Costa Rica Days 13 - 15: Snorkeling in Cahuita and Pacuare Whitewater Rafting

A post without photos . If I *had* any readers, I'm sure they've now given up on today's post

Activities over the last two days mostly occurred in and around water, so consequently my amateur, non-waterproof camera got sidelined. Fortunately for me, many of the students have GoPros and/or waterproof cameras, so in exchange for the dozens of photos they've lifted from my Facebook :) I'll eventually borrow a few of theirs to supplement this post.

Thursday morning, we drove out to Cahuita for a few hours of snorkeling just off of Cahuita Point (about 20 minutes north-ish of where we were staying in Puerto Viejo). The weather was lovely and the water was warm. I know less about fish identification than I do about bird identification (so...nothing and slightly-more-than-nothing-but-not-by-much), so I'll just have to settle for having seen purple fish, yellow fish, blue fish, a nurse shark, brain coral, a bunch of other coral, and a cute little white-faced capuchin monkey that came to visit us during our snack break (on land).

After snorkeling, the students had a few hours of free time before GEO class, so a small group of us walked over to the beach to rent some surf boards to try out our newfound surfing skills. Unfortunately, on this particular day our skills were nowhere to be found. We returned to the hotel humbled with bellies full of saltwater, but we had fun nonetheless.

We closed out our time in Puerto Viejo with a lovely dinner at Stashu's, a Caribbean-fusion restaurant. Junior joined us. Lance, if you're reading this, I'm supposed to tell you "hello" from him. Junior is truly one-of-a-kind. And that kind is awesome. I sincerely hope I get to see him again someday.

Okay, onto Day 14. Actually, I have no idea if it was Day 14. My days are totally out of whack. Anyway, moving on.

Yesterday we left Puerto Viejo shortly after sunrise (well, no, not really. The sun rises at 5AM here. We left at 6:30AM) to embark on our next adventure: rafting the Pacuare River. I didn't really have any expectations for this leg of the trip. My whitewater rafting experience is limited to the southeastern US, and although the rivers are really nice in the Southeast, I've never really been overwhelmed by the experience of whitewater rafting. Well, I can stand before you as a changed person after rafting the Pacuare.

The Pacuare River is touted as being one of the top 10 rivers in the world for commercial rafting. (along with the Zambezi, the White Nile, etc.) Other judges put it in the top 5. Go run the river and decide for yourself. I thought it was pretty incredible. In addition to having loads of class 3/4 rapids, the surrounding scenery was breathtaking.

We rafted with Costa Rica Extreme, and if any of my outdoor colleagues are planning a trip to CR, I cannot recommend this company more highly. The owner of the company and one of our guides, Manuel, has a vision for his company to eventually exclusively work with student groups (rather than general tourists) because of the educational component of their company's mission. The guides would occasionally stop our rafts on the river to let us swim and also teach us about the local ecosystem (plants, rocks, animals, etc. Ecosystem-y things).

We did a 2-day/1-night expedition with an overnight stay at their ecolodge. The ecolodge was awesome. I wish I had a better word to describe it. Rustic, clean, picturesque, comfortable, natural. It was kind of like glamor camping in paradise. The guides (5 total) cooked some of the best meals we've had on this trip, the groups stayed in beautiful wooden bunkhouses with screened windows, and the common area was a pavilion with hammocks overlooking a beautiful view of the river. The company is working on creating a nursery where groups can plant trees if they are interested in completing a service project. Additionally, there a several trails leading in and out of basecamp for hiking--one of which leads to an indigenous community that lives near the river.

Y'all. I just reread that paragraph and I don't think anything I wrote would constitute a properly formed sentence. I'm sorry. Take my word for it, the rafting and the ecolodge were both great. The students clearly expressed that this was among their favorite activities (and food)--if not THE favorite activity of the entire trip. And I love that it didn't feel like a contrived tourist experience. We really got to spend meaningful time conversing and getting to know our guides and the time spent at basecamp made us feel like a part of the CR Extreme family.

And at the conclusion of our river trip, we are once again back on the bus...

