Hikes, waterfalls and beaches

This morning we woke up and found out that Rebecca, from Australia had been really sick in the night and was in the clinic. Technically it was a free day for us, but we had asked if we could pay Nelson to drive us to the waterfalls instead of paying a tour and Orledis said yes and he would come and be our guide. He also offered to take us to the beach. With Rebecca in the clinic, Orledis was unable to come with us, but the rest of us went with Nelson (after a quick visit at the clinic to check on our team mate). Orledis had given us instructions to get to the waterfalls but also said that we could hire a guide and gave us some prices. When we arrived, we bought our tickets and then decided to just try it on our own. 

Check out this moth! I thought it was a bird until it landed!

We had a wonderful walk through the woods with beautiful scenery. 

We walked right past this farmer's front door!

Every seen the live version of the jungle book? These are bees nests...just, thankfully, smaller than the ones in the movie!

Even though it was shady, it was very humid and it didn't take long to be ready for a dip in the fresh water pool beneath the waterfalls. Janet and I led the pack and had a great time chatting along the way. When we arrived, it was fairly empty so we were able to get some photos of the waterfall before some of us jumped in. 

The sunscreen makes me shiny....haha

I decided to go in from the bottom and went down to take off my stuff and my shoes. The rocks were large and shot up from the ground, angling in one direction, making it awkward to walk on. I nearly slipped as I entered the cool water as the rocks there were covered in algae. A man gave me his hand and helped me in. The water was freezing and it took me awhile before I could get all the way in. I didn't go far, just enjoying the refreshing pool and chatting with those who didn't want to swim. Some of the others had gone closer to the waterfall where there were also caves and said there were bats inside, no thanks! We didn't stay too long and were all ready to head back to the bus. The walk took us about 45 minutes each way and I was glad we went early as we encountered many groups heading towards the falls as we left. 

Some sheep back at the parking lot when we returned.

We got back to our casas where some people went to rest, or use wifi, and some of us went to grab lunch and then wander around. We found a great little cafe with cheap food and AC. Afterwards, we walked around, checking out markets, but the sun was getting strong. 

If you want to know how wasteful we are in North America, check out this plastic chair that's been stitched back together!

It was extremely hot out by the time I got back, but I only had 10 minutes until the beach. Diana was in the room sleeping and when I got back and told her it was nearly time, she said she didn't feel well and was going to stay back. We drove the few minutes to the beach when Nelson pulled over. He had found a flamingo! 

We arrived at the beach and found a shady spot. 

We decided to get some beach chairs and those were brought over. Three of us girls went in to check out the ocean. There was quite a bit of debris in the water but it was a beautiful colour. The ocean was really warm though so didn't feel refreshing until we go out and the breeze hit our wet skin. We sat around chatting when Ralph told us the best story. I won't give too much detail because it's not my story and I know I can't tell it as well as he does, but on his first day he found a park dedicated to ice cream, he went in, after waiting in line for an hour and was taken from a seat outside to an air conditioned room on the second floor by himself. When he was done eating his ice cream, he went to the bathroom, despite two people trying to tell him not to. When he went inside, and did his thing, he noticed a man in there, a very dirty man who looked like a chimney sweep, only wearing an undershirt. He was standing in front of the only sink, washing his personals. While that may sound disturbing, the funniest part (and I'm laughing even now writing this) is how Ralph describes it. The man was well endowed and not well kept, to put it mildly. Anyways, Ralph was a by traumatized by the whole thing, and when he left the bathroom, both people who had tried to tell him not to go in, gave him a knowing look. We all laughed until we cried as he recounted his experience. After a few hours at the beach, we headed back so Orledis could check on his patients. He was taking us out for dinner at 7 so I had a couple of hours to do some laundry and shower. Diana wasn't feeling well at all so Orledis got her a Sprite and before I went for dinner I popped out to get her a new water. 

Dinner was in another hotbox. It also had a fan which blew warm air. We were in a back room which didn't help so there was no fresh air. I wasn't that hungry and dinner included a starter and salad so I ordered the vegetable Paella. Once it came, I could barely eat as I was already full, and probably the heat didn't help. Dessert came and I passed mine on to Ralph as I wasn't feeling it but ate some pineapple garnishes instead. After we left, I felt a bit sick to my stomach, but figured it had to be the hot restaurant. I got back to the room and got ready for bed quickly as I was exhausted. I took some pepto as I was still queasy. I fell asleep right away, and a short while later, maybe an hour or two, I woke up really nauseous. I went to the bathroom where I threw up, several times. I felt much better but also worse. I went to bed after taking some more pepto first. After that, I woke up every hour, feeling like I was going to be sick or just feeling achy.