“Do you know what ‘pura vida’ means?” said a friendly van driver who had just picked me up at the San Jose, Costa Rica airport. “Sure” I replied. “It is Spanish for pure life.” Smiling, the driver said “yes, but it is also the essence of Costa Rica.” After about a three and a half hour flight from Atlanta, we had arrived in San Jose around noon. “You’re in for a treat” said the driver during the ride to our hotel. “However“ he joked, “I must warn you that a good road is not a Costa Rican road.”

The morning after arriving in Costa Rica, we headed for Monteverde in our rented four-wheel drive Daihatsu. Monteverde was founded in the early 1950s by a group of Quakers from Fairhope, Alabama who decided they could not register for military service in the United States. Less than a mile off the Pan American highway, the way to Monteverde turned into a dirt road. As we headed up the mountain on what amounted to little more than a path, my friend Cary Kennedy became quite nervous. “Be careful” he said. “It is about five hundred feet straight down if you run off the road” he added. About twenty five miles and two hours later, we rolled into “downtown” Monteverde on the pot-hole ridden street. After checking into the hotel, we headed for lunch at a small restaurant called Las Campesinitas de Maize. Walking in, we were greeted by Stephanie Trejos, our waitress. “Come into the kitchen and show me what you want on your plate” Stephanie said as she showed us to a wood burning stove with several pots of food on it.
While fixing our plate of rice and chicken with cornbread, Stephanie explained the name of the restaurant. “Campesinitas means typical woman in Costa Rica, like me” she said with a smile. After a delicious lunch, we drove to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve for an afternoon tour with guide Ricardo Guindon, the son of one of the Alabama-born founders of Monteverde.

“This is called a cloud forest because we are at such a high altitude that the clouds with warm moist air from Caribbean Ocean blows in and covers the area” Guindon said. “Most of the moisture in the cloud forest is in the form of a wind blown mist” he added. As we walked along a neat path through the forest, Guindon pointed out several birds including warblers, toucans and quail doves. “It is very rare to see the quail doves” Guindon said. “There are over fifty birds and hundreds of plants that are endemic to this area of the world. Several plants are endemic to just the cloud forest” he continued. Walking on we learned that the cloud forest was home to three species of monkeys, including the howler monkeys we spotted that day, and other mammals such as foxes and jaguars. After showing us a small waterfall which Guindon said was almost on the continental divide, our guide pointed out several Strangler Fig trees. “These are called hemi epiphyte. They actually grow in the forest canopy and send roots down to the ground for water and nutrients” Guindon said as he showed us what we first thought were jungle vines. “They use a host tree at first but gradually strangle it out and it rots” he added pointing to a mass of the tentacles with a hollowed out center.

A tree which has been taken over by a strangler vine	Inside of the same tree.  The original tree has decayed.	Waterfall at the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve.	A common site in rain & cloud forests.

 Before leaving, we visited the hummingbird garden just in time for feeding. An employee had placed several feeders about the premises and dozens of hummingbirds were in a feeding frenzy. “A bird nearly hit me” my friend said as the birds buzzed around us like bullets flying by. Just then, a curious red fox stepped out of the woods to take a look. “He figures its lunch time for him too” said the employee as he threw the fox some of his lunch scraps. Leaving the Cloud Forest, we stopped for a tour of the Monteverde Cheese Factory, which was also started by the Quakers. There, we saw a presentation of how Monteverde was started, how cheese is made and we went to a small observation area to see workers actually making cheese. After the tour, we had a bowl of delicious home-made style ice cream. “As good as this ice cream is, you can tell that these folks are from Alabama” I joked with the girl serving us.  The following day, he headed back down the mountain toward La Fortuna and the Arenal Volcano dodging cattle and potholes along the steep dirt roads. As we drove, it seemed that every mountain was covered in coffee plants. “I don’t see how the farmers work on such steep mountains” my friend said as we drove along.   After about a two-hour trip around Lake Arenal, we arrived at the Tabacon Hot Springs Resort. The volcano has several natural springs flowing from it and the water is naturally heated to around 105 degrees. Situated at the foot of the volcano, the resort takes advantage of this natural phenomenon and has built several pools and waterfalls surrounded by lush and neatly manicured landscaping. We spent the rest of the day relaxing in these “spa” pools and at the resort’s swim-up bar while simultaneously watching Costa Rica‘s most active volcano erupt. That evening, we checked into the Don Carlos Motel, where we had a bird’s eye view of the volcano. During the calm of the night, we could hear the pressure of the volcano building. Shhhhh…..shhhhhh…..shhhhh then KABOOOOM as the mountain expelled both huge boulders and bright red molten lava.