...A few hours later, we have officially arrived in San José for the last leg of our trip. We are staying in Hotel Don Carlos, which seems to be pretty centrally located to the downtown (shopping) area and is close to many interesting-looking restaurants. Tomorrow is a free day for everyone, so I will spend my morning trying every empanada I can find before meeting up with my old pals from the University of Costa Rica for an early dinner tomorrow night. I cannot wait to see them!

Costa Rica Day 11 - Caribbean Dance Lessons, Jaguar Rescue Center, Surf Lessons

I was a bit loquacious in yesterday's post so I'll try and keep this one short, which is difficult to do when we keep doing AWESOME THINGS ALL DAY.

Afro-Caribbean Dance Lessons

We started the morning off at Salsa Brava, a dance studio/Reggae beach bar. Miss Wanda, the owner, led us through a series of dances, including bachata, salsa, and one of the Afro-Caribbean dance styles (don't remember the name...) that is typically danced for carnival. My loyal readers reader (thanks, Mom) might remember that we learned bachata and salsa while we were in Monteverde. The Afro-Caribbean style of both of these dances is slightly different. More hips and hands. The class was great fun due largely to Miss Wanda's infectious positive energy. We were all drenched in sweat by the end of it. Like...my sweat had sweat.

Getting physically and mentally psyched for the morning's dance session.

This was as coordinated as we ever looked.

Salsa Brava/Reggae Nights is right on the beach--very cool setup!

The woman standing next to me is Miss Wanda. The woman can dance! 

El Centro de Rescate Jaguar (Jaguar Rescue Center)

From Salsa Brava, we ventured down the road to El Centro de Rescate Jaguar. Started in 2004, the CRJ is a rehabilitation center for animals who have been injured, illegally kept as pets, abused, abandoned by their parents (due to death or other unforeseen circumstances), hit by cars, electrocuted, shot, etc. Learn all about the history and mission of the CRJ here. Our guide, Sky, along with the other volunteers oversee the care, rehabilitation, and (in most cases) eventual release of the various animals that find their way to the Center. We saw many different types of birds, monkeys (including lil' baby monkeys), reptiles, jungle cats, and a few other odds and ends. The very sequenced process by which the Center builds their animals capacities to function in the wild was really fascinating.

Our tour guide, Sky, is giving us an overview of the CRJ. 

If you look closely, you can see the eyes and tails of little tadpoles. These frog eggs are days away from hatching.

Tammy the Anteater may not ever be able to return to the wild, but he has a good life at the CRJ.

Some volunteers just have to hold baby monkeys all day.

I mean...does it need a caption?

Surf Lessons

After the CRJ, we broke for lunch and then quickly headed out to Playa Coeles for a 2-hour surf lesson. Y'all. Surfing is harder than it looks. I wish that I would have taken pictures during the second half of the class instead of the first half. We all eventually got up on the board and many of us definitely got the hang of it by the end of class, but the first 20-minutes was wipeout after wipeout. Our primary surf instructor, Herschel, is Miss Veronica's son (our cook/hostess from last night).

Lessons on the land.

Started like this...

Got better...

...Total pro.

As promised, cutting myself off for the night!

Costa Rica Days 9 - 10: Puerto Viejo

We made it to the Caribbean side!

After leaving Rancho Margot yesterday morning, we made a quick stop to Arenal National Park to walk on some lava flows (and I stupidly left my camera battery in my suitcase in the back of the bus, so no photos) and then set out for our cross-country drive. Here's a map:

We arrived in Puerto Viejo shortly after dinner. Puerto Viejo reminds me of time spent in Jamaica on account of the Afro-Caribbean influence found in the dialect, food, Rastafarian style, etc. Very different atmosphere from the northwest part of the country, but as with anywhere we go in Costa Rica, the east coast Ticos are incredibly warm and accommodating.

At dinner, we were met by three representatives from ATEC. ATEC is a local non-profit dedicated to promoting tourism of the Talamanca region through LOCAL guides and businesses. Read about ATEC here. ATEC is responsible for coordinating our activities while we are in Puerto Viejo. One of the representatives, Junior, is this funky Rastafarian with a great sense of humor and laid-back attitude. He has and will continue to accompany our group on all of our excursions while we are in the region.

