Paul and Marg's Adventures

They burn the sugar cane fields after the harvest to replace the carbon in the soil. This is a tradition that has been going on for thousands of years. Lately the fires have been very large…it has been very dry for a long time here.

We spend most of our time outdoors both day and night. These are some shots I took as the sun went down while sitting on balcony.

This is Holy Week in Costa Rica. The Schools are closed and most of the government workers are off. It is common to go to the beach for the last big holiday at the end of summer. It’s sort of like the week between Christmas and New Years or Labour Day.

We had been working on recording Alvaro’s band and since everybody (in the band) was off school we recorded one of their songs on Monday (25th). Here are some of the pictures they took with my camera.

About a month ago our tree was in full blossom but now it has grown what looks like a bean pod which opens up to seeds that fly in the wind like milkweed. After this the leaves should come out once it starts to rain again in April. We have only had rain twice since Christmas (which is normal).
Hope to get back into taking more pix again….been busy with a lot of other things.

Costa Rica is voting county by county to allow transgenic products to be grown here or to go GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms) FREE. One of our friends is setting up seed banks throughout Latin America and together we put on a 3 day Seed Festival here in Atenas. If the big companies (Monsanto) get their way, there will be no traditional seeds for many of the crops we eat, only their seeds which you will have to buy every year. They say they are doing it to save the world from itself….but as usual, it is another lie. Children in the schools made “seed art” which we displayed in the park and we also had films, live music and traditional dancers. Atenas voted to be GMO FREE, as did most of the country…still a few more to vote.

These two waterfalls are among the best in Costa Rica – approximately 60 m high and they are both easily accessible in the middle of the jungle yet only 40 minutes from Atenas.

Puntarenas (Sandy Point) is one of the main fishing ports in this part of the country. It is only about a 30 minute ride so we drove down to give John a look and for us to check out a few things. There is also a nice beach and a great fish/seafood market.

When we returned from our mini trip to the south, the tree beside our house was in full bloom. This is the dry season – we haven’t had rain in months but that’s when many of the trees and bushes bloom in purple, red, orange, and several shades of yellow. I call these pomp-pomp blooms because they remind me of the kleenex “flowers” we used to make in the 60’s to decorate the cars for a wedding.

John Zadro joined us for a few days in Atenas and also planned to see his friends near Dominical. We wanted to see their property and the land in that part of the country so we went along. We had a great visit with our good friends in Esterillos Oeste and then we drove on to Quepos, Manuel Antonio, Dominical and Uvita on our way to Plantanillo. Each area has its charm but so far we are convinced that Atenas is hard to beat.

During our visit with John’s friends, Dennis and Enza, Johnny sat in on one of Dennis’s gigs at the Roadhouse near Uvita. Dennis (from Guelph) has been playing blues most of his life and Johnny can jump in and play anything! It was a really great night of inspiring live music!

When the rodeo comes to town there are thrills and spills and some very close calls.

Costa Rica has deferred the decision on whether to allow transgenic seeds/plants to the local level. Each County is voting to reject or accept transgenic agriculture. A group of concerned citizens and friends lead by the local cooperative grocery store made their concerns known to the politicians. Atenas voted to reject Monsanto’s poisonous plants along with (at present) 50% of the other counties in the country.

After they harvest the sugar cane, they set the remainder of the field on fire. It is a centuries old tradition that replenishes the carbon in the soil. We have been seeing the fires almost every night…this is the fire we saw tonight.

When you enter CR, you have a tourist visa which lasts for 90 days. To stay longer you are required to leave the country and then re-enter. We call this the “hula” since it is a dance we all do to get around the rules – silly….but lots of stuff doesn’t make sense in Latin America. This time we took our “Visa Run” to Granada, one of the first cities in Central America, founded in the mid 1500s. The architecture is remarkable which I attempted to capture in the following pictures. We also toured an active volcano and took an eco-boat trip in Lake Managua.

We had never been up in the high country of Cartago (south west of san Jose) nor to the Orosi Valley which had a good rep as being a beautiful place. Both places were amazing…

Here are the rest of the pictures from the last half of the Camp….It was very rewarding. We had 11 students who came to almost every session – there were a total of 9 sessions (2.5-3 hours each). We made many new friends and the material I and others taught will be valuable to those who attended but also will be the foundation for the development of a permanent school which we hope will emerge.

We took a tour with Ron and Francine Johnson to La Paz to see the animals they have rescued. It is a huge exhibit where they have native Costa Rican and Central America animals, birds and butterflies. They also have huge waterfalls (3) and a great buffet. The tourist park is fairly high in the mountains and we almost needed jackets in the day time. Hard to imagine that you could drive for 100 km and have such a change in the climate and the terrain. Some people call the area ‘the Switzerland of Costa Rica’. We saw lots of Holstein cattle on the hillside (they make cheese) and strawberries.

I’ve been kinda slow getting these posts up because of doing the Entrepreneur’s Camp starting January 8-26. We were invited to our friend’s church because they were having something like our Thanksgiving where the people all brought fruit and chickens and peanuts etc. They sold the food for cheap and donated the money to the Sunday School. Later in the day we celebrated our friend Alvaro’s birthday. A very nice day….!

I received some nice cards sent to me for my Birthday…one hilarious one from Melissa with 3 Chihuahuas singing Felice Cumpleanos. This one is funny too……

The “Festival of Lights” is the annual Christmas Parade with marching bands and floats.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

Marg and I didn’t feel like working anymore on the upcoming Entrepreneur Camp so we decided to climb the nearby mountain. They had cut a road a few years ago through it, but then the rain came and washed half the mountain down on the road. They have been working on clearing it out, but it has been a long time and quite frankly, it could be another very long time until the road opens again. The beauty of it is…it really doesn’t matter to us or anybody else. Here are some of the pictures I took on that walk/climb.

