Costa Rica

Our family’s time in Costa Rica, December 2018–March 2019, and reflections on the trip.

Tortuguero Island, Costa Rica

Tortuguero Island is a small peninsula near the north-eastern corner of Costa Rica in the Caribbean Sea.  Since its connection to land is so narrow and there are no roads, it is considered an island.  It is accessible only by boat or airplane. There are no cars or roads

Caribbean Beach at Tortuguero Island

After eating some lunch and getting settled in our hotel, we went straight for the beach.  It had soft, dark grey sand.  We quickly realized why no one was in the water.  It was a windy, stormy day, so the waves were large and there were warning signs about the

Tortuguero Adventures Guesthouse, Hotel on Turtugeuro Island

TripAdvisor and Bookings.com had rated Tortuguero Adventures Guesthouse among the best family hotels on Tortuguero Island.  It is also one of the few places with A/C.  So we planned the timing of our trip based on availability of the hotel (they only have one Family Room), which is

Transportation to Tortuguero Island, Costa Rica

I wanted to see both the Pacific and Caribbean sides of Costa Rica, so before moving to a house near the beach on the Pacific side of the country, we scheduled to quick trip to Tortuguero Island. Tortuguero Island is an extremely narrow psuedo-island (actually, more of a peninsula)

Manuel Antonio National Park, Quepos, Costa Rica

This was a super busy national park. We booked a guide, who picked us up at our house, drove us there, and helped us get through the crowds to get tickets. We got up early and got there when it opened, and it was still very crowded. Our guide had

Whale-watching, Dolphin-watching cruise in Quepos

We boarded a catamaran on the pacific coast near the town of Quepos mainly to see whales, and it turned out that we ended up seeing whales and dolphins. and there were drinks served on board, andthere was swimming and snorkeling offered andthere were nets on the front of the

Selvatura Zipline

Keith, Nan, Melvin, Savannah and Tucker went on the Selvatura ziplines. There were 13 platforms; the last line was 1 kilometer long (3280 ft) and was high above the treetops. There was a 'tarzan swing' included, where you jump off a platform and swing for a few minutes

Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve

Up with the sun to go to the Monteverde Preserve. We were there when it opened at 7am and still had to wait in a long line to buy tickets. It was very cool, cloudy and breezy that morning, which was perfect weather for birdwatching. our guide, who brought a

Monteverde Night Hike

Keith, Tucker and Grandpa Knight went on a night hike in the Monteverde area to see some nocturnal creatures. Brown Jay Headlight Click Beetle Side-Striped Palm Pit Viper Orange-kneed Tarantula Nightengale Thrush

Monteverde house and Selvatura Hanging Bridges

Our drive up to Monteverde looked like this; a very windy, dry, rocky road. our airb&b Really cool woodwork in this house, including this bed that has 'fractal woodburning' decorations Coatis would come to visit us in our backyard our balcony overlooked the wooded area where

Going back to La Fortuna and Volcan Arenal

In La Fortuna, playing around with fallen palm fronds. Getting a picture of the volcano. We stayed a couple nights at the same house we rented in January. We went to Caño Negro and the Rio Frio near the border of Nicaragua to go on a river tour. A turtle

Grandma and Grandpa Knight come to visit day one: San Jose

We made a stop at the San Jose Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, which is really close to the airport. Next, we went to the Jade Museum in downtown San Jose. It houses many pre-columbian artifacts, and cultural history exhibits. We then went

Savannah's Pictures

These are pictures that I took -- Savannah. Slender Anole Resplendent Female Quetzal fiery billed toucan. Green lady bug. Caiman. Iguana. Humming bird. Slate- Throated Redstart . scarlet macaw. Resplendent Quetzal male. . Crested Guan.

Lego Movie 2 at Lincoln Plaza

On Friday, we went to City Mall, the largest mall in Central America.  It was pretty huge and had great stores and a large food court.  On the drive back, we went past the Lincoln Plaza (can the malls have more overt US names?) and noticed a billboard for the

Soccer in San Jose - Saprissa vs Santos

In San Jose, everyone loves the Saprissa professional soccer team.  They haven't lost a home game since 2016 and their games are always packed.  You regularly see people wearing Saprissa shirts around San Jose.  So we decided to go to a Saprissa game.  We purchased tickets online (in

Poas Volcano National Park

Volcanologists have created a scale of 1-5 for the status of an active volcano.  A 1 means that it isn't currently showing any signs of activity.  A 5 is actively erupting with lava flowing.  Currently, there are two volcanos in Costa Rica that are a 3 and

Our Spanish Tutor

The children have been studying Spanish using Rosetta Stone online lessons, but we decided a couple of weeks ago to find a tutor to help each of us progress more quickly. We hired a college student in Colombia that teaches us via Skype on the internet.  We have been meeting

Gated In

As we pulled up to church on Sunday, there was a narrow, steep, gated driveway with tall walls on both sides.  The gate was open as we entered and we found only four parking spots to accommodate the entire congregation.  Surprisingly, one of them was available for us.  Apparently, very

The Ultimate Dog Showdown

As we enter and leave our neighborhood, there are always 4-5 dogs sitting in the road.  One of them is bold enough that if it sees your car coming, it will walk to the middle of the lane and sit down -- a showdown.  Who will flinch?  We just drive

Family Soccer League

Our house has a large, grassy, flat area -- perfect for soccer.  So we bought a soccer ball today and Savannah and I challenged Tucker and Carson to a game of soccer.  Savannah and I won 2 to 0, but the boys have requested a rematch.  (We actually played width-wise

Casa los Cielos, San Jose, Costa Rica

As January came to a close, we reluctantly had to say farewell to our home in La Fortuna.  We had enjoyed the house, the birds and animals, the amazing volcanos, national parks, and the beaches we visited.  We wished our wild pets (Duermito the sloth, Dueño the cat, and Diego

Carson at the Restaurant Alone

Carson walked alone to a nearby restaurant, ordered, and bought some fried chicken that he brought home.  The kids Spanish skills aren't great, but they are learning enough to navigate on their own.

Ice Cream at Fortuna Park

At the center of La Fortuna is the Catholic church -- Parroquia San Juan Bosco -- and Fortuna Park.  Fortuna Park is a beautiful area where people tend to relax and talk.  We were hopeful to find good ice cream at the nearby gelato shop, but the results were mixed.  Some flavors

Things that are different here II

* eggs are not refrigerated in stores, they are stacked in cardboard crates wrapped in saran wrap. * salt is granulated, (with fluoride and iodine) but the texture is different than in the US. * jam and mayonnaise are in bags with a tube at the top to squeeze it out of. * Peanut

Hiking Volcano Rincón de la Vieja, Costa Rica

It's just fun to say that you are on your way to hike a volcano for the day.  Volcán Rincón de la Vieja was our primary reason for going to Guanacaste -- Tamarindo Beach was a nice bonus.  We wanted the family to learn more about Volcanos and to