Cloud Forest Reserve in Monteverde

So after the long, action-packed day before…especially waking up at 5:15 am and not going to sleep until 1:30 or 2 am…I overslept Sunday morning waking up just past 10 am. Max jr was supposed to wake me up to go play soccer this morning, but he went to the wrong hotel (thinking I was at Camino Verde – where I would spend tonight) but instead I was at El Banco. So there was no knock on the door looking to motivate me to run around and sweat. I woke up to the sounds of rain on the roof, and water dripping into puddles on the ground outside. I stood in the doorway in my boxers and just watched the weather for a few minutes before finally getting in gear and hopping in the shower. Even though it was raining it was still 75 degrees and it was a warm rain…so not really disagreeable.

After showering, packing up and squaring the bill for the night, I hoisted my pack and set off for the walk to Max jr’s house, and hopefully some of his renowned gallo pinto; and a fresh mug of coffee from the co-op café. However, due to my condition last night all the roads looked familiar to me; and I wandered around in a light rain, climbing the muddy hills of Monteverde, looking for a landmark that would get me pointed in the right direction. Needless to say it was about 5 minutes before I was completely soaked, and my pack was getting heavier as it was getting wet, and tourists were driving by in their jeeps and range rovers and looking out at me like I was an animal to be observed on a safari “ohhhhhhhhh look jim…it’s one of those crazy American backpackers…the ones that carry everything they need on their backs, and wander around aimlessly as they attempt to grow scruffy beards and long hair.” And as soon as I started thinking like that I was laughing maniacally into the wind and rain, and concocting conversations for every car or truck that drove by me, attempting to splash me with mud or rainwater. Eventually my good humor paid off and I wandered into a part of town that I recognized specifically, and set my feet straight for Max’ house.

When I climbed the stairs to Max’s house they all looked at me like I was returning from completing the Appalachian Trail. As they sat in their warm, dry sweatpants, curled up on the couch and watching TV…I straggled in, soaking wet, dressed for expedition conditions, with hair wildly dangling around my crazy face. I smiled, they laughed…and said they were glad I showed up, so we could motivate for breakfast. Max Jr was still at the soccer game, though we would later find out that his truck had broke down so he had no wheels, and had to figure out a way to get the truck back to the house. Regardless, I dropped my pack, and we walked out to a little café near their house (Lorraine had no desire to go to her work café on her day off…so no gallo pinto con Max jr and no double espresso cappuchino to start the day. But the café we did pick was pretty chill, if expensive. They had some cool music playing – a group called Brazilectric; they had good coffee (I think it is impossible to have bad coffee in Monteverde); and they had tons of newspapers. So we all sipped our coffee, waited for huevos revueldo, gallo pinto, frutas y pan…and devoured the news. One thing that shocked me a little bit, was going to directly affect my upcoming plans, was that there was another earthquake in Nicaragua – 6.3 on the richter scale, and that it was directly affecting Omatepe, the two volcanic islands in the middle of Lago de Nicaragua that I was gonna chill on for a few days. After brunch, which was delicious, Lorraine offered to help me out with my bus ticket, cause I wasn’t able to get in touch with Ani to tell her I would get the ticket direct from Monteverde to Granada, Nicaragua…and that she didn’t need to buy me one. In the end I settled on the safest possible situation, and had Lorraine buy me the ticket, and I later found out that Ani bought me a ticket as well.

