A “Tico” poses with his ox. While this photo only features one of his two hard working friends, the ox were amusingly named “rice” and “beans”.

We love coffee, so we had to go on a coffee tour when we visited the Santa Elena/Monteverde region of Costa Rica. The tour was actually a 3 in 1 deal because not only do you learn about the coffee plantation but you also learn a bit about how chocolate is harvested and the uses of cacoa. Lastly, you get to participate in making sugar cane juice and sampling its sweet, refreshing taste.

We booked the coffee tour through out hotel in Santa Elena. It was $30 per person for the two and a half hour tour. This included the shuttle to and from our hotel. The tourist infrastructure is a well oiled machine here in Costa Rica.

The man in the red shirt is Don Juan, the 70-year old man who owns and runs the “Don Juan Coffee Plantation”.

Row after row coffee grows. Coffee can only be grown within 20 degrees, either direction from the equator. It also requires volcanic soil.

High altitude doesn’t hurt either. In Costa Rica, by law, coffee plantations can only grow Arabica coffee. It is forbidden to grow Robusta coffee. This law is in place to ensure quality control of the coffee exported from Costa Rica. Arabica coffee is more delicate and flavourful.

Chris enjoying the coffee tour.

Costa Rica cofffee tour.

Our tour guide prepares the traditional hot chocolate. Chris and I loved it, but most of the tour found it too bitter. You have to like dark chocolate to appreciate the true taste of cocoa before milk and sugar are added.

It’s hard work squeezing the liquid out of sugar cane, but it’s definitely worth it for the sweet, refreshing juice.

A friendly American Dad snapped this for me. We’re enjoying our coffee tasting on the balcony of Don Juan’s.

My computer battery is at 7%, and we need to check out of this place pretty quick, but I thought I would try for a quick blog post. Anyone who’s ever blogged will know that “quick blog post” is kind of an oxymoron.

Anyway, we’ve had a great time adventuring in the Monteverde area. Lots to see and do, although everything is very developed and tourism-based. I think the plan is to drive out to the ocean today, even though we could easily spend more time here in the so-called “cloud forest”.

Yesterday morning we went on a coffee plantation tour, which was perfect for a couple of caffeine addicts like us. In the afternoon, we checked out one of the bigger adventure park operators in the area: Selvatura ($75 each for access tot heir jungle bridge walk and zipline tour). It was pretty great. We saw several animals and interesting plants. I got some DSLR footage of the ziplining which I will probably put together at some point.

In the meantime, here are some of my favourite people images of the last couple days.

Cheers,
Chris

We stopped on the rocky road from Arenal to Monteverde at a little place where they show tourists the old school way of extracting sugar cane juice.

The machine was made in 1892 and takes three men to operate.

The can is simply squeezed until the juice pours out.

Pulpy bits are strained out.

And the result is tasty, sugary juice. Good with a bit of ginger juice or lemon.

These guys did the grunt work. Laura had a hand too.

A family goofs around in Santa Ellena.

Laura enjoys some sun while I finish up breakfast. We’re staying at the Arco Iris hotel in Santa Ellena. It is gorgeous.

Junior, our tour guide ont he coffee tour. Great sense of humour...

Just some hunky stud we met on a bridge.

Our zipline guides at Selvatura.

The streets of Santa Ellena.

ps — battery is now at 3%...

Las Lagos Resort, near La Fortuna Costa Rica. Note the swim-up bar and the water slide (aka the fastest way back from the restroom).

We stayed at Las Lagos Resort our second night in Costa Rica. It cost $145 USD for a Standard Room which included a queen-sized bed, bathroom, TV, AC and a small patio. It reminded me a lot of standard resort rooms in Mexico or Cuba, with that humid, slightly mouldy smell that tends to allows linger.However, the charm of the resort lie not in the bedrooms but in the 15 different thermal pools, one of which had a swim-up bar. Unlike the Mexican and Cuban resorts the pool with the swim-up bar stayed open until 10:00 pm and was heated like our hot tub back in Grande Prairie, Alberta. It was truly glorious. We didn’t realize how genius the design truly was until Chris had to use the restroom. He left the pool and started the climb up the many stairs. After a while I heard a splash that sounded too big to be any ordinary kid, and then, barrelling around the edge of the pool came a wave too big to be from any ordinary child! It was Chris. He had just discovered that instead of walking down all the stairs back to the pool, the entrance to a water slide was adjacent to the stairs and of course the most direct, fastest and most enjoyable way back to the bar was...the water slide.

Another beautiful bird of Costa Rica. Please identify if you can.

