One of my favorite excursions from the trip was our weekend outing to the town of Boquete. To get to Boquete, we took a boat from Bocas del Toro, the island where ITEC is located, to a van that drove us four hours through the mountains. As we drove through the mountains to Boquete, we were able to watch the climate change from a tropical rainforest to dry forest. This excursion happened in the middle of our trip, so it was nice to take a break from the high heat and humidity of the tropical rainforest and move to the cooler air in the mountains. Our first excursion was a hike to a waterfall that happened to be a habitat for a sacred bird called the quetzal. The quetzal is important to a lot of Central American countries and is known for its bright blue color and long tail. Although I did not see the quetzals, we were able to hear their call as they were flying. Not only was the trail a home for quetzals, but it also housed these gigantic Mexican elm trees. Walking through this forest among these 1,000-year-old trees definitely made me feel quite small. The hike to the waterfall was about two miles, so we stopped to enjoy the scenery once we arrived. It was truly magical standing at the base of the waterfall and looking up to the massive cliffs surrounding us flowering with vegetation. Not to mention the water from the fall was some of the freshest water I’ve ever drank. Later that day, we took a trip to the natural hot springs, which are indirectly heated by the local volcano. Since the normal temperature is already quite warm, we took turns going back and forth between swimming in the cold river and bathing in the hot spring. The rock formations in the river were also very impressive. Before the river was dammed up, the rocks were underwater, so not only were they massive, but also perfectly smooth. Overall, being immersed in the nature of Boquete was an amazing experience that I will treasure.