I can´t believe this is my last blog post of the semester. It´s hard to describe how much I have learned throughout my travels these past four months. I started out the year traveling in Nicaragua with Hannah. I quickly learned how nice the people in Central America are, and also how little I actually need to survive for three weeks. After traveling, I was excited to meet the other students on my program. Looking back at the first day, it´s funny how wrong first impressions can be sometimes. But in all the right ways. We started the program off strong by going on a three-week field trip--my favorite memories from this trip was watching the sunset and hiking through primary forest at Corcovado. After that trip was when we first met Monteverde and moved into our home for the next month. The month was full of lectures, exams, and hikes, and was quickly followed by our second field trip. From that trip, I will always miss our after-dinner conservations at Eladio´s and the late-night swimming in Panama. We then had our homestays, which may have been my favorite part of the whole semester. My days were full of catching butterflies, playing with children, and eating my tica mom´s homemade bread. How amazing. After that, we headed back to the station for a couple weeks to finish up our projects and give presentations. As a finale, we all hiked to Volcano Arenal and stayed in a resort that had hot springs. Our last night in San Jose was fun yet sad. People started leaving very early the next morning, and most had left by noon the next day.
Costa Rica has been ever so good to me. The people I have met here I know I will remember forever and hopefully see sometime soon again. This place has so much to offer, and I have yet to see it all. Thanks for reading my blog, even though I was bad at keeping up with it. I hope to share my adventures with you all in person sometime soon.
Have a great day.
Hasta luego.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
The Rainy Season
It has begun. Rain, rain, rain everyday. It used to only be in the afternoon, but now it is wet all day. This is unfortunate for most of our research projects as butterflies and ants, for example, are only out in the sun. It has really made me glad that I chose to come in the dry season (without even thinking about it, really). Although, I have to admit, the storms are pretty cool when you can see them coming from across the mountains.
We are in our last week of homestays. I can't believe time has flown by so fast. I have thoroughly enjoyed staying with a Costa Rican family and will miss my packed lunches and story swapping. The bread my mom makes is amazing. The other day she taught me how to make empanadas full of this sweetened squash type stuff. I think I may have developed an addiction to coffee in the morning--good Costa Rican coffee, that is.
As things quickly wind down here, everyone is trying to take advantage of our last few weeks in this beautiful country. Some of my plans include visiting the area's waterfalls and going out to eat with friends.
Here is a picture of a butterfly I have caught a lot, Morpho.
We are in our last week of homestays. I can't believe time has flown by so fast. I have thoroughly enjoyed staying with a Costa Rican family and will miss my packed lunches and story swapping. The bread my mom makes is amazing. The other day she taught me how to make empanadas full of this sweetened squash type stuff. I think I may have developed an addiction to coffee in the morning--good Costa Rican coffee, that is.
As things quickly wind down here, everyone is trying to take advantage of our last few weeks in this beautiful country. Some of my plans include visiting the area's waterfalls and going out to eat with friends.
Here is a picture of a butterfly I have caught a lot, Morpho.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
The Simple Life
Wow, so much to tell. Where to begin...
First of all, my words can only do so much. Please check out my friend Jason's blog at http://jckopp.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2010-03-12T22%3A47%3A00-06%3A00&max-results=2. His pictures are amazing and do a fantastic job of summing up the trip so far.
Well, we returned from our second field trip a couple of weeks ago. That field trip started with a 10 mile hike from the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserved to Peñas Blancas, or as we call it, Eladio's. The hike was rough with a heavy pack on our backs but still beautiful. A cool swimming hole and lunch marked the halfway point. By the time we reached Eladio's, I think I had fallen at least a dozen times and made at least a few river crossings.
The trip was worth it. Eladio's is a small cabin tucked into the side of hill with a gorgeous view of the surrounding forest. Eladio owns it and has been hosting students groups for years. The living quarters were tight and we were without electricity. Each day we explored the forest and swam in the river. One day was Fungus Diversity day, so we spent the day collecting as much fungi as possible--my favorite was the fungus that attacks and grows out of insects (as seen in Planet Earth). After dinner each night, we hung out on the porch talking and laughing. Staying at Eladio's has been my favorite three days on this entire trip.