A couple of the 15-different thermal pools the resort features. Our favorite were the pools with slides and the one with the bar.

This friendly looking lizard shares a home at the resort with the Crocodiles.

The drive from La Fortuna to Santa Elena was simply picturesque with its rolling pastoral hills.

The roads were fierce in our 4x4 SUV, this guy is an absolute trooper!

Rolling pastoral hills of Costa Rica.

A bus stop in the middle of the road on the drive to Santa Elena.

A young Costa Rican girl laughs at a restaurant Chris and I ate at tonight. He has wonderful photos to share with you of the Tree House Restaurant, that you’ll see in a later post.

The view from the butterfly garden at Sky Trek, El Castillo, Arenal area, Costa Rica.

We don’t have much time to talk today. We have to hit the pool and then hit the road. But here are some photos from our very cool jungle hike at the Sky Trek place near El Castillo, Arenal. It was totally worth the $22USD price of admission. The trails were very well maintained, and we saw howler monkeys in the wild!

- Chris and Laura

We have not had a bad meal here yet. This was our energy-boosting lunch before our three hour trek in the jungle.

Mmmmmmm. Yummy.

We’re pretty badass.

That’s Lake Arenal in the background. It’s man made, due to a hydroelectric dam that powers 70% of the country.

Bridges! In the jungle!

It was hot, muggy, humid, and sweaty. But also awesome.

We heard a big crashing int eh trees above, and then figured out it was a bunch of monkeys! We saw (and heard) two groups of 5–6 go by and were able to take a few shots. Lots of blurry ones. We never claimed to be wildlife photographers, and when your longest lenses are 135mm and 85mm, you start to regret not borrowing from Rob Wiebe’s collection. .

Howlers!

Laura, looking dapper.

Is that Indiana Jones?

Laura shot these butterfly shots. Not too shabby.

But this guy’s pretty shabby.

Nice views.

Volcan Arenal, arguably Costa Rica’s most famous place.

What a week. From a whirlwind of wrapping up (or at least catching up) work projects, to a tearful family get together, to the jungles of Costa Rica. Never mind the weather shock of going from cold, dry Canadian spring (still winter) to the muggy, humid scorching sun of Central America. Never mind the culture shock of going from neat and tidy chain-store North America to ramshackle Pura Vida Costa Rica. Forgetting all that, the sheer distance we’ve come in the last 24 hours has left us a little shell-shocked. The red-eye flights. The uncomfortable sleeps on the planes.

It’s so easy to get consumed by the day to day stresses of life (and work) at home, and yet so easy to arrive in a new place and to remember that there is a whole wide world out there. Grande Prairie seems very far away indeed.

Upon landing at the San Jose International Airport, we picked up a rental SUV, with only small hiccups (had to get our paperwork printed and have a fuse replaced on the car), and proceeded to hit the winding, narrow, but entirely serviceable Costa Rican road. A few hours later and we were far from the hustle and bustle of city life, staring at the jungle-clad sides of the country’s most famous site: Volcan Arenal.

After scouting for a place to stay, we eschewed a couple of expensive options (the Los Lagos Resort and Springs Resort — $150USD and $450USD, respectively. Ouch.), we chose instead to get back to our backpacker roots and found our way to the little mountain village of El Castillo to stay at a great little hippy hostel called Essence Arenal ($28USD or so). Perched on the top of a small mountain, this palce has great views, collaboratively cooked dinners, and a whole bunch of easy going people. We’ve decided we’ll chill here for a couple nights and try to get into an easy-going frame of mind, before moving on.

This country is immensely developed for tourism, with every available amenity—at least the parts we’ve seen in the last twenty-four hours, and despite our poor Spanish skills, traveling here seems like a breeze. Hotel after hotel, adventure tours galore, lots of other tourists. There are ample ways to spend your money and tons of things to do.

On that note, I will sign off for now. I think we’re going to go and check out some jungle canopy tours and local hot springs. MAybe get lunch int he local tourist town of La Fortuna, before retiring back here for the night.

Peace and Love,
Chris (+ Laura)

p.s. — all of these photos are by Laura, except a couple that are noted. And most of them were taken on the grounds of Essence Arenal.

America, fuck yeah! Heartstopping breakfast in the Houston Airport. Cinnamon bun french toast.

By contrast, our first meal in Costa Rica. Better presentation. Fresher ingredients. Delicious.

Chris’ first couple photos in-country. With sites like these, is bad photography even possible?

Some local life.

Anyone help identify this little guy?

The view from Essence Arenal.

Breakfast, Day 1.

Pineapples growing right outside our room, and another easy view. (photo on left one of the few by Chris)

Some kind of vulture.