Oh well…so I left Lorraine with my money for the ticket, and headed back out into the cloudy, humid, windy day and began walking towards the Monteverde cloud forest reserve…which was about 6 km from their house. The bus came along, and I hopped on…paying the 75 cents to get dropped off at the park entrance. So with my raincoat, camera, and a bottle of water I paid my “student” entrance fee, grabbed a map of the trails and headed out into the cloud forest. I am a little frustrated now, for I know that it will be impossible to convey in words what this environment is truly like. One of the most unique microclimates on earth, Monteverde combines rainforest/jungle type setting; with adaptations which have occurred being at high altitude; and the altitude also causes the wind to whip through and the clouds to be constantly enveloping you in shrouds of misty moisture. It is all very surreal, and because I was alone without anyone to talk to, every so often I had to kind of pinch myself and remind me where I was. Anyway, just walking along these paths and breathing the air is euphoric, for there is SOOOOO much oxygen in the air due to all the plants and trees that thrive in this environment. With this dumb, awestruck grin on my face I walk along the trails and drink in the landscape…huge trees of many different types climb skyward, covered in moss, lichen, hanging vines, epiphytes (plants that live off the air) and every possible shape and shade of green leaf was visible. Every once in a while a splash of color breaks up the green and stands out against the background as a vivid red, or yellow flower or plant pestal. Along the ground, leafcutter ants wind their way in trails of thousands, the ones on the left are carrying large chunks of leaf back to the nest, while the ones on the right are headed back out from dropping off their last load to pick up a new one. Through the air soar hundreds of different birds of all shapes, sizes and colors…and their camouflage is sooooo good that you can only see them when they fly. Despite their amazing songs and bird calls the canopy of the cloud forest makes it impossible to see the bird sitting on a branch singing. One of the trails I took lead me to the edge of the top of a mountain ridge that is part of the continental divide that runs all the way from Canada all along the Rockies, down into Mexico, through Central America and down the Andes to Argentina. The rain that fell on my left, made its’ way down the mountainside, and through various creeks, and streams and rivers all the way to the Pacific Ocean; while the rain that fell on the right followed a similar course to the Atlantic. It is the only place I have ever been on earth that I have seen rain actually defy gravity and “fall” upwards. I know that makes no sense, but just bear with me for a minute while I explain. Standing on this continental divide ridgeline, exposed to the clouds, the elevation and the climate there is nothing in any direction to cut down the top of the wind that makes it’s way above the canopy. And the shape of the mountains, the strength of the wind, and the fact that it was small, light raindrops all combined to pick the rain up and blow it up the ridge and right into my face from below. Really insane, it took me a couple of seconds to figure out what was going on…and after a few minutes of standing there and being buffeted like a ship at sea in a storm, I realized how insane I was – laughed into the wind, and retreated to the relative calm being protected by the rainforest canopy. I followed the trail back down the mountain-side, winding through different areas of the park, until I came to a waterfall trail, that traced one of the rivulets of water that raced down the mountainside towards the Pacific. When I finally reached the waterfall and chilled out to relax I realized that I had been in the park for about 4 hours, and was getting tired, hungry and ready to get back into a little familiarity. So after a short rest and a pic or two I figured out on the map how to get back to the park entrance and began the hike out. As I reached the park entrance I was kind of numb to rainforest and didn’t realize until they started screaming right above me that I had walked under a tree with a pack of howler monkeys right above me. So I found a safe viewing location (cause if you get too close they try and pee on you, or throw you-know-what). I took a few pics, but was more intent on just watching them – cause I had seen so many monkeys up to this point. There was a mother who was toting around her baby, just clinging to her back…there was a couple of young juveniles who were chasing each other around, and leaping from tree to tree making lots of noise…and there was the big daddy – who had the deepest, most fearsome rumble of a howl that seemed to keep everyone else in line. I could have easily spent a few hours following and watching them, but it was almost dusk, there was no more buses or taxis and I had to walk the 6 km or so back to Max Jr’s…plus I was, cold, wet, and hungry...

