It's been awhile

And that, readers, is precisely why I imagine the following will be one of my more substantial entries. These past 30 days have provided enough sights and sounds (and smells) new to my experience that the way I understand our place and responsibility (as proud, sapient beings) on this planet has completely changed.

I don't remember what I've told you previously about my host site but I am going to start from scratch (and do it right) My house in Sarapiqui is wonderful - the nicest-looking in the neighborhood. It's built upon one of three adjoined lots that are the property of my host father, Danilo Brenes. With the other land the family has chosen to develop an enviable garden where one can find a diverse assortment of fruits I wouldn't expect you to know (some are heavenly, some not for me).

I sleep at night, like the rest of the family, with a mosquito net draped around the bed posts. There are plenty of mosquitos (zancudos) around, but more than anything I'd say it's for peace of mind. I yucca almost every day, and never has it been out of the ground more than a few hours beforehand. Of course, rice and beans are served with every meal. Combine them with a strong cup of Costa Rican coffee and a plate of fried plantains and you've got a real Costa Rican breakfast. I can see the travel slogans now - Costa Rica: come for the beautiful beaches, stay for the sensational, jaw-dropping bowel movements.

My average day consists of about 3-4 hours of walking during the morning to collect leaf litter samples. 5-6 hours of separating leaf litter in search of three families of arachnids, and about 2 hours of separating "spiders" into groups of the same species under a Nikon stereoscope. It is nirvana for the Scott of many years past (and the agenda is more than agreeable for the current Scott, too). At times I find quite sizeable arachnids which is always a treat (see below). Currently I have about 550 individuals and hope to gather about 700 more before the project is up. Anyone who has more than a passing interest to know what I intend to do with these arachnids is more than free to shoot me an e-mail.



I also went to Dominical a few weeks ago. I suppose this could also be considered part of my agreeable agenda. The beach is kind of out of the way but the destination more than justifies the schlep (sp? - sorry Jews). From my house to Dominical, one takes 4 different buses and a taxi. A private aircraft would get you there in 20 minutes but, alas, I had lent mine out for the day (HAHA!).

Though weary from the long trip, the scenery on the last leg of the trip was enough to re-stimulate my interest in remaining conscious for at least a few more hours. We got to Dominical just in time to bear witness to one of the majestic Pacific sunsets advertised on Hawaiian postcards. Proof (needless to say the picture does not do justice):


Dominical is a good beach. I'd recommend it to anyone over the more crowded (and more expensive) beaches in Guanacaste. The waves are excellent for body surfing (and the kind with the board). I'm beginning to realize that when guide books tell you beaches are not good for swimming, it really just means that the waves are bigger and more fun. With this sunset on my back, I body-surfed a wave nearly three times higher than my head and felt a flying sensation (if only for a brief moment before the monster crashed and sent me tumbling and bending like a wet noodle).

What's better than the beach, however, are the waterfalls hidden far from the road, deep within the forest. We were lucky enough to be traveling with a tico who knew how to get to these cataratas and on our last morning in Costa Rica's south Pacific we drove his car as close to the waterfalls as possible and walked the rest of the way in the hot sun (it was about a 40 minute walk). After huffing and puffing our way through farmland we reached the edge of the forest and descended for about 10 minutes. This awaited us at the end:


You won't get a good idea of the size of this waterfall from the picture, but I would say that it was a good forty feet high. The water was crisp and refreshing and it's a shame that we could only stay for about 30 minutes before having to turn around so people could catch their respective buses home.

So that was Dominical. The next weekend I went with my host family to the grandparent's papaya/cattle farm. The farmhouse is old and rustic and built completely out of wood. There is no electricity. Despite the heat, it was the most peaceful home I'd ever seen in my life. Here it is below:


Food there is prepared on a wood burning stove and the flavor of smoke from the hard, tropical wood is out of this world. First thing when we got there, they hung strips of pork over the stove and we ate it later that night. It was, needless to say, the best pork I'd ever had.


After chopping wood to earn our keep at the farm, we rested for a while and then I went for a walk around with my host father and brother. We explored the surrounding banana plantations and I learned a lot about the way they operate. It's a tough, dangerous job to harvest bananas, trust me.

The farm is also located next to a river with a wide, sandy beach. It was nice to walk along the bank, cooling off our feet and looking for wildlife.

The next weekend I met up with the program director, Scott, and a small ACM-related posse to take a cacao tour at a plush nature reserve not far from my house. We got to sample plenty of chocolate and it was delicious (and I understand this tour was something of a religious experience for one of my female predecessors). In stores one can find dark chocolate with about 75-80% cacao (for steep prices). I got to try 100% cacao which hardly tastes like the chocolate to which we are accustomed.

The next day I woke up early to accompany my Dad to his place of work at La Selva (the fancy OTS base in the middle of primary forest). I imagine there is nothing else like it in the world. Inside I was surrounded by dense forest and expensive German microscopes, a winning combination in my book. It was a great day. Here is a picture of the lab in which I parked myself for the day:



After that I returned home and I've been working pretty intensely on my project since. Next week I am returning to the Dominical-vicinity for a few more days to enjoy Semana Santa. It's going to be sweet. More to follow.