Homemade Ice Cream & Frozen Fruits on Stick

So very, very good ice cream on a stick and
frozen fruit pulp on a stick, about 44 cents USD.
I walk by here on my way to La Coope.
Great on a hot afternoon!  🙂
Another Home Selling Ice Cream
Atenas, Costa Rica

And another home selling something more like popsicles except it is frozen drink in little plastic bags the kids bite a hole in and suck the juice out. Not for me:

Apretados (to squeeze)
Atenas, Costa Rica

And the photo gallery of  Home Business Signs Atenas


Where the best is homemade and cheap!

Momentarily in Kenya Today . . .

I had lots of running around business today and chose to eat lunch at my favorite bakery, Crema y Nata. I had a great Philly Steak Sandwich (my lunch & dinner!) then a scrumptious piece of chocolate cake with a cup of Te Chai, the real Chai Tea, like it was made on tea plantations in Kenya East Africa, with half a cup of hot milk and half a cup of hot chai tea flavored slightly with cinnamon and cloves and of course sugar! It was the best Chai I have had since trips to Kenya. The highlight of my day today. Simple pleasures!


On the back of the menu at Crema y Nata
translated to English:
Life is very short . . . start with dessert!

And some morning when I walk by there I may just start the day with a cup of Te Chai!


Surprises in the Garden

Blue-winged Sheenmark, Eurybia lycisca
In my garden yesterday. Only the 2nd one I’ve ever seen.
See last year’s sighting inside my house! Better photo! This is cellphone.
Atenas, Costa Rica
Maraca Plant or Shampoo Ginger
Is spreading like wildfire! Each flower will be a new plant!
Atenas, Costa Rica
Caladium Lily
Not expecting flowers from my caladiums!
Atenas, Costa Rica
Guardian Mom! 
She sits on top of hummingbird feeder, chasing adults off so
her children can freely feed when they wish. See below.
Atenas, Costa Rica
Guardian Mom!
Atenas, Costa Rica

Home Business Sign: Physical Therapist

This physical therapist is at end of street my
development is on. Friends have used her and
claim she is amazing at solving back problems.

As I continue to find and photograph new home business signs in Atenas, I am amazed at how many businesses are in homes here. I guess that is how it was in “The Olden Days” all around the world. Stay tuned to this blog for more interesting signs coming!  And/or . . .

See my new photo gallery: Home Business Signs Atenas
¡Pura Vida!

Robinson Crusoe I’m Not, But . . .

Cover Plates of the first edition in 1719.

As much as I might like to compare my adventures in this tropical rainforest to a story like The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, possibly the first English novel, my modern conveniences and friendly natives are a completely different world than the one Daniel Defoe described on the little island near Trinidad & Tobago for Robinson’s unique adventures of surviving on the island for 28 years before rescue in the 1600’s supposedly. But I too “came to the woods” just for a different purpose.

I just read it almost as a parallel to my last year’s reading of Don Quixote, the first Spanish novel. Though lacking in many modern writing skills, it is a simple and hardy adventure story that is easy to read, with fewer boring moments than Don Quixote. Here is a good synopsis or description of the book found on Wikipedia:

Robinson Crusoe[a] /ˌrɒbɪnsən ˈkrs/ is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published on 25 April 1719. The first edition credited the work’s protagonist Robinson Crusoe as its author, leading many readers to believe he was a real person and the book a travelogue of true incidents.[2]     

Epistolaryconfessional, and didactic in form, the book is presented as an autobiography of the title character (whose birth name is Robinson Kreutznaer)—a castaway who spends twenty-eight years on a remote tropical desert island near Trinidad, encountering cannibals, captives, and mutineers, before ultimately being rescued.

The story has since been thought to be based on the life of Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish castaway who lived for four years on a Pacific island called “Más a Tierra”, now part of Chile, which was renamed Robinson Crusoe Island in 1966,[3] but various literary sources have also been suggested.

