In memory of Cela Cie

It has been too long since I updated, I know...but you wouldn´t believe how difficult it is to find time to sit down and compose thoughts in between all the bus rides, activities, and sleeping that have to happen.  Also, there is the problem that it is nearly impossible to find a computer to upload photos with (I still haven´t found one).  So, what I will do is simply write, and then later when I find an adequate computer, I will add photos to all the previous posts. 

I have to say our first few days were simply amazing.  We headed to the Carribean coast to a town called Tortuguero, which is located within a national park dedicated to sea turtle conservation.  It was interesting for me, because I have only visited Costa Rica once before (in 2007) when alongside my cousin-in-law, Cela, and my brother, Joshua, I volunteered on the same coast (but different town) for three weeks at a sea turtle conservation project.  It is no surprise then, that as we journeyed along the coast and through the jungle canals that Cela became a constant thought in my mind.

I couldn´t help but reminisce on our boat rides spotting monkeys and crocs, walking for four hours a night along the beach from 2am to 6am to patrol the area, watch for poachers, and safely bring leatherback and green turtle eggs back to the hatchery after being laid by their big mommas, and just living the simple life of no electricity, cold showers, limited meals, sleeping in hammocks, and making gigantic sandcastles.  It was a good time indeed (minus the grumpy Dutch people).

This time around, we were certainly not roughing it.  We stayed in a lovely Bed & Breakfast called Casa Marbella, ate some decent grub (including delicious fresh fruit), and took on the tourist role much more.  We did go on a turtle tour to try to have a chance viewing the turtles nest inconveniently in between seasons (the leatehrbacks are just leaving and the green turtles coming in)...and we saw a leatherback, but it was certainly not as great a spectacle as when Cela, Josh, and I spotted them.  There is simply a certain magestic quality of the turtles that all of a sudden is compromised when a hundred other people are crowding around it and oohing and ahhing...not to mention an almost serious injurty (to be discussed in a later blog).

Activities that became more of the highlights of the trip were our walk through the national park and taking the boat along the canals.  The walk was very cool, and I highly recommend it to anyone headed out that way.  You can get there by walking through the town and then simply paying the entrance fee at the park.  We saw an armadillo, which was very unexpected, a dead sea turtle, very very sad and smelly, a morpho butterfly, cutter ants, and lots of lizards.  Plus we heard howler monkeys and Jimi ate termites.  I also spotted a spider monkey, some toucans, and some other interesting animals while boating.

Our final morning was spent commemorating the wonderful life of Cela Cie.  We built a sandcastle village (to remember my day in the sand with Cela during the turtle project).  It was an interesting structure in the end, but very beautiful as well, and no doubt she knows we were thinking of her. 

Until next time...