Costa Rica Dog Lover

This morning we rode our bikes into town and did some shopping.  First to the farmer’s market where we got some tomatoes, avocados, and cilantro.   Then on to a store in town to pick up a garbage can and then to another in Cocles to check out spices and bread.  It was a good long ride and a beautiful morning.  On the way back we saw a huge blue heron standing in a river very near our house.  It was gorgeous!!!  The first heron I have seen in our new town.

September is the month that we are required to get our yearly vehicle inspection so Tom took the Toyota to Limon yesterday to get that done.  They are very strict about the condition of the car you drive here.  Interesting since the roads themselves are so terrible :-)  At any rate, we passed with flying colors but Tom said that there were several in line who did not and they were given long lists of things that they had to get done within two months. 

We started out this morning sitting on the port listening to the chorus of birds that starts up around 5:00 a.m. everyday.  This is how we always start our day and I honestly can’t get enough of it.  It seems that each day we see another bird that we have not seen before – and we don’t even have to get up out of our chairs – they just come to us!!  

In our yard!!  Today Tom came in and told me that we had fruit on the papaya tree in our yard.  I didn’t even know we had a papaya tree :-)   Anyway, I went out and got a picture of the young fruit and will write about it when we actually pick it and eat it.  I thought it would be much longer before we could actually have fruit from our garden.  We are planning to plan a coconut tree or two later this week – they are growing all over the land around us so we are just going to transplant a couple. 

The toucan in the picture above was just hanging out in a tree right next to the house yesterday and Tom got a great shot of it.  It is weird how sometimes they are just all over and other times they are no where to be found. 

Today I got my hair cut so I guess we really are settling in.  Two days ago the vet and now a haircut.  Feels just like home :-)  The person who cut my hair is from Savanna, Georgia.  She has been here ten years with her husband who is from Italy.  They met when she was teaching at a university in Italy.  He was working in African doing aid work at the time so they didn’t get to see each other much for two years.  When he got back he asked her if she would move to Costa Rica and off they went.  At the time she didn’t even know where it was.  They have a six year old daughter and another due in November.  He was trained as a veterinarian in Italy but here he is in construction – builds houses and buildings.  She didn’t like it much the first couple of years but now she says she cannot imagine living anywhere else.  That is the mantra that I keep hearing from most people who have been here for a while.  Pura vida!!!!   

Today Kaya and Wiley got their first visit to the Veterinarian in Puerto Viejo.  We took them to her house in Playa Cocles and she gave them an examination and said they are in great shape!!!  We of course knew that but it was good to hear again.  She then gave them medication to ward off ticks, fleas, intestinal parasites and heartworm – talk about one stop shopping!!  Her price was incredibly fair – probably too much so.  We are just so glad to know that she is here and that we have someone to go to in case of an emergency.  She is from Spain and has been in PV for 15 years.  She said she sometimes thinks of going back to Barcelona but then, when she does go back for a visit, cannot wait to come back to Puerto Viejo.  I suspect that will be our experience as well.

Once we left her house, we headed back through town and I was amazed at all of the people and activity going on.  We realized that the sailors from the USS Iwo Jima were in town.  They have been in Limon for the last two weeks on a humanitarian mission to give medical and veterinary care to the people on the Caribbean coast and, since they are heading back out to sea tomorrow, have spent the last couple of days here letting loose.  There were literally hundreds of them in town – GREAT for the economy here.  It was fun to see them.  

Also today I got some great picture of butterflies and a hummingbird who was just sitting still on a flower waiting for the bugs to come to her so she could eat them.  I bet she sat there for twenty minutes – perfectly still.  I have never seen that before. 

And to top it all off, it was an absolutely gorgeous day here today.  It started out with a bit of rain in the morning but by about 10:30 the rain was gone and it was incredible.  Not too hot but sunny and beautiful.  Just another day in paradise 🙂

I have been taking picture of birds and animals around the house and it has been great fun!!  We are starting to see a real variety of birds particularly.  The ones below are a few photographs that I took yesterday and today.  If you put the mouse pointer over the photograph, it will tell you what the name of the bird is.

Today we awoke to the sound of howler monkeys and the toucans.  This was the first time since we have been back that we have heard them and it was quite a racket!!!  The day was very hot this morning but then the rain came this afternoon and cooled everything off.  This morning we went to the post office and got a post office box so we can get mail!  This is a big deal.  Prior to this June, we had to hope that mail would be delivered to the bus station and we could pick it up but now we (and everyone else in Puerto Viejo) have options 🙂 .

The day started out very warm and we felt it as we went around and did a bunch of errands and did grocery shoipping.  Once the rain came we hung out in the hammocks – Tom slept, I read – and then came inside and watched a movie.  We are now talking to our carpenter about getting some additional work done.  What can I say – I am loving life 🙂

Well – it is Saturday, August 21st and we have been here just over one week.  I am beginning to get used to waking up to the amazing variety of bird songs as well as the hundreds of butterflies that play in our garden in the early morning. The photo above is one of the flowers that the butterflies like to land on.  I also have had a visitor for the last couple of days – a beautiful poison dart frog – that I have tried to just let roam around while keeping the dogs away.   I think that Kaya licked it though because she is now just watching it hop around rather than trying to eat it.  Wiley is just ignoring it entirely but I think he may have been bit by a scorpion a couple of nights ago so he is keeping his distance from all tiny critters.

