Juniata Men's Soccer in Costa Rica Day Five

By Nate Weick

 

As an NCAA DIII soccer program, Juniata Men's Soccer plays in lots of awesome atmospheres and stadiums in the Landmark Conference. On Friday, we competed in a hard-fought match against the second team professionals of A.D. San Carlos in Alajuena, Costa Rica in their professional stadium. Much like the game against Saprissa, this match offered a unique playing environment that none of us had ever experienced before. We played under a high horizon line guided by tall mountains and volcanos in a place where the sounds of the game echoed, and in turn, intensified. Despite the 2-1 defeat, there is no doubt that we will all benefit from this experience together and improve our ability to play in any environment and make it our own.

 

Following the match, we enjoyed lunch at the restaurant in the Tilajari Rainforest Hotel. Soon thereafter we arrived at the volcanic hot springs in La Fortuna, a major tourist attraction in Costa Rica. The hot springs would line up with many waterpark experiences in the United States, except it was all surrounded by natural hot springs within the rainforest. The waterslides reminded us of home, but the variety of saunas, waterfalls and hot and cold pools welcomed us into new surroundings to enjoy. When finished with the hot springs we  enjoyed a fantastic dinner at a restaurant on site as the sun set.

 

Tomorrow we will attack our final training session of the trip on grass in the morning before transferring to the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica to spend the final few days here at an all-inclusive beach resort.

 

¡Pura Vida!