Costa Rica: Organic Coffee Bean Estate

On this tour, I visited an organic coffee bean estate in Costa Rica. This organic coffee bean estate is known for its coffee and founded on coffee; however, it is also experimenting with growing other organic crops such as vegetables. These are grown in-ground and in green houses. All of the water the crops receive is preserved rain water. The organic flowers that happen to grow on the estate, such as blue hydrangeas, are the largest I have personally ever seen. 

The tour started out with the Gardens and then we took a drive to the estate. We finished with lunch at a beautiful site. We walked down to the river to take pictures as well! 

All in all, it was a lovely (and very informative) day. 

The fact that Costa Rica has bypassed heavy industrialization and gone straight to organic and sustainable living for much of its agriculture industry, such as this specific estate, speaks volumes for the success of many developing countries. This is a true example of what other countries can accomplish and it is a lesson to those developed countries that are already heavily industrialized for what they can do to follow a model of sustainability. 

Costa Rica: Traditional Ox Cart

Images of the traditional ox carts that are a part of the culture and history of Costa Rica. Originally these ox carts were used to bring coffee beans down from the highlands up in the mountains and valleys where the coffee bean estates are located. The carts were driven down to the city and other areas while being pulled by a pair of oxen. Here I am with the ox. I got to pet them too as I recall. The handler is safely nearby. He would not step back any farther away for my photo so I am sure it was for my own safety. I am fine with that as I did not want to be trampled by these massive oxen. I also got some additional postcard-worthy images of the ox carts. I am debating enlarging a print and framing it as a piece of art. It would make a great conversation piece of my travels throughout Costa Rica for my guests. Take a look...
 

Costa Rica: Irazu Volcano

My trip to the top of one volcano in Costa Rica! It was a cloudy day and the volcano looked daunting and dismal. Don't worry. It was not an active volcano or I would never have gone up! I have never been on a volcano before. In the USA, I have only hiked and photographed mountains. This was a different sight with huge craters large enough to swallow whole houses. There was a fence for safety. Vistors were not allowed to climb over the fence to protect them from areas of the land that were declining that could cause them to slip and fall way down. I wouldn't want to fall into a crater and find out that there is still lava somewhere! The one exception was that the tour guide allowed each of us to get a photograph with the sign so we could have pictures of where we were. For that, we were allowed to slip under the fence. Take a look...

 

Costa Rica: Sarchi Shopping

On the way to do a bit of shopping in this 3 part tour, this was the last leg before returning to my accommodations.   Previously I visited a charming local church and the photos are in the blog post immediately before this post on Sarchi. Sarchi is a city that lies on the slopes of Cordillera Central (Central Mountain Range). It is at the Eastern edge of the Central Valley. Sarchi has also come to be referred to as the type of famous craft for the area. The unique woodworking pattern is recognized at the most famous craft center in all of Costa Rica. All kinds of items for the home are included from the kitchen to items for personal use such as jewelry and hair accessories. 


Internet Location and Definition of Sarchi:
Sarchí is the capital city of the canton of Valverde Vega also known as Sarchí in the province of Alajuela in Costa Rica.
Sarchí is Costa Rica's most famous crafts center. The town offers more than 200 stores and small family-operated woodworking factories producing wooden bowls and other tableware, fold-up rocking chairs of wood and leather, and a wide variety of kitschy items. The most popular items on sale are "carretas", elaborately painted oxcarts that traditionally carried coffee from the highlands down to the port on the Pacific coast.

The most famous item is the traditional painted oxcart that has been used in times past. Now the oxcarts are a part of history and culture. They can be found adorning homes, decorating the outsides of living areas, decorating public places, and being offered for sale in numerous sizes from the tiniest souvenir to the largest grand display to pack up and ship back home. I can only hope to have a large home to decorate one day to get a medium sized oxcart. You can still find the oxcart with 2 oxen tethered to it, but only for tourist purposes. I saw this and got to take a picture with the oxcart while petting 1 of the oxen at a different location at the very start of the 3-leg tour.

