White sand, monkeys, and tourists- oh my!

We got up early today and drove down to Manuel Antonio national park. It only took about 45 minutes from the condo. We past by groves of palm trees. British lady told us that they are African palms used for palm oil- we use it in butter, soap, I guess from the look of how many trees, it's used a ton.
We parked in a lot close to the park and paid for our tickets in (10 us dollars a piece). there were tons on tour guides, but kinda expensive. So many tours, that if one was pointing out an animal, you just stopped with the crowd. We saw sloths, iguanas, and a monkey. We saw bamboo that was the size of Guam. It grows to be about 30 feet tall.
At the end of the hike are the beaches. White sand and very pretty. We swam here for awhile and it was perfect for swimming. chelsea and Corey made sandcastle for judging (chelsea's was arenal volcano and corey's was la fortuna waterfall). Seems to be place to bring kids, more families here that anywhere else we have gone. Also, a ton of American teens on tours, and so I was glad that we could leave middle school teen hangout and go back to our beach.
We drove back to the condo and had lunch at Mike's. So good!
We changed at the condo and saw that our maid had been there. Everyday she would come to the condo, hand wash the dishes, clean up, and do all the laundry. when you walk in and the clothes are all folded and but on your bed, you can't help but think- could I fit her in my carry on?
In the afternoon, the kids tried to Bogey board, but we never got the hang of it.
Packed our bags, and went into Playa Hermosa for the best pizza I've had in a long time. the owner was obviously a surfer, but we ordered a couple of small pizzas, and gobbled them up. Last day- que lastima- tomorrow we travel home!