Sunday, 2/20/05
Sun's out! We drove into a little town and stopped at a bridge to see trees and trees full of Green Iguanas. They weren't actually green. Apparently the males turn orange during mating season, and these trees must have been full of very horny male green iguanas because they were certainly orange. Males are bigger and have large spines on their backs. They eat leaves of a particular tree (presumably the one they are on). After the mating season is over, they turn green again.
Sun's out! We drove into a little town and stopped at a bridge to see trees and trees full of Green Iguanas. They weren't actually green. Apparently the males turn orange during mating season, and these trees must have been full of very horny male green iguanas because they were certainly orange. Males are bigger and have large spines on their backs. They eat leaves of a particular tree (presumably the one they are on). After the mating season is over, they turn green again.
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Volcano Lodge, Alajuela, Costa Rica:
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Volcano Lodge, Alajuela, Costa Rica:
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near La Fortuna, Alajuela, Costa Rica: green iguanas (males turn orange in mating season)
Iguanas 1
Iguanas
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near La Fortuna, Alajuela, Costa Rica: trees full of green iguanas (males turn orange in mating season)
Iguanas 2
Iguanas
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near La Fortuna, Alajuela, Costa Rica: green iguanas (males turn orange in mating season)
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near La Fortuna, Alajuela, Costa Rica: green iguanas (males turn orange in mating season)
Iguanas 3
Iguanas
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near La Fortuna, Alajuela, Costa Rica: green iguanas (males turn orange in mating season)
Iguana
Iguana
SafariIguana
Iguana
.
still Sun, 2/20/05
Alejandro gave us a lecture on the Costa Rican economy. The most important products are (in order):
Alejandro gave us a lecture on the Costa Rican economy. The most important products are (in order):
- tourism (because of the peaceful nature and declared neutrality of the country)
- bananas (the United Fruit Co. was started in Costa Rican by a US citizen. Unfortunately, the banana plantations hurt the ecology.)
- coffee (the best coffee is grown in Costa Rica between 5,000 and 7,000 feet)
- sugar cane
- non-traditional farming (pineapples, flowers, cashews, butterflies, etc.)
- cattle
- investment program
- gold mining
Nicaraguans do most all of the agricultural work. Poor government policies and economic messes have forced many of the Nicaraguans to move to Costa Rica. Unemplyment in Nicaragua is about 50% while unemployment in Costa Rica is only 4%.
Alejandro said that now that we have traveled to the western side of the Cordillera Central we will find that the land is a little dryer, with lots of orange groves and some teak reforestation projects. We also see pineapple farms, and yucca growers. The land is the iron-rich red of Puerto Rico
still Sun, 2/20/05
We drove way up to the north of Costa Rica, nearly to the Nicaraguan border, and took a river trip on the Rio Frío. We saw lots of caimans, egrets, pigmy kingfishers, a Jesus Christ or basilisk lizard (which was a bright bright chartreuse green), a couple of trees full of howler monkeys, a yellow-eyed turtle, and a Great Putu (in the owl family). The Great Putu is a rare sight, and Alejandro was very proud that he found it.
We drove way up to the north of Costa Rica, nearly to the Nicaraguan border, and took a river trip on the Rio Frío. We saw lots of caimans, egrets, pigmy kingfishers, a Jesus Christ or basilisk lizard (which was a bright bright chartreuse green), a couple of trees full of howler monkeys, a yellow-eyed turtle, and a Great Putu (in the owl family). The Great Putu is a rare sight, and Alejandro was very proud that he found it.