...so I busted outta there after 15 minutes and began hitting the path back. Halfway back was the Co-op coffee shop that Lorraine manages and where Maximo works…I found Lorraine there trying to get the truck started...and helped her push the car so they could execute a rolling start; then went inside and had a double espresso cappuchino (perfection) and a delicious spicy beef empanada. After gobbling those down and feeling a little re-energized I started out on the last few km back to Max’s and caught the end of a great sunset from the crest of one of the hills out over the mountains with the Gulf of Nicoya in the background. I hit up the internet café for 15 minutes to check my email and see if Ani had sent any info about the whole bus ticket and meeting up tomorrow thing – which she had…under the heading of URGENT – PLEASE CALL ASAP. So I wrote down the number and headed off to Max’s. When I finally got back to Max’s my timing was impeccable; as fresh made hummus was on the table and hand-made burgers were just being placed on the grill. I was handed an ice cold pilsen, and gave Ani a call – of course by playing things safe, she had bought me a ticket, and Lorrain had also bought me a ticket…oh well…no worries…better to spend the extra $10 bucks and ensure that I would get to Nicaragua then to take a chance of having it be sold out. SO we confirmed our plans for the next day and I settled in to enjoy a relaxing evening, of good food, good beer, good company, and the good “green” environment of Monteverde (the green mountains) of Costa Rica. I will try and forget the part of the evening that consisted of watching “Harold and Kumar go to White Castle”…can’t believe that actually happened. Of all the things to do in Monteverde, I never thought that would be one of em. Eventually, I said my goodbyes, migrated back to town with my pack and got my $7 room at Camino Verde and set my alarm for 5:15 am again so I could shower and pack before my 6 am busride.

Monteverde Biological Cloud Forest Reserve

green everywhere

waterfall

huge vines hanging down

looking up you see things like these huge vines

insane tree adaptations...i couldn't decide if this was 20 trees that have grown together to form one HUGE tree, or if it was 1 HUGE TREE that started 25 feet above the ground and we are just looking at its roots???

leafcutter ants after a good days work leave their art to be sillouetted against the white cloud backdrop

the continental divide

rain blowing uphill on the edge of the continental divide

the white-out conditions when a cloud rolls in

hanging bridge that lets you get up in the canopy of the rainforest

star shaped plants that collect water in the center

Strange yellow seedpods

another interesting flower

Unrolling fern - see below for when it opens fully

crazy pink and green fern - about 3 feet long

shiny flower after it just rained

this flower bud is just beginning to open up into a huge flower

another beautiful flower

Muy Quesico (what up wes & ani :o)