From Eladio's, it was another long hike to Poco Sol. The hike was again tough but beautiful. Arriving at the Bio station at Poco Sol was breathtaking. We first saw the glass-like lake, in which we were tempted to immediately jump, packs and all. If you looked above the lake, you could see the station hiding behind the trees. This station was luxurious, especially compared to what we had experienced. There were only a few people to each bathroom, the floors were wooden, and view from the hammock was phenomenal.
After Poco Sol, we headed a little farther east to reach Tirimbina. There, we stayed at a slightly less luxurious bio station, but comfy nonetheless. At Tirimbina, I took many nighthikes--night is the time to find the frogs and snakes. My favorite was the Red-Eyed Tree Frog, which is on almost every Costa Rican postcard. We spent one of the days touring a "sustainable" logging company and an "organic" pineapple plantation. Although the day was slightly depressing, we ended it well by sipping delicious piña coladas from pineapples. Yum.
Our next stop was La Selva, a famous biological station where much research has been conducted. This was probably the most populated place we have been, but it was still nice to have internet and laundry access.
We had finally reached the Caribbean Ocean when we arrived at Parismina. We stayed on a canal lined with crocodiles. Needless to say, we did little swimming. We did a lot of cruising the canals birdwatching. My favorite activity, however, was watching a Leatherback turtle lay eggs. The first night we went searching for the turtles, we failed after walking the beach from 9pm-1am. The following night, however, was a success! When we arrived at the beach at midnight, a HUGE Leatherback turtle had just arrived to the beach and begun the egg-laying process. This was an experience of a lifetime. Once the turtle started the process, she went into a trance until she covers up the hole an hour later. Although the turtle laid over 100 eggs, only a couple will survive to reproductive maturity—the dangers for baby turtles are immense.
Next stop was Bocas del Toro,—an island off the Caribbean coast of Panama. We had arrived to paradise. The white-sanded beaches were lined with palm trees. The water was warm and crystal-clear. We girls had our own huge house to ourselves. This was my first exposure to sorority-type living, and I really enjoyed it, although I don’t know if I could do it much longer than a week. At Bocas del Toro, we snorkeled, snorkeled, and snorkeled as part of Marine Diversity weekend. This was my ideal weekend. We saw all kinds of tropical fish, coral, anemones, and much more. Each day on our way back from snorkeling we were lucky enough to see dolphins! One night was devoted to our talent show. I have never laughed so hard. Some of the acts included a rap about everyone in the program, guitar solos, and skits. After the show, our professors surprised us with live music by a local band, so we spent the night dancing to reggae.
Panama was the last stop on our trip. It was hard for us all to believe that our last field trip was over. Next on our plates were our independent research project proposals—mine is looking at the difference of butterfly diversity among sun-grown coffee, shade-grown coffee, and the forest. After turning in our proposals, we headed off to our homestays where we are now.
The day I met my family, I was very nervous, but it only took a couple of days for me to become comfortable. I live with an older couple on a farm in Cañitas, which is about an hour walk away from Monteverde. The area is gorgeous. The view is of the surrounding hills and the Gulf of Nicoya off in the distance. My farm has coffee, banana, chickens, cows, avocado, berries, vegetables, flowers, and much more. Each morning I eat eggs from my chickens and coffee from my farm—about as local as I have ever eaten. I have my own room with a big bed. My parents are super nice and right next door is a friend from the program. This past weekend we went to a local festival where there was much dancing and horses.
So far I love my homestay. It certainly is a cultural experience, and I think my Spanish is greatly improving. My favorite part of it all is probably the beautiful farm on which I conduct my research. The other day, the farm hand showed me an open pasture with a huge tree, from it hanging a swing. He then told me to try the swing and held my butterfly net for me. It was the best, most happy swing of my life. It made me realize how much I have truly enjoyed my time in Costa Rica.
First of all, my words can only do so much. Please check out my friend Jason's blog at http://jckopp.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2010-03-12T22%3A47%3A00-06%3A00&max-results=2. His pictures are amazing and do a fantastic job of summing up the trip so far.
Well, we returned from our second field trip a couple of weeks ago. That field trip started with a 10 mile hike from the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserved to Peñas Blancas, or as we call it, Eladio's. The hike was rough with a heavy pack on our backs but still beautiful. A cool swimming hole and lunch marked the halfway point. By the time we reached Eladio's, I think I had fallen at least a dozen times and made at least a few river crossings.