Enjoying the thermal pools at  Tabacon Hot Springs Resort!	Under a thermal waterfall at Tabacon Hot Springs	Our cabin with a view at the foot of Arenal Volcano!	A mountain covered with coffee plants near Monteverde.

Next, we drove back to San Jose, where we would base the remainder of our trip. On the way, we stopped at the La Paz Waterfall Gardens, a beautiful tourist attraction with five different waterfalls along its trails. In addition, it had a butterfly observatory, hummingbird exhibit, and a reptile building. What I found most interesting was the re-created typical Costa Rican farmhouse and ox cart nearby. Walking in, a woman wearing period clothing was giving out samples of cheese and cornbread. “Here, have some, it’s for you” she said. “This cheese and bread is made right here using only ingredients and resources available one hundred years ago. The milk for the cheese came from that cow” she said pointing to a cow just outside the door. Walking out, a man was demonstrating an ox cart. “This was the method used to transport coffee beans or whatever the farmer wanted to transport” said the man. “The ox cart has become a national symbol of Costa Rica” he added while pointing out the elaborate hand painting of the cart.

Checking out an oxcart at the La Paz Waterfall Gardens farmhouse.	Looking down into the crater of Poas Volcano.  There was an awful smell!	A Poor Man's Umbrella plant	A waterfall at the La Paz Waterfall Garden

About twenty-minutes from the La Paz Waterfall Gardens, we stopped at the Poas Volcano National Park. As we approached the viewing platform to see it’s crater we began to smell what seemed like rotten eggs. When we reached the platform, we found the culprit: the volcano was spewing sulphurous gas from it’s crater which resembled the surface of the moon. “The park was closed for a while in 1988 because of sulphurous gas emissions” said a park ranger. “This volcano is the world’s largest geyser because of the steam eruptions” he added.

Early the next day, we drove to Grecia and Sarchi, two artisan towns just outside of San Jose. When we arrived in Grecia, we stopped at the town square to visit the Cathedral de la Mercedes, the town’s cathedral. Built in the late 1800s, this impressive red building with white gingerbread trim is built entirely of metal. Driving on to Sarchi, that town’s square featured a huge hand-painted ox cart. “Sarchi was home to the ox cart factory, this is where they were all made” said a local man standing nearby. Now Sarchi is home to a large artist community and is where most tourists shop while in Costa Rica.

Giant oxcart in Sarchi's town square	An artisan at work in Sarchi	The Town Square in Grecia	Cathedral of Sarchi

