My New Costa Rican Family!

 Over the past three days I have been living with the Rodriguez family and have had a wonderful experience.  Below you can see some photos about my time with the family, enjoy! 

Here is me with my new family: Enid (the mom), Me, David (the other student with me), and Ronald.  They also have a daughter Keirin that was with us the first night but then had to leave to go back to the University.  As you can see in the background Ronald is a pineapple plantation owner.  He has been working with pineapples for over 35 years now.  He started out working in the fields as a poor farm worker and through the years has grown his business.  Now he sells over one million dollars in pineapples each year which are exported all over the world.  These are some of the nicest people that I have met and also some of the most hard working.  Ronald goes goes goes all the time being a business owner and Enid is always right behind him making sure that everything on the home front goes smoothly.  In the background you can see his ATV, which he is very proud of.  I can't figure out why it is camouflage though.  He uses this to ride around the plantation everyday to make sure that everything is alright.  

This is a view from my families second home, or what they call their weekend home.  This is a cabin that they come to every weekend which is located pretty much in the middle of nowhere surrounded by their pineapple plantation.  As you can see they have a nice pool with a swim up bar as well as an amazing water slide into the pool.  The coolest thing about this pool is the water in it is actually water runoff from the pineapple fields.  He has a very good water management strategy that allows the water to go into the pool as well as his tilapia pools.  The group had fun yesterday afternoon coming to visit and chilling at the pool.  The family is very modest about this property and seems to have lots of events at this area where they invite the workers and their families to come and swim which helps keep up the moral and good relationships between the boss and the workers. 

 This is a picture of their two tilapia ponds.  This is also water runoff from the fields and here they have a couple hundred tilapia in here that they actually harvest and eat.  This seems to be a very common practice around Costa Rica for people to have their own tilapia ponds. 

 This is a picture of Ronald out cooking on the "grill" which is actually a part of an old tire.  That night it was raining which is why the picture didn't turn out as well.  He was funny because he kept wanting to add more charcoal to the grill but Enid kept telling him not too because it would cook to fast, so it was funny to listen to them canter back and forth.

 The first night we were with the family, their daughter Keirin celebrated her 18th birthday.  Here is the  cake that Enid had gotten for her.  As you can see since it was so hot there the icing was melting off of it before we could eat it.  Here in Costa Rica 18 is the age for everything like getting your drivers license, voting, as well as drinking. 

 One morning David and I worked in the fields with the workers harvesting pineapples.  Lets just say I have a very new appreciation for pineapples.  The workers here start at 4:30 and usually work until about noon.  We didn't arrive until 5:30 but the harvest was in full swing.  As part of the harvesting process we had to wear some nice protective equipment.  The first was like an apron but it went down and around your legs and we had arm guards.  Even with this equipment our skin got tore up pretty bad just from the pineapple plants themselves.  Here we are putting the pineapples in the crates, 10 per crates, which are then loaded up and taken to the processing plant.  During our time we also learned how to break the pineapples off the plants.  The workers that Ronald has are amazingly efficient and were putting us to shame, but we had a good time with it!

 This is the room that I stayed in during my stay, it is actually Keirin's room when she is home.  They have a very nice home and what David and I enjoyed the best was the air conditioning unit that was in the bedrooms, it was the first we have had since we were here.  It was very nice to be able to have this nice luxury even for just a few nights!

 This was my favorite "room" of the house which is actually the front patio.  This is where everyone always seems to go since it is so hot inside the house during the day.  Here it is nice and shaded and you can occasionally catch a nice breeze. 

 This is David and I when we went to tour the pineapple packaging plant where Ronald sends his pineapples.  We had a great tour, which lasted 3 hours, where we learned all about the process and the history of pineapple growing in Costa Rica.  Here we are standing in the refrigeration room where the pineapples are being kept until they are loaded into the trucks.  The pineapples behind us are going to be sent to the UK.  The plant we visited exports pineapples to over 15 different countries around the world.  While we were there we also got to see some of Ronald's pineapple go through the system and get boxed up.

 Yesterday some of us had the opportunity to work with a local conservation group and plant trees.  This is the location that we planted the trees at.  The hike in was a little bit long but the view was worth it and we planted about 50 trees.  This group is in charge of the drinking water for a nearby town and they own the property where their is a natural spring.  The property when they bought it was cleared for pasture land so they are planting trees and other vegetation which helps with issues such as soil erosion as well as helps purify the water. 