The trip was worth it. Eladio's is a small cabin tucked into the side of hill with a gorgeous view of the surrounding forest. Eladio owns it and has been hosting students groups for years. The living quarters were tight and we were without electricity. Each day we explored the forest and swam in the river. One day was Fungus Diversity day, so we spent the day collecting as much fungi as possible--my favorite was the fungus that attacks and grows out of insects (as seen in Planet Earth). After dinner each night, we hung out on the porch talking and laughing. Staying at Eladio's has been my favorite three days on this entire trip.
From Eladio's, it was another long hike to Poco Sol. The hike was again tough but beautiful. Arriving at the Bio station at Poco Sol was breathtaking. We first saw the glass-like lake, in which we were tempted to immediately jump, packs and all. If you looked above the lake, you could see the station hiding behind the trees. This station was luxurious, especially compared to what we had experienced. There were only a few people to each bathroom, the floors were wooden, and view from the hammock was phenomenal.
After Poco Sol, we headed a little farther east to reach Tirimbina. There, we stayed at a slightly less luxurious bio station, but comfy nonetheless. At Tirimbina, I took many nighthikes--night is the time to find the frogs and snakes. My favorite was the Red-Eyed Tree Frog, which is on almost every Costa Rican postcard. We spent one of the days touring a "sustainable" logging company and an "organic" pineapple plantation. Although the day was slightly depressing, we ended it well by sipping delicious piña coladas from pineapples. Yum.
Our next stop was La Selva, a famous biological station where much research has been conducted. This was probably the most populated place we have been, but it was still nice to have internet and laundry access.
We had finally reached the Caribbean Ocean when we arrived at Parismina. We stayed on a canal lined with crocodiles. Needless to say, we did little swimming. We did a lot of cruising the canals birdwatching. My favorite activity, however, was watching a Leatherback turtle lay eggs. The first night we went searching for the turtles, we failed after walking the beach from 9pm-1am. The following night, however, was a success! When we arrived at the beach at midnight, a HUGE Leatherback turtle had just arrived to the beach and begun the egg-laying process. This was an experience of a lifetime. Once the turtle started the process, she went into a trance until she covers up the hole an hour later. Although the turtle laid over 100 eggs, only a couple will survive to reproductive maturity—the dangers for baby turtles are immense.
Next stop was Bocas del Toro,—an island off the Caribbean coast of Panama. We had arrived to paradise. The white-sanded beaches were lined with palm trees. The water was warm and crystal-clear. We girls had our own huge house to ourselves. This was my first exposure to sorority-type living, and I really enjoyed it, although I don’t know if I could do it much longer than a week. At Bocas del Toro, we snorkeled, snorkeled, and snorkeled as part of Marine Diversity weekend. This was my ideal weekend. We saw all kinds of tropical fish, coral, anemones, and much more. Each day on our way back from snorkeling we were lucky enough to see dolphins! One night was devoted to our talent show. I have never laughed so hard. Some of the acts included a rap about everyone in the program, guitar solos, and skits. After the show, our professors surprised us with live music by a local band, so we spent the night dancing to reggae.
Panama was the last stop on our trip. It was hard for us all to believe that our last field trip was over. Next on our plates were our independent research project proposals—mine is looking at the difference of butterfly diversity among sun-grown coffee, shade-grown coffee, and the forest. After turning in our proposals, we headed off to our homestays where we are now.
The day I met my family, I was very nervous, but it only took a couple of days for me to become comfortable. I live with an older couple on a farm in Cañitas, which is about an hour walk away from Monteverde. The area is gorgeous. The view is of the surrounding hills and the Gulf of Nicoya off in the distance. My farm has coffee, banana, chickens, cows, avocado, berries, vegetables, flowers, and much more. Each morning I eat eggs from my chickens and coffee from my farm—about as local as I have ever eaten. I have my own room with a big bed. My parents are super nice and right next door is a friend from the program. This past weekend we went to a local festival where there was much dancing and horses.