We had a wonderful week with our friends, Susan and Rex, who helped us move down here.  We went out to breakfast one day, lunch another, and dinner another.  Otherwise, we stayed in and ate fabulous meals that the three of them cooked up with the fresh seafood we were able to get every day.  I provided cleanup :-)  We did get to go to the wildlife rescue and Cahuita National Park as well so they were able to get a sense of this part of the country.  The wildlife rescue had some baby toucans that were not quite old enough to be released which was something I had not seen there before.

Rex helped Tom string some fencing around the entire property so the dogs can no longer get out.  That was WAY over and beyond the call of duty as it was hot and muggy – not the kind of weather to be doing that kind of work.  Tom took them back to San Jose on Thursday morning so that they could catch their flight back to the states on Friday morning.  I will really miss them – they were the perfect guests. 

Tom stayed in San Jose on Thursday night since he had to meet with our lawyer to finalize our purchase of the lot adjoining our property.  We plan to put in a casita for family and guests in the next few months which should be quite an adventure!!  I stayed behind and finished putting everything away and so spent my first night alone in the rain forest – pretty cool!!!  It was peaceful and not at all frightening – I enjoyed it. 

Today we will go to the farmer’s market in town and then to Bri Bri (the county seat) which is about 20 kilometers away to buy Tom a bike.  Susan and I went and got me one on Tuesday but didn’t have room to get one for Tom.  Bikes are the standard mode of transportation here and we plan to do most of our traveling in town and around on them so we won’t be using the car nearly as much from here on out.  There is also an arts festival that started yesterday and will run through August 31st so we plan on visiting that today (  http://www.puertoviejosatellite.com/news/2010/08/06/arteviva-poster-and-calendar-released/   ) .  And tomorrow there is a rodeo on Cocles beach – I cannot wait to see that! 

So many people asked me what I was going to do with all my free time – at this point I am thinking there won’t be a problem figuring that out 🙂

We are now officially living in Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, Costa Rica!  We had some difficulty getting my computer up and running due to compatibility issues with Windows 7 (nothing to do with CR just Windows……….) but I am now able to get online.              

We arrived at the Denver airport at around 8:30 p.m. on August 12th to check ourselves and the dogs in.  All went smoothly except that Wiley and Kaya had not been in their crates for two weeks and they did not like having to be in them – especially in such an unfamiliar place.  The Frontier employees told us we could take them to a dog walking spot and stay with them until around 10:00 p.m. so we did that and I think it made a bit of a difference in calming them down somewhat.  At 10:00 we headed back up and met an employee who took us to the special TSA place so that they could check out the crates and then off they went to baggage.  We met our friends at the gate and then flew out about 12:30 a.m. on August 13th.  The flight was just under five hours and not too bad at all.  We asked an airline employee where we could pick up the dogs and he told us and then went to pick up a big cart to put them on.  We gathered our luggage and the dogs, got through immigration, and headed out to the curb to meet our van.  Turned out that we had to take a taxi to where the van was and it was not big enough for the dogs so Tom stayed behind with them and joined us a few minutes later.  I about died when I saw the van we were to take – it was clearly not large enough for dogs in two big crates, four adults, eight carryons and nine duffle bags.  After much head scratching, we decided to take the dogs out of the crates and then take the crates apart.  That worked although it was a pretty uncomfortable four hour drive – especially for poor Wiley.

We arrived at approximately 10:00 a.m. on August 13th and it was everything I hoped it would be.  We were exhausted after being up for thirty hours or so but the house was all cleaned out and ready for us.  We brought in all the bags and the dogs and started unpacking.  Susan and Rex went way over and beyond what they needed to by helping us put everything away and pitching in just like it was their own house 🙂  We have seen lots of lizard in and around the house (good for insects), a big toad, and a spider.  Now we are just hoping to see some toucan.                   

In the couple of days we have gone to the farmer’s market, shopped around town for necessities (beer, trashcans, food, beer……….), played cards in the evening, gone to Cahuita National Park and walked the beach and saw monkeys (howlers and capuchin), and have generally just relaxed.  The days have been absolutely gorgeous although today it is raining (it is a rain forest after all) so everyone has taken at least one nap and probably will be taking at least one more.  I am in heaven.  PURA VIDA!!!

Since last Wednesday when we left Idaho, we have spent nearly the entire time with family and friends.  In Casper I spent a lot of time with mom and was able to have dinner with my brother and his wife and mom a couple of times and also met up with my very good friends Bonnie and Lynnde.  In Denver, we had dinner last night in our apartment we are renting with Shanti, Chris, Tyvone, Jamie, Shaylyn, and Rylee.  Shaylyn (1o year old granddaughter) stayed with us on Tuesday night and Rylee (4 year old granddaughter) stayed with us on Wednesday night.  Both granddaughters played in the pool today and I got some great photographs.  Also today my Aunt Bubbles and her partner Frank drove all the way from Broomfiiel to our place in south Denver to visit.  It was great to see them and I really appreciated them coming all that way. 