While we were on the hillside we also had the opportunity to hike back into this waterfall which was so beautiful.  The water coming out of this spring is also the water that the town uses and is dependent on. 

My first waterfall of Costa Rica!

This is the view from where I am writing this blog today.  We are at a bio-dynamic farm called Luna Nueva which is situated in the mountains of Costa Rica.  This afternoon it has rained for awhile and then all of a sudden the fog moved in for a little while and then moved out very quickly.  It is so beautiful though!

Tomorrow morning we will be going to Monteverde which is known for the Cloud Forest.  In the afternoon we will be doing a forest tour getting ready for Saturday when we do the SkyWalk and the zip-line tour.  I can't wait!!

That's what I love about Sunday...

Today we had our first "free day" since arriving in Costa Rica.  It was a much needed break to just relax and get some stuff done.  This afternoon and evening we have had a nice rain storm roll through.  It has rained here everyday now for about a week so I think the rainy season has officially started.  I have uploaded my week 2 pictures to facebook if you would like to see more than just what is on the blog.

Our bags are packed to leave EARTH campus tomorrow morning.  We are half way done with our classes and will not be returning as a group here to EARTH campus.  I will be returning back here in about 3 weeks for the next phase of my summer.  Tomorrow morning we will be leaving for our home stay program where I will be living and working with a pineapple farmer and his family.  I am really excited about this experience to see how families live and work here in Costa Rica and to work on my Spanish!  (I will also not have Internet or be able to do a blog until Thursday night.)  I hope that you all have a great Memorial Day and thanks so much to all of our veterans out there!

"The average American is nothing if not patriotic."
Herbert Croly

Adventures in Tortuguero

 This was the sunrise on the beach at 5:30, the actual sunrise was scheduled for 4:30 but I didn't want to get up quite that early.  The view was still pretty spectacular at 5:30.  Wish I could be here every morning!

 This morning we went on a boat tour and saw this bird who seemed to be very photogenic.

 Later this morning we went back out in the boats to find some Caymans and we did!!! This is one of the eight that we saw in the national park.

 This is a black tropical river turtle that was sunning itself on a log in the river.

 This is a view of the "island" we are staying on where the river runs into the ocean.  On the right you can see the lagoon emptying into the ocean on the right.  It is amazing to have two such diverse ecosystems so close together. 

So sadly tomorrow morning we will be leaving this place and go back to EARTH University for out last two days there before our next adventure begins. 

Tortugero National Park and the beach!!!

 After an hour bus ride we loaded up on a boat and headed down river about an hour to get to our lodge.  The "dock" we launched from is in the middle of nowhere but is the hub for hundreds of tourist each day.  Once on the boat out on the water the sky opened up and rained for about 15 minutes.  After that the sun came out and was beautiful, needless to say one arm is burnt from the side of the boat while the other is just fine. 

 Once we arrived at Laguna Lodge we were greeted by ladies with cold rags and fresh pineapple juice.  During their busy season they host about 290 guests but right now the resort only has 19 guests and our group has 13 so we are pretty much taking over the resort and have it all to ourselves!

 Here is the rooms at the lodge.  We each have our own room since there is no one at the resort.  I have learned that in Costa Rica they pay special attention to detail with everything being just perfect with a special touch. From my room you can hear the crash of the waves and is only a minute walk to the black sand beach. 

 This is me standing on the beach.  Notice the fact that there is no one else on the beach besides our group of students.  It was a little bit cloudy this afternoon but then the sun came out.  Also the sand here is just about black due to the volcanic nature of it. 

 This is one of the two pools that is located here at the resort.  It has a small little island as well as a wonderful waterfall in the back right that feels great on your back! 

 This afternoon we took a short boat ride into the town of Tortugero which survives solely on the tourism industry.  We had a great time learning about the history of the town and wondering around!  This is a picture of Lauren who is another student at MU standing in front of a cute store we found.

 Mom, this photo is for you!!!  I found some sand dollars on the beach this afternoon and will try bringing them back (I hope they don't break).  There are not a lot of big shells like many other beaches but lots of really little shells.

 This is a view from where I am sitting tonight writing this blog on the lagoon side of the lodge.  The lodge sits right in the middle of this small "island" and has the beach on one side and the lagoon on the other.  It is very peaceful here with just occasional boat traffic.

