If there's one thing the Santa Eulalia Gang, aka The
10:27 Club, knows how to do, it's celebrate a birthday. And it was with
festive spirits and grateful hearts that we all gathered last week to wish an
enthusiastic Happy Birthday to our honorary leader and dear friend, Marcial
Artavia, aka The Sausage King, aka Costa Rica Dundee. As his 62nd birthday
approached, his adorable wife Seidy took charge. Keeping it simple, she decided
on typical Tico fare of rice, red beans, yucca, home-baked bread, chicken simmered in
a spicy sauce and a beautiful salad adorned with a pink plumeria from her
garden. Eroca provided one of her now-famous desserts, Pineapple Upside-down
Cake.
Feast for a King
The rest of us contributed a few appetizers, plenty of beer and wine and Marcial's
favorite indulgence, J&B scotch whiskey. It was a feast fit for ... well, a
Sausage King! With his family all there, including his mom Haydee who did the
honors of blowing out the single symbolic candle, and the entire Santa Eulalia
gang gathered around him, it was sure to be a fun evening for Marcial as indeed it was.
Eroca, Marc, Sue, Marcial, Seidy & Stephen (Layne's hand in foreground)
Plumeria from the yard
Eroca presents the birthday cake
A birthday hug from Mom...
A birthday kiss from Seidy
Since most of the female members of the Santa Eulalia Gang
were in attendance (all but Carmen), the event gave us a chance to take a photo together wearing
the stunning earrings that Marcial and Seidy's oldest son Felipe makes. They
feature a Dream-catcher design in your choice of colors and use coconut shell
as a frame. Felipe is making these to sell in an effort to earn tuition money
for college.
Showing off our earrings
The "official" Santa Eulalia Gang earrings
Felipe hopes to study architecture at a private school here in Costa Rica but the cost to register is pretty steep. So he is offering these beautiful earrings at only 5000 colones a pair, or about $10, as a way to save enough for tuition. If you want to wear the official Santa Eulalia Gang earrings and help this young man get into college, send me an email at mailto:pksunlove@gmail.com and I'll put you in touch with Felipe.
As usual the rest of our week and weekend was busy with our regular trips
to the gym, hikes around the neighborhood and the community fiesta that is
every Friday's feria. We always see dozens of people we know there. On Friday
night Chris and Sue and Marcial and Seidy came to our house to enjoy some of
Chris' amazing North Carolina barbequed baby back ribs. Oh, wow, were they
juicy, falling-off-the-bone delicious! Slow-cooked in the oven for a few hours
then slathered in Chris' homemade sauce for a final browning on the charcoal
grill, they were some of the best I've ever had. (Unfortunately, we were so
busy cooking and eating, we forgot to take photos.) Along with his cole slaw
and my baked beans and potato salad, we were completely satiated by the end of
the evening. No wonder Layne and I have trouble losing weight, despite all our
exercise. But with food this good, who can resist? Certainly not me! Pura Vida!
P.S. Thanks to my wonderful loyal readers, this blog is about to hit the 50,000 all-time page views mark! Thank you so much for your continued readership, support and encouragement.
Check out Layne's book "Moral Turpitude," available for only $2.99 at Smashwords.com. High adventure with corporate intrigue, danger and romance; from the exotic jungles of Borneo and Costa Rica to the erotic jungles of San Francisco. Sample or purchase at --https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/159570
The old saying "Time flies when you're having fun"
certainly seems to fit our lives here in Costa Rica. In the week and a half
since we returned, we have 1) joined a gym and gone now four times, 2) had
friends over to watch the presidential debates last week, 3) seen the
chiropractor twice, plus the acupuncturist once for Layne and the physical
therapist once for me, 4) traveled to Alajuela by bus to shop at PriceSmart and to
the clinic there for x-rays of my feet (cost: $22), 5) shopped at the feria
last Friday and picked up organic produce on Saturday, 6) had breakfast with
Marc at Kay's Gringo Postre, 7) had Bonnie over to watch some of the baseball
playoffs yesterday, and (8) joined the Santa Eulalia gang for a hike Sunday
morning and a potluck by Bonnie and Stephen's pool that afternoon. I could go
on but you get the point. Our dance card always seems to be full here in Costa
Rica!
