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Catch up time!

I’ve been very lazy about writing on this trip. Part of the reason is that I was so busy. As I have said, these are not “vacations” per se—there is nothing restful about them (unless you count just being in a beautiful location in a tropical climate). The other reason is that I’m very stressed about Jake. The short version is that the biopsy on his eye was positive for lymphoma. I haven’t heard the results for the second lymph node biopsy (appointment tomorrow ), but it is likely that it is positive also. The oncologist at UVA has already made plans for the chemotherapy, and we will find out more about that tomorrow morning at his regular oncologist. The initial plan seems to be a protocol that involves a chemo pill, and that he will do 4 rounds, three weeks apart. One of the downsides (though not the most important) is that our co-pays on our drug plan are quite high. We will pay about out of pocket about $3K for the first round and at least $2K for the other rounds. And we have drug insurance! Fortunately, we can afford it. They called from the UVA pharmacy to see if we wanted to try for financial assistance, but the income requirement was laughable—less than $30K a year to be eligible.


What is the absolute worst part is that Jake just does not feel well. I don’t know if it’s the lymphoma or something else, but he has no energy at all. It’s sad, because this fall he really had turned things around, and was feeling so much better (controlling blood sugar, etc.) I hate that he is going into this at less than 100% to begin with.


So, I’ll update tomorrow after we know more. I’ve enjoyed this trip and seen amazing things (and eaten a lot of excellent food), but I couldn’t have done it if my wonderful brother-in-law Jeff hadn’t stepped up to take Jake to appointments, etc.


Now, back to Costa Rica! I’m currently flying up the coast (over Nicaragua right now) on my way home. The water below is lovely aquamarine with puffy white clouds. I think I saw every sort of weather in Costa Rica, from cloud forest (wet Monteverde) to very dry heat (Guanacaste and Nicaragua) to high humidity heat (steamy Manuel Antonio) to cool and windy San Jose. (Cool is relative—it was around 70˚F yesterday, and breezy!) The food was as varied as the weather. I had everything from pork fajitas and tostadas (Nicaragua) to mahi mahi (several places) to beef filet (last night in San Jose) to ceviche and seafood carpaccio (Manuel Antonio area). Oh, also chicken and tuna tartare, lots of beans and rice, lobster, seafood soup, and more. Also, many, many desserts and a fair amount of red wine (vino tinto). This may be the first trip in a while that I have gained weight, even though I was very active.


Rainbow below the plane as I took off from San Jose

So, I just looked back, and I started a post at Arenal on Tuesday, December 12th. I’m going to copy it below and go from there!


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12/12/23: So, as usual, I'm behind. It's Tuesday morning, and I haven't written since Saturday night. I did get dinner in the hotel (arroz con pollo), and got my bag packed. Sunday morning I got up early and put my bag out. After breakfast, we climbed on the bus. There are a few other solos on the trip (three others, I think) and we each get our own row on the bus. I'm really glad about that, as I like to bring my larger carryon bag with me, so I've got my iPad, cameras, snacks, etc. The seats are assigned and we move every day. The rotation is that we move three rows each day. I started on the passenger side, near the back, and on the third day I'm on the drivers side, moving forward a little. In three days, I should be in the front seat, I think.


The tour director is named Manfred (his mom heard the German name and liked it) and he does a good job. It's a difficult job, minding 42 people of varying abilities. Ages range from a teenage boy traveling with his grandmother to a couple who are 86 & 89. They get around pretty well, and have two more trips planned. There is a couple traveling with their developmental delayed daughter—they've gone all over the world with her! There are lots of couples, and some pairs of friends traveling together. All in all, it's a good group. I've found another scientist, and she and I bonded over stories of working in the lab. Hard as it is to believe, I am the only birdwatcher in the group.


Anyway, on Sunday (12/10) we headed toward Arenal and it was a long drive! This was new territory for me. We drove from San Jose through Alajuela province. We stopped for a late lunch in Fortuna (just east of Arenal on the map below). Since it was after 2 PM, we were all starving. The bus drove around town and Manfred pointed out a zillion restaurants. He recommended the sodas, small restaurants that serve local food, and that what I did. I chose the one that had a line, figuring that the locals must know what's good. Luckily, a couple from our group had beaten me there and asked me to join them, so I didn't have to wait. I got yummy fish!



From Fortuna to our hotel, the Arenal Paraíso, it was only 10 minutes. The hotel was lovely, built on a steep hillside with native plant landscaping. We each had our own small building. Of course, I didn't take a picture, but you can look at the website. I didn't make it in the room before I started seeing amazing birds.


The bathroom window had reflective film, and the window was shaded by a bush. A couple of lovely species of tanagers decided that the bird in the reflection was the enemy, and fought valiantly as I took photos.



We met at the restaurant for introductions and dinner. We went around the group (42 people!) saying who we were, what we did (if anything), and how many Gate 1 trips we had taken. (BTW, that ranged from a first trip to 27 trips with Gate 1—there is definitely a loyal following!) Dinner was pretty good, but I’m writing this so much later than I don’t remember what I had, except that I had soursop juice! I had to google it, but it was good!



The next morning (Monday, 12/11), I got up and did some birdwatching before breakfast. I think I mentioned that the hotel was built on a steep hillside across from the Arenal volcano. You could call for a golf cart for transport, but of course I never did that. The walk up the hill (and down) was not that bad. And I was rewarded the first morning with an armadillo! This was the first time I had ever seen one alive—I have said for years that they are just like porcupines: they are born dead by the road. I was surprised to see the pink color, as I thought they were just grayish. I watched him/her root around for quite a while.