one of my buddies - the howler monkeys

sunset in monteverde after long day hiking

Saturday August 7th

Alright people, time to get caught up…I am 12 days behind, writing this on the plane from San Jose to Miami, from the notes I took along the way. After my last day at Habitat, and the presentation of all my work from the past two months to the entire office – and the word that all of the countries within Central America have purchased all 1000 of the safety posters and pocket cards that I designed, and that another 800 were being ordered, it seemed appropriate to go out and celebrate a little. So after packing my backpack for my big trip, I headed out and met Wes, Marco, Diana, Jade and Katie for several pitchers of beer. We gossiped and shared stories from the past two months, did some quality people watching, and got into some deep conversations about feelings of patriotism. Like Marco (a Phillipino) and Wes (another American), I struggle with the fact I am an American citizen sometimes…this feeling overcomes me at home, but more often when I am abroad…probably because I am much more conscious of being an American when in a foreign country. It is also a little doubly conflicting for me because of being born in England, and having to consciously choose my citizenship at 18. While I support and believe in the ideals that America is built on, I do not support the current government, and I do not agree with the way that international policy is currently being conducted. Sometimes this makes me feel Anti-American…other times it just makes me glad to be an American and have the right to feel and express those dissentions. It is a conscious act on my part when abroad to impress upon as many people as I can that just because I am American does not automatically mean that I agree with, or even support my government. I attempt to change the stereotype of the “ugly American” one friend at a time…and hope that those impressions can create a more positive image of American people opposed to other American travelers, who are not conscious of cultural differences, and often expect other cultures to be the same or similar to the way they live their lives at home – and they treat people with disdain when their expectations are not fulfilled. Anyway – this is a topic I could write my thesis on, but since this is a chronology of my travels I will get back to the task at hand…woke up at 5:15 am Saturday morning after the night celebrating the successful conclusion of my work at Habitat…and fought a hangover to the bus stop to catch the 6:30 am bus to Monteverde to visit Max jr, and see one of the most unique environments in Costa Rica – the cloud forests. The first two hours of the bus ride were the normal trip along the Pista (the Costa Rican section of the TransAmerican highway)…until we turned off onto a rugged dirt road and began the winding ascent into the greenest mountains I have ever seen (I guess that’s why the literal translation of Monteverde is just that – green mountain). As we reached higher altitudes the vegetation adjusted, and when panoramic views were available I was able to see every shade of green that nature has created, all of it woven together in an unending tapestry of evolving color. The road remained rocky, and strewn with potholes, and we passed more then one truck that was pulled over fixing a flat or waiting for help with some other automotive malady. Thankfully I had a window seat on a nice comfortable bus, with a big engine that had no trouble with the climb. When I finally arrived at Monteverde around noon, I pulled my pack on my back, and set out to find a hostel…but settled on a El Banco hotel…which was the best available deal for $10 a night…nothing special, but all I needed was a bed and shower, and a door with a lock. So I ditched my bag and began the hike to meet up with Max jr. I walked up and down some rolling hills on the now familiar rugged dirt roads constantly asking directions in Spanish for Escuela de Amigos – where I was supposed to meet Max to play some ball. After 5 km, and a sweaty hour later I finally found the school, and as was to be expected, Max was no where in sight. :o) Like any good traveler I was loving the journey and not intent upon the destination, or arriving anything close to “on time”. So I began backtracking thinking where I saw the nearest public phone. It just happened to be about a km down the road at the Monteverde Cheese Factory (Muy Quesico – what up wes and ani ;o) Got in touch with Max and got some bad directions…so I wandered around looking for his apartment (which was behind a house) a few km away from where I was stumbling around. I walked into several small driveways, yelling out his name, and his girlfriend Lorraines name…but no luck. In one of the driveways I stumbled onto a group of howler monkeys in the trees above me, and hung out watching them for a while, before retreating back to the main road and admitting defeat and finding another phone and calling Max again. In the end I happened to be right outside of the café where he works and which Lorraine manages, so Max said to just chill for a few minutes and he would come pick me up and we would grab a coffee. At the coffee shop (which is a growers co-op) Max makes me his special (that I am so jealous he gets to wake up to each day)…it consists of two layers of milk, one frothed up like a cappuchino, the other warm on the bottom of the mug, to which he adds 2 double shots of freshly ground, and freshly made espresso. After the long bus ride, the hike to the school and my wandering meanders around the driveways of various Monteverde residents…this cup of joe was a little piece of heaven. Re-energized, we hopped in Max’s truck a Suzuki something or other, and proceeded to bounce around in the cab for a tour of the town. After passing the Habitat office, we came to a friend of Max’s that runs a soccer equip store/soda/bar all in one room of a building right across from a pristine green soccer field. And of course what do you find in such a place? But some of the best Sangria this side of Spain. So we sat down for a drink and chatted with the owner for a bit. Soon after we were back in the Suzuki and bouncing across town to pick up some beers at the Supermercado, and head back to Max’s place to check on the all day stew he had simmering on the stove. After chilling, listening to some toons, and exchanging stories Max girlfriend, Lorraine and her friend from California, Ami arrived and we started watching the DVD’s of Chappells Show, and chowing down on the phenomenal stew…and of course still drinking the brews. Eventually we were joined by Max friend Juliano…and we headed out for an interesting evening at a cozy little restaurant up in the hills called Dancing Shiva. The entertainment that night was this insane band called Chalan Rasa…comprised of two Columbians and a Tico. They utilized a diverse array of instruments to generate a unique sound. A simple jazz drumset provided the backbone; the guy in the middle sometimes played the Timbales – a set of two different sized Indian drums, and other times played the Sitar…and the other guy was either on the Birimbau (the Brazilian gourd instrument, with a single string that is stretched tight over a long curved stick and struck with a small wooden stick and the tone is changed by using a rock to change the length and oscillation of the string)…and other times he played an Australian dijereedoo. In any case it was an amazing, hypnotic sound that contorted the air and sent the attentive listener on a melodic, rhythmic journey. After their first set we migrated to an outside table where Max had ordered up an Apple flavored hookah, which was surprisingly delicious, especially considering my distaste for tobacco. With the windows open we were able to hear the remainder of the 2 sets that evening, and chilled outside with our beers and the hookah, making friends and chatting with the locals, and later on with the band when they were finished playing. Eventually we transitioned back to Max’s place, and he threw in a Peter Gabriel DVD…which I had very low expectations for, but that turned out to be a pretty impressive piece of entertainment. Somewhere around 1:30 or 2 in the morning I hit the road, and stumbled back in the dark (no streetlights) joyously tripping in potholes and laughing the whole way on the 15 minute walk back to El Banco hotel…where I needed to kill a large spider hanging over my bed before I felt comfortable sliding into my canvas hostel sleeping bag and gloriously wrapping up an amazingly long, but fun-filled first day on the road.