Early the next day, we drove toward the Caribbean side of the country to see the Rainforest Aerial Tram, a converted cable car tram which gives visitors a unique view of both the Rainforest canopy and the nature on the ground. “The only requirement our founder had was that not a single tree would be cut down during the construction of the tram” said our guide Adriana Rodriguez. As we walked to the tram platform, Adriana paused and then pointed under a limb and some brush to a small, red-colored frog. “I thought I heard him. This is a Strawberry Poison Dart Frog” she said while my friend and I looked at each other thinking that we had heard nothing. “It is rare to see them” she said. Later, Adriana explained that early Costa Ricans would keep one of the frogs in a pouch. When the frogs are excited, they excrete a poisonous substance . “Long ago, men would rub a Heart of Palm spine across the frog, and then use a blow gun to shoot prey with it. It would tranquilize the animal so that it could be caught. The poison didn‘t really kill the animals“ she said. As we traveled above the forest canopy, Adriana pointed out several birds and trees, including a Buttress Tree. “These were the trees used to make ox cart wheels, which made it possible for farmers to transport their crops of coffee” she said. Exiting the tram, we saw an   Eyelash Pit Viper coiled in a small tree. “90% of snakebites in Costa Rica is from this type of snake” Adriana said. “They are extremely venomous” she added. Next we drove to Irazu Volcano, which last erupted the day President John F. Kennedy visited Costa Rica in 1963. “Some in Costa Rica say this is a Republican volcano” a park ranger joked. “This is the highest point in Costa Rica, and on clear days one can see both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans from it’s peak” he added. During our visit, we were literally looking down onto clouds and could see very little. Toward the end of the day, we visited the ruins of Costa Rica’s former capital in Cartago, and the Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels, which houses La Negrita, or Black Virgin, to which healing powers have been attributed. As we entered the cathedral, several pilgrims were walking on their knees from the rear of the church to the alter to pray to the Virgin. Along the walls were several silver “body parts” such as arms, legs and hearts which were left as thanks for healing by La Negrita. “She has been performing healing since she first appeared in 1635” said a nun in the rear of the church.

Next on our agenda was a visit to Heredia for a tour of the Café Brit Coffee factory. Before our tour of the factory, we strolled around the town square and peeked into the colonial church which was started in 1763. At the factory, we were greeted by Jose Antonio, our guide for the day. “The coffee beans grown in Costa Rica are of the Arabica variety” Antonio said in perfect English. “The temperature and altitude, in addition to the rich volcanic soils in this area are ideal for coffee production” he said. As we walked into an area where coffee plants were being grown, Antonio explained that coffee beans must be picked by hand.    “They never get ripe at the same time“ he added and then explained that a typical coffee plant produces about 150 cups of coffee. After a walk through the plant’s packaging area, we drove to the La Guacima area to visit the Butterfly Farm. We were met by guide Diego Hermanos, who explained that the farm is a commercial venture which sells about 75,000 butterfly larvae per month world wide. “So many people were fascinated by what we do, that many people encouraged us to open the facility for tours” he said. As Hermanos walked us through a type of greenhouse and explained the process of breeding butterflies, we came upon a huge toad frog eating the colorful insects. “Hold on one minute while I get the frog out of here” he said in an excited tone. “He can eat over fifty butterflies per hour” he added while carrying the frog out of the enclosed area. Just then I was able to photograph a beautiful blue colored butterfly. “That’s amazing” said Hermanos. “I have seen people wait here all day and still not get a picture like that” he said.  Early the following morning, we drove to Puntahadaras to board the catamaran Calypso for a cruise to Tortuga Island. Arriving at the sugar white sand beach, we were greeted by a band playing typical Costa Rican music. After swimming, snorkeling and just sitting around, we were treated to a scrumptious meal on white table cloths. Just as I was finishing lunch, a “wild” boar came walking up to my table. “It’s OK, he is friendly” said Leda Saenz, our guide. “He was abandoned by his family when he was young, and the tourists have tamed him” she explained as he rolled over like a dog for me to rub his belly.

Aboard the Calypso	A band on Tortuga Island	Swimming at Tortuga Island	The "Wild" Boar

On our last day in Costa Rica, Leda gave us a city tour of San Jose attractions including Democracy Square and the National Theatre which was built in 1897.

As the van driver took us to the airport to return home, I thought about his words a week before. We had indeed experienced ten days of “pura vida” on a great adventure!
 

Here are a few more Costa Rica Pictures.  Click on the photo to enlarge: