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Costa Rican Capers and Capuchins

Capuchin monkey in the Costa Rican rainforest
Capuchin monkey in the Costa Rican rainforest
Costa Rica was the perfect place for a perfect find. A book I had bought for my children turned out to be a whimsical tale of a Monkey taking photos of unwilling Rainforest animals. I later realized how similar my own circumstances were!
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Arrival and overnight in San Jose

May 23, 2010
Ocean Diver across from Le Bergerac
Ocean Diver across from Le Bergerac (Cindy Messinger)
We arrived at the airport at about 9:30 p.m. We took a cab to Le Bergerac, made ourselves welcome cocktails, and tried to keep from waking any other guests. Armed with our cameras and a very nice rental zoom lens, we were quite excited to begin our trip! Our room at Le Bergerac was quaint with a view of a dive shop from our balcony. Typically traveling as 'scuba buddies', we chose a different sort of adventure this time. Who knows what will await us?

Greetings from the Howler Monkeys on the Pacuare River

May 24, 2010
Red Ginger at LeBergerac
Red Ginger at LeBergerac (Cindy Messinger)
Our driver arrived early to transport us to Pacuare Reserve. That was a nice surprise as we were expecting 'island time'!!! Although he did inform us that there had been a landslide and we may have to take another route to the Reserve. Thankfully the road was open so our trip was much shorter. Our driver was very informative and friendly. The next part of the day involved a short boat ride to the Reserve. The Howler Monkeys 'Howled' to say welcome and I scrambled to get my camera set up with my zoom lens. I felt like the 'animal guy', Jeff Corwin looking for all the endangered species in the most remote of areas! And I was becoming "The Rainforest Paparazzi"! The book by Yazmin Ross was so aptly titled to fit me to a " T " . We arrived at the Reserve, settled in, and was given our Leatherback Turtle briefing for that night. Did I mention that the Reserve is so dedicated to their cause of protecting the Leatherbacks that they have no electricity? Knowing this ahead of time, we were prepared for our Swiss Family Robinson retreat! We had candles, lanterns and enjoyed the food they prepared for us each meal. Daniella cut us 2 coconuts and opened them for us to drink. What a treat! Then we were off in search of more Monkeys! We could hear the thunder. Or so Sharon thought it was. We followed the direction from which it was coming. As soon as we got close the thunder stopped. And we stopped. Shooing off the voracious mosquitoes, we looked up. Straight up. And there they were. The loudly howling monkeys had stopped howling...perhaps to hide their presence from me, and my friend and my camera. Howler Monkeys high in the tree tops, back lit by a white and bright sky. The trees were at least 50 ft high. Possibly higher. And I knew my neck would seriously dislike me by the next morning! But I had to take photos! After all, the 'thunder' lead the way to some beautiful animals. It had already been a long day and we had turtle duty that night at 10:00 p.m. :) So we settled in for a wonderful dinner and waited until darkness would unveil the elusive Endangered Leatherback to lay her Legacy. And elusive she was for the 1st 3 1/2 hours of our walk. Our feet were weary, and our skin clammy from the humidity, but the soft rain was a welcome relief. The early morning hours of the next day proved much more fruitful.

