The ABC's of Costa rica, Q-Z
Hola Mi Amigos!
(I told ya I was working on my Spanish! HA HA!)
Anyhooo… today we are going to finish my ridiculously long post about Costa Rica (what WAS I thinking??) by filling in the alphabet letter Q-Z. Might as well dive right it…!
Q- This was tough….there are some really WEIRD Q words out there… so I decided to go with Quality! Why, you ask? Well, let me tell you… while the local population is considered ‘poor’ by our standards (the average wage being about the equivalent of $600/month), the quality of living here is actually really good. For one thing, Costa Rica has a vast supply of clean, fresh water. For another, there is food readily available in the form of fruit trees or from fishing. Most uniquely though…Costa Rica is a Blue Zone. Since it’s main resource has to do with its natural resources, the Costa Rican government has designated a huge portion of the land here as protected natural preserves… and more trees mean…more oxygen!
Thousands of people flock to areas of Costa Rica every year for the good clean air! Oxygen rich air has huge health benefits! For anyone not familiar with the term a ‘blue zone’ is an area of the world where the inhabitants seem to live much longer than average. Curious?… follow the link… https://www.bluezones.com/exploration/nicoya-costa-rica/
R- Relaxation! Although it is true that there are many, many things to do here that will keep even the most adventurous person happy…it is also true that if you are looking for some good old fashioned relaxation, no problema! (slipped that right in there, did ya notice?) There are a plethora of options from nature retreats to yoga studios to a good old fashioned hammock under a palm tree, bring a book or simply hang out and enjoy the AHHHHHH…
S- Sailing! Okay, so we already know that the best sailing charter around is Joy Ride Sailing. Here is a gratuitous plug via beautiful photos…
T- Turtles! More specifically, Sea Turtles! Our new friends Norman and Janet told us about how there is a group of people who work off of Bejuco Beach in Esterillos and are committed to helping as many baby turtles make it into the surf as humanly possible. The wait for the mothers to come ashore and lay their eggs, then they scoop them up and take them back to their sanctuary until they begin to hatch. (this protects them from predators and poachers) Once they are hatched, they have 72 hours to get into the ocean and find their first meal, so they bring them back to the beach where they were buried and release them. Even with all the help, only about 2% of the babies survive to become the beautiful and majestic creatures that we know and love. Here is a link that will tell you more about Sea Turtle nesting in Costa Rica and how you can see this phenomenon for yourself. https://costa-rica-guide.com/nature/wildlife/turtle-nesting/
U- Undeveloped! Many of you have probably heard snipits in the news lately about Costa Rica and its dedication to saving the environment. Somewhere along the way Costa Ricans realized that their natural resources are their biggest asset and they are doing everything that they can to make sure it stays that way. More than 25% of Costa Rica’s territories are protected. For more info on some of the preserves you can go see, follow these links…
V- Volcanos! Yup, there are 6 active volcanoes and 61 dormant of extinct ones! This link will tell you all about them AND it has some truly amazing photos…
https://www.arenal.net/volcanoes-costa-rica Not as awesome as this picture by Jorge Morero Chaves… he has some amazing photos but now that I am looking for a link to send you to…I can’t find it. Darnit!
W- Waterfall! Tons and tons of gorgeous waterfalls all over the place! Here is a link that will tell you more…
https://costarica.org/waterfalls/
X- X-ray! Don’t look at me like that! I am actually going somewhere with this. When most people think of Costa Rica in terms of exports, they think of things like pineapples and palm oil…and they would be right BUT believe it or not, Costa Rica’s number one export is….medical, technical and optical supplies! Who would have guessed right? &0 years ago, Costa Rica disbanded their military and put the money that would normally have gone into the military budget into health care and education. It resulted in an extremely well educated workforce (that also happens to be really inexpensive…remember the $600/month??). This has attracted many large companies like Phizer to set up manufacturing and distribution plants in Costa Rica! It might also explain the inexpensive dental care!
Y- Yellow-crowned Night Heron! There are literally hundreds of species of birds to be seen in Costa Rica. I love herons because you often see them perched on the backs of crocodiles. They must not be very tasty! Here is a link to follow if your an avid bird-watcher and would like to learn more! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_birds_of_Costa_Rica
Z- Zip-lining! Yup….one of the most popular adventures/excursions to take here in Costa Rica is ziplining. It’s not surprising really when you think about all the mountains covered in trees. It’s not something I will be doing, but if you are interested, here is some more information… https://costaricaexperts.com/things-to-do/zip-line-canopy/
PHEW!! There you have it! The ABC’s of Costa Rica! It took a lot longer than I thought, but I learned a bunch of new things while doing my research…hopefully you did too.
The bottom line from all this is that my new home is endlessly fascinating with many unexpected facets that I am slowly discovering …and I’m enjoying every moment of that discovery.
Toodles for now and Pura Vida!