and see the various warm clothing stores and cheese wheels, etc. although Liam and I energetically explored the antique section, especially the WWII and Cold War era military uniforms and paraphernalia. I was surprised by just how many German uniforms there were most sporting swastikas which always make me feel unsettled and introverted because of their obvious implications.
Next, we decided to head back into the old city and go on a free walking tour that meets daily outside the information center. I say ‘free’, but it’s expected that people leave a tip. Our young guide was a very interesting character who, in spite of his medieval garb and jester’s demeanor, imparted a lot of information in an entertaining tour. Of course he needed someone to hold his banner and wear a silly hat, and so he chose me, the big guy at the back. Darn. Still, I acquiesced as I wanted to be a good sport and perhaps entertain the kids a little. He wasn’t too hard on me thankfully. The highlight of the tour for me was visiting a merchant’s house from medieval times that still boasted its original decor and fittings not to mention all the original beams and stonework. So cool to see how merchants got around taxes imposed by the nobility who lived up on the hill (or dome as they call it here). For example, they had to pay taxes on the number of sunrays that enter their windows, so they built walls with barely any windows or even doors in place of them. Not allowed to build wide houses? No problem, they built very tall, narrow houses that were very deep and had large courtyards behind. Some taxes/fines were worth paying, though such as splattering a disliked noble with poop thrown from an upstairs window which was thought to be worth it if you could afford it!
I also liked the way our guide mentioned that life was so unpredictable and short with death always just around the corner, that doing what you loved even if it was dangerous and killed you eventually, was actually thought to be a very good thing as life had meaning and gave the person a clean slate when they met their maker. Tightrope walkers who fell to a messy death from ropes strung between the two highest church towers (140m high) were applauded for this endeavor because people realized that to the performers, their life had meaning in an uncertain world. This was apparently recorded in the churches, by the way, so it must be true. At the end of the tour Robyn and I had some pepper schnapps as a reward for my good humor. Wow! I would recommend trying some if you get the chance-warms your entire body and peels the paint from nearby walls.
Other great things to do in Tallinn include walking the walls at the Kiek in de Kök (no it doesn’t mean that; it actually means a peek in the kitchen due to the height of the towers and wall defenses). The Bastion tour is also great as it takes you down below ground to visit a section of underground tunnels originally made for defenses, but used by many different people all through history. There are many other museums to visit if you have time and energy. I would definitely recommend staying close to the old town, or actually in it as there is much to do and lots of restaurants with live music, too. All in all, Tallinn was a great place to walk around and get lost in. Allow a little extra time for the ferries, though. Our return one today was delayed in Helsinki harbor to the sea ice blocking the dock. Crazy.
View of alley leading down from the dome area/old town Tallinn
Today was our first excursion away from our little home away from home in Jyvaskyla. We got up early and walked in the dark through the softly falling snow across town to the railway station. We’d gotten up an hour earlier than we really needed to because it’s just still so dark here in the mornings (sunrise at 9:30 am-ish) as we thought we’d sleep in. Our roller suitcases acted more like sleds in the powdery snow; twin lines marked our passage along quiet streets.
We met the Freedman family at the railway station and soon boarded our double decker train bound for Helsinki. We had a 40 minute stop at Pieksamäki to change trains and enjoyed taking some photos to pass the time. The train was a super smooth and fast and the kids enjoyed the comfy chairs and the dining car. So good to be able to stretch legs and walk around. I particularly enjoyed the viewing seats up top that were spaced about 4 feet apart with their own little side table and were oriented to huge viewing windows offering views of the seemingly endless forest. Eventually we made it to Helsinki, and stepped out into a bustling metropolis. Our initial impressions (only strengthened during our stay) was that Helsinki seemed to be a mix between a modern western city such as London and old school Eastern Europe. Some of the buildings had a distinctly soviet era look to them, which is not really all that surprising. No matter, this was Helsinki in wintertime! So cool.
We checked into the Scandia Hotel on Siltasaarenkatu a Unionsgatan (NE from the Central Railway Station). This is a major street with lots to do nearby and easy access to the trams and Metro, both of which are cheap and ridiculously easy to use. You can even buy one way or 24 hour multi-use tickets at any R-Kiosk (like a 7-Eleven store). The Scandia hotel is also a great place to stay and has a very tasty and varied breakfast buffet which we probably enjoyed a little more than we should have. Across the street is the Hakaniemi Market place which I would definitely advise a visit to if you are in the neighborhood. This temporary building (apparently) holds about 40 small stalls that sell everything from great quality baked goods, fish, meat, crafts, soup, and gifts inside a welcomingly warm setting. Not as big as the Market Food Hall down by the harbor, this little gem offers some great and well-needed food when the body feels drained after sightseeing.
