Who knew that one ant could do so much damage?
So today I found out that the bullet ant, is one of the most common ants in Costa Rica. It is the biggest species of ant that lives in Costa Rica, and is almost the size of the head of a USB charger (this was the closest thing to me that I could use in comparison). Its bite and sting is around the same pain level as 12 regular British bee stings all in one place. The sting then travels through your blood, and you need to seek medical attention immediately. Once again, another reason why so far most of the animals we have seen have not been my best friends.

So this morning we took advantage of the fact that all of us are waking up before 7, and so we went for a swim in the river. The current in this river is incredibly strong so we were all trying very hard not to be whisked away by the water, otherwise we would have ended up on the other side of Costa Rica. No fake snakes were spotted, but instead we saw some monkeys in the trees above. These were howler monkeys, the second species we have come across this holiday.


Breakfast was a variety of different Costa Rican dishes, including beans and rice, eggs, eggs with onions, banana pancakes, potatoes, sausage, and lots of fresh fruit. The food in our hotel/lodge is absolutely incredible and so far the best all of us have tasted in Costa Rica.

After breakfast, it was time for a guided walk around the lodge, going deep into the surrounding forest. This is where we spotted the bullet ants, along with some Blue Jean frogs, green and black poisonous frogs and a dead beetle. How lovely. So in total, two things that could potentially kill you, one that is already dead, and one not really caring about the world.
This afternoon has so far been the most exhilarating adventure yet. WHITE WATER RAFTING. I had been looking forward to this for days, but didn’t really understand what it was. I had got the idea that we were all going in individual boats, so canoeing, but would somehow stay together. The clue is in the title, which I evidently missed. Rafting.
We were thrown off, pushed in, soaked from head to toe and the only one out of the four of us who didn’t fall in was Dad. And boy was he happy about that. I actually found falling in quite exciting, but with the knowledge that unless I grabbed onto the raft, I would carry on being pulled downstream until I did something about it. Mum fell in with me, and Josh a few rapids after. Still waiting on the photos to be sent through, but will post them as soon as I get them.
Josh and I have also fallen in love with the dogs here. The hotel has three, all of them strays that they have taken in. My personal favourite, of course, the one named Lucy. She is small, brown and very cute, but she also had claws and teeth that are her greatest weapon. We didn’t know the names of the other two, so we have named them Jeff and Max. What a happy family!

So the friendly animals cancelled out the deathly ones, so everyone was happy. Josh still working on Mum for a dog of his own, but as usual, she’s not budging.
Blitz’n x
