Poas Volcano and Intel Visit

Today was another early morning here in Costa Rica.  We had breakfast and then got on the bus for an hour and a half drive to the Poas Volcano.  This was going to be an exciting experience because this volcano is an unique phenomenon in Latin America.  It is a water based volcano and has one of the largest craters in the world, called Laguna Botas.  The minerals that come from the volcano have a strong impact on the coffee plants in Costa Rica, making it gourmet.  On our ride up the mountain, we passed various vegetation, which was very green and full.  Upon arriving to the volcano, we realized that being up 25,000 feet was a little cold in the shorts that most of us wore.  We hiked a couple miles through rain and fog until we arrived at the first viewing platform.  However, it was too foggy to actually see it, so we pursued our trek up the mountain to Laguna Botas.  At this platform it was also too foggy to see the crater, and after waiting awhile for the fog to maybe dissipate, our hopes faded and we began our descent back to the information center and bus.  At both viewing platforms we met many friendly people from around the world, and two of our students Julia Harney and Nicole Cook were interviewed by Channel 7 and are going to appear in the Costa Rican news in February.  After Volcano Poas we got back on the bus and headed back to the hotel, where they had been preparing us lunch.  However, due to a lot of traffic and accidents, we were late arriving to the hotel, which meant we were a bit late getting to Intel.  At Intel, two employees gave us a very informative and colorful presentation about why Intel chose its Costa Rican location, the impact it has had on the economy, and the inside operations.  During and after the presentation, our group had many questions about the corporation and its inner workings.  Unfortunately due to reorganization within the building, we were unable to receive a tour of the facilities.  Tomorrow we are very excited for the Artisan Market and the Doka Coffee Estate. 

Stay classy America,
Megan Gonsalves and Julia Harney