Today, our friend Mark Kulick (Brian’s Dad) passed on to a better place, and is now free of a body that was making life not much fun. A great guy – we will miss his humor and friendship! God Bless!

Today, was busy with a trip to a friend’s (Eric and Natalie) organic farm and playing the Atenas Children’s Christmas Party. There was more than 300 kids who received presents while Marg and I played Christmas songs in the background – I am sure they didn’t even hear them. More inspiring for us than for them I expect.   

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

Our friend doing what he does best – make music. This time with just the mouthpiece of the flute.

We have been busy with our lives and it seems that taking pictures has been on the lowest priority although I have taken a few most of which have come from right near our casita. We also helped to celebrate our friend’s birthday by playing 10 songs (mostly jazz standards and 4 of Margaret’s songs). We had a woodwind player and friend sit-in with us which was fun. Great to be playing again. We have a few more music gigs coming up.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

We have been settling in and reconnecting with friends, looking at property and making plans for a 4 week series on giftedness and purpose with young adults from the area; as well as a planning our film festival for the tourists coming in during January and February.

Can’t believe we have been here 2.5 weeks. Just 24 left…….(really)!

Meeting people who only speak Spanish has taken our language skills up a notch…it has been a lot of fun learning new words and expressions and using them to get to know people we couldn’t have communicated with at all just months ago.

Here are some of the pictures from the last few days.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

Ok, as promised I made a point of taking some pictures which show the crazy beauty every where. The pictures of the flowers and foliage were taken right around the house…..the rest are some of the things we have been doing – like an unexpected Sunday afternoon shopping trip to Alajuela and a great meal at Jalapenos (Mexican) with friends Bob and Nancy.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

I went for a walk (without my camera) – what was I thinking!!! I did take a couple of shots with my phone though…..(sorry).

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

In all the planning to leave and other objectives we had for our time at home I had forgotten just how beautiful Costa Rica is. I woke up at 6 am with the sunrise and was greeted with stunning beauty – a beauty that had escaped me while in Canada. Even the familiar places took me back.

Our place overlooks some of the Central Valley that last year we saw from on top of the mountain, but from much lower. Everything seems close and we are inside the picture we had from the mountain.  I love the evening showers and the light breezes that make the day as close to perfect as anyone could imagine. These pictures really don’t capture the beauty…sorry – but I hope to do better in the future.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

We are just days from leaving for Costa Rica and starting a new chapter in this adventure. We had a number of family and friend get-togethers which were great – they included a “Rib-Off” (Best Ribs Competition) with our friends Matt, Jeff, and Ian and Erica.

We also had a family re-connection with Brenda visiting from Argentina (via Victoria), and a School House dinner with hosts Paul and Suzanne and friends Pat and Wayne, and Bob and Nal.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

A few more shots to complete this trip….tomorrow we will spend traveling – not something I enjoy. But I hope to publish some pictures from South Western Ontario (Home) since after the last 5 months I hope to see it with fresh eyes..and a new enthusiasm for capturing some of the beautiful moments. Thanks for following our adventures…..!!! 

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

We are coming to the end of this trip and it has been a very good one. The weather here continues to live up to its reputation as being the best in the world. Almost everyday is an early summer day. Sometimes I am amazed that it can be this nice every day – pinch me! …………

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

As I mentioned in an earlier post, we have had some rain after almost 4 months and things are starting to turn green again. We went for a drive to look at properties and took a few pictures before going to “Antanos” for Easter Dinner. After, we stayed in town for the Easter Processional – very interesting!

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

This is Semana Santa (Holy Week) and many things (stores, restaurants) are shut down. It is nice to see the Costa Ricans “close” the country and take a break. Everybody heads for the beach since this is the last big holiday of the summer (sort of like Labour Day).

It hadn’t rained here in Atenas and in most of the country since before Christmas but this week the weather changed and we had afternoon rains giving some new “looks” to the vista we have of the Central Valley…..enjoy!

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

Some of the picture we took while Dorine was with us and Matt visited from Esterillos Oeste.  

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

Took a drive down the old ox cart road to Orotina….beautiful drive. Had breakfast (Gallo Pinto and huevos – Rice and Beans and eggs in the traditional style).  Dorine took pictures and I took a few as well…..take a look!!  

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

A Tope is a horse parade and the ATENAS Tope is among one of the biggest in Costa Rica with more than a 1000 horses and riders. People enjoy the evening with food, music, dancing, fireworks, and cerveza.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

At this time of year, they’re harvesting sugar cane and then burning the fields. The carbon is a great fertilizer for growing the next season’s crop. At night, you can see the flames for miles!

Just a few photos of Costa Rican life.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

We went to La Paz Waterfall Gardens, a beautiful park with great exhibits of animals, birds and other creatures that have been rescued. There are also has 3 amazing waterfalls……look at the pictures.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

Since our guests Paul and Suzanne and Doug all love photography, we decided to go down to the center of town and spend a half an hour taking pictures…..here’s what I took.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

We spent a couple of days along the Pacific Coast hanging at the beach and with our friends from Esterillos Oeste.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

Went for a walk to the coffee fields next door to our house.

Pause Play Play Prev | Next

It was a beautiful day for a country drive so we decided to go to Sarchi, a small town north of here renowned for its ornately painted oxcarts. Oxcarts such as these were once used to haul coffee beans to market. We are coming to the end of the dry season and many trees and bushes are in bloom. It was a wonderful drive!

Pause Play Play Prev | Next