So far I love my homestay. It certainly is a cultural experience, and I think my Spanish is greatly improving. My favorite part of it all is probably the beautiful farm on which I conduct my research. The other day, the farm hand showed me an open pasture with a huge tree, from it hanging a swing. He then told me to try the swing and held my butterfly net for me. It was the best, most happy swing of my life. It made me realize how much I have truly enjoyed my time in Costa Rica.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Sunday we went zip lining in Monteverde. It was amazing! They started off giving us directions on how to brake and what to do if you get stuck on the line--I ended up not having to do either of those things. There were 11 lines as part of the course with a Tarzan Swing halfway through. The Tarzan Swing involved jumping off a platform that was 60 feet off the ground and swinging from a rope attached to a tree. Everyone from our group was brave enough to do it--woo hoo! My favorite part of zip lining was starting in the forest and going through a huge break in the forest that was covered in clouds. I never thought a cloud could be so...wet.
Today we toured a couple of local farms--one larger one and a small, local one. It was interesting to compare the different operations and their impacts on the environment. We also toured the Monteverde Cheese Factory--I don't think I have ever had that many dairy products in one day. Delicioso.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Here are some pictures from my travels...The monkey is eating some left over mango from our lunch. The waterfall and sunset are both some the prettiest I have seen. We visited an orchid garden and saw the most intricate orchids.
Last week we took salsa lessons, and I wasn't too bad. We only learned a few steps, but that was enough for a couple of hours. I then got a chance to practice the moves this past weekend when we went to the concert of my professor (even through he plays in a band that does rock covers...)
We also started Spanish classes this past weekend. Three times a week, we have classes for three and a half hours. I have already learned so much, especially because we are 4 students to one teacher. Yesterday, our teacher treated us to some ice cream after a hard class of reflexive verbs.
Today was a field experiment day. We took data on hummingbirds all morning and then analyzed the data and presented our findings this evening. I'm learning a lot, especially about the flora and fauna of Costa Rica.
Can't wait for zip lining this weekend!
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Monteverde, finally
Ah, where to begin. The last couple of weeks were spent traveling around western Costa Rica and camping on the beach in Corcovado National Park and in a dry forest at Santa Rosa National Park.
Corcovado- Located in the Osa Penninsula, Corcovado protects one of the last of the country’s last remaining old growth rain forests. There, we were camped on a fairly secluded beach at the edge of the forest. We hiked through an old growth forest which is exactly what you would picture if you thought of a rain forest--high canopy trees that allow little escape for sun to the understory. It was gorgeous. Seeing those tall trees makes you appreciate the age of these forests and how irreplaceable they are. The destination of our hike was another gorgeous beach where we filled up our water bottles from a waterfall that dropped into the ocean. The following day we went snorkeling at a nearby island where I saw a reef shark! Some others also saw a sea turtle. In our free time in Corcovado, we spent a lot of time at a nearby waterfall and swimming hole. In total, we stayed in Corcovado for about six days. Every part of it was amazing except for the fact that it rained a couple of the nights, and, of course, there is no such thing as a completely waterproof tent…
On our way north to Santa Rosa, we made a few stops to learn about various plant and animal species. One of my favorites was when we stopped at a pineapple plantation to learn all about the pineapple plant. The lesson wasn’t completed until we stopped at a roadside stand and had some fresh pineapple. Many of our lessons include eating and drinking whatever plant product we are learning about. The other day we were learning about a palm that is used to make wine, so we were given a cup of some very sweet palm wine.
Anyways, on our way to Santa Rosa we stopped at a hotel for the night which we cherished after sleeping on the ground for the last week. The comfort didn’t last long as the next morning we did a hike and arrived in Santa Rosa that night. Santa Rosa and Corcovado are two very different places. Santa Rosa is much drier and more of a deciduous forest. Upon arriving, I was nervous what we would do without having the ocean, but I quickly grew very fond of the place. The cooks were amazing—I don’t think I have eaten as well as I did last week. It was good that we had all of that energy because we did many long and strenuous hikes. One of the best was a 16 mile hike to the ocean which included a view of the sunset from a lookout. It was one of the most colorful sunsets I have seen. At Santa Rosa, we also got a chance to learn about some Costa Rican history and visited a battle site where an American once tried to take over the country. Our last day at Santa Rosa was spent hiking near a volcano to yet another gorgeous waterfall. We then took the bus to the beach where we saw one of the last Pacific sunsets for a while.