Leatherback Legacy and Capuchin Capers

May 25, 2010
Who's up there?
Who's up there? (Cindy Messinger)
To witness a living dinosaur is truly an amazing thing - The Leatherback's ancestry dates back to the Dinosaur era, believe it or not! It is so hard to believe we witnessed 2 of them (during the previous night) laying their eggs to help continue their survival. The beautiful animal cloaked in black could throw sand from her flippers like a quarterback can throw a football. She is incredibly strong and her appearance shows it. That must be the only way she has survived through the years. Her hardships wear on her face yet her body still works like the best engineered machine ever. She needs no oil from a Gulf disaster to lubricate her machine, only nature in its most untouched form to allow her to live on. And she too, tries her best to elude the crazy people like us. Night time is her camouflage and she seems to know it. It was near impossible with my SLR camera to focus on her without light. I thus have many blurry leatherback pictures. Perhaps she likes it way. Lets hope her success continues as she has many obstacles awaiting her in today's world. We also watched the team excavate a 'hatched' nest. Possibly it was one of hers from a previous night of laying. They counted eggs that had hatched, those that had not, and those that weren't fertile. We were able to see partially developed turtles. This nest was an 'average' nest for this area as about 50% had hatched. It was all very fascinating. I have to give the team credit for all their dedicated work toward preserving these animals! And we worked to help them. The team tagged the mother turtles, moved their eggs (to hide from poachers) to a new location and covered their tracks! It was a long 6 hour night and my friend Sharon returned with a huge blister on each foot that was about the size of a turtle itself!! It was all worth it! We applied gauze and duct tape, ate breakfast and set about in search of more monkeys in the day time. We knew the monkeys weren't far from camp, but had no luck finding them the previous day. We were told to walk slow and listen...they shouldn't be far from the main path. We could hear a branch break. We saw some leaves fall. And we finally saw the White Face Capuchin. And then another and then another and then a whole family. Once again I scrambled to get my tripod set just so and then I couldn't find them in the view finder. After much grumbling of words that I can't say in front of my kids, I 'ditched' the tripod and held the thing by hand. Sharon, on the other hand, was calm as could be videotaping the monkeys all the while and also recording my quite descriptive choice of words. Oops....guess I should keep my comments to myself next time! And I really have to wonder what those Capuchins were thinking of me - this crazy lady clumsily trying to take photos of these unwilling inhabitants! The "Rainforest Paparazzi" strikes again. Here is the best part of my discovery. We can read books as much as we want, and watch TV, and learn all sorts of things about ANYTHING on the internet. But, to truly experience and witness things in the wild is the best learning experience ever. These monkeys really do share facial expressions like humans and really do have a way of communicating with each other. My zoom camera lens proved it as I saw the parent monkey 'smile' at its child. And I witnessed other expressions showing that the monkeys were learning and talking with each other. AMAZING! Perhaps I should work with Lizzy, the Monkey lady who was at the reserve studying these human like creatures. She had a generator so she could dehydrate foods that the Capuchins eat. She will then take the food back with her to NM where she will analyze their nutrition intake. I feel like I have a new calling now, but as What? A rainforest paparazzi or a dinosaur docent?

Agami Sighting & On to Selva Verde Lodge/ Night forest w

May 26, 2010
Capuchin on palm leaf
Capuchin on palm leaf (Cindy Messinger)
While still at Pacuare in the morning, we attempted to locate the very rare Agami Heron's nesting site. As our long forest walk came to no avail, we enlisted the help of Daniella. He took us through his 'camino secreto' . His 'secret path' revealed an absolutely beautiful lagoon area that was covered in green mossy like stuff. It was like a storybook dream. And here I was again in the most remote of all areas in search of the most endangered animals! And there it was, the Beautiful and rare Agami Heron and not just one, but what seemed like hundreds of them. This is the only known nesting site for these birds in Costa Rica and we were there to witness it for ourselves. Hunkered down in the forest, I was able to take photos without the birds noticing my presence. They didn't seem to play the game of hide and disguise as the other animals had. I just can't describe which animal encounter was the BEST - the monkeys, the birds or the turtles! Pacuare Reserve offered them all. This has to be my favorite place I've ever visited. I left the Reserve with a stomach ailment that endured the rest of the trip. But, I would do it all again only with the prescribed TOD medicine in tow! We went on to Selva Verde. I couldn't do the forest night walk , but Sharon did and had a nice time and dinner by herself! She brought back some 'stuff' for my ailing tummy and we had to get a good night's rest. We were off the next day for river rafting, so we had no time to waste!