Oh, I should mention that our hotel accommodations in Puerto Viejo are pretty baller. We are staying in La Costa de Papito, which is a local restaurant, spa, and hotel. But really, it's not a hotel. It's a bunch of beautiful bungalows.

Okay, onto Day 10.

We woke up and ate breakfast, met Junior, and set out for the Manzanillo Wildlife Reserve. We were met by our two local guides, Omar and Tino, who split the students into two groups (one guide per group). Marta and Junior went with Omar, and I went with Tino.

Before we entered the Reserve, Tino had us stop by his house so he could change into shoes that were suitable for trekking through the jungle. En route to his house, he gave us a tour of his INCREDIBLE garden. For about half an hour, we played "guess what plant this is" using our senses of taste, smell, sight, and touch. We got to see/try/taste/touch cinnamon, ginger, all-spice, starfruit, breadfruit, cashew, turmeric, lemongrass, citronella, tattoo ferns, mimosa, and probably 3-4 other things that have slipped my mind already.

Oh, and pipa (green coconut).

Our tour through the Reserve was incredible. Interestingly enough, each tour group got a very different tour experience. Marta/Omar's group carried a theme of "Nature is kind! Look at all the wonderful things nature wants to share with you!" They got to try all sorts of wild plants (cacao, banana) and see cute, cuddly sloths up-close on the beach.

Our group, on the other hand, got the "Everything in nature wants to kill you" tour. Don't get me wrong, we LOVED it. But I just found it funny that our tours were so different.

Things that we saw/did on our tour:

1) Lots of plants with barbs sticking out of them--nature will defend itself by any means possible!
2) The bullet ant. According to the Schmidt Sting Pain Index (a real thing--read about it here), the bullet ant has the most painful sting of any insect in the world. Schmidt, the entomologist who came up with the pain index, actually allowed himself to be stung by all of the animals included on the scale. Yowzers.
3) Red poison-arrow frog.
4) Spectacled caiman.
5) Tiger ant. Not as bad as the bullet ant, but still looks pretty gnarly.
6) 2 eyelash pit vipers. Surprisingly enough, the Gerbers kids have always been interested in learning about snakes, and this was probably *the* animal that I wanted to see the most while in Costa Rica. Eyelash vipers are arboreal venomous snakes that are known for their distinct superciliary scales over their eyes (hence the name) and for their color variations. We saw a bright yellow viper and a brownish one that really, REALLY blended in with its surroundings.
7) Some big-ass spiders. And I let one CRAWL ALL OVER MY FACE.
8) The most adorable red-eye leaf frog.
8) Howler monkeys, sloths, birds, butterflies--you know--the boring stuff (I kid, I kid...).

Everything in Costa Rica wants to kill you. Except the cute little red-eyed leaf frog.

After the Reserve, we stopped for lunch at a local family's house (the Caribbean chicken was delicious), and with with beach-ready-food-bellies, we went to Punta Uva for a service project and a few hours of beach time. In half an hour, we picked up approximately 45 lbs of trash that had either washed down the mountains during heavy rains or washed up on shore from careless tourists and locals. The students were all very enthusiastic and worked hard during the clean-up. After the morning's trek through the jungle and beach-clean-up, we were ready for a swim.

After a short break at the hotel, we headed to Miss Veronica's Place, a local B&B where Miss Veronica and her family offer cooking classes and a bunch of other historical/cultural activities for visitors.

Miss Veronica is of Afro-Caribbean descent. She wanted to prove that not all Afro-Caribbean dishes involve rice and beans, so we cooked an absolutely-mouthwatering-jaw-on-the-floor-it-was-so-good-I-would-have-bathed-in-the-sauce fried mackerel with boiled yuca and a salad. Miss Veronica was lovely--such a kind, hospitable woman...and a hell of a good cook.

I am going do to my best to recreate the recipe here, but I have no measurements (because, like all real cooks, Miss Veronica doesn't need to measure) and I'm trying to piece ingredients back from memory--students, help me out!

