Today we left Heredia for Monteverde. The drive was very scenic; I got to see a lot of different parts of Costa Rica that were very different from Heredia. Firstly, the geography of Monteverde is incredibly different—there are more mountains and a lot more trees. Much of the drive here was spent climbing up winding mountain dirt roads. It was really scary at some points because the drop was really steep! Also, there is a lot more vegetation here, which is expected because Monteverde is a rural area.

Something I noticed is that everything is a lot more spread out in Monteverde than it is in Heredia. As you drive through, you may see a house here or there, or a lonely fruit store sitting by itself, but everything is a lot further apart than it is in Heredia.

The people I saw were working outside. I believe that a lot of them were farmers or ranchers. I also saw some construction workers. For the most part, judging by the conditions of the houses, I get the sense that the rural communities in Monteverde are a lot poorer than the communities in Heredia. From this, I have come to the understanding that, though Costa Rica is a fairly successful country economically, there is still quite an economic gap between the middle and lower class. I now also understand how geographically diverse the country is. Coming into the country, I thought that it would mostly be heavily forested like it is in Monteverde, but now I know that, in addition to the forests, there is a lot of urban area as well.

I can’t wait to explore more of Monteverde, and see the beautiful scenery! ¡Pura Vida!