We have seen very little of Monteverde, but I know already that I will love it. We are housed in the Biological Station complete with a classroom, kitchen, and computer lab. I have three roommates with which I share a bathroom. (I am so excited to take a shower immediately after posting this…) Tomorrow we have Spanish class in the afternoon and have the morning free to do what we choose—most likely mine will involve studying for the lab practical we have this Saturday. I can’t wait to get to know Monteverde better.
I wish I could tell you everything I have done in more detail, but each amazing memory blends in with the next. Costa Rica has already proven to be an enchanting place. I hope you are all well. Have a great week.
Corcovado- Located in the Osa Penninsula, Corcovado protects one of the last of the country’s last remaining old growth rain forests. There, we were camped on a fairly secluded beach at the edge of the forest. We hiked through an old growth forest which is exactly what you would picture if you thought of a rain forest--high canopy trees that allow little escape for sun to the understory. It was gorgeous. Seeing those tall trees makes you appreciate the age of these forests and how irreplaceable they are. The destination of our hike was another gorgeous beach where we filled up our water bottles from a waterfall that dropped into the ocean. The following day we went snorkeling at a nearby island where I saw a reef shark! Some others also saw a sea turtle. In our free time in Corcovado, we spent a lot of time at a nearby waterfall and swimming hole. In total, we stayed in Corcovado for about six days. Every part of it was amazing except for the fact that it rained a couple of the nights, and, of course, there is no such thing as a completely waterproof tent…
On our way north to Santa Rosa, we made a few stops to learn about various plant and animal species. One of my favorites was when we stopped at a pineapple plantation to learn all about the pineapple plant. The lesson wasn’t completed until we stopped at a roadside stand and had some fresh pineapple. Many of our lessons include eating and drinking whatever plant product we are learning about. The other day we were learning about a palm that is used to make wine, so we were given a cup of some very sweet palm wine.
Anyways, on our way to Santa Rosa we stopped at a hotel for the night which we cherished after sleeping on the ground for the last week. The comfort didn’t last long as the next morning we did a hike and arrived in Santa Rosa that night. Santa Rosa and Corcovado are two very different places. Santa Rosa is much drier and more of a deciduous forest. Upon arriving, I was nervous what we would do without having the ocean, but I quickly grew very fond of the place. The cooks were amazing—I don’t think I have eaten as well as I did last week. It was good that we had all of that energy because we did many long and strenuous hikes. One of the best was a 16 mile hike to the ocean which included a view of the sunset from a lookout. It was one of the most colorful sunsets I have seen. At Santa Rosa, we also got a chance to learn about some Costa Rican history and visited a battle site where an American once tried to take over the country. Our last day at Santa Rosa was spent hiking near a volcano to yet another gorgeous waterfall. We then took the bus to the beach where we saw one of the last Pacific sunsets for a while.
We have seen very little of Monteverde, but I know already that I will love it. We are housed in the Biological Station complete with a classroom, kitchen, and computer lab. I have three roommates with which I share a bathroom. (I am so excited to take a shower immediately after posting this…) Tomorrow we have Spanish class in the afternoon and have the morning free to do what we choose—most likely mine will involve studying for the lab practical we have this Saturday. I can’t wait to get to know Monteverde better.
I wish I could tell you everything I have done in more detail, but each amazing memory blends in with the next. Costa Rica has already proven to be an enchanting place. I hope you are all well. Have a great week.
Monday, February 15, 2010
So little time!
I am now sitting in an internet cafe in Liberia and have little time to tell you of my adventures! Some of the highlights have been taking a ten mile hike through an old growth rainforest, seeing sloths and monkeys, snorkeling with sharks, and learning more than I ever have about tropical flora and fauna.
I can´t wait to give a full update, but I am afraid I must run to the store before returning to our bus. Tonight we are heading to the Northwestern Pacific coast where we will be camping for another week.
Talk to you in Monteverde!
I can´t wait to give a full update, but I am afraid I must run to the store before returning to our bus. Tonight we are heading to the Northwestern Pacific coast where we will be camping for another week.
Talk to you in Monteverde!
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