Chef Max completing another culinary masterpiece

Juliano rocking the 6 string

Max's kitties

Dirt roads and windiong pathways of Monteverde

Max Jr. his friend Juliano, his girlfriend Lorraine and her friend Ami - in Monteverde

Fiesta de Wes...with friends and habitat peeps, celebrating our summer together

bouncing round these next 2 weeks

ok...so i am gonna apologize in advance...these next two weeks, before i leave central america, my blog is gonna be a little thin...due to lack of internet access, as well as lack of desire to sit in front of a computer when i will probably be riding boats around lago de nicaragua and the rio san juan, swinging in hammocks, mountain biking on active volcanos and taking buses to and from nicaragua and panama. BUT i promise i will keep a faithful jounal, and continue taking pictures...so that i can complete the blog and my adventure these past 11 weeks when i get back to San Jose for my last day, and when i get back to Mass to chill with my crew and the fogies.

mini itinerary
this past weekend - monteverde cloud forests
today - bus up to granada nicaragua
tomorrow - ferry to omatepe volcanic islands in the middle of lago de Nicaragua
chill for a few days
boat to rio san juan for a riverboat safari with a zoololgist
bus back to san jose
bus to David Panama
International Parque Amistad
boat to Bocas del toro
boat back to Limon, and then bus to San Jose
one day to pack, and run errands, and have goodbye BBQ
one day home with the fogies - then welcome home BBQ :o) aug 21st

i hope i did´nt just jinx myself by putting down my plans like that...oh well.
i miss you all - i´ll see you in 12 short days
peace
wally

Habitat for Humanity - mi ultimo dia

So today is my last day at Habitat...these 2 months have just FLOWN by. I just finished presenting all the work on my two projects to most of the office. Below I attached pics (you need to click and zoom on them to read them) of two parts of my Construction site saftey project. The other part is a powerpoint presentation which will be linked to the Habitat website (i will link to it as soon as it is online) that gives volunteers an idea of the potential hazards and accidents they will face on the construction sites, as well as advice on how to limit their potential for accidents. The pocket card is a bi-lingual (one side english, one side spanish) orientation card that the construction foremen can keep in their front chest pocket or back jeans pocket. The poster is also bi-lingual and is self explantory. I was also able to present, in stumbling spanish, all of my first hand research - interviews with foremen, volunteers and habitat families; photographs from different construction sites in different stages of completion; as well as my first hand expereince building as a volunteer...analysis of that research...and my proposals for additional projects. My second project was a environmental impact analysis of the waste produced during the construction process, as well as a proposal of ways to reduce that waste, establish recycling programs, and save habitat money so that more houses can be built, with less environmental impact.

All in all it was very well received; and will be utilized in over 30 different countries throughout Central America and the Carribbean Region - and if things go well at the Worldwide Habitat conference in September (where my advisor Minor will present my work - it could be expanded down to countries in South America...and potentially translated to other languages to be used around the world. Just thinking about that is astonishing to me. I am so glad that all the work and effort that I put in over the last two months is going to have such a far reaching impact. I hope to lead a brigade of AU students during next spring break to come down to Costa Rica and help build houses for a week - and I will get to see my work being implemented first hand.