That first day we enjoyed ice skating at the rink right beside the Central Railway Station. There are no handholds, so beware if you are a beginner like me. However, the Helsinki city lights grew brighter as the sun faded and we enjoyed being together with the other Fulbright grantees and their respective families as we slid happily around the ice. As we ended our session and walked to our next event (a coffee experience at Paulig Kulma) large fluffy snowflakes danced around us giving the evening a festive air. The event at Paulig Kulma was a fun affair where we learned much about coffee and the process of bringing it from bush to cup. My daughter and son both engaged in the background learning, roasting, and tasting/pairing of coffee. Sadly our daughter now wants coffee every morning just like her bleary eyed parents. Thanks, Paulig…
The next day, the grantees were busy working giving family members the chance to get out and see Helsinki. Our family decided to go see the Helsinki City Museum (free). There was a very typically Finnish nature resting area complete with hoop swings, beanbags, greenery, and piped meditation music. The museum was hosting an exhibition called Fear in which the artist explored the concept of fear and what it means to different people. The kids really enjoyed the mildly upsetting exhibit as it really opened the door to conversation about fear and how it impacts our lives. I was proud as my kids wanted to share ideas that would prevent fear or at least put it into its place.
Later that afternoon, we met up with the grantees and boarded a coach to Lake Vitträsk and Villa Hvittorp, a well known mansion that hosts conferences and has a huge sauna next to the lake for cold water dips in between sauna sessions. While the grantees left to participate in their breakout sessions, the family members joined Johanna, a sauna expert, to enjoy a quiet sauna. The Villa Hvittorp sauna can easily hold 30 people, but we 8 or so people loved the experience of quiet meditative sauna followed by avantu (cold water swim) in the frozen lake. I’d been a little concerned because the hole chopped into the lake was a good 30 feet from the wooden dock. As I’m not a seal, I wasn’t sure if I could haul myself back up from the hole in the ice to safety (and continued life) without a ladder. Thankfully, the staff chopped a new hole so I wouldn’t have to embarrass myself by opting out. The water was uniquely cold as I walked barefoot across the ice on the dock and without any further ado went straight down into the water up to my chin. By now I have kind of mastered breathing slowly and steadily in such cold water rather than gasping and holding the breath which is a little dodgy and, ironically, makes the water seem colder. Johanna had said that taking avantu during a sauna session was fine, but doing it without sauna was unthinkable and much colder. I wondered how this was possible, yet as I pulled myself up the ladder with aching shins (why there?) I knew that I was a convert and would try to do it as much as possible. In fact, I did it another 3 times during my 2 hours in sauna. I’m also proud to say that my kids and Robyn, too did a fine job also! I think it’s more of a psychological barrier rather than a physical one.
The next day, we visited Espoo Museum of Modern Art Emma and enjoyed a private tour and lunch courtesy of the Saastamoinen Foundation who support new artists and the work of many researchers in Fulbright Finland. We had lunch there and then left the grantees who were going to visit a local high school. The kids and I opted to visit the Natural history Museum and were surprised to see it filled with military officers with much braid and medals on their uniforms. Many looked like generals to me! I saw Russian, Finnish, Estonian, and American uniforms as we wandered around the small but great museum. So strange what you will encounter when traveling…Generals and dinosaurs 😉
Picture: The Finnish people really enjoy family time, so to embrace the ideal here is my family relaxing on ice after a good day’s work in Helsinki.
What I know right now-I know that I continue to be in awe and at the same time overwhelmed by this Fulbright gift, and eager/excited to dive further into my project.
This past week I was invited to Helsinki to meet with the Fulbright Finland Foundation. Meeting with other Fulbright grantees provided access to some of the most respected educators within this country providing a stimulating arena for answering key questions about Finland’s educational system. Given that my focus is special education, as per the norm, my platform is special, and I have to find my way to get my specific questions answered, as they typically aren’t a part of the overall spiel. So in typical and uncomfortable Robyn fashion I spoke up not just in a staff meeting, but to some “higher ups” within the realm of the Finnish educational system.