Despite its simple narrative style, Robinson Crusoe was well received in the literary world and is often credited as marking the beginning of realistic fiction as a literary genre. It is generally seen as a contender for the first English novel.[4] Before the end of 1719, the book had already run through four editions, and it has gone on to become one of the most widely published books in history, spawning numerous imitations in film, television and radio that its name was used to define a genre, Robinsonade.

One of many illustrations from
many editions of the book.
Here he saves Friday’s life from
the cannibals & gains a servant.

I went on to begin reading Defoe’s sequel to his very popular book, The Farther Adventures of Robinson Crusoe. In short, not as good! (As most sequels!) He tries to take Robinson back to the island and populate it and much is an unrealistic stretch that is more boring and less adventure than the first book. I put it down and have not finished reading it, which came as a bonus with my Amazon digital copy of the original book.

But I hardily recommend the primary book as a classic representation of adventurous & religious men of the 1600’s! To be honest, I liked it better than Don Quixote, maybe because it was shorter and easier to read and less complicated development of characters. Devout Christians will like the ultimate confessional and faith elements included in Crusoe’s story.

And how cool is it to have read the first English novel AND the first Spanish novel?!   History!  Life insights!  Fun!

The more I read, the more complete my life feels!    🙂

¡Pura Vida!   . . . Loving Life!


We come to the woods for many reasons!
See the cool video Save the Americans  and go “full screen” 


English Festival Speech & Conversation Competition

First to Fourth Place Winners of Casual Conversation
Liceo de Atenas, Costa Rica
Winner of the Formal Speech Contest
Liceo de Atenas, Costa Rica

One of the students delivering her speech before us judges.
Liceo de Atenas, Costa Rica

Recognition of the Blind Student who participated in the speeches.
Liceo de Atenas, Costa Rica

Pulling Judge Charlie into the festival picture frame
Liceo de Atenas, Costa Rica

For the second day in a row this was a delightful experience with some of the nicest people I have met or worked with anywhere in the world! We had fun and though all could not win first place, all the kids were winners! And they do English better than I do Spanish! Being old is my excuse!  🙂

The teachers say they will expect me to help next year and Zaray is going to get me an invitation to judge in the regional contests. 
One of the boys in his speech talked about the diversity of nature in Costa Rica and mentioned his Dad was a bird watcher. Afterwards I gave him my business card and he gave me his dad’s facebook address where he posts bird photos:   https://www.facebook.com/arnoldo.garciaj
At the time I did not know that I had already discovered his Dad’s Facebook page and was already a “Follower.” He is one of the best nature photographers in Costa Rica. I must learn to speak Spanish to relate to guys like this! In a post on his page I referenced my Birds photo gallery, not as good as his but not bad!  🙂

https://www.facebook.com/liceodeatenas/


Photos of Liceo de Atenas on the web  (Google Image Search)

And a cool locally made video about Atenas  from local Chamber of Commerce type organization

My ATENAS photo galleries:
Vistas  (Click Roca Verde, My House and La Jacaranda)
Walking in Atenas (flowers mostly)
Atenas is quite a wonderful place to live as you will see above.  🙂

English Festival Spelling Bee

First, Second and Third Place Winners in the English Festival Spelling Bee
Colegio Liceo de Atenas, Costa Rica
The light green uniform shirt means he is a graduating senior. All others blue!

First Place Winner Receiving a Gift from Teacher
Colegio Liceo de Atenas, Costa Rica

“Native Speakers” as Judges for the Spelling Bee
The teen is a student there, but from the states and a native speaker helping.
The rest of us are old retirees from both the states and Canada.
Colegio Liceo de Atenas, Costa Rica

We started at 8 with a 9 or 9:30 break with a full Tico breakfast (Gallo Pinto, eggs, plantains, bread
and coffee! Then at noon a full Tico lunch and a donut as we left about 2 PM. The teachers are so nice and appreciative, the kids so nice and polite and helpful. It is a joy to visit this public school! And I will again tomorrow as a judge for the English Festival speaking contest and conversational English activities. Fun! One of the English teachers is Zaray Monge, a friend at church where she is also a translator and she was for awhile one of my Spanish teachers. So even more special to help her! She has three kids of her own plus a foster-child and her husband is a teacher at the other high school, Tecnico. A busy family!