Below, I photographed a huge ox cart as a public display at a park and a small portion of its massive wheel through the iron bars. The sign reads that the display is the biggest ox cart in the world! The colorful pattern is the traditional pattern of the ox cart and is used throughout many items designed in Sarchi by hand. That is a part of the appeal of the valuable hand made items. As a mark of beauty, the patterns are painted on other items throughout the park, such as, oh say...the trashcan! 
 
 

Paintings in the pattern are hand applied to sitting areas to offer shade from the sun and cover from the rain. The chairs are available for sale in the same Sarchi pattern. These reminded me of adirondack chairs available in the USA for outdoor living. The shapes are very similar. I would love to have a pair of these chairs in a colorful outdoor patio in my future home. As an avid traveler and photographer, why would I not have these?

As a part of the tour, I got to see one of the famous Sarchi artists at work in the factory carving and crafting up some authentic Sarchi pieces. The gentleman even had a foam board of his persona on display used to craft up appeal to his designs. He has been working in Sarchi, on Sarchi for a lifetime! I photographed 2 tables that are reflecting some light. The lower table is visible to see the intricate pattern of different colored woods designed that way to appeal to the eye. It takes skill to learn to make this kind of art. I have never seen anything like it!

Here are other scenes I photographed walking around the Sarchi after my factory tour.

Finally, I photographed kitchen trays with vibrant parrots painted on that I did not have the room to pack and bring back. They would have looked lovely on my kitchen counters. Another piece I envied was a matching parrot table with several drawers. It looked similar to the famous ox cart in its shape. 

Well I guess I will have to wait for the day I return to Costa Rica near the capital of San Jose to buy some more from Sarchi...!    

Costa Rica: Charming Church

After a bit of a delay due to technical problems, here is the blog post! 

After tours of exploring the outdoors of Costa Rica,  the group came back to town to do a little shopping and headed to a locally popular church beforehand. It was a charming church with beautiful architecture and grand displays of interior beauty. It was similar to churches and cathedrals I had been to before with stained glass windows and chandeliers. However, the difference was the views outside and the different area set aside for worshiping. There is a picture below of a scene with light shining in an open window. All churches and cathedrals I have visited in the world are a bit different in how they decorate small areas every few steps to walk and dedicate to the saint of one's choice, or even light a candle with a prayer. This church had a scene of the baby Jesus and the Virgin Mary in the center of what was in the shape of a church with smaller statues of different figures encircling the center. There was a tiny chandelier hanging from the ceiling. It was the most unique area of the church. Take a look at the images below and experience a bit more of the culture of Costa Rica...  

Charming Church

View Outside of Church

Floor Pattern

Inside Church

Chandelier and Stained Glass Window

Left Side of Church

Right Side of Church

Inside View

Inside Church.Windows are left open to let spirits out&so they cannot disturb people.

Entrance and Exit to Church

Twilight in Costa Rica

Twilight in Costa Rica. A beach-side, mountain-top sunset. Here it is. Do you see how it looks? Now imagine being there. It was 10 times perfect.   

Twilight in Costa Rica

Sunset in Costa Rica After A Long Day

It was a long day exploring Costa Rica on horseback on the nearby mountains. I got from the mountains down to the beach and up a different mountain on the opposite side (this time driving up). I had gotten there early with enough time to stay. I had enough time to relax and watch this glorious sunset. Everything had an immense, golden glow. The sun was reflected off the ocean in two places. From my mountain-top perch, I was thankful it was not a cloudy and rainy day. During the rainy seasons, it rains every day near the tropical rainforests. I was far enough away from the rainforests to ensure that this was a sunset I would bask in.   

Near the Beach in Costa Rica

Driving Along the Highway in Costa Rica

The river, land, and trees, with distant mountains and valleys visible (along 
with cloudy skies).