This provided our group with many insights to the Finnish education system and has thus created a stronger foundation for this inquiry project. The Finnish Counselor of Education, Elija Kauppinen, responded to my questions about how students with special needs access the National Curriculum and I absolutely loved her response! “Teachers are not implementers of curriculum they are constant developers of curriculum. With this process all students have the opportunity to find their own potential.” Wow! How often I am conflicted back home with the given curriculum knowing full well that if I could tweak this and alter that then my student would have access to the meaningful components of what we are told to teach.
I then heard from Hanna Bjorkman the head of International Relations from the city of Helsinki who was so proud to share that in Finland the poorest child could have the best education. She continued to share that when former President Barack Obama came to Finland how he too was taken with this statement. It really resonated not just with me but every person in attendance of this conference. The big question is how can we shift our educational system to meet the needs of ALL of our nation’s children. When I have the answer to this million-dollar question I’ll be sure to shout it from the rooftops.
Finally I was able to speak with Maija Heikkila, A Fulbright Alumni who is a teacher at the University Teacher training School in Vikki, about how accommodations and modifications were made in Finland. She helped me to understand that plain and simple in Finland teachers are Trusted. This word trust has since come up again and again when meeting with educators throughout the country. This trust allows educators to do what they know to be best for their programs and for their students. Trust, such a simple word and yet so powerful. How can we as educators be trusted to make the multitude of decisions we make each day? In fact, I had just shared via email with one of my teacher candidates back home about this word trust. That she needed to trust that her instincts were right and that by sharing how she made these decisions perhaps her administrator would begin to trust thus understand and appreciate the multitude of decisions she made each day.
So I leave my educator friends and family members with this:
1. Trust that you know what you are doing and do it confidently, if you have trust then perhaps this will spread so more people trust you (us)
2. You are the developers of the curriculum-don’t implement but make it your own!
3. Teach each student because no matter their ability and/or background they absolutely deserve the very best.
Picture: Meggie and Liam ice skating in downtown Helsinki
We went on quite the journey this week; starting with two train rides into Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Primarily, the overall reason as to why we were in Helsinki, was because of meetings that mom needed to be a part of, due to being a fulbright. Dad instead took the two of us to wander around the city. We happened upon a museum that concentrated on different aspects of fear. We were lead into quite a unnerving hallway with several doors to choose from; from there we went into all the different rooms that described different fears one may have. It was very interesting to see that even though our immediate thought was that some particular fear wasn’t our deepest concern, we had come to understand how these objects or ideas would indeed be scary. After we went through that exhibit, we went to this wonderful indoor green room that was filled plants, and calming sounds. Both of us quickly made our way to this wooden lyre-like swing that you could sit on. We both agreed that the way you would rest on it resembled the man on the moon in Dreamworks animation.
Everyone from Fulbright got to board a bus for an hour trip to this beautiful old mansion, where we then went into the sauna and eventually jumped into a hole chopped into the frozen lake. It’s hard to explain what the rush of the ice water and air feels like after a deep meditation in a very humid room before hand. This was a great time for everyone to connect and get to know each other, just like how a sauna is originally meant to help with.
After a few days in Helsinki, we departed by ferry to get to Estonia, our next adventure. As we stepped out onto the frosty deck the wind was chilling, reminding us of how very north we were. The dark night was very beautiful, the ice was floating lazily by and far off islands were caked in freshly fallen snow. Seeing this made the wait to arrive all the more rigorous.
Estonia has come to display itself as a city of both very old, and very modern. You would look out the window of our Airbnb and see very novel, exemplary buildings that look like they came from a very fortunate part of LA. But then you would turn your head every slightly to the left, and see all the smaller stone buildings of Old Town. Some of the structures were originally built roughly in the 16th century. It’s very clear that this town has a lot of history and has been through many hardships both from of recent and ancient.
Our time in Estonia and Helsinki was spent learning the rich history of both towns, we strongly suggest for others to come on over and do the same.
The Monte Verde Tropical Cloud Forest Reserve is a truly wondrous place. This old growth reserve is a teeming mass of different hues of green that crowd the narrow trails on each side and above. I’ve never seen so many different types of ferns, palms, trees, vines, bushes, and flowers including 100’s of types of plants that extract all their moisture needs directly from the air. Strange bird calls echoed in the perpetual twilight and water dripped constantly from the canopy way above our heads. The place had an earthy nurturing feel to it; a kind of green embrace. It felt as though we were traveling back in time to the land time forgot. As with other cloud forests we’ve visited so far, the racing clouds kept the temperatures cool. Then the rain began.
