To Monteverde in the North! Amazingly the sun was out very early today and it was looking like it would be a beautiful day here in Puerto Viejo, but for me the time has come to move on. After a morning workout, 2 cups of coffee and breakfast I was all packed and ready to go. The bus station was just down the road from the hostel and when I arrived there were about 20 other backpackers also lined up and waiting for the bus. Today I have to take 2 buses: the first being 4.5 hours to the capital - San Jose and the second being also 4.5 hours to Monteverde (cloud Forrest Nature reserve). The bus journey was pretty uncomfortable with an incredibly bumpy road, absolutely no leg room and no aircon. We arrived in San Jose and I found out that I couldn't buy my ticket to Monteverde until 1pm and so went for a walk around to try and find some lunch. I found a really cool central market and a nice lady who sold me a casserole style baked chicken and salad for just under $2 (very cheap for Costa Rica). Walking through the market I found 100s of vendors selling avocado and couldn't help myself buying 4 large avocado. San Jose is not a very nice looking city with my short observation and unfortunately there are a lot of homeless laying in the streets so I am glad I don't have to spend a night here. Arriving back at the bus station I brought my bus ticket and then waited for our 2:30pm departure. I sat next to this really interesting guy from Texas and ended up chatting with him the whole bus ride about travels, life and everything else in between. We also got chatting to a couple of German girls who had just started their Central America trip. The rain started and within 30 minutes the extreme downpour had created flooding and the bus had slowed to a crawl. The scenery was breathtaking and just as the rain stopped we all got to witness an amazing sunset over the valley. The Texan guy turned out to be a preacher and as we neared the end of the journey he asked if he could say a prayer for me and my stomach (told him how I was always getting sick) - he did this very long prayer with his hand on my shoulder and to be honest I did feel something and actually really appreciated the kind act. When we arrived the German girls wanted to follow me to my hostel (of which I had already booked) so we took off in search of Sleepers sleep cheap Hostel. On arrival we met Ronny and his family and luckily they had a private room available for the German girls. It was at this point my stomach started to twist and turn (all to familiar) and I could tell I was going to have stomach problems tonight. I checked into my 4 bed dorm which was full but all the other occupants were out so I dumped my things and went looking for something to eat. Monteverde is super touristic and food is really expensive so I made my way to the supermarket and brought a few things to cook with. After making dinner I met the girls in my dorm room: 2 girls from Israel and a lovely girl from Chile. They were all so nice and we ended up talking for hours before going to sleep.

OBSERVATIONS:
- Bus trip Puerto Viejo to San Jose $11
- Bus trip San Jose to Monteverde $5
- Costa Rica capital: San Jose
- Met a preacher on bus who said a prayer for me
- Sleepers sleep Cheap Hostel
- Stomach Problems