A very special visit: Hummingbirds and a sample of the beauty of Costa Rica

While traveling typically offers new experiences, sometimes certain trips come to stand out above all others.  Just recently, my Aunt Kaye was able to fulfill one of her dreams by spending two weeks here in Costa Rica with no agenda other than to enjoy this great place.  Though battling a significant illness, she traveled from Ohio with her two sisters for a special visit with us.

La escuela de Nuevo Arenal

Their introduction to the warmth of our community came quickly, as Día de los Niños in Costa Rica was the day after they arrived.  A day to celebrate the children of the world is a big deal here and the timing could not have been better.  We were at the school for parties, smiles and plenty of singing of songs and hymns.  Our visitors quickly appreciated the energy of the school community and the enthusiasm of the students.  The parties went on for several hours and the kids were well sugared up at day's end.

A relatively quiet moment at school, with our friend Milena

Without question, Kaye's favorite animal is the hummingbird and I'm not sure she could have come to a better place.  We have two heavily visited feeders outside the house we are renting that provide plenty of opportunities for anyone to get their hummingbird fix, especially in the morning.

Morning view

In an effort to find a special encounter with these creatures, we took an overnight trip to one of the most biologically diverse places on earth, the Monteverde Cloud Forest.  It's also incredibly beautiful, of course, and located about two hours away on a road that's pretty rugged at times.  As is typical for Costa Rica, you're never quite sure what you'll see on the way.  A half hour into our trip we happened to spot a sloth cruising along some power lines right along the road, giving us a great look.

Two-toed sloth, in real-time slow motion

Look up!

An amazing hummingbird garden is located very close to the world-famous Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve (http://www.reservamonteverde.com/) and did not disappoint.  We'd been there a few times in the past and planned this trip to the area specifically to take Kaye to the garden to witness the impressive amount and diversity of hummingbirds that come to visit the flowers and feeders.  Occasionally they even perch on outstretched fingers!

A perch provided and a wish fulfilled

We were fortunate to again visit Bosque Eterno de los Niños (http://www.acmcr.org/bosque_eterno_de_los_ninos.htm), another spectacular reserve supported by fundraising efforts of schoolchildren all over the world.  The day's misty fog gave even more texture to the incredible forest greenery.

Wow

A special trip

Only because our crew was more energetic than I thought we'd be, we were able to share an experience that has already made for great storytelling.  While out on the far part of our loop trail we spotted a capuchin (white-faced monkey).  And another.  Then another.  Eventually, a troop of about 20 capuchins were overhead and becoming louder.  Leaves started to fall from above as we looked up in awe.  Followed by some branches.

We soon began to see some of the monkeys intentionally breaking branches and throwing them down at us  My initial joy took a turn towards concern as we were slow and outnumbered by a big group of these famously mischievous monkeys.  Luckily for us they were adequately satisfied by our efforts to move along, out of their turf.

Loud capuchin

Our hotel for the night, the Arco Iris Lodge (http://www.arcoirislodge.com/index.html) is not only a reasonably priced and lovely place to stay but also a photographer's dream.

Tres Hermanas

View of Santa Elena from trail at Arco Iris Lodge

The Monteverde area provides an inexhaustible supply of beautiful spots waiting to be discovered.

One of the many large local greenhouses, this one with an active photobomber

High above Lake Arenal, from the Monteverde area

Back in our adopted hometown of Nuevo Arenal, my aunts Kaye and Debi were able to meet some of our family friends, Alexis, Shirley, Jocelyn and Marcos.  Despite difficulties in actually speaking with each other, there was no lack of communication during a visit to their house and a dinner at ours.

Shirley and her famous Gallo Pinto

Pipa fresca

A few more local scenes:

Zopilote

Just outside Tilarán

Volcán Arenal, from Nuevo Arenal

A new friend 

Incredible sunset over Lake Arenal at Restaurante Las Tinajas

More sunshine and vistas from Café y Macadamia

Colorful house and cow

Yoga class Blue Jeans Poison Dart Frog

One of many nocturnal tree frog visitors to our pool

The timing of their trip could not have been better, as they were here over Sept. 15, el Día de la Independencia.  This Independence Day is the same for many of the Spanish speaking countries in the Americas and is arguably the biggest holiday in Costa Rica.  The schools and communities plan for several weeks.  In Nuevo Arenal there are two parades, both filled with school kids and community members proudly attired for the big day.  While the celebrations last year were exciting and novel for us, we were able to enjoy with a bit of greater understanding this year.   As good students in the school, both Madeleine and Henry were invited to march in the parade.  Reversing roles from last year, Henry accepted and Madeleine declined.  Such is life.

