Greens in central america

...see new photo gallery.

After visiting two internet places and receiving help from very patient people here in Liberia, it appears that our current disk is not able to be read!

It may have to be after we return:-( Iwill try over the next few days.

Gary

Hola!

We've been on the road the last while, seeing parts of Costa Rica. What a beautiful country! The distances are small, but the conditions of the roads can make even short distances seem quite long. Like the 100 km or so that took 2 1/2 hours in an ancient bus that badly needed transmission work. Some of the buses are not air conditioned either. I want you all to know that we do suffer some pain and inconvenience in our travels. For example, today we had to move our belongings into another room at the small hotel where we stay. We found the other room too noisy, as it was beneath another room which had wood floors. But we'll be ok.

Like I said, Costa Rica is small but very pretty and green. I guess it's also quite a rainy place, if you come in the wrong season, but we've had mostly good weather. Monteverde, in the cloudforest, was cool and damp, but then it IS a cloudforest! People don't have heating in their homes either. You have to huddle under blankets, if the warmest items of clothing in your pack don't do the trick. Gary discovered a coffee shop there, with locally grown coffee that they roasted and ground right in the shop. You can imagine the amazing aroma! I think Gary liked it even more than Starbucks! Also, there was a cheese factory way up there in the mountains, run by Quakers, who had moved into the area with their cattle about 150 years ago, "fleeing" the United States. And the hummingbirds...... wow!

We dreamed of warmth while in the cloudforest, and we got it - as soon as we reached the plains below. What a shock. On the Nicoya Peninsula there are dozens of beaches and beach towns. Luckily, we didn't have to go through the agony of choosing which beach to visit, since James' daughter Sarah was surfing at Santa Teresa/Mal Pais. We enjoyed a relaxed visit with her, and helped her to celebrate her 24th birthday. We then resisted the temptation to become senior surfers-on-a-pension, bought bus tickets to San Jose and then on to Puerto Viejo on the Caribbean coast.

The last few days in Nicaragua were amazing. I think the photos probably speak for themselves, but there were a lot of things we simply weren´t able to photograph - for example, the birds! How does Marty get those incredible shots of birds???? and the huge blue "morphe" butterflies, who change to a dull colour when they´re not flying, so of course you can´t find them. And the huge crocodile, which looks exactly like the mud and the rocks along the riverbank, and which quietly slips into the water as our boat sneaks up on him..... and the crazy howler monkeys way up in the treetops, howling (as they will!), and that huge iguana resting on the top branch of another tall tree.

We did a guided walk in the Indio-Maiz rainforest reserve, then visited a fort built in the 1600´s to combat the English pirates that were trying to sneak up the river to plunder the gold and other treasures they thought must be there. Funny how the Spanish called Nelson a "pirate" and the British called him a "Lord"! Different perspectives, I suppose.

Unfortunately, our enthusiasm was slightly dampened when we both experienced some digestive problems. We suspected food poisoning at the lodge, but of course there´s no way of really knowing. It was a first for this trip, and fortunately does not seem to have been too serious. But because of it, we gave up the idea of kayaking and left a day early.

What a shock to arrive in La Fortuna, Costa Rica, yesterday, and to find such a "civilized" (and EXPENSIVE!) environment. I woke up to the sounds of noisy traffic rather than howler monkeys and twittering birds. There is a real tourist element here, and although that means all the services and comforts to which we gringos are accustomed, it subtracts from the "authentic" experience we got used to in Nicaragua. Nonetheless, it is an amazingly beautiful country and has lots to offer. Tonight we are visiting the local volcano and then a hot springs.

Love to you all!
Flo

As many of you know, Gary and I are quite enthusiastic eaters. Part of the adventure of travelling is sampling the rich variety of foods available. Many times the hardest decision of the day is where to eat dinner. (yes, we do experience considerable stress - it´s not all fun and games) Central America is not exactly the gastronomic capital of the world, but we have learned to appreciate what it offers. Contrary to initial impressions, not ALL meals consist of rice, beans, and tortillas. We have tasted incredible, fresh nacatamales (ground corn, stuffed with vegies and sometimes meat, steamed in a banana leaf), delicious sopa de pescadoes (various seafood in a broth that includes coconut milk), excellent chicken, barbequed over coals on the sidewalk, omelettes made with very fresh farm eggs and served with their homemade salsa.... and we do love the "licuados" - drinks made from fresh fruit. Choice of flavours usually includes mango, papaya, orange, pineqpple, tamarindo, watermelon, banana - no coke or sprite!!! ha ha
I am not impressed with the selection of breads though. What they think of as bread is often something sweet that reminds me of white cake, or something that looks and tastes like a white hot dog bun. Not too inspiring. When they try to cater to our tastes, they offer white bread or toast, kind of like wonder bread, but the company that makes it is aptly called "bimbo". Desserts are almost non-existent, but now and then we satisfy our need for sweets by buying an ice cream cone.
We miss good bread and we miss the wonderful salads and array of fresh vegies we indulge in at home.

I have the feeling that we will not need rice or beans for some time after leaving Central America.

Tomorrow we leave for Rio San Juan, which is on the southern end of Nicaragua, bordering Costa Rica. After a few days there, it´s going to be "Ticas" (Costa Ricans´name for themselves) as opposed to "Nicas" (Nicaraguans´name for themselves). Really, they are the same people, with the same origins and culture, but for various reasons they are not fond of each other, and they have their ongoing sources of conflict.