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| My Garden Art is visited by other residents in Atenas and Anthony, who lives next door, likes to show off his work to friends/clients. |
Another Unidentified Butterfly/Moth
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| Unknown In My Home Garden, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica Doesn’t quite match photos of crackers, black witch, duskywing or moths. |
BUTTERFLIES & MOTHS IN COSTA RICA:
There are about 1,251 species of butterflies and at least 8,000 species of moths. Butterflies and moths are common year round but are more present during the rainy season. Ten percent of known butterfly species worldwide reside in Costa Rica.[13]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wildlife_of_Costa_Rica
And be sure to see my NEW Butterfly Photo Gallery on SmugMug with 46 species as of today.
Why did you doubt?
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| When in Alajuela Wednesday we walked through the Alajuela Cathedral at Central Park. I am always struct by the ceiling art! There is beauty and love and gospel everywhere! And my faith is strengthened! |
31 Immediately Jesus reached out His hand, caught hold of him, and said to him,“You of little faith, why did you doubt?” Matthew 14:31 HCSB
Watching it Rain
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| “I’m too busy to sit in the rocking chair and watch it rain!” Is what I used to say. But I just did it! And have several times recently. So far it has been a good rainy season. And I’m slowing down! |
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| Like Jewels! Rain drips off a cecropia leaf. |
Rain Song – Poem by Langston Hughes
Let the rain kiss you
Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops
Let the rain sing you a lullaby
The rain makes still pools on the sidewalk
The rain makes running pools in the gutter
The rain plays a little sleep song on our roof at night
And I love the rain.
Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops
Let the rain sing you a lullaby
The rain makes still pools on the sidewalk
The rain makes running pools in the gutter
The rain plays a little sleep song on our roof at night
And I love the rain.
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| And After the Rain! |
Our Famous Toucan on Animal Planet in August
My favorite zoo here is ZooAVE which is mostly an animal rehabilitation center. I think I have told about the toucan some bad boys in Grecia broke the beak of and ZooAVE created an artificial extension to give him an almost normal life. (3-D Printing no less!) Well, now the story will be told on Animal Planet this August. http://www.ticotimes.net/2016/07/21/costa-rica-disfigured-toucan-documentary
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| Tico Times photo of injured Keel-billed Toucan at ZooAVE |
Maraca Plant Blooming
My “Maraca” plant as it is called in Costa Rica or “Shampoo Ginger” in Asia and the states in English has greatly grown with many multiple plants and now a first bloom for this year. Both photos are from the hill above my garden because the bloom is difficult to see from the walkway. I expect more blooms soon. This one was hidden by my ground-cover and spreading ferns until the gardeners cleaned them out (mixed feelings about that!). Zingiber Spectablis
In Hawaii the spicy-smelling fresh rhizomes was at one time pounded and used as medicine for indigestion and other ailments. To ease a stomach ache, the ground and strained rhizome material was mixed with water and drunk. External: In traditional medicine, the rhizome was ground in a stone mortar with a stone pestle and mixed with a ripe Noni fruit to treat severe sprains. The pulp was placed in a cloth and loosely bound around the injured area. For a toothache or a cavity, the cooked and softened rhizome was pressed into the hollow and left for as long as was needed. Perhaps the most common use of the plant is as a shampoo and conditioner for the hair. The clear slimy juice present in the mature flower heads is excellent for softening and bringing shininess to the hair. It can be left in the hair or rinsed out. Hawaiian women often pick or cut the flowerheads of this plant in the forest, as they approach a pool or waterfall for a refreshing summer bath, leave the flowers atop a nearby rock, and then squeeze the sweet juices into their hair and over their bodies when the swim is completed .
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| Maraca Plant zoomed in at 300 mm |
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| Maraca Plant zoomed out at 75 mm |
The following description is from:
https://livingfarmacy.wordpress.com/herb-identification/the-gingers/
Maracas
Shampoo Ginger, Zingiber zerumbet
Pharacology: carminative, digestive aid
In Hawaii the spicy-smelling fresh rhizomes was at one time pounded and used as medicine for indigestion and other ailments. To ease a stomach ache, the ground and strained rhizome material was mixed with water and drunk. External: In traditional medicine, the rhizome was ground in a stone mortar with a stone pestle and mixed with a ripe Noni fruit to treat severe sprains. The pulp was placed in a cloth and loosely bound around the injured area. For a toothache or a cavity, the cooked and softened rhizome was pressed into the hollow and left for as long as was needed. Perhaps the most common use of the plant is as a shampoo and conditioner for the hair. The clear slimy juice present in the mature flower heads is excellent for softening and bringing shininess to the hair. It can be left in the hair or rinsed out. Hawaiian women often pick or cut the flowerheads of this plant in the forest, as they approach a pool or waterfall for a refreshing summer bath, leave the flowers atop a nearby rock, and then squeeze the sweet juices into their hair and over their bodies when the swim is completed .And a better photo on Project Noah at http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/77046013
High School Students All Walk to School
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| All local students walk to & from school. |
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| Those on farms or out of town walk 3 blocks to a bus. |
Another Expat Trip to San Jose
Yeh! It is kind of like the senior adult trips we had at both First Baptist & McKendree Village when in Nashville. And a lot of fun! Focus this time was indigenous people art work that we were not suppose to photograph. I honored their rule (though some did not). Bought nothing!:
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| NAMU is the Bri Bri indigenous language for Jaguar and name of shop. Not allowed to make photos inside. Lots of masks, baskets, carvings, etc. |
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| Afterwards we stop at “Porky’s” for a choice of 50+ hamburgers & 100’s of beers. |
This was my second trip with this group, the other being a Central American Art show I shared about in one blog post. July 31 I’m going with the music lovers of this group of expats to San Jose for a performance of the opera La Boheme. That should be interesting since I have not generally cared for most operas, but think I will like this one. I’m reading the English translation of the script now thanks to Kindle! The men get together for dart tournaments but that has not interested me yet.
Chrysina Beetle
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| Chrysina Beetle On my terrace, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica |
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| Chrysina Beetle On my terrace, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica |
The identification is not certain but the closest name I could find for this guy who was dead for my morning sweep of the terrace. He appears to be one of the Scarab Beetles and the closest match photo online was a Chrysina. They also get upside-down or on their back when they are alive and it is funny to watch them try so hard to turn over. Sometimes they never make it. If I have the porch light on very long I get a lot of these and other beetles and other kinds of bugs. Beetles are the most numerous category of insects in Costa Rica.
Managua, Nicaragua
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| Between airport and downtown, a patriotic billboard and the electric trees. |
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| A closer shot of another presidential sign. Reminded me of similar signs in Havana with Castro telling how good it is! |
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| The different colored art trees are lit up at night. First Lady’s idea I was told. |
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| My Nature Air plane this time had a frog on it! Easy 55 minute flight. |
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| The international passengers entrance to the Managua Airport. Nice & modern! |
And don’t miss my Nicaragua Birds photo gallery for 98 different species!
And remember that both my trips to Nicaragua were provided by Tours Nicaragua! Check out what they offer! I’m very happy with them!
And that is all the photos I’m going to share from my 2 night trip to Nicaragua June 28-30.