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica:
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: great egret
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: great egret
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: cormorant
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: cormorant
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: cows and attendant ccattle egrets
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: cow and attendant cattle egret
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: cow
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica:
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica:
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: Karen & Ramon Strauch, our boat captain, Arthur Luehrmann, Nils Ekfelt
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: Anhinga
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: caiman
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: caiman
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica:
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: lots of baby caimans
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: lots of baby caimans
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: lots of baby caimans
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: lots of baby caimans
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: lots of baby caimans
Rio Frio ride--caiman babies
Rio Frio ride--caiman babies
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: lots of baby caimans
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: lots of baby caimans
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: lots of baby caimans
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: caiman
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: caimans
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: caimans
Rio Frio ride--3 caimans
Rio Frio ride--3 caimans
Rio Frio ride--American pygmy kingfisher
Rio Frio ride--American pygmy kingfisher
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: American pygmy kingfisher
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: another tour boat
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica:
Rio Frio ride--laughing caiman
Rio Frio ride--laughing caiman
Rio Frio ride--caiman
Rio Frio ride--caiman
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: caiman
SafariCroc
crocodile
SafariA
Crocodile
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica: Jesus Christ lizard
Rio Frio ride--bromeliad
Rio Frio ride--bromeliad
still Sun, 2/20/05
We stopped at a lovely outdoor picnic area complete with tables and chairs, a garfish pond, and a miniature zoo with pheasants (fantastically colored ones), peacocks, peahens, and cordonices (quail?). They also had a tiny butterfly enclosure with a blue morpheus, some click-butterflies, and others.
We stopped at a lovely outdoor picnic area complete with tables and chairs, a garfish pond, and a miniature zoo with pheasants (fantastically colored ones), peacocks, peahens, and cordonices (quail?). They also had a tiny butterfly enclosure with a blue morpheus, some click-butterflies, and others.
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica:our lunch stop
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica:our lunch stop
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica:our lunch stop
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica:our lunch stop
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica:our lunch stop
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Rio Frio in the North of Costa Rica:our lunch stop
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: exotic birds
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: exotic birds
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: exotic birds
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: exotic birds
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: exotic birds
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: exotic birds
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: peacock
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: peacock
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: butterfly
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: butterfly
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: butterfly (Morpho peleides)
MorphoPeleidesMoth
Morpho Peleides Moth
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: exotic birds (quails?)
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our lunch stop on the Rio Frio: exotic birds
still Sun, 2/20/05
Back at a fairly fast clip to the bus on the Rio Frío, and then back to the town of La Fortuna. And Lo, the clouds over the volcano Arenal parted and we saw the volcano, complete with its 2 main mouths, the right one steaming, and a trail of steam down the right side where there was a very recent lava flow! The Volcan Arenal really looms over the town of La Fortuna. If and when the lava flows start in this direction, the town will have to be abandoned.
Back at a fairly fast clip to the bus on the Rio Frío, and then back to the town of La Fortuna. And Lo, the clouds over the volcano Arenal parted and we saw the volcano, complete with its 2 main mouths, the right one steaming, and a trail of steam down the right side where there was a very recent lava flow! The Volcan Arenal really looms over the town of La Fortuna. If and when the lava flows start in this direction, the town will have to be abandoned.
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near the Arenal Volcano, workers returning from the fields
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Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica
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Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica from La Fortuna
Arenal Volcano
Arenal Volcano
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Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica from La Fortuna
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Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica from La Fortuna
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La Fortuna, Costa Rica
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La Fortuna, Costa Rica
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Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica from La Fortuna
VolcanArenal5
Arenal Volcano
CRVolcano
Costa Rican Volcano
VolcanArenal2
Arenal Volcano
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Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica from La Fortuna
VolcanArenal1
Arenal Volcano
VolcanArenal4
Arenal Volcano
VolcanArenal6
Arenal Volcano
VolcanArenal3
Arenal Volcano
still Sun, 2/20/05
Home to our hotel, where we sat in the garden and admired the volcano, disappearing once again in the clouds.
Home to our hotel, where we sat in the garden and admired the volcano, disappearing once again in the clouds.
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Volcano Lodge, Alajuela, Costa Rica: swans made of towels and flowers
Volcano Lodge--towels 2
Volcano Lodge--towels
Volcano Lodge garden 1
Volcano Lodge garden
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Volcano Lodge, Alajuela, Costa Rica:
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Volcano Lodge, Alajuela, Costa Rica:
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Volcano Lodge, Alajuela, Costa Rica:
Volcano Lodge garden 2
Volcano Lodge garden
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Volcano Lodge, Alajuela, Costa Rica: with view of the Arenal volcano
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Volcano Lodge, Alajuela, Costa Rica:
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Volcano Lodge, Alajuela, Costa Rica:
Volcano Lodge garden 4
Volcano Lodge garden
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Volcano Lodge, Alajuela, Costa Rica: Arthur Luehrmann
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Volcano Lodge, Alajuela, Costa Rica:
Volcano Lodge garden 5
Volcano Lodge garden