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7:22 AM, Friday, June 2nd, 2023:   I feel compelled to write now while everyone is getting ready because this trip has already been such a whirlwind, I'm not sure when I'll get another chance. This is making June 2009 look lackadaisical. We're minutes from jumping on a transport to go to the Arenal Hanging Bridges which is already the THIRD excursion and we arrived here on Wednesday. Whew.   So this first entry should be about the first video and this is where it gets really difficult. I'm shooting completely blind. Meaning - I shoot and shoot and shoot and hope and hope and hope. When I'm back home I will see what shots actually worked at which point I'll know what the entries will be. In the history of The Journey, that's never been the case. I've ALWAYS been able to check the footage from the day... THAT DAY. Like in the 90s that was possible. Just not so right now. So I have to hope that my 35 films of experience (and you'd better fucking believe I'm calling them films) was enough to make useable footage. The Arenal Volcano SHOULD be first, and it SHOULD go here...     Presuming it did? Then I can wax poetic...   So, as presumed, it's warm here. Haaaaaaaaaaaaa. Like, really humid and just... yeah. Shitty Ohio weather. These are the days in Columbus where we all collectively said "fuck this" and stayed inside or went to the pool. Climbing those stairs? Nope. Climbing those stairs as smoothly as possible holding heavy equipment? Whew. This was hard. Karen had to finally sit and couldn't get to the top of the hike. Which, I might add, is nowhere NEAR the fucking peak. I mean, I don't know what I expected, but gotDAMN this is kind of a misleading ripoff. You could easily pay your $15 to hike the trail and be done with it. There's nothing super interesting other than the fact that you're standing ON the old lava from 1968. That excitement soon passes as it's just fucking stairs forever.   But the views, yeah, they were amazing. I mean - this volcano looks FAKE guys. Like I'm on an Indiana Jones set, and they did some ILM magic. It's bizarre. And it's EVERYWHERE. Like this town 50 years ago had a fucking TRAGEDY and they thought: "Let's build an entire economy on pointing everyone TOWARDS the scene of the crime." LMAO. But you can't help but stare - it's "Getty Images" perfect when it comes to what you think the shape of a volcano is. Crazy.   Up next will be one of the more beautifully bizarre days in my life. Water, rum and chocolate....   Adam