Fish:

Dry rub:

3-4 cloves fresh garlic

turmeric

black pepper

salt

oregano

Batter:

Corn flour or brown flour (we used corn --gluten free!)

Salt

Pepper

??

Coat fish in dry rub, dip in corn flour mixture, fry in oil until cooked

Serve with onion/pepper mixture:

1 LARGE onion (white or yellow, but it needs to be big) cut into very thin slices

1 scotch bonnet pepper thinly chopped (CAUTION: this sucker is really, REALLY spicy. It gives the dish a great Caribbean flavor, but scotch bonnet peppers are not for the faint of heart)

Organic vinegar (she used banana vinegar...not sure what a banana vinegar substitute would be)

Sauté the onion/pepper in the vinegar until the onions are soft. Serve over fried fish.

Yuca --we boiled the yuca and she served it in some sort of secret vegetable sauce. The sauce was tasty but too complicated to learn during the duration of our class.

Salad dressing A.K.A. Best Dressing in MY LIFE:

juice of 4-5 mandarin limes

2 heaping tablespoons of honey

1 clove garlic

turmeric

salt

pepper

olive oil (a splash)

...what am I missing??

Okay, that's as good as I can do to recall the recipe for tonight. In short, it was delicious and we had a great time making it!

Costa Rica Days 7 & 8 - Rancho Margot

Greetings from Rancho Margot! I took a day off from scribing because I didn't want to waste what little time we have here in front of a computer screen. With that being said, the last 48 hours have been spent hiking, paddling, touring, eating, hammock napping, more hiking, natural-pool-swimming, practicing yoga, and reading, so I figured it was time to get caught up.

We left UGA Costa Rica around 7AM yesterday and drove a few hours to Arenal. Arenal is slightly northeast of Monteverde and lower in elevation. It's also home to Vulcan Arenal, one of 6 active volcanoes in the country. We arrived at Rancho Margot slightly before lunchtime, and after lunch, we split into two groups for a tour of the ranch. The ranch is similar to Racho de Lelo in that sustainability is a major focus. They generate all of their own hydroelectricity, grow a variety of crops, keep chickens, pigs, and cows, use a biodigester to provide heat for their natural pools, etc.

Our tour guide, José, was extremely personable and conversational. He spoke very good English but also encouraged our students to practice their Spanish, so our tour was a fun blend of both. Throughout the tour, he'd hand us various crops to try and then have us guess what they were. We tried mustard greens, lemon grass, spearmint, anise...and a live worm. Yep. Ate a live worm. What's more, I ate a live worm out of a soil/manure mixture. I figured after the dumb cane incident, a live worm couldn't be THAT bad. I feel like I'm playing Russian Roulette with foreign substances here. Wonder when my good luck will run out.

After the tour, a few of the students and I went to check out the natural pools. The warm pool is heated by methane generated from the ranch's biodigester. It was very pretty. I regretfully don't have very many pictures from the tour or warm pool because it was raining heavily for a significant portion of the afternoon and I didn't want to chance ruining my camera.

You can see pictures of all of Rancho Margot's amenities here. After the warm pool, the students had lecture, so I was left to my own devices. I finished a book and was lights out by 9PM. It felt fantastic.

Oh, I should mention that our lodging accommodations here are FANTASTIC. The students are in a communal bunkhouse with a very nice front porch. Marta and I each have our own private bungalows. Might be the most picturesque lodging in which I've stayed. Ever. The students accidentally walked past the bunkhouse and stumbled into my bungalow (before I got there) when they were first looking for their lodging. Needless to say, they've been giving Marta and me a non-stop hard time about the disparity in living arrangements. What can I say, being faculty has its perks.

Okay, Day 2.

We woke up early for an outdoor yoga class. M.J., the instructor, taught the class in an open-flow style. It was good for beginners. Lots of focus on breathing and mindfulness. The class was taught in a raised outdoor pavilion overlooking the river. It'll be hard to return to yoga in an indoor studio after practicing yoga in paradise.

