Babymoon - Costa Rica style!

I once again have neglected the blog, but hopefully I will improve soon because we will have lots to blog about.  Tyler and I found out on October 17th that we were going to have a baby come June 2013!  I found out about our big news at my annual exam, so it truly was a surprise to myself and to Tyler.  We found out only 10 days after I ran the Chicago Marathon.  Luckily, my doctor said that everything looked good and not to worry.

Jump ahead to January.  Tyler and I had initially planned to travel to Italy the summer of 2013, but since our wonderful news prevented us from traveling at that time.  In place of Italy, we decided on taking a "babymoon" to Costa Rica, the same country that Tyler did his undergraduate study abroad.  Because our trip was only one week long (Jan 13th-20th), we made a point to spend a couple of days at 2 main points of interest.

The first few days were spent at a resort called Tabacon located outside of the Arenal Volcano National Park.  The resort featured a lush garden filled with several hot springs, mini waterfalls, tropical vegetation, and walking paths that wove in and out of retreat pools.  The springs were warm and varied in temperature.  Only one was too warm for me to totally submerge in, so I was able to stand up to my knees while Tyler enjoyed the pool.

In addition to spending time at the hot springs, we enjoyed great "Tico" food at some local restaurants.  Tico refers to the local cuisine - lots of rice and black beans in a dish called gallo pinto, mashed potatoes, grilled chicken or fish, and other side dishes such as a raddish salad and fried plantains.  We also took a volcano hike lead by a naturalist along the base of the volcano, all on level ground.  In fact, we learned that it is deadly to attempt to go to the top of the volcano, as Arenal still emits deadly gasses that has even claimed the lives of those that tried to view the crater from an airplane. 

Mid-week we took a shuttle from Tabacon to the Pacific-coast town of Montezuma, located on the southern point of a peninsula.  To get to the peninsula from the mainland coast, we had to take a ferry ride that takes about 90 minutes.

Once arriving in Montezuma, we grabbed some lunch and made our way to the Ylang Ylang resort.  Funny name but awesome place.  It was definitely the nicest place to stay in the whole town.  Actually, the resort was about a 10 minute walk down the beach and accessible only by beach.  A Land Rover carried us to and from our shuttle stop, but all other trips to and from the resort to the town center were by foot.  I've never been anywhere where the coconut trees are just naturally growing all over the place and monkeys howl at dusk.  It was surreal being in a true jungle on the beach.

Our unit was consisted of the second and third floors on the far right - a large room and loft.

One day while in Montezuma, we did an excursion via small fishing boat to a barrier island for snorkeling and beach lunch.  We saw some beautiful coast line and colorful fish while swimming.  I didn't bring my camera for that day because I feared that it might get wet or stolen:(

On our last full day in Montezuma, I attended a yoga class taught in this studio, overlooking the ocean.  The teacher was very helpful in teaching alternative moves, as I could not bend in certain ways at 16 weeks pregnant.  Tyler and I then had spa treatments.  He enjoyed a Swedish massage while I had a papaya and coffee bean exfoliation with coconut massage.  Following that, we headed out to find the famous waterfall.  Unbeknown to me, the hike to the waterfall was (at least in the eyes of a pregnant girl) treacherous.  I had "water ready" shoes on.  However, I learned that they are not exactly the most slick-resistant of shoes despite their multipurpose name.  I never fell but resorted to crawling on hands and feet at several points en route to the waterfall.

I can't talk about our trip without highlighting some of the amazing food that we ate.  I ended up taking pics of almost every meal at Ylang Ylang (breakfast and dinner were included with our stay) because it was so spectacular.

His and Hers cafe con leche.  I haven't been able to stomach coffee during my pregnancy, but I was able to enjoy the coffee in Costa Rica.  I'm not sure what is different, but there is definitely a difference - probably their French press process instead of our mass-production brewing.

Chocolate-stuffed crepe

Spicy seafood medley

Red Snapper - Tyler is more adventurous with his fish.  I prefer mine to not have eyes (or bones).

Breakfast - Gallo pinto with plantains, eggs, tortillas, and cheese.

Shrimp and sangria with a great view

Chicken coconut curry with brown rice

Lemonade with mint - I'm gonna try this during the summer!

Mahi mahi stuffed with veggies with a creamy muscle sauce

Tropical fruit-stuffed creme with homemade yogurt drizzle

This little guy decided to join us for our fairwell breakfast.  I'm pretty sure that he's the Costa Rican version of a blue jay, but he was really pretty - and persistent in getting something to eat.

 Our last day, we traveled back to the capital city of San Jose for a stay at the Double Tree in the airport area.  We walked around a local mall, visited the historic National Theatre of Costa Rica where we toured and had a cafe con leche in it's famous cafe, and finished off with a taste of the Orient by eating at a sushi restaurant.

Overall, it was a great last vacation prior to the arrival of our little bundle in June.  Stay tuned to Memphis Wolfes, as we find out on February 5th if Baby Wolfe will be Abigail Claire or Noah Michael.