In Search of Leatherback Turtles

Leatherback turtles, the world’s largest turtle species, spend their lives traveling the tropical and subtropical seas of the world. But, amazingly, when they are ready to lay their eggs, they return to the very same beach where they were born. Lucky for us, from February to July, hundreds of these Leatherbacks return to the warm beaches of Gandoca, Costa Rica, to build their nests. The Gandoca Refuge is at the southernmost tip of Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast, about 15 miles as the crow flies from our home. By road it’s more like 50 miles accessible by the highway through Hone Creek to Panama or alternatively by unpaved roads parallel to the beach then over the mountain meeting up with the highway near the Panamanian border.

There are several tour companies in Puerto Viejo that offer all-inclusive trips there but, since we now have a car, we decided to take the drive ourselves. We easily found the small sign on the highway indicating the turn off. Another mile or so down the rural road we came across the free-standing ATM and a fork in the road with a turtle picture and arrow pointing to the left. A few more miles through Del Monte banana plantations, over one small sketchy bridge, and past several monkey trees and we were now in the very, very small community of Gandoca. We continued straight through town to a pristine palm studded beach. At the beach is a prominent sign informing visitors that no one is allowed on the beach between 5 PM and 5 AM during nesting season without a guide. The beaches are patrolled by community volunteers This is one of the many ways that the community protects and preserves the nesting turtles.

We soon found a hostel right next to the beach, procured a guide for the evening and had a bite to eat at a small “soda” - snack bar - in the town. At 8 PM we met our guide on the beach by the “turtle egg nursery” - at this particular turtle nesting area, the locals and volunteers place a plastic bag under the turtle as she lays her eggs. They then bring the eggs to the designated nursery area where they are re-buried in the sand and continually watched until they hatch. We waited for the turtles to come. We waited until midnight but no leatherbacks showed up. Early the next morning we took a stroll along the beach and we able to identify 3 different sets of “turtle tracks.” I guess they came very, very late. Although we were a little disappointed at not being able to see the nesting turtles we had a great trip. We will try again!!!

Celebrating Costa Rica-style

Family is very important to Costa Ricans and the whole family loves to get together to celebrate birthdays, holidays and special occasions. Over Easter weekend we were invited to a neighbor's wedding at a small neighborhood church. The invitations were handmade and delivered in person. The church was decorated by the couple's families with balloons, streamers, local flowers and palm fronds. Reception food was homemade and the 3-tiered cake was made by another neighbor. Although we didn't understand most of what was said, the music was great, and everyone was very welcoming and friendly. We were pleased to be part of this very special day.

On Easter Sunday we attended a special concert at the Catholic Church in Puerto Viejo. The 35-person choir came from throughout the Caribbean coast, from Limon to Puerto Viejo. They were unbelivable good! The Banda National de Limon accompanied the choir to standing ovations. Our town is very small so it was quite a thrill to be entertained by such professional musicians.

Bromeliads. They’re everywhere.

Giant century plants, spike-leafed agaves, aloe veras and more. Without a doubt, these terrestrial Bromeliads help create a dramatic backdrop in the Arizona desert.

You’ll also find more than 2,000 different species of Bromeliads in Costa Rica. Some are terrestrial such as the pineapple, but, the majority are epiphytes, or air plants. These grow hard, wiry roots to attach themselves to trees and rocks giving the appearance of a parasite. They’re not. They find, and store, their own food and water. The water is stored at the base of their rosette leaves making a great home for tiny poison dart frogs and other insects.

Plant leaves might be yellow, green, red, striped, spotted and variegated in any number of different patterns. The flowers are brilliantly colored and exotic. We became aware of the enormous variety of Bromeliads that grow in our region when we visited a local beach resort, Banana Azul (see photo). Their elaborately landscaped gardens on Playa Negra in Puerto Viejo feature all types of Bromeliads. This was the inspiration we needed to begin our own collection. With the help of some “volunteer” plants that began to grow at the bottom of a tree in our yard, and the addition of another “store-bought” one, we are off to a good start. If all goes well I will add many more photos in the future. Of Bromeliads and poison dart frogs…I hope.

What's in a name?

For several years I had a job that required me to "man the registration desk" as attendees arrived for technical conferences. We would ask for the attendee's "Last Name," and then their "First Name." Sounds simple, right? Depending upon their native country our straight-forward request were sometimes met with a quizzical look or a name that didn't appear on our list. We soon figured out that there's a lot more to a "First Name" and "Last Name."

Traditionally, in the US, a woman marries a man and takes his last name. She may use her maiden name as a middle name or hyphenate it with her husband's, but his name is the "Last Name." They have children and the children take on the same last name as the father. Now everyone in the family has the same last name.

Well, in Costa Rica, a person's "full name" will consist of their unique "First Name," followed by their FATHER's "family name," and then the MOTHER's "family name." Take, for example, Maria Prince Calvo. Prince reflects her father's family name and Calvo reflects her mother's. She now marries John Gonzales Bustamonte. There is no change to her name. Along comes a child. They call her "Mary." Her full name is now Mary Gonzales (father's family name) Prince (mother's family name). In common usage you might also see "Mary" signing her name as Mary Gonzales S. without writing out the third name. It's different than "our way," but seems to add a bit more family history to a person's name.

