Monkeys, Toucans, and Boas! Oh, my!

First of all, let me say that I'm a slacker. I know. No posts since November. I'll try to redeem myself here.

We've just returned from. . .In February, we took an incredible vacation in Costa Rica. Spending a week with our family in the thick of the rainforest was nothing short of amazing! Here's how it went. . .

Sometime last year, in anticipation of our thirty-fifth wedding anniversary, Al and I started dreaming about a special trip we could make. On our 25th, we did an Alaskan cruise (in June); this time we knew we wanted to make a trip to a warm clime. We had been to Aruba twice and thought it might be a good time to try a new destination --- many friends have been to Costa Rica. Within 24 hours (insert Twilight Zone music here), we got an e-mail from our son, Mike, suggesting that we take an 'all-family' trip to Costa Rica to celebrate our 35th! Our son-in-law Jon had found some intriguing information about a CR resort on the Osa Peninsula called El Remanso. We booked our trip for February 2010 and started the great count-down!

As the time approached for our great adventure, we had to make sure that our inoculations and passports were all updated. Check!

My travel schedule for work had been pretty intense the last few months -- it worked out just PERFECTLY that I was home for the entire week leading up to the trip. Whew! We decided to pack as lightly as we could because we could only each carry 25 lbs of luggage on the domestic flight from San Jose (the capital of CR) to our final destination. As it turns out, we could have packed even lighter than we DID!

El Remanso offered a variety of excursions, many of which we took advantage of! Of course, MY favorite part of the whole trip was spending time with Graham (now 4) and Dean (nearly 2) --- and I offered to watch them as often as need be so that Mike and Laurelyn could enjoy some of the excursions that were not suitable for the little 'uns. It worked out just great!

El Remanso is amazing! The accommodations were simply beautiful. Three meals a day were included and we loved dining in their outdoor dining room. There was no extra charge for huge katydids on the tables or tiny lizards on the ceiling; the boys never knew what we'd see at mealtime. Set in the jungle we were about as close to nature as you can be! When we arrived, we could hear what sounded like packs of loud, barking, howling dogs off in the distance. We quickly learned that these were the howler monkeys! We heard them every morning at about 4 AM -- what an incredible alarm clock.

We hiked all together to a lagoon during our first day---the rainforest was SO dense -- and the hike down to the beach was pretty steep. We weren't prepared for how HOT the sand would feel on our feet. Ouch! We walked the beach in the puddles formed by the lapping waves. The waves were HUGE and STRONG so we kept our distance but the cool, wet sand was the only way to safely make it down to the lagoon. The sun so close to the Equator is intense!

Al and I were able to do some early (5:30 AM!) morning bird-watching with the resident naturalist, Gerardo. To say that Gerardo was an AMAZING part of our trip is such an understatement -- not only was he incredibly endearing and gracious, but he was also one of the most knowledgeable people we've EVER met when it came to all things to do with animals, plants, and trees! Just fabulous! On our first morning out to look for birds, Gerardo hung his head out the jeep's window (we had a different person as the driver) looking for motion in the treetops. "Stop! Stop!" he told the driver. We climbed out of the jeep and were thrilled by a large group of monkeys who came closer and closer to the dirt road we were on, all the while squealing. Within minutes, they began a "conga line" as they swung, one at a time, right over our heads! It was amazing and Gerardo assured us that this NEVER, well . . . rarely, happens; we had brought good luck with us!

I watched Graham and Dean one afternoon so that Jon, Beth, Al, Mike, and Laurelyn could go waterfall rapelling - from all reports they had a SUPER time! And of course they got to cool off in the ocean before heading back to the resort.

We visited a wildlife sanctuary via boat. On our way there, we were thoroughly entertained by a large pod (?) of dolphins who especially enjoyed swimming in the wake of our boat. Can you see them? Each of the colorful animals had a story of abuse and survival. The couple who runs the sanctuary told us of some successful releases but some of the animals would be living out their lives there. It was a beautiful, densely forested spot. As we walked between enclosures, Beth spotted a superhighway of fire ants that frequently criss-crossed the walking path.

On our way back from the sanctuary, our boat driver made a special stop in an inlet that had some great snorkeling opportunities. Having already had the snorkeling experience in Aruba and Hawaii, I offered to stay on the boat with Graham and Dean, and encouraged the others to snorkel. Neither Mike, Beth, Laurelyn nor Jon had ever snorkeled. Al joined them and they had a great time and got a few good shots of colorful fish.

Since we just loved our first early morning birding excursion, we signed on again and brought Mike along with us this time. Well, apparently we brought along good luck once again (maybe everyone does??) and this time we saw monkeys overhead including this beautiful mama with her baby clinging to her back. What a blessing to see them up close!

I decided some time ago (maybe 10 years ago?) that I definitely want to skid into Heaven with a resounding, WOW! What a ride! So I've been known to do what some might consider daring things --- including (a little bit of) white-water rafting, (tethered) hot air ballooning, lots of kayaking, and parasailing (fabulous!!) in Aruba. I wanted to be sure I could add something with a bit of a thrill to my life list. So, in Costa Rica, we had the opportunity to zipline out to a platform near the top of the canopy to watch the monkeys, birds, etc. It was a very early morning activity (6 AM) and I felt a bit jittery as the time approached. Luckily, our dear daughter-in-law Laurelyn was coming along with us (Mike was on kid and camera duty) and she encouraged me to go for it. "You'll be fine! You'll love it!" she nudged.

As we donned our helmets and awaited our harnesses, I got a bit more excited. Gerardo, once again the incredibly sweet and knowledgeable naturalist, got hooked into the cable and zipped out over the jungle below. He then pulled across a huge duffle bag with coffee, fresh fruit, numerous binoculars, and field guides. One at a time, well-harnessed and "clipped in," we zipped across to the wooden platform set into a crotch of a large tree. See all of our harness caribiners lined up on the cable? We were at 127 feet above the jungle floor. Amazing! Gerardo pointed out lots of birds and with his keen eye, spotted a group of Howler monkeys up in the trees across from us. We watched them for quite a while and after some coffee and fresh pineapple, we got ready to head back across the zipline.

Of course, I had to ask Gerardo how long the platform had been there, how it was erected, etc. He told us that it had been there about 6 months and that they'd had several engineers come in to design the structure and its installation. It reassured me especially when I noticed the many huge bolts that secured the platform into the tree. Another young couple was with us that morning (having left their three young children back in the States) and they also hoped to capture the zipline return on their movie camera. As we lined up to zip back, the young mom said she'd like to go first so she could film her husband's return trip (he planned to pull himself across the last half of the trip!). We watched her fly through the treetops and when she was about half-way across, we heard a loud CRACK! I know that sound, I thought to myself. A tree branch somewhere had split and was falling to the jungle floor. Wait a minute! That sounded AWFULLY close, like it's from the. tree. we're. in. Gerardo queried, "OK! Who's next??" "I AM!!" shouted the young father and we all laughed (a combination of fear and nerves). Apparently chivalry is dead. What a ride!

All in all, the trip was a huge success and a wonderful celebration. For me, the best part was having all of our family together -- I would have been quite happy to just play with Graham and Dean all week...anywhere! But being in this idyllic setting with those we love most, was a dream come true. Can our 40th anniversary be too far off? I wonder where we'll all go. . .