Now comes another fifteen days of data collection (fingers crossed our cameras capture some more great images), which means fifteen days to explore, do some other graduate school work, and continue organizing the data I collected so far. But emphasis on the explore part! I worked on a different project in Costa Rica last year and became friends with another ecologist who is from and lives here in Costa Rica. During a few of my free days, I visited them in San José to learn more about Costa Rican culture. Our first stop was Refugio de Vida Silvestre Cerro Dantas for a hike. This is a wildlife refuge that is busy every weekend with hikers, bikers, and local outdoor enthusiasts. The reserve is actually on the other side of a large volcano from my field station! We made some adorable friends from our hike. They followed for 12km! We stopped for some rest at the "magic bus", an abandoned bus with unknown origin, and headed back down. And don't fret, my friend and I gave some yummy treats to our new friends at the end. We then headed off to get a sweet treat, granizados, which is shaved ice with fruit and syrup, powdered milk, condensed milk. Quite sweet but so delicious. We had ours with ice cream which is the traditional way of the "Churchill" copo from the Puntarenas region of Costa Rica. We also went to the market for some empanadas arregladas filled with cheese and topped with cabbage and some sauces. The market was also full of fruit, meat, fish, spices, and artisan goods and I actually bought a chorreador, which is a traditional coffee maker using fabric to hold the ground beans and pouring water into the fabric. It always makes great coffee! I learned about Costa Rican history at the Museo Nacional de Costa Rica in San José. The military was abolished here in 1948, and the museum building is the former Bellavista Military Barracks. The museum begins by walking through a butterfly garden filled with gorgeous species and facts about them all. Throughout the museum is then different exhibits about the economic, political, and cultural history of Costa Rica. My favorite was an art exhibit using glass sculptures inspired by nature. The museum is also next to the Legislative Assembly of Costa Rica, where congress meets, so it was cool to see that building too! The steps outside were also busy with people dancing, chatting, and playing music so it was just an awesome place to be. And I learned so much!
I went on another hike as well, en el cerro Guarari. This hike went through coffee plantations and farmland, as well as some higher elevation forest. It was really gorgeous and is near Volcan Barva, a volcano that is visited by many people. As we walked back down a road after reaching the peak (in pouring rain), we stopped at a restaurant for another traditional meal, Casado which is beans, rice, plantains, meat, and salad.
Just a few more days until the final photos are in! Check back for my final update from this field season soon.
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AuthorI am an ecology PhD student in the Beaudrot Lab at Rice University in Houston, Texas. Archives
November 2023
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