The new gym in town is called VGym and bills itself as
"mas que un gimnasio," or "more than a gym." The "more"
is the petite owner whose name is Vigie (not sure of the spelling but it is
pronounced V-G). She is trained in physical therapy, used to work at LA Fitness
in Los Angeles, California, and obviously relishes her role as personal trainer
to everyone who walks in the door. In excellent English, she asked us questions
and took down notes on all Layne's and my little aches and pains, old injuries
or current problems, such as the chronic tendonitis in my shoulder and Layne's
occasional sciatica issues, then designed a workout program tailored to our
individual needs and our exercise goals. (As usual, Layne is focused on
improving his golf swing.)
Like a mother hen, Vigie watches over us and the other
patrons as we do our workouts, being sure we maintain good form and avoid any
risk of injury. Unlike the other two gyms in town where some of our friends go
and where I've taken a salsa aerobic class or two, VGym isn't rocking with loud
music or stuffed wall to wall with massive exercise equipment. But the
apparatus she has is more than adequate for her current clientele: a treadmill,
free weights, yoga mats, a number of stationary bikes, large and small rubber
balls and a variety of weight-lifting machines. With a senior rate we each pay only
12,000 colones (about $24) per month and Vigie even offers a weekly rate for
out-of-towners wanting to stay in shape, so if your vacation plans bring you to
Atenas, be sure to check out VGym, located across from the gas station.
The Sunday hike was a lovely if damp excursion, with an overcast sky and occasional mistiness cloaking us as we followed Marcial down a side street, through sugarcane and coffee fields, negotiating over rocks to cross a small stream and finally back up through another local neighborhood to the main road. It was especially joyous for Marcial and Seidy as Marcial's oldest son Gabriel and his wife and two adorable little girls were along with us, having just arrived the previous week from Germany where they live. They have rented a small house here in Santa Eulalia and will be staying for a few months so we will enjoy their company on many future outings, no doubt.
Marcial leads the way
The Santa Eulalia "gang"
Marcial shows the ripening coffee beans
After everyone had returned home and cleaned up, we
reconvened at Bonnie and Stephen's charming rancho by the pool. They have
lucked upon such a wonderful and inexpensive rental, spotted by Stephen through
Craigslist while still in San Francisco. It offers the small 2-bedroom,
Tico-style house where they live, but is overlooked by their landlord Dave's
beautiful home up the somewhat treacherous stairs near the pool. Since Dave is
gone so much of the time, Bonnie and Stephen also have access to the larger
home and well-equipped kitchen when needed.
Chris and Sue
Stephen, Layne chat with Bonnie as Felipe takes in the view
Stephen enjoys the gang
So it was there that I warmed up my
Creamy
Chorizo and Chicken Soup (made, of course, using Marcial's excellent spicy Italian sausage) and Chris re-heated his stuffed baked potatoes.
Along with Chris' tasty shrimp dip, Stephen's excellent beans slow-cooked with
pork ribs and abundant fruit from Seidy, we had quite a feast. The children
played in and around the pool while the grown-ups laughed and talked and
enjoyed the splendid view from the rancho. Even the sun came out to warm the
day and make us all realize just how fortunate we are to share this Pura Vida.
Most of the time
Layne and I are singing the praises of Costa Rica but today I am compelled to
point out a couple of negatives, since I was almost knocked down by one of them
on our walk this morning and the other issue may be causing me a health
problem.
Not much of a shoulder
Getting back into
our routine of taking leisurely walks in our Santa Eulalia neighborhood, today
we headed down the main road on the route we sometimes take toward the next
town up the mountain from us. We laughingly say, as we head out, "let's go
to Palmares," knowing that in fact the pueblo is some ten miles away, far too distant for
a hike. The first part of our walk of necessity is along the main road to
Grecia, a reasonably busy asphalt thoroughfare that runs through Santa Eulalia.
The street is wide enough for two cars or trucks but with little leeway beyond
that. Some parts of the roadway have sidewalk but most of the way we must stay
to the edge of the road, often just a sloping concrete gutter, and watch out
for traffic.
