Hello again!! Today we leave San Jose and head Southeast to the Caribbean coast. A small town named Cahuita is out destination. A province of Limon Costa Rica. Population 5,000 people about 60Km from the border of Panama. The older generations speak a mixture of French, Spanish and English, called Patwah which is a language Americans would call Creole.(
www.spanishcourses.info/cities/playa-Cahuita-population)
Cahuita is a quiet town, except when the Costa Rican's win a World Cup Futbol game!! Cahuita has 3 Spanish schools. I observed many speaking Spanish but they could speak enough English to give directions and take my order for food. This is where we met our amazing guide "Ludrick", he is native to Cahuita and his ancestors are from this area as well.
The scenery from San Jose to the Caribbean coast was breathtaking!! Such lush hues of green and untouched rivers draining into the Caribbean Sea. There was a lot of small houses painted bright colors which is typical for the area. There is a strong Jamaican influence here. " Many of these people's ancestors came from Jamaica to work on banana plantations and the railroad in the late 18th century"(spanishcourses.info).
colorful buildings on the way to Cahuita
It was a 5 hour drive to the coast and we had plenty of time to rest, read and just watch the scenery as we traveled along sometimes narrow roads. I appreciate the dexterity of drivers in Costa Rica, "tailgating" as described in the US is a non issue there, they all do it. A stoplight is mostly a suggestion and a couple taps of the horn means "I'm coming through!!!!". There are many forms of transportation here from big rigs hauling out the fruits from the area to local Ticos on small motorcycles zipping in and out of traffic, fearless at times passing between two cars. It was too much to watch at times, so I focused on the scenery and was glad we arrived intact at the bus station.
If you look to the right side of this picture in the "V" that is sideways, just above the coconuts there is a two toed sloth(Choloepus didactylus). He is light brown and very furry. It takes some training of the eye to spot one. The three toed sloth (Bradypus tridactylus) is a darker "coffee" color. Both species sleep about 20 hours a day. They are herbivores and move slowly to limit the amount of calories they expend. They come down from the tree only once every 5 days to drop some scat and back up the tree they go. Their color is a way to protect themselves from predators, as is the infrequent trips to the ground.
Hello my name is Ludrick!! This is our guide who went with us throughout the trip. He is an educated tour guide and he told me being a guide is one of the best paying jobs in Cahuita. He went to school for one year to get certified as a tour guide. Much of his knowledge comes from growing up in this area. He speaks Patwah, English, Spanish, and is learning German. Ludrick only eats truly organic foods. He showed us one side of the road with truly organic bananas ( about 3 inches long when ripe) and another side of the road with bananas that are sprayed with insecticide and bagged in plastic while still growing to protect from insects and animals. I learned the "organic" fruits that we buy in Oklahoma are not likely truly organic unless they are locally grown. The taste between an organic banana and an inorganic banana is like night and day. Organic much sweeter and much more flavor.
The photo to the right is a lady selling tissue for the public restroom which costs 150 colones. While we were there the exchange rate for US dollars was about 550 colones for every US dollar. I was told by several businessmen the rate changes sever time daily. But, 550 was about the average while we were there.
Here is the view from the first hostel we stayed at. We had an impressive storm the first night and the waves were much higher that the seawall that was built there. A local told me it was a very big storm in relation to the ones they usually have there. For that reason we were not able to go snorkeling as the sediment from the rivers and ocean bottom made it difficult to see anything. Not safe for inexperienced snorkelers.
Our first sighting of Costa Rica's fauna. A giant grasshopper. about 2 inches long.
Blue crab hiding in his home.
To the right is one of the main streets of Cahuita. They have their own brand of rum they sell here. It's a coconut rum and very tasty.
The beach near the entrance to the Cahuita National Park which was founded in 1970. This is one of the only parks where your admittance is by donation only. No set fee to enter.
Above and left is a couple of monkeys we saw. They are Howler Monkeys (Alouatta family) there are several different species of howlers and I am not sure which species this one is. We did see the Capuchin Monkey and I will point that one out and provide the scientific name when we get to the picture.
Ludrick is showing us a female crab with an egg sack ready to lay some eggs. (Right and Below)
We learned a lot about termites. They wont bite you. Rub a rock on the side of the termite nest and out they come, let them come on your hands. If you were in a survivalist situation they are a great source of protein and yes I ate a couple. They taste just like wood. Also if you rub them together with your hands their smashed bodies are a wonderful natural insect repellant. Termite nests are frequently taken over by bees.
Hiking through the Cahuita National Reserve.
This video was on mute when I recorded it. :(
But this is a hot spring, the bubbles you see are natural gas coming up from the earth. It was discovered some time ago. First thing the Costa Ricans said was "this is not good for the earth, not good for the fish, not good for the people to harvest this resource" So it is an attraction within the National Park in Cahuita now. Can you imagine Americans walking away from such a lucrative resource simply because it would damage the earth?? I was in awe as to the natives attitude towards all the material things they could have, they say "Why????" it will damage the earth!!! 70% of all of Costa Rica's electricity is generated by hydroelectric dams. Not one carbon emission from their primary source of electricity. Brilliant.
(Information from Ludrick McCloud)
To the left and below are the White Faced Capuchin Monkey (Cebus Capucinus) named from their resemblance in white markings to an order of Monks. a-z-animals.com/animals/white-faced-capuchin
Costa Rican dogs run loose, no leash laws, they come to the soda's and beg for food, they are frequently successful. They run free here. This is a photo of two dogs playing on the coast.
Finally another pic of our friend the sloth.
So that's it for day two. Day three will be up tomorrow. The Costa Rican's have a saying
"Pura Vida" they say it all the time. At first I didn't quite know how to use it and was a little shy to be saying things in Spanish I didn't fully understand. It means "Pure Life" and by the end of my trip it was rolling off my tongue with a true understanding of the meaning. See you tomorrow!!
Old suspension bridge, perhaps for rail. Was not an auto bridge.
In Costa Rica the dead are buried above ground. I suspect a below ground grave would not be very efficient as the ground is saturated often. I have seen above ground graves in other cities where below ground burial would result in the coffin and its contents "floating" up with the water levels. I was told by our guide it is very expensive to be buried in this manner.
Ticos surfing
More pics of the Caribbean Coast
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