¡Pura vida!

The tropical paradise chapter of my journey has begun: I have arrived in the Osa Peninsula on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica where I will spend three whole weeks in the rainforest.  I've traded my shitkickers for flip-flops, my cowboy hat for a panama, a quarterhorse for my yoga mat.  The ponderosa pines have been replaced by palm trees, the sagebrush by hibiscus, and the arid air of the desert by the humidity of the jungle. 

I actually love taking puddle-jumpers: the narrow, cramped cabin; the penetrating smell of jet fuel fumes; the open cockpit and proximity of the pilots; the deafening drone of the propellers – it’s all associated with holidays in beautiful, faraway places.  It was a smooth flight from San José, the capital, to the backwater town of Puerto Jiménenz where the unpaved, potholed roads make for very bumpy rides.  But my attention was quickly diverted from the terrestrial conditions by my driver’s keen eye; in the 30 minutes to the retreat, he pointed out a treeful of squirrel monkeys, a swarm of blue morpho butterflies, a couple of hawks and turkey vultures, a tiger heron, and several pairs of scarlet macaws.  As we forded a creek swollen by the heavy rain, he mischievously informed me that these are perfect conditions for – shudder! – crocodiles and snakes, and sure enough, as if on cue, a fat boa constrictor slithered across the road. 

The Osa is one of the most biologically diverse places on earth, containing over 500,000 (yes, five-hundred-thousand) species of plants and wildlife in its mere 20,000 square miles (50,000 km2).  The list of trees, flowers, insects, reptiles, amphibians, mammals, and birds – many endemic – is mindboggling and includes such exotic creatures as the toucan, quetzal, red-eyed tree frog, three-toed sloth, anteater, armadillo, puma, tapir, white-headed capuchin, mantled howler, and spider monkey.  

Scientists and hippies alike declare that “there is no other place in the world like it!” and I can already confirm that there is definitely an embarrassment of riches to be mined here.  

Arriving in the Osa

Growing everywhere by the side of the road

Costa Rican morning

Scarlet macaw

¡Pura vida!