Nine-banded armadillo



Breakfast at every hotel is a buffet. That has been true everywhere I have traveled on a tour, from Türkiye to South Africa. Usually there are hot foods, some of which are specialized to the country (e.g., beans and rice in Costa Rica) and other regular breakfast foods, like scrambled eggs. BTW, bacon is very expensive in CR, and I saw it on only one buffet—it was very salty. Then there are breads and fruits, plus usually some cheeses and meats (like lunchmeat types). Drinks are juices or coffee/tea. It’s funny—I rarely eat breakfast at home, usually just coffee and maybe a yogurt mid morning—but I always eat breakfast on these trips.


After breakfast we got on the bus to head to Rio Frío near the Nicaraguan border. I’ve circled the area on the map, near Los Chiles. It was a longer trip than I’d expected, about 3 hours. Then we got on a boat and cruised up the river. It was fun. There were animals (white-faced capuchin monkeys, howler monkeys, and a 2-toed sloth), a couple of common basilisks (gorgeous lizards that are also called Jesus Christ lizards because they run on water to escape predators), and many birds. Manfred was the guide, and the captain pointed out wildlife as well. I added several new birds, and distinguished myself by contradicting Manfred in front of everyone. And, yes, I was correct. I did apologize to him later for contradicting him in front of the group, and he said no problem, he was fine with learning. He also had called a friend who told him that his ID was not right, so he believed his friend even if he doubted me. Still, I should have talked to him discretely about it. My bad.


Map showing Arenal and Los Chiles (near Rio Frio) circled in red. Black arrow points out Monteverde, where we went after Arenal.

We had an adventure on the way back from Rio Frío when the bus driver (an amazing man named Armando with bus-driving skills (a 52-foot bus!) that were beyond compare) slammed on the brakes, the only time he did that during the trip. He had spotted a sloth crossing the road. Manfred jumped out of the bus, looped his belt around the sloth (a three-toed, if you care), and took it well off the road in the direction it had been heading. The belt is because the sloth has an entire ecosystem in its fur. The three-toed actually looks green from its fur inhabitants. There is some kind of moth living there, and if you touch the fur you disturb the moths. Hence, the belt. Manfred carried the sloth to a small tree, and left it. (BTW, it was raining during this whole thing.) The sloth started to climb, then decided it didn’t like that tree and moved on. By the way, the line on its back means that it was a male. It was cool to see one up close like that!



That night there was an optional trip to the Ecotermales Hot Springs. There are hot springs all around the area, including at our hotel, but these were special. The hot water was natural and there were multiple stone pools with different temperatures. It was lovely! We spent about 90 minutes in the water, then dressed and had dinner there.



I don’t think I mentioned it, but our hotel was on a hillside directly across from the Arenal Volcano. And we never saw the volcano once! It was covered by clouds the entire time, but that’s the way things happen. It did rain quite a bit while we were there. I got caught out with my camera during a downpour. I was heading up the hill toward my room (cabin? House?) when the skies opened up on me and my camera. Luckily the camera is water resistant and I am as well, but I was truly soaked!


But I digress. On Tuesday morning (12/12) we loaded on the bus and headed to the volcano. We couldn’t see the top, but we could definitely climb part way up. The trail went up through the forest, changing as we climbed. There was not much wildlife, but the plants were lovely. After a bit of a hike, Manfred said that was the end of the Gate 1 approved hike, and the company said if we went on, it was at our own risk. The whole group was like, okay, point us in the right direction! We got another warning about our own risk, and rocks, then Manfred led us up the next trail. 😂 It really wasn’t too bad or too far. It required some rock scrambling, but nothing intense. The view from the top was nice, with Lake Arenal spread out below us. Of course, we still couldn’t see the volcano, but that was okay. On the way down, I was poking around with another of the group, a botanist, and we kept seeing gorgeous flowers! We had to hustle to make it to the bus on time.


View from Arenal Volcano. The lake is Arenal Lake and is manmade.

Oh, one interesting happening: I mentioned that there was an older couple. They were very nice, and I hope I’m in such good shape when I’m their age, but Michael used a cane for balance, and Diana was also somewhat unstable on her feet. Apparently at the beginning of the trip, Michael and Manfred sat down and signed a contract. (I think that was the only reason Manfred agreed for them to come on the trip, since they were not 100% capable.) Part of the contract was that Michael had to listen to Manfred about what he could and could not do as part of the group. (I found all of this out later.) Part way up the Arenal hike, Manfred told Michael and Diana that was as far as they should come, as the trail was getting steeper. (This was at least 3/4 of the hike distance, not including the “unapproved” trail at the end.) I didn’t think anything of it, and while we were up on the rocks, enjoying the view, Manfred started yelling. Michael had ignored him and was about to start climbing the rocks! Manfred shouted several times (in front of all of us), “Michael, stop!” He had to go back down and turn him around. I felt bad for Michael until I found out that he had made an agreement with Manfred, then broke the contract. I didn’t hear it, but apparently Michael called the company and had complained vociferously. However, Manfred was absolutely right—the rock climb was not for people who were unsteady on their feet. I took great care where I placed my feet!


From there, we climbed back on the bus for an interesting drive to Monteverde. And that’s where I’ll pick up my story. (Since I’m still on the plane right now (flying over Florida), I’ll just keep writing, but as a new entry.)






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