Our family has lost a mom, an aunt, a sister, a friend, and really, one of our core matriarchs. Growing up, she was my second Mom. Her boys, my brothers.

This may sound crazy, but I’ve never known how to spell her name. Sure, I know it’s Cheryl, but the short form was always a mystery to me. I remember being a kid, and my Mom asking me to write the message on a greeting card—usually in a rushed car ride on the way to some occasion or another. I never knew which one was right. Phonetically, it’s “Auntie Sherry,” but that wouldn’t do. Chery? Looks too much like cherry. Cheri? Cherie? I just didn’t know which one was right, and the thought of misspelling your second mom’s name is… I dunno, scary? What if I hurt her feelings?

No, it always came to the same thing: I’ll just write Auntie Cher.

I wonder if she ever noticed.

Those who have experienced loss, like my Auntie Cher had, know that it’s not possible to sum up a full life in a piece of writing, or a series of old photos, or an obituary notice. The very idea is ridiculous, so I’m not going to try.

Let me say instead that I will miss my her wit, her strength, the way she scrunched up her face when she needed to set someone straight. She didn’t suffer fools for long. But she was also sensitive and kind. Quick to laugh and happy to help when you needed something. Her meals were famous. Her practical jokes the stuff of legend. She will be missed.

The funeral meant a return to my home town this week. a place where I got to grow up with two moms and two brothers, and pretty much lived a lucky small town childhood. We explored every square inch of Fort Saskatchewan growing up, but I thought I had left the place behind me when I left over a decade ago. So I was surprised by both how happy I found myself to be back, and by just how much my roots are still there.

It was great to have the family back again, as it always is. Even though we were together for a sad event, as we always are. For me, it was a wake up call that I need to stay better connected with my family. I like to think that’s a legacy my Auntie Cherie would appreciate.

That’s me as a little tyke with my Auntie Cher.

Mom and son.

My aunt blowing bubbles and enjoying our wedding.

My aunt and I showdown.

My Moms and my Grandma.

I don’t have time to wax poetically about how the redwoods are beautiful and majestic (they are both), or to elaborate on the history of the region, from the First Nations who lived within this rich ecosystem to the clear-cutting loggers who devastated it—or even the first-round conservationists who worked to protect what remains.

Wikipedia can help us though:

In 1850, old-growth redwood forest covered more than 2,000,000 acres (8,100 km²) of the California coast. The northern portion of that area, originally inhabited by Native Americans, attracted many lumbermen and others turned gold miners when a minor gold rush brought them to the region. Failing in efforts to strike it rich in gold, these men turned toward harvesting the giant trees^[4] for booming development in San Francisco and other places on the West Coast. After many decades of unobstructed clear-cut logging, serious efforts toward conservation began. By the 1920s the work of the Save-the-Redwoods League, founded in 1918 to preserve remaining old-growth redwoods, resulted in the establishment of Prairie Creek, Del Norte Coast, and Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Parks among others. Redwood National Park was created in 1968, by which time nearly 90% of the original redwood trees had been logged. The National Park Service (NPS) and the California Department of Parks and Recreation (CDPR) administratively combined Redwood National Park with the three abutting Redwood State Parks in 1994 for the purpose of cooperative forest management and stabilization of forests and watersheds as a single unit.^[5]

I also don’t have the knowledge to describe the myriad species that live within this protected area (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), but that info is out there for our nerdiest friends to find.

We only spent a morning walking and driving through the forest, so I’m no expert. But what I can say is that it was great.

- Chris

Biggest clovers I’ve ever seen. No four-leafers though...

Some park workers were replacing the platform around Big Tree. I’m pretty sure the big fella was mad at them for torturing it’s brethren.

Moro Bay, California, supposedly named El Moro by the original Spanish explorer because the big rock (in the background) looked like the turban of a Moor.

We’ve fallen a bit behind on the blogging what with driving over 8,000km and all (that’s about 5,000 miles for our American friends). We’re currently chillin’ in Astoria, Oregon, watching TV and waiting for a pizza to get delivered to our Motel room (when in Rome...). Across the Columbia River from us lies the state of Washington, which will be our last visited on this trip before sliding into Vancouver for a short visit with friends and another short visit with my folks in Sorrento, B.C. Then home, and back to work. Which is starting to feel like an exciting change, actually.

We haven’t put up much of anything from our time in California or Oregon, but we will. Starting now, I guess.

Elephant seals moping around on the beach just north of Hearst Castle. These guys flap sand on themselves, ostensibly to stay cool. They don’t move much while on the beach to conserve energy.

