Category: People

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COVID19 Precautions at Bus Station

Going to Alajuela the other day I snapped a cellphone photo of the mask-requirement sign and the markers on the sidewalk to make sure we stand in line 1.8 meters apart (the same as 6 feet), but failed to snap the hand-washing station you must use before going in bus or in the little coffee shop.



Mask-wearing is required in public by national law now and almost everyone wears a mask. I only occasionally see a man or young person cheating but they usually have a mask in their hand or in their pocket.

¡Pura Vida!

https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=1135006880247553&ref=notif&notif_id=1602615272924463&notif_t=live_video
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Another “Sort of a Bridge”

When a concrete culvert goes under a street I don’t think you call it a bridge, but if you add a sidewalk and railing overlooking the stream it kind of looks like a bridge! 🙂

We have a lot of these in Atenas and they just recently widened this one on Calle 3 near that new building I showed the other day. Another rainy season storm drain looks like a scenic mountain stream, almost. 🙂

My Atenas Galleries

¡Pura Vida!

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Progress?

I’ve shared this kind of photo from Atenas before and it continues as one by one a traditional house with front porch, front and back yards (called gardens or terraces here), and all the signs of having raised one or more families over the year – boom! The house is torn down and occasionally modern apartments or more often now a business is built in its place. Since Diacsa is a construction company here, I assume that this will be their offices with what looks like a drive-through and place to park construction equipment behind it?

On either side of this attractive modern office building still stand traditional, spanish-influenced single-family houses that will of course never be the same now. The price of progress? Maybe. Or just the modern world we live in wherever it may be world-wide. I can’t help but remember similar progress during those years in Serekunda, The Gambia and yes, even in Nashville, Tennessee where I for a while lived in a modern row house where old traditional houses used to stand. World-wide!

This new building here is on Calle 3, just two blocks from Central Park and already this old residential street has many businesses and offices of all kinds, so it is likely to continue to become more commercial while our little farming town of what was not long ago around 5,000 people now has more than 8,000 and is becoming a distant suburb of the big cities of Alajuela & San Jose (where some residents work) + a magnet for foreign retirees (like me) with its claim of “The best weather in the world!” (¡El Mejor clima del mundo!).

Even little, natural Costa Rica succumbs to progress and with mixed emotions for some of us. But yes, I’m glad I live in a modern house with all the modern conveniences in a very nice development on the edge of downtown Atenas (because I can still walk to town!). 🙂 But I also cherish being close to nature and away from the big city of San Jose (an hour+ away). And best of all for my retirement lifestyle, living in the center of the country means I can easily travel to nature reserves and national parks all over Costa Rica. Plus my garden and neighborhood still have a lot of nature, birds, butterflies, etc. And it is close enough to town that I walk and do not own a car! Doing my little part in fighting climate change! The best of both worlds for me! 🙂 I love it here, progress or not! 🙂

POSTSCRIPT: See the conversation with the building owner below in the COMMENTS. And how I now see that this “house replacement” building truly is progress as told by one who grew up as a child in that house! I jumped to conclusions on thinking about progress as negative and truly such changes can be very good.

My Atenas Galleries

¡Pura Vida!

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All Americans can enter Costa Rica Starting Nov. 1

If Coronavirus Lockdown has created a need for you to take a vacation into nature, you can visit the most popular nature vacation country in the world, Costa Rica, starting November 1. Just test negative for the virus, wear your mask, and come social distance in paradise! But first read the Entry Requirements. We’ve been working hard to keep down the number of cases in Costa Rica and you will have to help us continue that. 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

And to be motivated see my photo gallery Charlie Doggett’s COSTA RICA!

Featured Photo is a Keel-billed Toucan on my terrace at home in Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica. See more of my Keel-billed photos in my Keel-billed Gallery.

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A Landslide for Biden!

That is all that can save America now!