Now let's talk
traffic. In Costa Rica, pedestrians do NOT have the right of way; cars do. And
Ticos in general are horrendous drivers, weaving through traffic, passing on
blind curves and speeding as a way of life. Reckless is the only way to
describe most drivers here, sad to say. So it definitely pays to keep your eyes
open when strolling along a roadway. Layne and I wisely walk facing the traffic
so that some crazy driver does not overtake us from behind.
Today as we took a
breather under the shade of a tree just off the road in a driveway, we looked
back to see a truck and with two cars behind heading our way but on the other
side of the road, of course, so no problem, right? Just as they were almost
alongside us, I chose that moment to step out from the driveway and start
walking again, not realizing that one of the cars had chosen that same moment
to pass the truck. Suddenly I was aware of a white metal monster only a foot or
two away from me, whizzing by at probably fifty miles an hour as he sped around
the truck. Holy Moly! To say I was shocked is an understatement. It all
happened too quickly for me to be scared but we certainly considered it still
another cautionary note in staying safe on the streets of Costa Rica.
The other issue we
are dealing with is pesticide use here in this beautiful country that prides
itself on being "green." Last summer after living about a year in
Costa Rica, I developed a very persistent case of eczema. The itchy red rash
covers most of my arms and is in patches on my hands, legs and shoulders. I've
seen dermatologists here and in the U.S., had a biopsy and numerous other tests
done including allergy blood work, used different creams and have taken several
rounds of steroids, which do cure the symptoms but not the disease. Plus,
steroids have some very negative side effects with long-term use.
Giving up on
Western medicine's reliance on pills, I began to do my own research and learned
that, although no one knows what triggers it, eczema is the body's way of
ridding itself of contaminants that are too much for the normal mode of
dispersing toxins, namely, the liver, kidneys and other parts of the digestive
system. When those organs become overloaded, excess pollutants will exit the
body through the skin.
Toxins, eh? Well,
with further research we have learned that unfortunately Costa Rica has the
highest use of pesticides per hectare IN THE WORLD. That's a lot of pesticides.
Take a look at the graph
below (sorry it's so small) and you can see that Costa Rica stands head and shoulders above everyone
else -- not a place you really want to be in this case! Not only that, but
Costa Rica uses pesticides that have been banned in many other countries.
For instance, when
we first encountered leafcutter
ants, we were advised to buy Mirex
insecticide to deal with them. After making the purchase but before opening the
package, we decided to research the product and found that it had been banned
by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency way back in 1976. Without delay we
returned the package to the store and just left the leafcutters to do their
thing.
Our concerns are
not just for our own health but also for that of farm workers here, who
typically use no protective gear when spraying.
According to one report,
Costa Rican pesticide use has led to the poisoning of some 400,000 people, or
about 2% of the population. Effects can include sterility, hormone dependency
and liver and skin cancers. Costa Rican crops using the most dangerous
chemicals are pineapple, bananas and coffee, most of which are grown on large
plantations. Some people assert that smaller farms, which sell their wares at
the local ferias, do not
use chemical pesticides and indeed we have one vendor at the Atenas feria that claims to grow his crops organically.
We don't really
know, of course, whether my eczema is related to exposure to these poisons but
it is cause for concern. Our solution is buy almost exclusively organic fruits
and vegetables and I've given up alcohol, coffee, dairy (other than goat's
milk) and most meat in an effort to reduce the toxins I'm taking into my
system.
Despite these
problems, we still enjoy our life here in the land of Pura Vida. Our walk this
morning reaffirmed one thing about Costa Rica that we love: the friendliness of
Ticos. As we hiked by a construction site, the workers called out a loud
"Hola!" to us and waved when we turned to respond. And as I snapped a
shot of cars going by, the driver of a rather antique tractor stopped and
smiled for my camera, happily posing for the picture. Now if the country will
just go more organic, Pura Vida will mean "pure life" indeed.
Travel adventurer, organic foodie and cultural explorer, Kat Sunlove hopes to make her way to hidden jewels around the world and report her findings to you.
