Chorotega Artisans of Guaitil

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:15:00 EDT

I am decidedly not a knickknack person, so when I travel my souvenirs must do triple duty: recall fond memories, be decorative, and serve a purpose. With this in mind, my husband and I were six days into our Costa Rica honeymoon, and we had yet to find something to document such an important milestone. But I had faith, for today we were headed to Guaitil, home to the country's top clay artisans. En route to this Guanacaste village of famed indigenous artists, we had scheduled a safari float through Palo Verde National Park.

You could call me a budding birder, but only in the most comical sense. I am woefully pathetic at spotting camouflaged birds or identifying all but the most unique warbles. But I do appreciate beautiful plumage and melodic song, and I love scribbling another species down on my ever-growing "Seen in the Wild. By me!" list.

Enter Palo Verde National Park, home to more than 300 bird species. As we drove past cantaloupe farms and banana plantations, I hummed with excitement. Then, amid visions of spotting endangered avian species, I heard the word crocodile. And iguana. And then, ctenosaur – the closest living relative to ancient dinosaurs. Yeah, my honeymoon was so awesome that we were basically going to see mini-dinosaurs. And that's when my husband got excited.

The best way to see Palo Verde is on a boat tour. The covered motorboats are humble and unassuming, and their quiet engines and tiny wakes are perfect for navigating rivers and canals without disturbing the wildlife. Case in point: our first sighting was of a blue heron, perched in a tree by the riverbank. It first ignored, then quietly regarded our boat, watchful but not poised for flight.

As we motored down the river, our guide pointed out boat-billed herons, green herons, kingfishers, white egrets, flycatchers, and -- the icing on a the cake -- a majestic osprey eagle, with wings extended to dry its plumage. As promised, the park was also home to other wildlife, including sizable crocs, iguanas and ctenosaurs. With a few hoots, our guide excited two troops of howler monkeys. Thankfully, our motor was fast enough to evade the inevitable poop slinging involved in howler turf wars!

Without a doubt, the mammalian highlight of our 90-minute tour was a shore-side interaction with a group of capuchin monkeys. They were searching for food just a few feet off the ground, but having little luck. When the troop's alpha male saw us, he scrambled over to the boat, chest out and eyes defiant, clearly staking claim to his grounds and females. He was no more than eight feet from the boat, and while he remained quiet and unaggressive, we didn't press our luck.

One delicious lunch later and we were back in the van, bumping over dirt roads on the way to Guaitil, where Chorotega residents and simple homes greeted us. We stretched our legs and listened to an indigenous man explain the traditions of his ancestors, detailing the complicated process of finding, harvesting and molding natural clay into the colorful artwork on display.

Each piece of Guaitil pottery takes about 30 days to create, from mixing the clay (with feet!), to drying the creations under the sun. With just a glance between us, my husband and I agreed that our honeymoon souvenir was somewhere here, hiding in this artisan shop. We finally settled on a beautiful vase, formed with dried corncobs and painted in pre-Columbian symbols. This piece of art, created from centuries-old traditions, would be the perfect piece to celebrate our new union.

Wildlife Rehab at the Toucan Rescue Ranch

Mon, 9 Apr 2012 07:45:00 EDT

We were on our way to the Toucan Rescue Ranch, a wildlife rescue center in San Josecito de San Isidro, a small town east of Heredia. The road gradually wound into the misty mountains, and as the temperature cooled, my excitement grew.

A cacophony of avian squawks and trilling served as a welcome as we pulled into the gates. After a brief glance around, I introduced myself to Leslie Howle and her husband Jorge, co-founders of the facility. The Toucan Rescue Ranch sits on the couple's two-acre property, and was one of the first toucan rescue centers to be licensed by Costa Rica's Ministry of the Environment, Energy and Telecommunications (MINAET). The center was founded in 2004, and opened to the public in 2010 – much to the delight of wildlife lovers everywhere.

My family had accompanied me on today's excursion, and the croaking keel-billed toucans housed on the center's porch immediately enthralled my infant son. These recent arrivals, one with a damaged wing, hopped from perch to perch and observed our group carefully. Even though it's illegal in Costa Rica to keep wild animals as pets, many of these beautiful birds had been doomed to tiny cages and poor treatment before their rescue and arrival at the Toucan Rescue Ranch.

The ranch's facilities encircle a central field, where geese and ducks waddle, honk and, surprisingly, peep. That's right, peep. The ranch's ducks, a breed native to Costa Rica, do not quack; they trill like newborn chicks. As part of their ongoing mission, the ranch strives to educate the public on animal welfare, and to demonstrate which birds are legal and suitable as pets. Toucans and macaws are not, but the ducks and geese, which followed Jorge like loyal dogs, can make wonderful companions. The ranch's lovebirds, parakeets, and pheasants are also excellent choices for bird lovers.

Our tour began at the toucan and parrot enclosures. Here, we met healthy keel-billed toucans, a massive chestnut-mandibled toucan (the largest species in Costa Rica), a Montezuma oropendola, parrots indigenous to Costa Rica's Pacific and Caribbean coasts, and emerald toucanets. I was thrilled to hear that the Toucan Rescue Ranch had pioneered an emerald toucanet-breeding program, which had already witnessed its first success story.

We looped around the facility, observed several owl species and one majestic eagle before transitioning to mammalian rescues. Always a sucker for monkeys, I admit that Izzy was one of the day's favorites. Before she found a better life at the ranch, the juvenile spider monkey had been chained in indentured servitude to irresponsible owners – a horrible fate for such an intelligent and sensitive creature. To our delight, Izzy swung her way down to our group and playfully reached for our hands and hunched over for back scratches. Unfortunately, her sweet behavior was a double-edged sword: since she was raised in captivity and is so familiar with humans, Izzy will never be properly equipped for life in the wild.

For me, the day's biggest surprise was Juju, the center's resident kinkajou. This rainforest mammal is strictly nocturnal, and I had only spotted one in the wild – on a night hike, when the pitch-black evening impeded proper observation. However, with gentle coaxing from Jorge, Juju emerged from her warm nest of towels and I caught my first real look at a kinkajou. Juju soon warmed to our presence, and scampered over to request caresses, scratches, and even a hearty belly rub – her playful pursuit of attention was almost kitten-like. Again, although her antics were adorable – who wouldn't fall for her big, wide eyes? – we also realized that Juju's familiarity with humans would prevent her from ever living in her native habitat.

As we circled back to the center's starting point, we visited with several scarlet macaws, including a recent rescue that had only begun recovering his brilliant plumage. The guided tour ended in the main house, where Leslie and Jorge housed five two-toed sloths – including two tiny babies. The sloths' wide eyes and pig-like snouts were charming, and although it was tempting, we didn't reach out to pet them. Despite their name, two-toed sloths can be downright speedy in their movements – and their teeth are sharp!

Our tour complete, we thanked Leslie and Jorge and hopped back in the car; it was sprinkling and dusk was rapidly approaching. With a backwards glance, I stole one, last look at the Toucan Rescue Ranch. If you were just passing by, you'd never know that this family-run facility existed, but now that I did, I knew we'd be back again – maybe when our son is old enough to toddle with the geese.

Costa Rica Travel Blog

Chorotega Artisans of Guaitil

Wildlife Rehab at the Toucan Rescue Ranch