CLICK and ZOOM. This is a second part of my project - a Safty Hazard Poster 17x22 inches that will be hung on every Habitat job site accross Central America and the Carribbean.

Click and ZOOM. This is one part of my project for Habitat - a Bi-Lingual Pocketcard that will be used by construction formen to conduct orientation for new workers

The interior of the Basilica where I completed my excruciating crawl on my knees to the altar of le Negrita

Basilica de los Angeles - Cartago

Cartago Pilgrimage

Whew…work has been insane this past week, wrapping up all my projects, translating them all to Spanish and preparing my presentation to the entire Habitat office down here tomorrow (Friday)…so I haven’t had the chance to update the blog with the once in a lifetime experience I had on Monday night. Wes and I pulled on our sneaks and headed out to the streets to take part in the pilgrimage of more then 1 million Ticos (out of a country with just over 4 million people) from San Jose to Cartago – a 25 km or 14 mile trek. We left at 10 pm and walked through the night for 5 hours on a 4 lane highway up and over the mountains between the two cities. The 4 lane highway was packed 20 people across and the line of walkers snaked as far as you could see in front of and behind you. Why do people do this you may ask?...see the below article from the Tico Times

As many as 1.5 million Costa Rican residents, slightly less than a third of the country's population, are expected to gather at the Basilica de Nuestra Señora de Los Angeles in Cartago, east of San José, throughout this weekend and into Monday night. They will walk along the sides of roads and in lanes blocked off for their pilgrimage. Some will leave from San José Sunday and Monday evening, while others have already begun a much longer trek from cities and towns throughout Costa Rica and Central America. Authorities base the estimate of the turnout on years past and have begun preparations for the exodus from the capital and the surrounding towns in the Central Valley.

The legend goes that on Aug. 2, 1635, an indigenous girl named Juana Pereira found a dark-skinned statue of the Virgin Mary on a rock. She hid it in her house, but it disappeared, reappearing in the same spot in which she had found it. She took it twice to a local priest, and both times it reappeared in its original site. Taking it as a sign to unify a racially segregated flock, the priest called for the construction of the basilica on the site where the statue was found, and now La Negrita, as the statue is called, sits on an altar in the massive, 1926 Byzantine-style basilica near downtown Cartago.

Each August at this time, hundreds of thousands of faithful Catholics make the pilgrimage in honor of Costa Rica 's patron saint, Our Lady of the Angels.

However – it seemed more of a festival atmosphere then a religious ceremony. Lining the streets were vendors for drinks and food and clothing and religious idols. Sometimes riding through the crowd were trucks blasting Christian rock music. And the vast majority of the pilgrims were teenagers or young 20 something’s out to have a good time with their friends and walk through the middle of the night. Of course we also saw barefooted men, women with rosaries saying prayers for the entire journey, and people stopping to rest because they had come hundreds of miles from the far reaches of the country and had been walking for days and not just a few hours. When we finally did get to Cartago around 3:30 am, we waited in a huge crush of people (oh by the way – wes and I were the only two gringos in the entire crowd of around a million people) to get inside the Basilica de los Angeles. After an hour, and a few elbows in the ribs by overzealous, tica grandmas we were at the archway leading into the high vaulted ceilings of the church. The doorway on the right allowed people to walk through the church, while the center doorway where we entered was for the true believers to crawl on their knees up to the Altar of La Negrita – the miracle working representation of the virgin Mary. With the crush of people, we had no choice and entered on our knees. Now most, if not all of you, know I have had knee problems since a major growth spurt as a kid gave me Osgood Schlatters and two huge bumps on the patella tendons just below my kneecaps. SO after walking for 14 miles, I crawled painfully on those knees for about 50 yards through the basilica at 4 am…I know, I am now officially insane :o). After leaving the church we decided that we didn’t want to try and rest and stay for the Mass in the morning; but wanted to get back to San Jose and sleep in our own beds and take advantage of the fact that Tuesday was a national holiday and we didn’t have to go to work. Unfortunately, tens of thousands of other people had the same idea, so the line for the buses snaked back and forth around multiple city blocks adding at least another kilometer of walking. The lowpoint of the night was when we finally got to the last straightaway of the line and saw hundreds of people completely disregarding the line all together, and just walking to the front, cutting everyone who was waiting and forcing their way onto the buses. The ticos all whistled their disapproval and shouted at the cutters, but to no avail, as the policemen just watched. It kinda took some of the luster off of the whole event, that after such a profound walk, and a pilgrimage into the church to see the tiny statue that people would eliminate all the goodwill by blatantly disrespecting all those who waited in the line. We finally got on the bus as the sun was rising, and I was home in bed by 6 am, and slept till midafternoon. I wanted to take some pictures, but no one else was, and it seemed inappropriate to do so, as this was a religious event.