Here is a sign that we saw walking up and down the beach today.  This area at Tortugero National Park was designated as an area to help protect the turtle hatchlings.  We unfortunately are not here during the peak turtle season which starts around July, but is also the time when all the tourists start arriving. 

Tomorrow morning we will be going on a lagoon tour from 6-8 and 10-12 to look for wildlife in the lagoon.  We will be having the afternoon to work on our projects as well as hang out and take a break.  We have had two weeks straight of classes so now we are just working independently on our projects and are given a break to enjoy this beautiful place. 

Sustainable Forest Management- FUNDECOR

Today we visited a sustainable logging operation site that is being managed by an organization called FUNDECOR.  This organization's goal is to help prevent deforestation of tropical rain forests, but they do that in a very specific way.  One way they help is by providing technical assistance to sustainable forest management and help landowners manage their forest in a way that can be sustainable while at the same time make them money.  Another way they help is to help with reforestation efforts as well as help with forest protection. 

To date FUNDECOR has worked with over 500 families and has helped preserve over 43,000 hectares.  They are a non for profit organization that act as a consulting group to assist landowners.  They also help enroll many families into Costa Rica's Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES).  This program gives landowners the opportunity to receive payments to keep the forests in tact.  They are paid about $60 per hectare per year.  For many landowners that money is not really enough to stop conversion to more profitable land uses such as cattle, bananas, and pineapple which is where FUNDECOR steps in. 

If it is seen that they can have a sustainable timber harvest on their property FUNDECOR does a complete inventory of the property to see how much marketable timber there is on the property which they consider anything 60 cm and above (DBH).  Of the marketable timber they mark only 50% of the possible timber that they actually allow to be harvested.  This can be seen with about 2-3 trees per hectare, and by the time the harvesting operation in complete 88% of the forested area has remained undisturbed.  After the harvest is complete FUNDECOR sends in an environmental impact crew to assess the forest and to make sure that it is up to standards.  This allows the landowner receive a substantial profit of about $300-800 per tree.  So the landowner can receive this money up front as well as the PES funding of $60/hectare which gives them an incentive to keep their property forested.  Since FUNDECOR is a non for profit they only charge $100/ hectare but that fee includes a complete forest inventory as well as the fact that FUNDECOR is the one that bids out the timber and works with the logger.  Since FUNDECOR is a widespread organization they are also able to get a premium for their harvested timber which puts more money in the landowners pocket.  With the way they are harvesting it is expected that landowners can then go in every fifteen years and harvest in the same way to have annual profits from PES as well as profits from the harvesting every year.   Below you can see some pictures and explanation of this process. 

 This is a load of logs that was leaving the site as we were coming in.  Each log will bring about $300-800 depending on the market at the time.

 This older man is sharpening his chain saw as he is waiting for the truck to come back.  When he was standing the chainsaw was about 2/3 the size of the man.

 This is one of the skidding trails that we walked on into the forest.   It was very muddy and we were pretty dirty when we were done but these trails take up less than 5% of the area which is a minimal amount and consider how much rain the area receives it was a nice skid trail to get the logs out of the woods.

 This is the stump of a tree that was recently cut down.  The wood is a beautiful color and the sap was coming out of the wood.  Also notice how the tree is hollow, which it is most of the way up it.

 This is one of the guys they call a forest engineer explaining the process of a Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification.  These tags are placed on all the logs leaving the site to show that these have met the FSC guidelines.  The wood that is harvested from their sites stay domestic, as they do not currently have an international market. 

 After the morning tour of the site we then stopped at a Soda or a roadside restaurant.  This turned out to be a very nice restaurant and I had fresh tilapia which was amazing!

This is me and Emma sitting at the soda while we were waiting for everyone else to finish their meal.  

Tomorrow morning we have a two hour bus ride followed by a two hour boat ride to arrive at Tortuguero, Costa Rica and we will be staying at Lagunda Lodge.  So I am very excited to be able to be on the beach and lagoon!

Critters in and around La Selva

 A very tiny tree frog that is only about an inch long that blends in with the vines.  He is a critter that we found on the night walk.

 This is a moth that flew onto one of the guys on the night walk.  Notice how BIG it is in perspective with his pants pocket!