Yesterday I spent much of the day with my son Jason and will see him again on Saturday.  He is going to go to school this fall and so is preparing for that.  School starts in a couple of weeks.  Last night Tyvone, Shanti, Rose, Carol and I had a “girls night out” and went out for a couple of drinks.          We all had dinner beforehand (including the guys) and then we left the guys with the grandddaughters and headed out.    Great conversation and much laughter – a wonderful time overall. 

Today and tomorrow will be relaxing days – not much activity although we will have lunch with a friend from Boulder today.  Otherwise we will play it by ear until we leave for Lake City on Sunday morning.  Just six days until we fly out!!

We left Idaho on Wednesday July 28th at 3:30 am and got to Casper about 15 1/2 hours later and checked into a motel exhausted and grumpy.  The poor dogs were totally freaked out and wouldn’t eat or sleep.  The room was dirty and smelled bad so we checked out the next morning and moved to another, much nicer and cleaner, place for the duration of our stay in Casper.  It has a great trail to walk the dogs and Tom has been doing just that – over and over and over and over……… while I have visited my mom, brother and friends.  He has probably walked 20 miles over the last three days but he is really getting to know this part of town :-)  

We will have the same issues with them for the six days we are in Denver but we are staying in a hotel there that has a full bedroom, kitchen, and living room and is next to an open space so we can at least not be cramped.  We just won’t be too mobile so will have to work that out.  In Lake City, we won’t have a problem.  It is a small town and my son has a yard they can hang out in and relax.  We really have never traveled with them before unless we have been able to stay with family who have yards but, since mom sold her house and the girls are now in apartments in Colorado, hotels are the only option. 

The dogs will be on the same flight with us to San Jose in the cargo hold when we fly out of Denver.  I can hardly wait to hear Wiley and Kaya howling until the engines come on when they will probably still be howling but we won’t be able to hear them.  They have never flown on a plane (and never will again) so this will be a real adventure.  They will have only one more stressful time for the four hours it will take for the van that is picking us up at the airport to travel to Puerto Viejo but we will be with them in the van so it should not be too bad.  Once we arrive in Puerto Viejo and get to the house, it should only take them a week or so to adapt.  I think they will be just fine playing in the yard, napping on the cool rock floor in the open living room, and running on the beach.  They will never have to travel again and be cooped up for days on end.  They will be the envy of all their friends!!

Since I left my work life and retired on Friday, I thought I would put together some of my random thoughts of how I got to where I am in my life.  It is rather interesting to think about how I have ended up finishing my career at age 56 and moving to Costa Rica to continue the next chapter. 

I was never one who thought about what I was going to do when I “grew up”.  I had a vague idea that I might be a lawyer but I never knew what that meant.  Rather than planning my life, I tended to let it just happen.  I was very young when I first got married, had two sons, got divorced, and went to college.  I remember showing up at the financial aid office at the University of Wyoming, a child on each hip, and telling them that I was here to go to school and that I had no money.  A wonderful financial aid officer just looked at me and said that we needed to figure this out.  He got me into school and I ended up majoring in accounting because I knew that I could get a job to support my kids. I worked about 30 hours a week and took a full load of classes and finished in 3 1/2 years.  Luckily, it turned out that I had a real talent for number crunching and administration and so I had a successful career in that field. 

I ended up working in higher education because that was the only real option in Laramie, Wyoming in the late 1970’s.  I took a job at the University of Wyoming Library as an accounting technician and the rest is history.  I have worked in many different places – all either higher education or non-profit companies – and I enjoyed it for the most part.  However, I always was a bit of a rebel and my real talent was in managing change.  Status quo just didn’t do much for me and I enjoyed going into a new place, looking at how things were done and fixing those things that weren’t working.  By definition, change management requires that you move around a lot since once change is effected there is nothing more to do and boredom sets in :-)  So I  moved around a lot. 

I started my career at the University of Wyoming and ended it at the University of Idaho.  What is very interesting to me is that these are such similar institutions, particularly in size and location.  They are both in small towns with the institution itself the primary employer.   The most interesting similarity however is that they are both the basis of the only politically liberal mindset in the state.  Idaho is the most conservative place I have ever lived, perhaps the most conservative state in the country – although I suppose that it would be hard to outdo Texas in that regard.  It is not bad or good – just interesting to me.  At any rate, it seems as if I started and ended in almost the same place.

So now it is on to Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, Costa Rica.  I figure that if nothing goes terribly wrong health wise, Tom and I will have at least twenty or so years living in this amazing place.  No more number crunching, no more stressing about personnel issues, no more stressing about institutional finances.  Dang – why didn’t I do this earlier!!!!