Raging rapids on the Pacuare River and later on to Arenal

May 27, 2010
Bugs at Pacuare Reserve
Bugs at Pacuare Reserve (Cindy Messinger)
After all the animal encounters, I thought the excitement would begin to wane. Well, I guess I was wrong. As a novice rafter, I had no idea what fun Exploradores Outdoors would offer. Nor did I know how much work I would have to do! I forgot all about my ailing stomach in the mean time. Thank goodness for that! Upon arrival, I was greeted as Paparazzi, Paparazzi. One of the guides had noticed my camera backpack and tripod and shouted his calling to me. Unknowingly, I would later find my treasure and future words of wisdom printed within the pages of "The Rainforest Paparazzi". After our wonderful breakfast and rafting briefing we were off. The GORGE was nature's masterpiece sculpted just for us. Our raft glided through the river and through this unbelievably wonderful sight. The gorge itself must have been about 100 ft high and we were inside of this magical place with a waterfall to one side. The Beautiful Blue Morpho Butterfly floated by as if it knew it were all part of the beauty. With the moment frozen in time, we were told to paddle forward. Hard! Hard! Here comes the next watery slide. Get Down! GET DOWN! When our guide said that, we knew he meant business. We literally fall to the floor of the raft and HOLD ON. Plunge! All is good and all is WET and we get back up on the raft. Twists and turns and flips...our safety spotter was maneuvering his kayak in front of this huge rock as if he had the rock wrapped around his finger. Rock, paper, scissors. I thought the rock would win! The guides were all so much in their element that their enthusiasm for the sport was absolutely contagious. I could just feel their excitement and I wanted to experience it all day every day. Can you feel the excitement? What a life and what a day! Wow...Wow...Wow. We arrived at Arenal Volcano that evening to see perfectly clear skies and lava flowing down the sides of the mountain. We had made a deal with the clouds - to stay away! And I was back at it again with my camera and tripod!

Back in time to Pompeii

May 28, 2010
Capuchin enjoying a snack in the rainforest canopy
Capuchin enjoying a snack in the rainforest canopy (Cindy Messinger)
Early morning explosions are tough to ignore, even while sleeping. I began dreaming that my Mom and I were running off our island ( that would be my home in Singer Island, Florida ). The volcano exploding and Lava flowing had us fleeing for safety. We get off the island and I realized that I didn't know what was going to happen to my children and husband! Awaking to another trembling explosion, the reality of my dream being just only a dream came to light. The prior evening conversation Sharon and I had about Pompeii must have really submerged into my subconscious. What an experience for a first time volcano visitor! The morning was topped off with a whirlwind of animal activity. Birds EVERYWHERE. The Oropendola, the Toucan, Hummingbirds galore, and the ever present Coatimundi. The Blue-Crowned MotMot was showing off his beautiful tail and seemed to want it's photo taken during our walk on the Silencio trail. We saw the Rubber tree along the picturesque trails. Our hike ended with an unbelievable view of Arenal. The best part was our guide's 'etchings' in the dirt and his historical account of the Volcano's craters. La Fortuna was aptly named as the town of fortune when the Volcano spared it from one of its major explosions. Well, I guess it was to my fortune too as I stumbled across that book that is now so ever ingrained in my photographic memory. We ended our day with a hike to the catarata (waterfall), a dip in the swimming pool, and an evening show of lava rolling down Arenal.