As I drove along the highway in Costa Rica, it occurred to me what a beautiful, and at times rugged, country this is. The terrain can be breathtaking. This is especially true for the sunsets. I was never up early enough to witness the sunrises. With so many tropical rainforests, the afternoons were almost always cloudy and rainy. But in the mornings, and at other times, when the sun came out, Costa Rica was even more breathtaking. Here, I photographed the river, land, and trees, with distant mountains and valleys visible (along with cloudy skies). I wish to be back there, back to a time and place where I could roam the outdoors. As an outdoorsy person with a camera in tow, I could plan to travel for hours and hours on any given day. Costa Rica is a large country with vast areas best to see on foot. I feel I could never see it all. That is a part of the appeal and charm of the country. I would never tire of Costa Rica. The country has many different climates. Costa Rica offers different locations of rainforests, beaches, mountains and volcanoes, estates (coffee bean production) and valleys, gardens, river tours, and city-life in an all-in-one, best package I have ever combined. I visited all of these locations. The shopping and tourist areas remain for the visitor that is not such an avid outdoors-man or woman. Those were enjoyable places as well with impressive architecture of locally popular churches. I enjoyed every bit of what Costa Rica has to offer...

...and look forward to returning.    

 

Costa Rica: Crocodiles Just Under the Bridge

Driving along the highway in Costa Rica to get from one city to another, the driver pulled over and we were allowed to stretch for a bit by walking on the bridge. You can imagine my surprise and shock (with a bit of fear) when we looked over the rail and down below to see crocodiles! At first, we didn't recognize them. You can see their coloring is a perfect camouflage to the muddy, murky waters. They looked massive! Their powerful tails looked to measure several feet, even from that height. Looking down over the bridge, we were far away and safe enough. These crocodiles never looked up at us. Still, I could imagine stepping on them if I were down below by the water trying to take a picture. I imagined stepping on one thinking it was a log or a rock, and then noticing its mouth open as it bellowed. I thought of turning to run and tripping to fall to the mud, my plans for photography of the river ruined. My camera may have been ruined too. Thankfully, nothing like that could happen on the bridge. It was a fleeting, but scary, thought indeed. I never finished imagining if I would safely get away from the crocodiles or get eaten. And what of my poor camera? And with that, it was time to leave. My final destination awaited.  

 

 

At the Zoo in Costa Rica: The Last of the Parrots

As I walked the last path of the parrots and other birds at the zoo in Costa Rica, I captured images of these colorful birds. Each bird was framed in front of the tropical foliage, that was now a common sight to see. Some of the birds were injured and had been brought to the small zoo because of the individualized care they could receive here. They would not get this treatment at the larger zoos in Costa Rica because of the increase in sheer number of animals at the larger facilities. 

These birds looked quite content in a habitat, as close to their natural habitat, as possible. The trees and plants were real. They had the open sky from which natural rain falls near tropical rainforests. They had plastic, umbrella-like stands affixed to their trees to shade themselves from the sun and rain, if they so desired. They had water bowls filled every day by staff. They received a healthy meal to keep their stomachs full. They had toys to play with. I saw many birds playing with each other. They had their freedom. Most of all, and perhaps most importantly, they had each other every day for companionship to enjoy their freedom. They had the desire to truly live, not in the wild, but close to nature.   

Take a look.       
 

At the Zoo in Costa Rica: Colorful Parrot

When photographing birds at the zoo in Costa Rica, I photographed several different birds. At first, I thought that this was a toucan because its beak was longer and curvier than the red parrots I photographed earlier. Upon closer inspection, I realized this was a parrot too, albeit, of different coloring. Toucans are distinctively, noticeably different from parrots due to their beak, despite similar coloring. Here is the parrot that I got an image of although it was constantly moving around on its perch. I photographed the parrot at its water bowl high up in the tree. I captured a gorgeous shot of the parrot with its entire plume visible in side profile. The parrot was backlit (lighting from behind), due to the time of day, with a background of gorgeous, lush, green tropical foliage.   

 

 

At the Zoo in Costa Rica: Playful Parrots

Here are some more parrots at the zoo in Costa Rica. Yes...I know I posted a parrot before but this pair is so cute. They interacted with, and playfully nipped at, each other. Then they just quietly posed for me. I hope you enjoy viewing these digital images of parrots as much as I do. Capturing them is a challenge as birds can constantly be in motion. When looking for subjects to photograph, colorful birds are my weakness.