Costa Rica - Week Two

Our experiences on jungle trails brought the realization that most animals and birds keep themselves well-disguised amongst the greenery. In order to have a close look at some of them, we made the short journey to a rescue and breeding operation called Zoo Ave. That's ave as in bird, not avenue.

The adjoining neighbourhood of La Garita is rich in nurseries selling all kinds of tropical plants. Of course, we had to stop at one of the most inviting ones, even though we couldn't buy.

There were tables full of gorgeous potted orchids at ridiculously low prices,

                                                        
                                       many cacti,

and a brilliant collection of bougainvilleas.

Everything was attractively displayed, much of it under a shade cloth roof which made it rather dark.

I've already mentioned the Ticos' expertise at topiary. Here, both above and below, we saw more examples of their skill.

 

 From there, it was only a few hundred metres to Zoo Ave.

The zoo was very well interpreted with signs explaining their mission of rehabilitation and how most of their creatures were acquired with such injuries that they could never be safely returned to the wild. There were also educational signs with charming graphics:

Translation: my eggs are not the solution. (The turtle is holding a box of Viagra.)

Although the animals are caged, the enclosures are large and leafy, giving them ample room to move about - which they did. As a result, it was difficult to get them to pose for the camera, but we tried our best. At least the macaws were cooperative.

 So was this iguana, sunning itself on the roof of an empty cage,

 

and this somewhat larger lizard.

The toucans were very flighty, and since their cage was huge, 

they were quickly able to remove themselves to a distant branch.

The monkeys were so quick it was impossible to photograph them. Every time I got a shot lined up, they leapt off.

At least the plants stayed still!

On the way back home, I took the opportunity to photograph some of the already-familiar landmarks along our route. Our route took us into a ravine below the highway spanned by this curious upside-down bridge,

and wound up and down over the hills, crossing more gullies with cascading streams.

Alongside some of them were some modest cottages,

and little shacks occupied, so we were told, mostly by refugee Nicaraguans.

 

A marker for our turn-off was this shop, always with a group of young guys outside chatting on their cellphones and waiting for something to happen.

Another volcano

Since Volcàn Arenal was less dramatic than we had expected, we thought we'd pay a visit to Volcàn Poas, much closer to home. Our guidebook warned that clouds often obscured this region too, but not until after 10 in the morning. We made an early start and arrived at the entrance around 9:30. Poas is currently dormant with the advantage that you can go right up to the edge of the crater. Nonetheless, we duly noted large signs in the parking lot advising all motorists to park facing outwards " in case of emergency evacuation."

A broad paved walk, lined with flourishing tropical plants like gunnera,

 led to a viewing platform where various other tourists lined the railings.

 

But there was lots of room for us too.

It was quite a spectacular sight, with its pale blue lake giving off faint whiffs of sulphurous steam.

I was intrigued by this purple-flowered shrub that was thriving in several places right on the brink.

True to predictions, we had been there less than an hour when the clouds started to drift in. We wound our way slowly back down the steep road and stopped for lunch at a restaurant perched on the hillside.

There were comfortable chairs inside, but we chose to sit on the narrow balcony at a rustic  table and bench made from split logs. It wasn't comfortable at all but it offered a panoramic view of the valley below.

We ordered what was becoming our usual dine-out meal, a casado (translation: married man's lunch - although most menus offer it for dinner too). This is a generous platter that includes rice, beans, salad greens with sliced tomato, fried plantain, and your choice of a piece of beef, chicken or fish. It is cheap, filling and delicious.

We detoured on the way home to visit two small towns, Sarchi and Grecia.
Sarchi lures tourists with numerous shops selling furniture made from local wood, some of it very attractive. There are also workshops making brightly-painted replicas of traditional ox-carts, which can be dismantled, crated and shipped anywhere in North America. I settled for a few photos.

 

 

For those with their own pair of oxen, this one even provided a yoke, balanced carefully across the rim.

Grecia's chief attraction is its red church, built in Belgium entirely of iron and shipped piece by piece across the Atlantic.

It has elegant doors (which were missing from the original shipment and had to be sourced in Holland),

a simple wooden interior made striking by beautiful chandeliers,

and an intricate tiled floor.

Costa Rica - Return from Arenal

We left the El Castillo the next morning and arrived at the dam whose construction is responsible for the lake below Volcàn Arenal. Avoiding a busload of tourists heading for a fishing expedition, we turned in the other direction to one of Coast Rica's many natural reserves. A trail led us through dense jungle,

and across a total of seven suspension bridges of various lengths and heights,

Some spanned ravines and waterfalls,

 others afforded views over the jungle canopy.

There were other tourists here too. With each suspension bridge limited to a maximum load of 15 persons, we often had to wait for a group to move on before we could cross.

In spite of the warning, we saw no spiders at this bridge,

but we did see some menacing-looking red ants carrying leaves (presumably to line their nests.) They were fast-moving and hard to photograph.

To my disappointment there were few flowers, birds or butterflies, just some lianas with curious, rather suggestive flowers.

In part because of the delays at bridges and steep parts of the trail, it took us most of the morning to complete the circle tour, and most of the afternoon to drive back to our temporary home at Atenas.