After yoga, we ate a quick breakfast and then headed down to Lake Arenal for a guided kayaking tour of the lake. We paddled to the base of Vulcán Arenal, where Marta and our guide, Aurelio, gave a short lecture on volcanoes and a history of the area. Getting to have a GEO lecture at the base of a volcano while on a kayak is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Despite slightly windy conditions, the students did a great job paddling. I didn't take pictures of our paddling expedition because again, camera + water = :(

After paddling, we ate lunch and immediately set out for our hike to El Mirador ("lookout point"). I might add that today was fairly PEDB content/activity heavy (PEDB 1090 "Outdoor Adventure" is the class I'm teaching. In case you're wondering, yes, I do have responsibilities while I'm here). This hike was no joke. Rough, muddy, uneven terrain, and pretty much a straight climb uphill in direct sunlight. By the time we reached the top, our sweat was sweating. But it was totally worth it--the vista provided incredible views of the volcano and Lake Arenal.

After the hike, the students had a GEO class so I had a few hours to myself. I spent the first hour reading a Stephen King novel in the hammock on the porch of my bungalow. I used my second free hour to hike El Sendero del Bosque ("Forest Trail"). Another difficult trail in terms of terrain but not nearly as uphill. The trail ended in the vegetable garden, so I was able to snap a few pictures of locations that I wasn't able to document while we were touring in the rain on the previous day.

Tomorrow, we set out for Arenal National Park and then drive cross-country to Puerto Viejo, which is located on the Caribbean coast. Tomorrow is a long travel day and I'm not sure what the internet situation is at our hotel in Puerto Viejo, so I may be off the grid for a few days, which as far as I'm concerned is a great thing--it's good to unplug every now and then. I hope I have an opportunity to return to Rancho Margot in the future. This place is something special.

My bungalow's porch.

The other side of my bungalow's porch.

Bungalow Bed 1

Bungalow Bed 2

The most perfect reading spot.

José giving our tour.

"La Reina del Noche." Beautiful, but toxic. The flowers bloom at night.

Early morning yoga by the river.

We made it to El Mirador ("Lookout Point"). That's Vulcán Arenal in the background.

Our wonderful students. Seriously, they're fantastic. Great attitudes and appreciation for the trip.

I've lost count of all of my neature walks.

Happy in nature.

View of the garden.

The clay studio. The resident artist designs pottery in the style of the indigenous people of this region. 

The ceramic work is beautiful!

Costa Rica Day 6 - Birdwatching and Water Quality Sampling

Today's schedule is very content-heavy for Geology, so we've spent most of the day on-campus.

We started our morning with 6:30AM birdwatching. We were very lucky during our birdwatching session. We saw blue-gray tanagers, parrots, chachalacas, an emerald toucanet, and a bellbird as it was flying off. We also saw a variety of wrens, jays, and flycatchers. 

After breakfast, the students had a GEO lecture followed by a water quality sampling lab. I tagged along for the lab to take pictures. I can't even possibly begin to understand or explain the water sampling and testing process, but it seemed interesting from my vantage point.

Tomorrow, we leave for Arenal. I'm not sure what the internet situation will be, so this may be the last post for a day or two.

OH. One more important thing. If you read last night's post, I mentioned an interesting situation involving an unidentified plant. All of the naturalists got together and did some super sleuthing and figured it out. The plant was part of the family of dumb cane. The reason this plant is called dumb cane is because juices from the plant are TOXIC and can cause temporary speechlessness. Historically, dumb cane was given to slaves as a form of punishment. Read more about dumb cane here and here.

(For the record, we didn't go traipsing through the woods randomly sampling wild plants. The naturalist guiding our night hike gave us each a piece--including himself! Obviously, lesson learned on his end and on ours--we were lucky we didn't have a more serious situation.)

Blue-gray tanager

I don't remember...some sort of flycatcher maybe?

Parrot

This is definitely NOT a posed shot of birdwatching.

Emerald toucanet

Water quality sampling

River crab

I think they're testing the pH or something.

Doing science things.

Victoria is the color of the pH stick from a picture on her phone.