Anyone who watched that nasty, rude, interrupting liar in tonight’s debate can surely not vote for that devil. I turned it off after 50 minutes and will not watch any more debates. It is too sickening to watch him. There is something deeply wrong with a country that elects and supports a racist fascist like Trump. Vote him out overwhelmingly! Your only hope America!

We don’t have room for all of you in Costa Rica. 🙂

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El Silencio Book Published

I’m happy to announce that the trip report photo book from my visit to El Silencio Lodge is finished and now available for you to preview electronically for free or order a copy if you like! 🙂 It’s 60 pages with 97 photos of a truly incredible place! See it in my Blurb Bookstore at https://www.blurb.com/b/10309436-el-silencio.

Feature photo is front cover and the back cover is below:

“God is the friend of Silence. See how nature — trees, flowers, grass — grows in silence . . .

We need silence . . . to touch souls.”

~Mother Teresa

¡Pura Vida!

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Costa Rica Pioneer Woman Dies of COVID-19 in AL

The first wife of a 3-time president of Costa Rica, José Figueres Ferrer, Henrietta Boggs, died this week of the dreaded Coronavirus in Alabama at the age of 102. She had a bigger Costa Rica Adventure than me, becoming the First Lady of Costa Rica and a primary leader to get voting privileges for both women and blacks in Costa Rica. Read about this remarkable woman in this New York Times Article. And thanks to Larry for sharing it with me!

¡Pura Vida!

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Bajos del Toro Waterfall

This was my waterfall for today and the biggest of the week. If you go to their website Catarata del Toro you can tell that it is commercial and on private property with all of their “biggest and best” claims. The same people own the property that yesterday’s Las Gemelas Waterfall is own. So of course you pay admission to each.

Bajos del Toro sits in the shadow of Poas Volcano, next to the Poas Volcano National Park, Juan Castro Blanco National Park, and the Bosque de Paz Rain/Cloud Forest Biological Reserve. Outdoor activities abound with rugged trail systems to explore the forest’s flora and fauna.

This is beautiful wilderness area and today’s guide, Daniel, another great new friend and excellent guide has done a cross country hike with friends over this trail-less wilderness using machetes to blaze their way through. There are plans to build trails connecting the two national parks and Bajos del Toro.

There were two of us from El Silencio Lodge to go with Daniel on this waterfall hike. I chose not to walk the 400 steep steps down to the bottom of falls, but the Tica young lady guest did walk down while I walked through the hummingbird garden. I do most of the things younger people do, but not all now! 🙂

For you history enthusiasts, the full name of the town and the waterfall is Bajos del Toro Amarillo, translated literally as “Low place (valley) of the Yellow Bull” and the story is that when the first settlers came it they saw a yellow bull that later historians say was actually a bison that did populate parts of Central America in the early 1800’s. It is always fun to get the history behind some of these place names. 🙂

I did my guided bird hike before breakfast this morning also with Daniel but have barely started sorting bird pictures. But with this morning hike + my solo hike in the Hummingbird Garden here + a noon-time experience I will be recording 3 lifer birds or 3 that are new to me. Not bad! 🙂

Today’s waterfall hike slide show:

And this is one more added to my CR Waterfalls Gallery.

Or see THIS TRIP GALLERY: 2020 El Silencio Lodge & Reserve.

¡Pura Vida!

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Las Gemelas Waterfall

Okay, for you Spanish readers, yes, that says “The Twins” Waterfall and thus you may ask, “Where is the second one?” Well . . . sometimes my better judgement overrules my sense of adventure. We had already hiked about 4 km and waded across the ice cold, rock-strewn river with Bryan, my personal guide, helping me wade across the slippery rocks just to get this photo of the biggest of the twins. To see the other one we would have had to wade up a separate stream of slippery rocks to the left of the bottom of this falls maybe 50 meters. Bryan had already said “I can’t believe I’m helping an 80 year old do this hike!” He was doubting the wisdom of going further and after nearly slipping down more than once. I did too! But I was thankful that I could make the hike solo with my excellent young masked guide who was perfect for me in every way! Most of the holiday weekend crowd have gone. We have a max of 9 guests the rest of the week, so very tranquilo! Which I prefer! 🙂 And yes, I love this place! Already another favorite and I have so many favorites in Costa Rica. Here’s just a few shots of the Las Gemelas Falls Hike and notice that weird V-shaped bridge over one of the streams, like none I’ve seen before:

  • The unusual bridge over one stream
  • Down stream from falls
  • Bryan after we crossed the river
  • One of many shots
  • From hiking boots to wading sandals
  • Where we waded across! Not easy!
  • One of the trails

See my Waterfalls Gallery for more Costa Rica Waterfalls.

