Costa Rica - Monteverde Rain Forest and Resplendant Quetzals

Monteverde Rain Forest
Monteverde only accessible via dirt roads "Costa rica car massage"
Established by American Quakers in the 50's seeking relief from persecusion as conscientious objectors
12 biotherms of rain forest - 7 are here
 Standing on continental divide with Caribbean wind blowing over the top to the Pacific
Hummingbirds that would sit on your hands
Bat Cave tour with Richard - passion, interest, conservation
Eating outside with Motmots and Summer tanagiers
Coop for women artists
Don Luis eating - marimba band

Resplendant Quetzels -

Best seen early in the morning at the Monteverde Rain forest parking lot.  Go figure.
Most spectacular birds I have seen.

Costa Rica 3 Finca Luna Nueava & Arenal Volcano

                                        Sustainable farming and Sacred seed gardens
                                    Tumeric, ginger for health and inflammation reduction
                                           3 toed sloth in tree - complete cycle of life
                                                              Hammocks
                                                     Toucans, monkey vines, bats
                                                   Swimming pools below volcano
                                  Chocolate, tumeric, ginger with oils like avocado or olive -eat daily
                                                        Finca Luna Nueva Lodge

                                                                   

                                                                       

             

                                                                        Arenal Volcano

                         What is better than sitting in a lovely pool looking at a still active perfect cone volcano?

Costa Rica 2 Mask Makers & Orchids

                                                                          Our trip continues

                                                                        San Antonia de Escazu 

                                                                         Visit to mask maker 

                                                           Masks made for festivals and parades

                                                                Dancing, mythys and folklore

                                                                    Witches, clay, paper mache

                                                     Jasdin esta hermosa - your garden is beautiful
                                              Visit to Randall's orchid garden and lunch with his family
                                                              Hecho mano - handwork
                                     Villa Cataline - the old woman who chased the kids out of her streams.
                              When she was too old to chase them she stole their clothes while swimming.
                                              Two acres of plants and orchids with waterfalls
                                               Irises that bloom for only a few hours then die
                                                Wilsons disease and banana plants for zinc
                                                   Juice - pineapple, papaya and banana
                                                    

Costa Rica Flowers & Schools

Tom and I just returned from a 12 day trip to Costa Rica.  We weren't able to post pictures while there (apple and Google don't play well together) so we decided to write about our journey while there and post the pictures when we returned home.  It was a spectacular trip starting in San Jose and covering the central valley, northern volcanoes and cloud forests then on to the Pacific coast.
Here are our impressions:

                                                             People - traffic - friendly
                                              Razor wire bars on walls, words I don't know
                                           Beauty and flowers everywhere, sweet sweet smells.

                                                      Poas Volcano cloud forest - only geocache

                                    Coffee red beans fruit, picking, drying,sunning, sorting roasting

                                                 Butterflies, flowers, chocolate coconut dessert

                                                              Did I mention coffee?

Ticas proud of their country, friendly, I can talk to people on the street 

No Army, no birds in captivity, value children

Bilingual, 95% literacy

Beautiful children in 3 room school house

Cerro Alegre - Happy Hill school

Girls in beautiful dresses like butterflies

National anthems

Hokey Pokey

Coconut milk, pineapples

Sweet smiles, silly boys

Washington DC

A new trip is coming up.