June 28

Knowing we were leaving Tortuguero, I woke very early and went down to the pier and did yoga as the sun rose. It was an amazing choice.

One thing I did not know/understand is that due to the fact that we are right on the equator the days here are always almost exactly the same length regardless of the season, plus or minus five minutes or so.

This means that things don't vary wildly like they do in the north, but it also means that while our home is experiencing the longest days of the year, we are missing them. The sun here sets quickly and then the dark, velvet night sets in. I finally understand the authors I have read in their descriptions of the tropical night. It is the darkest dark, the deepest solitude, and while night drops like a drape around you, the planet comes alive with noise and energy.

As we said goodbye to the Atlantic side of Costa Rica, I had to pause for a an extra goodby to this little friend at our eco resort. Nic knows that I would get lost in a parking lot, with the winding paths of our resort, Bella and I spent a fair amount of time saying, "Wait, where do we go?" This little man was the guide and guardian to us on our path to our room. Whenever I saw him, I knew we were on the right path.

On the road again! We packed light for this trip. I told Bella we did not want to have a heavy backpack or suitcase. I was very, very right. Bella actually did a better job of packing than I did. She is living her Pura Vida to the max.

We also had to say goodbye to Mr. Giggles. It was hard and sad.

Juan Carlos pulled over our tour bus to show us the Rhino Beetle. He compared the Rhino Beetle to Romeo and Juliet. Love and then a tragic death. We were astonished by the size of the beetle. Sharika loves animals so much. Bella and I have just decided that we will live vicariously through her as she picks up the various animals and inspects them. We are NOT going to do that.

I did take an up close picture of his dead body. Poor man, he has loved and lost, but he still looks pretty cool.

We also stopped at a banana plantation on our way. It was totally amazing to see the way bananas grow and how they are harvested. We learned that the average person in Costa Rica makes $500/month. Apparently being a 'bananaeros' is a coveted position, despite the grueling work. The blue bags in the picture are the bunches of bananas from the trees. One man pulls 25 bunches at a time with his physical strength to the end of the line where the bananas are separated. The top, most beautiful bananas are shipped to the US. The second level is shipped to Europe, and the lowest is kept here in Costa Rica for themselves. It feels kind of messed up. Bella asked why they don't keep the best ones here, as no one would know. I reminded her, it's all about money.

Other weird and fucked up things: We watched the workers through chain linked fences. It felt a little like a human zoo. Watching the banana process was amazing, but it did feel weird.

See them in the water? They wash them to get the dust off.

The women cut and sort the bananas. There is a clear gender distinction in the banana plant. There are women jobs and men jobs. All of the women wear bright yellow aprons.

We snapped a picture of the banana plantation. The banana trees die after they produce their first bunch of bananas. Each year they must be replanted.

I snapped a picture of the locals milling about around the plantation. We do notice that dogs here seem to run loose. It is hard to tell which dogs have families and which do not. The best indicator is their ribs. If they look hungry, they probably are.

We stopped for lunch and snagged a picture together and then we saw a sloth!

There is a sloth in that tree!

Again, I realize that I am posting a big tree and telling you there is animal there. Trust me. He is there. He even moved while we stood and watched him.

As we drove many of the people on our tour complained bitterly about the amount of time spent in the car. I wondered if they had looked at a map before booking this tour, or read anything about Costa Rice before getting on the plane? One of the key reasons I booked this tour is that I did not want to drive here. I read about the roads and the distances and the conditions, and I decided I did not want to do that. I brought some knitting and a book and I was prepared to ride long bus rides to avoid driving.

They also complained about the shortage of Diet Coke, air conditioning, snacks they recognized, bugs, the heat, the sun, the humidity.

I can't believe that Juan Carlos has not punched some of them in the faces. They might deserve it. Bella would happily oblige, if he asked her. It has been nice though for her to see how entitlement looks when we are seeing the conditions of life here for many people. I think these things are resonating with her about how lucky we are, and how easy it is to take advantage of that.