The national drink is Guaro, a rum made from sugar cane. It is marketed as Guaro Cacique. It was
available at lunch one day for us to try. It was a little sweeter than the
sugarcane drink I had in Cuba a few years later.
Cassava is a root, I suspect related to the potato family, and is a starchy
vegetable. The top foliage grows about five feet tall. We had it during our
stay diced in a salad, and also cut in 2-inch chunks mixed with other
vegetables. At first I thought it was cooked celery when served that way. It is a staple of the local diet.
The national tree of Costa Rica
is the Guanacaste. Guanacaste means elephant
ear and the seeds of the tree are big and look like an
elephant’s ear.
Twice I’ve seen and stopped to
see the tree where typically iguanas sleep and sun themselves . They ignore the tourists who stop
to look at them. We’re talking about pretty big animals here not little lizards.
It is quite a surprise to see but I do not recall exactly where it is, although
I have a great vision in my head of the tree and its unassuming surroundings.
Leaf cutter ants are a lot of fun
to watch. I’ve seen them several times in rain forests and am always mesmerized
by them. The leaf pieces are much bigger than the little ants. There was always a long trail of them. They
carry the leaves to the nest, chew them up, but do not eat them. The chewed
mess is medium for fungus to grow and they do eat the fungus.
It is not easy to remove dried
mud after a mud bath. It takes some pretty hard scrubbing and one definitely
needs help with the back. But your skin sure feels good when you are once again
clean!
I spotted the following on a tee
shirt in Costa Rica
Only after the last tree has been cut
Only after the last river has been poisoned
Only after the last fish has been
caught
Only then will you find money
cannot be eaten.
Cree Indians, Canada
How often do you get a chance to
drive through the country’s only tunnel and a bit later cross over the
Continental Divide? Can do it in Costa
Rica.
OR: take a hike in the rain
forest after lunch? A pleasant respite at mid day! We were cautioned to stay on
the path and offered walking sticks for the nice walk. We spotted an animal
about the size of a small dog and were told it was an agouti.
The only mishap on my second
visit to Costa Rica was the loss of an ear ring I had taken off and placed on a
towel when I went in the pool at one of the hotels. Getting out of the pool
without my glasses on I unthinking grabbed the towel and one ear ring tumbled
to the ground through the deck planking. Lost forever but it was only a piece
of travel costume jewelry so no need for tears. All good jewelry always stays
home!
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