My Gift from School
A Beautiful Pot Plant!
Colegio Liceo de Atenas, Costa Rica

https://www.facebook.com/liceodeatenas/


Photos of Liceo de Atenas on the web  (Google Image Search)
And my post on the 2015 Spelling Bee at Liceo
-o-

They have updated the website for El Camino de Costa Rica and are having weekend hikes almost every weekend, though mostly in the steep mountains right now. Check it out! This will eventually be a top tourist attraction for nature lovers & hikers!

Home Business Signs: Cakes

Cakes for Sale at a house up the road from me towards town
Atenas, Costa Rica

Note the interesting mix of Spanish and English on this sign, showing a local custom. Of course the first part, Se Vende: Queques is pure Spanish saying “For Sale: Cakes” but then she adds the English name of Cup Cakes! I cannot speak for all of Latin America, but for Atenas, Costa Rica, they often prefer the shorter, catchier English names for items than what sometimes becomes a long and complicated Spanish name. Thus cupcakes, jeans, shorts, cellphone, and a bunch of other names I can’t remember right now. And of course “proper names” are not suppose to be translated, meaning Coca Cola, McDonalds, KFC, Taco Bell, Subway, Kleenex stay the same here, just like my name Charlie! No one tries to make me Carlos or Carlito. And to show you why, the dictionary says that in Spanish “cup cakes” (two words) is tortas de la taza or “cupcakes” (one word) las magdalenas. I have never heard anyone here use either for cupcakes here. And on the culture goes! ¡Pura vida!

See my new photo gallery: Home Business Signs


Interesting video of Toucans somewhere in Costa Rica.

Home Business Signs: Corner Grocery

El Pingüino is a landmark on my side of town.
It is a very small corner grocery store called pulpería or mini-super
It looks like a store in front but it is also their home, living in the back.
Atenas, Costa Rica

How cool is it to have a little corner store called “The Penguin” in a tropical climate country where no native has ever seen a penguin? And it is the front part of their house! Or attached to their house. Plus it is 2 blocks from one public high school/middle school and 1.5 blocks from one public elementary school. Needless to say they have more student customers than anyone, selling lots of cold drinks an snack food! But they are better stocked for real food than another similar home store closer to me, though I still prefer the supermercado! There are many of these little corner stores all over town and probably many are in homes. No strict zoning codes or laws here!  🙂  Atenas is a really cool place to live!

El Pingüino
Store entrance on corner. White addition on right is a rental apartment.
The owner’s home is also attached to the left, seen in next photo.
Also notice a mother walking daughter home from primary school.
Atenas, Costa Rica

El Pingüino
Owner’s home is light green, attached to left behind white metal fence.
These boys are at a school with a “no uniform day” today. Rare!
Or out of school, especially the boy in shorts! No shorts in school!
Atenas, Costa Rica

See my new photo gallery: Home Business Signs

Home Business Sign: Seamstress

Clinica de Ropa
In Boqueron, 3 blocks from Roca Verde
Atenas, Costa Rica


“Clinica de Ropa”
(Clinic for Clothing) is the common name for a seamstress (la costurera) who probably does more repair work on clothing than making new clothing, although she does both. This particular seamstress is the closest one to my house and I have used her twice. The first time she put a patch over a little hole in one of my several canvas shorts I wear every day. She did a good job with fabric on both the outside and inside and it does not show or is not noticeable.

Recently I was motivated to do something with my front right pockets where I keep my cellphone and believe it slid out of the pocket in a San Jose Taxi. I asked her if she could sew velcro on both sides of the top of the right pockets. She said she could do that but, a zipper would be better and safer. So for one mil, the equivalent of about USD $1.75 each, she sewed a zipper in each of my 6 pairs of shorts, the only pants I wear here. That included the zipper! I think it would cost a bit more in the states! 🙂  I think the patch was about the same price, though don’t remember for sure. Labor and services are cheaper here! Imported U.S. products are not. It was most likely a Chinese zipper which would be cheaper here than say one from even Mexico or Columbia. Interesting!

New photo gallery: Home Business Signs