Pretty scenery on the California coast on the way to Big Sur.

Artwork at the Henry Miller Memorial Library at Big Sur. Miller wrote here for several years (not at this site, but in the vicinity).

More epic coastline.

A sample of the road we drove.

We met this dude, Max, at the pub/hotel we stayed at in Halfmoon Bay, south of San Francisco. He’s a student/bartender. Pours a mean pint. (photo by Laura)

Driving across the Golden Gate bridge was a big deal for a couple yokels like us. Woo hoo. (photo by Laura)

Waiting for the next sale, the owner of this antique shop outside of Zion National Park, Utah, collects “old junk” from the East and sells it to suckers like us in the West.

Some of Bryce Canyon parks landscape. Besides the vibrant red, eroding rock the rest of the scenery recalls areas of Alberta or B.C. Canada.

A professor from a local college, while on spring break, paints the landscape of Bryce Canyon, Utah.

Chris at Bryce Canyon, Utah.

Landscape near Capitol Reef National Park in Utah.

It’s been tough to find healthy choices for food while on the road. I’ve eaten more burgers, fries or beans than I’d like to admit. Here’s Chris eating some beans while enjoying the view of a spectacular river canyon in Utah.

The road took us to spectacular heights and views on the way to Capitol Reef. Never before have I truly grasped how diverse ecosystems are depending on altitude, because not one hour later we were back in a dry, red-rock desert.

Here is it is, the dry red-rock desert near Captiol Reef Park. This was one of our favorite landscapes. If I could do it all over again, I’d camp at Capitol Reef Park and explore the petroglyphs (paintings and carvings on the rocks by Native Americans).

Scenery on the other side of the road from the last photo, near Capitol Reef, Utah.

Driving down the road near Capitol Reef Park, Utah.

I have a strange obsession with photos of a single tree in a wide and dramatic landscape.

After driving through Capitol Reef, we spent the night in Green River only to awaken to a wicked wind and dust storm that was sandblasting the side of our car and had lodged numerous tumble weeds underneath. As we drove away from the hotel we saw tumble weeds (bushes) 4 feet in diameter whirling across the highway.

The winds from the sand storm pushed us toward Moab, a trendy-hippie, fun little city.

Near Moab.

Arches National Park in Utah.

Arches National Park in Utah.

Here is an arch in Arches National Park in Utah. Thousands of years of erosion have carved many arches into this landscape.

A hole in the rock at Arches National park casts light onto Chris.

Outside Moab is this quirky, tourists spot called “Hole n’the Rock” where for a fee you can visit a 5,000 square foot home carved into the rock by a couple that lived there until the 1950’s! Outside are loads of quirky decorations for you to admire.

This is one location within the quirky decorations at “Hole n’the Rock” in Utah.

From Moab, Utah we drove to Page, Arizona and camped along Lake Powell. I loved this location!

The next day we bought groceries at the Wal-Mart Super Centre and enjoyed lunch on the trunk of our car in the Wal-Mart parking lot.

Only a few miles outside of Page, Arizona is Horse Shoe Bend, a famous river bend. While Chris captured the shot of the river bend, I captured his precarious position on the edge of the 1,000 foot drop. At the moment it was the only way to calm my nerves about how close my husband was to the drop.

Chris hanging out at the Grand Canyon, Arizona.

The Grand Canyon is truly amazing. I loved my time there. From the historical buildings, museums, shops, restaurants, interpretive programs, views and wildlife it is a remarkable place very much worthy of being a World Heritage Site.

A deer who’s chosen to make the Grand Canyon its home.

Crowds watching the sunset at the Grand Canyon in Arizona.

Chis bringing our fantastic day at the Grand Canyon to a close with some music around the campfire.

Monument Valley, just north of the Arizona/Utah border.

800-year-old cliff dwellings at Navajo National Monument, Arizona.

Lake Powell, outside Page, Arizona.

Obligatory Horshoe Bend photo, outside Page, Arizona.

Grand Canyon gift shop.

The overlook tower at Grand Canyon’s east viewpoint.

Bright Angel trail, Grand Canyon.

Bright Angel trail, Grand Canyon.

Bright Angel trail, Grand Canyon.

Bright Angel trail, Grand Canyon.

Bright Angel trail, Grand Canyon.

Sunset on the south rim.

Laura and I had a nice creepy walk in the woods to find the rim around midnight for some long-exposure tripod shots.

We get our kicks in Williams Arizona.

Williams.

Viewpoint at Meteor Crater.

Oatman, Arizona.

Oatman.

The last little bit of Route 66 passing through the Black Mountains on the edge of the Arizona/California border.