Indigenous tribe and hot springs

May 29, 2010
Sweet coconut milk-thanks Daniella!
Sweet coconut milk-thanks Daniella! (Cindy Messinger)
My hard headed, yet adventurous soul had decided that I was going to simply 'relax' today and do very little other than meditate at the hot springs. Sharon had other ideas. It is funny how, as long time Scuba Buddies, we seem to have fun doing most anything. The thing about diving is that you don't talk underwater , so any two people can be buddies whether you like each other or not. Peoples' mouths do tend to get them in trouble sometimes. So, being afraid that I may 'miss out' on something ( as is always my guiding force) I decide to tag along with Sharon for her journey to the Maleku village. After all, we always have fun with whatever we do. Our tour began on a trailer outfitted with hard seats and without shocks being pulled by a tractor. As one of the guides tried taking our photo, the driver struggled to get the tractor started. In a choking movement, we were off and the guide gave chase and the camera back to Sharon. We were still laughing hysterically when we realized why the driver sat us in the 2nd row of the rudimentary vehicle. No shocks, no seat belts and a very bumpy road with pot holes littered throughout. Our bottoms were sure to have bruises the size of the pot holes and our laughter surely would make our abdomens sore for the next several days. We once laughed so hard for so long on a boat that we had the contagious disease spread to every other person on the voyage to Vieques! Either the bumps in the road or the laughter would have knocked us out of the vehicle had we been in the front row! We were taught how to greet and be greeted once we arrived at the Maleku village. "Kapi, Kapi" and a gesture with our hands was our warm welcome. We were introduced to the medicinal healings of the Shaman. He demonstrated how many plants were used for healing. One plant in particular, he asked us to chew the leaf. A very strong tingling overcame our tongues and he explained that it was used like an anesthetic. If that doesn't give one belief in the practices of the tribal Shamans then I don’t know what would. His teachings then lead us to a display of one of their traditional ceremonies. As the tribe encircled a fire, the Shaman chanted to their 'higher being'. He asked why the animals were fading away. Was he not calling loud enough? What is happening to their land? And their water? He asks for help and for forgiveness and for a brighter more healthy land, water, and animals. And here sat my humble heart melting inside. The overwhelming feeling of guilt, for all of us who have over taken and over abused our resources and our land, came crashing through my soul as if I had single handedly stripped our world of life. As the tears welled up in my eyes and I looked at Sharon, she too felt the burden. I told the Shaman and his people that their ceremony brought tears to my eyes and that I wish all people could see nature as we had seen it this week. This was just the absolute best way to wrap up a week of witnessing nature at its best. The Leatherback Turtles, Howler monkeys, Capuchin Monkeys, Agami Herons, Mot Mot bird, Coatimundi, sloths,Hummingbirds, Toucans, Blue Morpho butterflies. We all need to care about our land and animals as the Malekus still do. Our heavy hearts were in some desperate need of therapy, so off to Baldi springs we went. We tried to let our souls rejuvenate as best we could. The pools were nice and at varying temperatures. You could choose the ones you liked. Having been to Tabacon Springs before, I would recommend a trip there instead. I guess after our up close and personal connections with nature, I felt a bit too indulgent. We enjoyed the therapeutic session at Baldi none the less and returned to the Observatory for our last night of the awe inspiring beauty of Arenal Volcano.

A time to reminisce

May 30, 2010
Cheers to Costa Rican Coconuts!
Cheers to Costa Rican Coconuts! (Cindy Messinger)
Our last morning included packing and much reflecting on our prior week's ventures. Arenal seemed to bid us a memorable farewell as it exploded many more times that morning than others before. Perhaps that was our 'sign' that it was time to leave. One last view of the beautiful mountain, one last sound of the 'cannon', one last vision of the hummingbird nesting on her eggs. One last 'wobble' of the suspension bridge and one last photo of Sharon crossing it. It is always a bittersweet moment- leaving such wonderful moments in time and knowing that such good friends are about to depart company again as well. Sharon goes back to IN to her business and I to my family and children in FL. So, with reflection of memories we leave only photos and journals to record our events. I have loved sharing these memories with Adventure Life as I get to 'relive' our trip once more. Thanks so much to Adventure Life for truly the best trip 2 friends can share!

Le Bergerac as quaint as before

May 31, 2010
Daniela\'s boat at the Reserve
Daniela\'s boat at the Reserve (Cindy Messinger)
Our room this time had an enclosed patio, very charming. Dinner the night before was nice and we met a honeymoon couple who enjoyed their Adventure Life trip in Costa Rica as well. Upon arriving home, the reality of our country's recession hit too close to home for Sharon and I. We came home to the knowledge that our fully paid scuba trip for next year was not worth the paper that the agreement was on. The company went bankrupt! We had tried to take the scuba trip this year, but our schedules did not coincide with theirs. Instead, we opted to take our rainforest escapade with Adventure Life. I am so incredibly happy and thankful that we took the Costa Rica trip before I found out about the bankruptcy and our loss. I may have opted out of paying for this trip. We were told that another similar boat company may take the credit and it turns out they did. Whew! But, to think of all that we would have missed out on! Sometimes things happen for a reason! Thanks again Adventure Life from Sharon and the Rainforest Paparazzi!

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