Stan's alarm went off at 4:45. I got everyone up and going. We loaded the vans and were underway by 5:30. John had to return to his post at the Fuego Observatory so we said good-bye to him, hoping that we could get the chance to visit him at the observatory. We found our way to the Finca El Faro and I left my driver's license at the guarded gate. We drove up to the volcanological observatory, which is hidden in the coffee across the road from the observatory sign. Stan and I never saw the building last week. We were met by Alvaro Rojas, the observer, and he guided us up to the miradores close to the volcano. The vans had trouble on the steep cobblestone roads so there was lots of burned rubber and pushing before we finally reached an impassable point. Stan and I later realized it was the same place we had stopped a week earlier. We weren't as lost as we thought we were! The miradores were less than 1 km farther up the road.

Amanda set up two observation stations at Mirador San Carlos and on the road a bit closer to the vans. I walked up to Mirador Canalillo which is right in front of the Caliente Dome (2 km) and just a couple of hundred meters from the active lava flows. It wasn't long before Santiaguito erupted. It was magnificent. The next eruption occurred an hour later, then half an hour, 15 minutes, 7 minutes, and then the clouds rolled in just before 11:00. A loud eruption produced lots of flying boulders that we could see hitting the ground in the distance. Soon after, we shut down and returned to the vans. Everyone was satisfied with what we had seen.

We drove down to the observatory and Alvaro gave us a tour, showing us loads of incredible slides of the volcano in action. Afterward, we stopped by the Finca El Faro office and got permission to return tomorrow. They were very accommodating.

Once outside the gate, we took the students to Palmar Viejo. Numerous bemused locals watched as we crossed the suspension bridge and walked on top of the debris flow that inundated the town in 1991. The steep, deep canyon that now cuts through the town has developed since then since the river was displaced by the lahar. The ruins of several buildings are dangling on the cliff top.

After stopping at tienda for food and drinks we returned to the hotel at 5:00. I took my first shower in two days; whew! I needed it. I had a beer and joined the others for dinner. Most of the students had gone swimming in the pool.

I had a tasty Pechuga a la Plancha with a couple of Mojitos Cubanos for dinner.The students played ping pong. We all enjoyed a festive evening. Before turning in Kristi and I had a good talk with Luis, the owner's son, with whom I had corresponded via email when making the original reservation. He seems like an excellent guy. His English is perfect and unaccented. He learned most of it from American television.

Because of a shortage of bungalows we were moved out of ours. Ryan and Maulik were put with the other guys while Stan and I were moved into the women's bungalow and slept on mattresses on the living room floor. I swear I was asleep before my head hit the pillow.