 2 red eyed tree frogs we found in the swamp on our night walk.  I was so excited to just see one and then we saw probably 10-15 more but I was very happy with how the picture turned out with the lighting since I couldn't use the flash, so I just was using my new headlamp (thanks mom!).

 Can you see me?  One of the most deadly snakes in Costa Rica and it was crawling across the path in front of us on the night walk.  It is called a Fer de Lance in case you were wondering.

 This is a poison dart frog which is less than an inch long but has a fair amount of poison on its back.  We have seen about 50 of these little guys on the trails to and from our rustic cabin, you just have to look closely but the orange usually stands out.  Some of the locals also call them blue jean frogs.

 This is one of the three monkey species that we saw within about 100 yards of each other.  Needless to say they were not getting along very well.  This particular monkey was just sitting up in the tree and as we got closer he starting throwing the nuts at us.

 This is me standing on the longest cable bridge in Latin America and it took awhile to go across and it spanned over two major water ways.  It was very cool because we were up in the canopy for the most part so we got a birds eye view of the forest.

This is a toucans that I saw when I was sitting in the cafeteria yesterday evening.  I couldn't believe it, there were also parrots with him but I didn't get a chance to get a picture of them.  It does actually look like the Fruit Loops guy!

The last few days have been a lot of fun and I have spent a lot of time in the primary forest which has just been phenomenal.  Today we walked 5 km just to get to the plot that we sampled but we saw some awesome critters and scenery along the way which made it worth it.  Tomorrow we will be leaving La Selva and will be going to tour a production forest and then will head back to EARTH for the night before we leave for our next trip.  Adios from La Selva!

And the rain has begun...

 My group for the forest inventory the last two days.  We are standing underneath what we call a mother tree and it is huge!  There are also lots of other animals that call it home.  Notice the long sleeves and long pants, even though it was 98 F and 85% humidity there are a lot of irritants and bugs that we are finding out don't agree with our bodies!  The best is to come back and take off our rubber boots and have to dump sweat out of them, and wring out our socks.

 Here is an example of some of the creatures we have found in the woods that I got a good picture of.  Although it may not look like it this spider is as big as my hand and we almost walked into him.  I have learned that I need to look both at the ground and head level walking through the forest here, because who knows what could be around.  Today in the forest I also saw my first poison dart frog which was only about the size of a quarter but beautifully colored, but sadly I couldn't get to my camera fast enough.

This afternoon we tried to go into town to have a more cultural experience and look at the local town, but as soon as we arrived so did the rain!  I have never seen it rain so much for such a long period of time, it was insane! 

Tomorrow we will be heading off to La Selva Forest Station for a few days but I still should have internet!

Sabado

Me standing in front of the mother tree, which is in fact a Ficus tree (can't grow that in your living room though!)

The primary school that we worked with yesterday.  This is a garden that they work on and use the vegetables to feed the students in the cafeteria.  They have seven beds each for a specific grade at the school that takes care of them.  We planted lettuce and parsley there but they also had already growing peppers and tomato plants.  If you notice the beds are held up using old 2 liter bottles, each bed filled with a different food coloring.  This is something they do to reuse their bottles since proper recycling facilities are hard to find here.

Me standing in front of some peppers and eggplant growing out of vertical beds.  This is a very wise use of space it seems, and the plants do fine.  On the right you can see us planting lettuce on top of a green roof.  This is right outside of the cafeteria and it takes about 2-3 weeks for the lettuce to grow large enough to harvest and we will then be eating it in the salads that we have for both lunch and dinner.  A great use of space! 

This is me and two of the EARTH students that I worked with planting at the primary school and the cafeteria.  The guy on the left is from Colombia and the guy on the right is from Guatemala.  These guys are both first year students and enjoyed talking with me to help work on their English.  The guy from Colombia wants to be fluent in English so when he goes back home he will be the only one that can speak English in his city! 

The basilisk lizard that ran into the cafeteria when we were planting in the beds around it.  I guess that is what I should expect for an open cafeteria, although it was funny to see the guys running around trying to catch it.  This lizard is also known as the Jesus lizard because it can run across the water, some of the people in our group have seen this but sadly I have not yet.

Yesterday was a great day from working with the EARTH students planting vegetables to starting to collect data out in the rain forest.  Today we will be back out in the rain forest all day collecting data, am hoping to see some wildlife today but only from a safe distance!!!  Tomorrow morning we will be leaving for La Selva.