Henry and the uniformed Banderados with their (made for the occasion) traditional Boina hats

Abundant sun, pride and color too

Memories.  .  .

Without a doubt, no visit to Costa Rica should be complete without a trip to the beach.  Which beach, though, can be a difficult decision.  We opted to take our crew to Playa Hermosa, a beautiful spot relatively close to home.  Even though our (specially planned in advance) dinner under the trees on the beach was moved under cover by the rain, we still enjoyed a special dinner together.

The joy of childhood epitomized 

Lovely Playa Hermosa

Happy chicas at the beach

Local fashion shopping and new friends

On the way back we made a small detour to see a locally famous waterfall that I'd not yet seen:  Llanos de Cortes.  Geologically interesting, it's also a beautiful and jungly spot.  And, nobody fell down or was bitten by anything!

Llanos de Cortes

No Costa Rica adventure can be considered complete without a visit to the termales (volcanic hot springs) and some ziplining as well.  We've visited several of the many local termales but had never been to Eco Termales (http://ecotermalesfortuna.cr/), which was meant to be quite nice and peaceful, at least until our crew arrived.  It lived up to its billing for sure and is one of our favorite spots we've visited here.

Sisters in the sun

Volcano-fed hot spring waterfalls are tough to beat

Brave Pat can now cross ziplining through the canopy off her bucket list

In the end, their visit was rich and satisfying.  For two weeks we were able to focus on nothing other than enjoying life together and creating memories.  For me, the sharing of our experiences here with visiting family and friends has been one of the greatest pleasures.

Freddy's broken ankle and an adventure into the national health care system

Freddy and his broken ankle

A former neighbor and good friend of ours, Freddy, used to be a semi professional soccer player here in Costa Rica.  In late July, at the age of 60, he was playing in an adult soccer league and suffered a serious ankle fracture that would require surgery.  He was in the hospital in Liberia for three days after having had his surgery and was eventually sent home to Nuevo Arenal, about two hours away.  Both of his sons were going to be busy with work meetings on the day he was scheduled for his six week follow-up appointment so he asked me if I could take him.  I happily volunteered to go.

We left very early in the morning and after picking up one more friend who also had an appointment, we drove approximately 2 hours to the main regional hospital in Liberia, Guanacaste.  I was eager to gain more appreciation for what the hospital might be like.  As expected, it was very busy even at 7 o'clock in the morning. The hospital itself appeared to be clean, well organized and open to the outside though not extremely fancy, at least according to standards to which I'm accustomed to in the United States.  I was most impressed with how calm and patient everyone appeared to be while waiting.  We encountered a long line of people who were waiting for bloodwork. We checked in at a desk and received a slip of paper so that he could obtain an x-ray.

Busy line for bloodwork

After waiting a few more minutes, we went into the x-ray suite and stood in another line for another 10 minutes or so.  During our time waiting, Freddy encountered no less than four people that he knew.  We spoke with one young gentleman who had a knee surgery around the same time that Freddy did.  Another patient had lost a few fingers in a work accident.  They both had follow-up appointments.  The remainder of the folks that we met were his friends from Nuevo Arenal.

The x-ray itself did not take more than a couple of minutes.  It seemed to be a modern system similar to what I've seen, though not completely digitized.  Next, we were told to go and wait at another window where we would be able to pick up the x-rays themselves in about 20 minutes. Eventually, with the films in hand and with Freddy's urging, we took a quick peek.  To my best judgment, everything looked similar to what is done in the States.  The bone alignment and hardware also looked great.

"Hold still for just a second"

We then proceeded to wait in line yet again, outside his surgeon's clinic. Once inside, the surgeon looked at the films and did a quick exam, while exhibiting the apparently universal stereotypical demeanor of an orthopedist (apologies to any offended).  After a brief discussion, he wrote prescriptions for more Ibuprofen as well for physical therapy.  Freddy was most excited to be able to slowly begin walking again.

Ready for radiation

The last stop was the physical therapy office where his therapy appointments were scheduled.  An ambulance (more similar to medical transport) will transport him from home two hours each way, three times a week for eight weeks for physical therapy!  All told, we were in the hospital for about four hours.  Though it was a long time, I was pleased with the relative efficiency of the system and what was able to be accomplished.

On the way home, we picked up his prescription for ibuprofen.  These pills, his surgery, follow-up appointments as well as his physical therapy with transportation is 100% completely free for him.  No strings attached.  Freddy is a part of the Caja, the national healthcare system in Costa Rica.  Because he is of retirement age, he and his wife pay NOTHING to be a part of the system.  Though not perfect, it seems to me that the system works very well for a patient of relatively limited resources, like Freddy.  Understanding how this process worked for my friend in this country underscored the absurd complexity of our system in the United States.  Very interesting indeed.