Saturday in San Jose

Staying in San Jose this weekend, to save some money, organize my final 2 weeks of travel plans, run a few errands and get caught up on my sleep so I don’t get run down and get sick over these last 3 weeks. So I slept late Saturday morning – around 10 am, then went to the farmers market in Pavas with Rebeca and Sol (as Maximo left for El Salvador early in the morning and Liza had BBQ plans with her boyfriends family). The farmers market was amazing; held on this km long street that was essentially a Big U hill…we started at the top on one side, walked down, and back up the other side…then repeated on the way back to the car. There was every kind of fruit imaginable, and some I never even imagined were possible…limes, oranges, strawberries, mangos, coconuts, guanabana, bananas, plantains, avocados, jack fruit, bread fruit, watermelons, prickly Chinese grape type things, and many more whose names I don’t know or can’t remember…there was also an unlimited amount of vegetables…corn, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, etc..ect…fresh herbs of all types…and even a few small stands where people were cooking treats to eat while at the market. Rebeca and Sol stopped for a ice cold coconut – to drink the milk; and I picked up a salvadorean papusa for me an sol…which is a type of corn meal dough filled with cheese, beans and pork then cooked on a griddle until brown and crispy on both sides…delish. I also picked up the ingredients to make some fresh salsa from scratch – nice ripe tomatoes, onions, garlic, a chili pepper, lime, and cilantro. I was also the only grino at the market…with well over a few thousand people, and a lot of the women (young and old) were saying things in spanish I didn’t understand but Sol was translating them for me – basically consisting of amazement over my long, blond curls, how tall I am, and how nice I was being to Sol as we walked around…lots of smiles all around. :o)

After heading home to drop off all the food, Sol and I took the bus into downtown San Jose and headed for the center of town, Avenida Dos, and all of the different shops and markets. We walked all around the markets, scouting things out, getting a feel for pricing, and the layout of stuff, and getting ideas of little gifts I can get for my parents, sister and friends. We stopped for lunch at a little soda in the middle of the market to refuel, and then began shopping in earnest. The only thing I can mention here (cause I don’t want to spoil anyone’s surprises), is that I got myself a nice little hammock chair, that I will be attaching to the central roof beam of my DC apartment and using for the copious amounts of reading I know I will be coming back to as my second year in grad school starts in less then a month. Actually a second thing I can mention is that I looked into buying cigars…and found that predictably Cubans are out of my price range – around $200 for a box of 12…so I negotiated prices on a box of Costa Rican cigars…and eventually made the decision to buy one and try it before making the commitment to a box. After we finished shopping we walked all around the streets just to people watch and for Sol to show me some of downtown landmarks…like the National Theater Building, various statues and monuments and other points of interest. Eventually we got sick of walking and hopped back on the bus and headed home.

