On the final day of our tour, we headed from Arenal back to San Jose. We stopped along the way for a comida típica lunch and a visit to an artisan co-op for souvenirs.  The items in this co-op ranged from some campy & horrid trinkets (Costa Rica mug with enormous ta-tas comes to mind) to some really quite nice locally made furniture.  We also stopped at a grocery store for coffee and plantain chips to take back.

On the way to our hotel, we took a tour of some of the notable spots in San Jose.  It seems like a pretty typical city to me.

We then had our farewell dinner — complete with a rousing Twelve Days of Christmas adaptation (by Lis, of course) listing some of the trip’s highlights.  Our guide was visibly touched, saying nobody had ever written him a song before.  We said our goodbyes, and headed off to bed.  Most of the party flew out early this morning, but we are among the few stragglers with later flights.  We’re currently sitting in a quite pleasant little courtyard by the pool.  This morning has been a good opportunity to catch up on posting (now that the netbook is cooperating again) and getting our minds wrapped around the thought that in a few days, we’ll be back in Boston winter and back at work.

Today’s photo is of the foothills coming in to San Jose.