What’s larger than a football, softer than a pillow, and edible?

Give up? It’s the strange looking Guanábana or soursop fruit. Since it thrives in areas of high humidity and warm temperatures, it grows well - and wild - in our Caribbean area.

I first noticed this unusual looking fruit in a Tica neighbor’s tree and asked her what it was and what it tasted like. She explained that the ones we were looking at were not yet large enough to eat. A couple of days later her husband showed up at our door with a ripe, football-sized fruit, along with instructions on how to turn it into a tasty drink, or make “helado,” a frozen ice cream-like treat that is eaten out of a plastic baggy.

I decided to make some of each. So, with knife, plastic bags and blender on hand, I was ready to start.

Step one. Cut the massive fruit in half. The spikes on the exterior were deceiving - they‘re soft.

Step two. Squeeze out the juice and the edible white pulp while making sure to discard the indigestible black seeds. The fruit is extremely juicy - there was juice and pulp everywhere including all over me.

Step three. Into the blender with some milk and sugar (I used a little sweetened condensed milk in place of sugar). No real measurements, just enough till it tasted good.

Since my instructions were verbal and in Spanish, of course, I may have inadvertently taken liberties with the recipe. But, in the end, the Guanábana drink and frozen treats were refreshing and creamy with a sweet and slightly sour taste. I guess it is best described as “unique.”

Guanábana is high in carbohydrates (particularly fructose) with significant amounts of vitamin C, vitamin B1, and vitamin B2. Many herbal medicine practitioners believe the fruit has strong anti-cancer properties and the fruit, seeds and leaves are commonly used among indigenous peoples where the plant is grown.

One Guanábana a year is probably good enough for us.

Frog heaven

Think “Costa Rica” and “Rainforest.” What image comes to your mind? If you are like most people you are probably picturing one of those crazy-looking green frogs with red eyes. Suitably called the Red-eyed Tree Frog, this brightly colored amphibian is one of more than 100 types of frogs in Costa Rica. They have three eyelids, sticky feet and spend most of their lives in trees. They tend to stay camouflaged during the day by shutting their eyes and tucking in their brightly colored appendages. And, in my personal experience, they are hard to photograph (see photo). This one was at a friend’s house, at night, on a “former tree” (that currently serves as a support column).

Another easily identifiable amphibian is the Poison Dart Frog. In a previous post I wrote about the tiny Red Poison Dart Frogs often found in bromeliads. There are also an abundance of Green and Black Poison Dart Frogs (see photo of one we found under a tree in our yard). Adorable to humans they can be deadly to their predators by secreting toxins from their skin.

I am still not sure what kind of frog is in the last photo but I can testify that he was a good jumper. I was sitting quietly on the couch one evening when there was a sudden “thud” next to me. There I was face-to-face with this guy! For me, being so up close and personal with nature is a major attraction to living here.

Buying what you need…exactly

Grocery shopping in the USA.
Check the fridge. See what staples you are out of. Add items to your list.
Plan what meals you want for the week. Add items to list.
Check laundry and bathroom supplies. Add items to list.
Take list. Lots of money or debit card. And, off you go to the store.

So far, grocery shopping in Costa Rica is the same. The difference comes when you get to the store.

Say you want celery. In the US you are going to buy an entire bunch, or at the very least. A cellophane bag of celery hearts. Here, if you need 1 stalk of celery for a recipe, you buy one stalk. If you have a headache and need to buy aspirin, you buy the number of aspirin you need. That’s right, instead of buying a bottle of 100 or more, you can buy one. I know this from experience. The first time I went into a pharmacy and asked for aspirin, the clerk asked how many. Of course I thought she meant how many bottles, so, I said “one.” And, she gave me one pre-packed aspirin (orange square next to bottled aspirin in photo).

Most food items are the same. For example, the standard spaghetti sauce comes in a 4-ounce package. There are several brands available including familiar names like “Roma,” but they are all 4-ounces. There are 2.5 servings per package - Costa Rican servings of 2 tablespoons each. Now, how does this compare to an American serving. Well, one day we happened to find a “normal” size can of Del Monte spaghetti sauce. That would be 26.5 ounces, of course. According to Del Monte, an American serving was ½ cup of sauce - about twice that of the Costa Rican serving (but what a difference those additional 2 ounces make on your plate).

There are other differences as well. You find very little in the way of frozen meals, and those that you do find tend to be quite expensive. But you do find rows and rows of different flavors of mayonnaise. Produce sections are comparatively small in our area, and believe it or not, we have a hard time finding bananas.

I think that the differences between stores in the 2 countries may have more to do with lifestyles than it has to do with eating habits. Since a great number of people here walk, take a bus, bike or taxi to the store, lighter bags are an advantage. Plus, a 30 minute trip with frozen food could be disastrous. Produce trucks routinely bring their fresh products to rural neighborhoods and many people grow their own fruits and vegetables. So, it makes sense here to buy only what you need, when you need it.