Wednesday, April 30 - Volcan Poas and La Paz Waterfalls - morning
Yet another rise-and-shine-really-early day but this time, our tour included breakfast so we didn't need to eat beforehand. First stop was a coffee field - rows and rows of coffee trees(?). They were more like tall bushes. Went into their little cafe which was filled with a fragrant coffee smell. Nancy ordered a mocha - oral ecstasy - incredible. (For those of you who have tried Burdick's hot chocolate, same feeling, only with coffee) More amazingly, no added sugar in the drink.
At the entrance of the park to Volcan Poas stood two flagpoles: one adorned with the Costa Rican flag and the other with the Taiwanese flag. Interesting, huh? :) Along the path to the crater, our guide pointed out various plant life. Using a lighted cigarette, he demonstrated the color-changing property of a hypercolor flower. A spot of cyan appeared on the dark fuschia petal where he held the cigarette. There were also many "poor man's umbrellas" that lined the path. These were plants with a large leaf at the end of a sturdy stalk
When we arrived at the crater, we scrambled onto a viewing platform to take pictures. I didn't realize this at first but my sudden coughing was induced by the sulfur-saturated air. Anyway, good view of the crater. A lake had formed in a large hole at the bottom of the crater. It was the color of a robin's egg. I guess I'm not used to water this color so it looked surreal. A vent on the side of the lake spewed sulfuric smoke, obstructing our view of the lake at times. I didn't realize the size of this lake until I looked through the binoculars to see a man down near the lake.
By this time we were starving, so I was so relieved when our next stop was the La Paz Waterfalls, where we would be eating breakfast. We ate on a patio that overlooked a garden. A small garden next to the dining area swarmed with hummingbirds at the feeders - never seen so many all at once. Once we were all done with breakfast, we hiked down into the garden to the butterfly sanctuary. Our guide was very adept at catching the butterflies the right way, without dusting off the powder on their wings. So he would catch one and show it to us. We went around the sanctuary taking pictures of butterflies, caterpillars, butterflies drying off their wings after emerging from their cocoon, and a butterfly on Nancy's head. In the sanctuary, there were several stands with rotting bananas where you could see some butterflies that landed for the food. At the exit, kind of disturbing, but a few butterfly wings littered the ground. It was as if the exit signified the end of their life. Leaves you with an odd feeling that life can be so short.
Yet another rise-and-shine-really-early day but this time, our tour included breakfast so we didn't need to eat beforehand. First stop was a coffee field - rows and rows of coffee trees(?). They were more like tall bushes. Went into their little cafe which was filled with a fragrant coffee smell. Nancy ordered a mocha - oral ecstasy - incredible. (For those of you who have tried Burdick's hot chocolate, same feeling, only with coffee) More amazingly, no added sugar in the drink.
At the entrance of the park to Volcan Poas stood two flagpoles: one adorned with the Costa Rican flag and the other with the Taiwanese flag. Interesting, huh? :) Along the path to the crater, our guide pointed out various plant life. Using a lighted cigarette, he demonstrated the color-changing property of a hypercolor flower. A spot of cyan appeared on the dark fuschia petal where he held the cigarette. There were also many "poor man's umbrellas" that lined the path. These were plants with a large leaf at the end of a sturdy stalk
When we arrived at the crater, we scrambled onto a viewing platform to take pictures. I didn't realize this at first but my sudden coughing was induced by the sulfur-saturated air. Anyway, good view of the crater. A lake had formed in a large hole at the bottom of the crater. It was the color of a robin's egg. I guess I'm not used to water this color so it looked surreal. A vent on the side of the lake spewed sulfuric smoke, obstructing our view of the lake at times. I didn't realize the size of this lake until I looked through the binoculars to see a man down near the lake.
By this time we were starving, so I was so relieved when our next stop was the La Paz Waterfalls, where we would be eating breakfast. We ate on a patio that overlooked a garden. A small garden next to the dining area swarmed with hummingbirds at the feeders - never seen so many all at once. Once we were all done with breakfast, we hiked down into the garden to the butterfly sanctuary. Our guide was very adept at catching the butterflies the right way, without dusting off the powder on their wings. So he would catch one and show it to us. We went around the sanctuary taking pictures of butterflies, caterpillars, butterflies drying off their wings after emerging from their cocoon, and a butterfly on Nancy's head. In the sanctuary, there were several stands with rotting bananas where you could see some butterflies that landed for the food. At the exit, kind of disturbing, but a few butterfly wings littered the ground. It was as if the exit signified the end of their life. Leaves you with an odd feeling that life can be so short.
posted by pc at
6:09 PM
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