Or see THIS TRIP GALLERY: 2020 El Silencio Lodge & Reserve.

¡Pura Vida!

On the trail to the waterfall this sign was laying on the ground. My guide said that the biggest danger is sudden flash floods when there is a rainstorm in the mountains above.

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The Happy Wanderer

It was my favorite song growing up, or at least while in Boy Scouts and hiking a lot, which we sang as a group then (Boy Scouts love the “Ha, ha, ha, ha” part), now I only sing when alone. 🙂

“The Happy Wanderer” (“Der fröhliche Wanderer” or “Mein Vater war ein Wandersmann”) is a popular song. The original text was written (in German of course) by Florenz Friedrich Sigismund (1791–1877). It was made famous by the Obernkirchen Children’s Choir, in Germany named Schaumburger Märchensänger. ~Wikipedia (for more info) + Lyrics below.

Off and on I threaten to write a biography of just words – stories, feelings, and challenges (unlike my current photo biographies of mostly pictures) and when done I hope to call it “The Happy Wander” which describes much of my life (even during the difficulties) and especially now being Retired in Costa Rica! Tomorrow I will tell you about my next planned wandering – it’s to a new place for me next week, but for now enjoy the lyrics of my favorite song, then go hiking! 🙂

The Happy Wanderer

I love to go a-wandering,
Along the mountain track,
And as I go, I love to sing,
My knapsack on my back.

Chorus:
Val-de-ri–Val-de-ra-
Val-de-ri–Val-de ha ha ha ha ha ha
Val-de-ri–Val-de-ra.
My knapsack on my back.

I love to wander by the stream
That dances in the sun,
So joyously it calls to me,
“Come! Join my happy song!”

Chorus:
Val-de-ri–Val-de-ra-
Val-de-ri–Val-de ha ha ha ha ha ha
Val-de-ri–Val-de-ra.
My knapsack on my back.

I wave my hat to all I meet,
And they wave back to me,
And blackbirds call so loud and sweet
From ev’ry green-wood tree.

Chorus:
Val-de-ri–Val-de-ra-
Val-de-ri–Val-de ha ha ha ha ha ha
Val-de-ri–Val-de-ra.
My knapsack on my back.

High overhead, the skylarks wing,
They never rest at home,
But just like me, they love to sing,
As o’er the world we roam.

Chorus:
Val-de-ri–Val-de-ra-
Val-de-ri–Val-de ha ha ha ha ha ha
Val-de-ri–Val-de-ra.
My knapsack on my back.

Oh, may I go a-wandering
Until the day I die!
Oh may I always laugh and sing
Beneath God’s clear blue sky!

Chorus:
Val-de-ri–Val-de-ra-
Val-de-ri–Val-de ha ha ha ha ha ha
Val-de-ri–Val-de-ra.
My knapsack on my back

My Boy Scouts pages tell you when and how my wanderings all began! 🙂 And more walking links on my Hiking & Camping Page.

Photo Galleries of my Costa Rica TRIPS (6+ years of wanderings here)

Photo Galleries of Pre-Costa Rica TENNESSEE Travel (Every state park & lots more)

Photo Galleries of my Pre-Costa Rica WORLDWIDE Travel (17 countries & most U.S. states)

“Oh, may I go a-wandering
Until the day I die!
Oh may I always laugh and sing
Beneath God’s clear blue sky!”

🙂

¡Pura Vida!