It rained and rained. Then rained some more. We all had ponchos, but ended up soaked on the inside due to the humidity and exercise. After a while, we voted to end our hike and return to the visitor’s center for a hot drink and something sweet to eat. Liam suffered particularly on the way back due to his wet long pants which were whicking the heat away from his body. It took a long time for him to warm up in the visitor’s center as they had the AC blasting. However, I felt fortunate to have have experienced such a wonderful forest. I also understand why native peoples in the jungle tend to wear hardly any clothes. It’s better to let skin dry rather than wait for clothes to dry which takes forever in the high humidity.
On our drive back to the B&B, we stopped at a roadside craft center which offered a few different boutiques. We had a cup of tea and reflected that Monte Verde seems to have a more spiritual and natural vibe than nearby Santa Elena. It’s more of a collection of houses, boutiques, and hotels. In the afternoon we dried out and took a nap to recharge before heading out to a small, cheap restaurant in town for pizza. Next up is Arenal/La Fortuna. We’re to stay at a working coffee plantation with seemingly no way to cook our food cheaply (too expensive to eat at the on-site restaurant). Darn. Will pack some emergency supplies and look for things that can be eaten without cooking. So long cloud forest! Pura Vida!
Picture: Snapshot of the Canopy Adventura flyer showing the butt-quivering drop
We had a great meal at a little place down the street called Salvadita Typical Food last night. Let me tell you that the food and price was way better than reasonable. We all tried something different and enjoyed sampling each other’s plate. The kids’ eyes kept straying to the little TV on the wall playing Los Simpsons in Spanish. I couldn’t seem to prevent it from happening, so I contented myself with the thought that at least the kids were absorbing more Spanish…Made it home before the evening downpour and thunderstorm got into high tempest gear.
Today we went on a zipline tour. Liam had seen the pictures and was a little unsure if he was going to do it all or not. As it turned out, he confronted his fears and did the first 6 drops which were not the extreme ones. I actually enjoyed these as I was more interested in enjoying the forest than getting a real adrenaline burst. The lines were all good, and the harnesses and safety equipment seemed well maintained. I also appreciated the short instruction at the start point in which the guides went over what to do and not to do, especially with regards to braking and where to put your hands. I learned that it is not advisable to hold the cable in front of the rollers as you will lose all your fingers. The correct hand placement for the drops that required self-braking was behind the rollers on the cable. It was enjoyable to be amongst the tress moving so quickly. When Liam stopped after the sixth drop, I decided to stop too as he would have to make his own way back to the center and wait for us. I’m glad I did: Robyn and Meggie decided to carry on and do the whole thing including a huge 134 foot bungie cord freefall starting from 295 feet high. I guess they were surprised by this as the actual drop was kind of hidden away at the end of a rope bridge until it was their turn and thus too late to chicken out. Robyn was still shaking 45 minutes after she made it back to earth safely. Meggie just had a blast. This was the grand finale of the tour (not sure if they could have dealt with anymore 😉
Note: if you have any issues with heights or with nausea/motion sickness, I would recommend either not taking this tour or bailing out after the first 6 as Liam and I did. That way you can at least experience what it is like without the unpleasantness. Robyn’s constitution was a little shaken up for an hour or two afterwards. Also, if you are bringing children, even teens, if they are on the small side you should be aware that the guides will attach them either to an adult or even another kid. On one long drop, Meggie found herself attached to a teenage boy which made Robyn feel a little uncomfortable as it looked a tad awkward. I would also recommend taking a walking tour first as you really get to see the plant life in the canopy at a pace that allows viewing plant and animal life rather than just viewing a green blur.
Back at the B&B, we looked some more at the map to plan out the next few stages of the trip. We all agreed that the Caribbean Coast to the west, and the Osa Peninsula to the extreme south would be favorite places to explore. However, due to the long distances between each location, we have to include 3-4 extra stops to keep our sanity (no offence, Raul!) The good news is that all these stops have something good to see and that we will still have a solid week on the Caribbean coast (not including Tortuguerro) as well as almost a couple of weeks down on the south coast. I’m looking forward to running on the beach and swimming in the warm ocean. Did you notice the keyword, “warm” with regards to the ocean? Being up in higher elevations with so much rain has actually left us feeling chilled quite often. Tomorrow is our last full day in Monte Verde, and I think that we are all ready to move on. It’s good though as we now know that 3 days is really the max to spend at a place this size unless you have deep pockets and want to try multiple ziplines, night tours, etc.