When we got home we headed down to the “chino” to pick up some beers to go with the pork loin Rebeca was cooking for dinner and we bumped into Freddy and Chappy – my two Tico poker buddies. So instead of heading straight back home, we parked it on a picnic table in this little strip of park at the end of the street and drank the beers there, and I smoked my Tico cigar – which was really good. Which also brought me to a theory – that it is easy to tell the difference between a good cigar and a bad cigar…but only a discerning connoisseur (which is not wally) can tell the difference between a great cigar and a good cigar. So in an effort to save a little cash, avoid prosecution for illegally importing Cuban cigars, and supporting the tico economy, I will be bringing home a box of 20 Tico stogies to share with friends and family.

The Farmers Market in Pavas...packed with peeps, cool stuff to eat and colors everywhere

Sol and Rebeca drinking chilled coconut milk at the Farmers Market in Pavas

Sol - Maximos youngest daughter chilling by a set of statues in downtown SJ

Wally at the Costa Rican National Theater

Football - Saprissa Monsters

Saturday night was capped off with a Trip to Tevas Stadium to see the best soccer team in the Costa Rican league – the Saprissa Monsters…wax some lowly foe. Freddy and Chappy picked me up around 630 and we hightailed it to the stadium (we were late)…parked as fast as possible and ran to the ticket counter as the National Anthem was being played…the ticket counter was ridiculously packed (at least 1000 peeps waiting in a huge throng)…so we kept our eyes peeled for a scalper and snagged 3 tix within 5 minutes…but we had to pay double (4 mill instead of 2…about $9). Tix in hand we started running again, first to the gate, then up all the ramps to the top section of the stadium – where we piled into bleacher seating (still good seats close to the action) about 5 minutes into the first half. Both teams went scoreless in the first 45, even though Saprissa dominated the action…and just like at US sporting events – during halftime the closed circuit TV cameras panned the crowd for hotties to put up on the jumbotron :o). The second half started and the Monsters were not gonna lose, especially at home…when they scored the first goal off a corner kick the place erupted and “la Ultra” (which is the insane section of rabid fans who sit directly behind one of the goals, everyone in jerseys, with huge flags waving, banners stringing from the front to the back, a huge bass drum inciting the fanatics into their chants and songs) stormed down towards the front of the field (crushing some people I’m sure) and hundreds of fans climbed a 25 foot high fence and began shaking it, as the rest piled into each other at it’s base…just a crazy spectacle to watch…which I would have the pleasure of doing once more that night…as Saprissa ended up winning 2-0, but not without some outstanding saves from their keeper – who is the Goalie of the Costa Rican National Team. As the stadium was emptying out we entered the crush of the crowd, and nearly got squished as the ramp ways funneled the huge mass into a small snaking line winding down to the ground. We got down to ground level and got a pick of me and chappy and freddy with the field in the background. No problems getting home, and I ended up reading for the remainder of the night...good day all around.

the line at the ticket counter...the reason we scalped tic

a little dark...but this is "la Ultima" the most rabid fans section

The pitch at Tevas as the players walk out for the 2nd half

Wally, Freddy and Chappy...as we just sat down 5 minutes into the 1st half.

Chappy, Freddy and Wally - at the home of the Saprissa MONSTAHHHHS...Tevas Stadium, San Jose, Costa Rica.

chilling on Sunday...poker night

Today was fairly low key, slept late again…hung out reading in a rocking chair on the porch while drinking coffee in the morning. Went for a run in the afternoon. Made my homemade salsa…picked up chips and beers and ate the salsa (chappy called it chimichurri) with freddy, chappy, sol, liza and her boyfriend reece paulo. Afterwards we turned the evening into a texas holdem marathon…playing from 5 pm to 1:30 am…and finishing off 7 40oz Pilsens between the 5 of us. Midway through the game, Edgar, Rebecas friend from Panama called and with her help we finalized the details of my trip to Panama in 2 weeks to stay with Edgar (a biologist) who will take me for hikes around the Panamanian national parks with his trained eye and knowledge. Should be a fun trip…I’ll drop more news about my plans before the week is through. This is my last week at Habitat – I present all my work to the office on Friday…and head up to Nicaragua on Saturday. These last 3 weeks in Central America should be awesome, then I am home in Beantown for 4 days or so…then back to DC to start school…gonna be a whirlwind August.