Cookin' Up A Stew

One of my (many) unfinished projects is a recipe booklet featuring Marcial's great sausage printed up for him to hand out free with each purchase. Since Marcial uses no additives in his Sperone products, no MSG, nitrites or nitrates, only his unique package of spices, his sausage lends itself to a multitude of different healthy recipes that accent the rich pork flavors of the meat or lend a subtle Italian flavor to other ingredients. In particular, we suspect that Ticos are somewhat unfamiliar with the many delicious ways to use Italian sausage. For the most part, what you see in Costa Rica by way of sausages are the chunky links of spiced pork or beef, usually called chorizo or salchichon, split open and fried as a side dish alongside a breakfast of Gallo Pinto, the ubiquitous national dish of rice and beans, and fried or scrambled eggs. Papas con Chorizo (potatoes with sausage) or perhaps empanadas, small filled pastry turnovers using chorizo can be found but by and large, Italian sausage is not much used in Costa Rican cooking.

  

2nd Place Team Sperone in 2012

When we first met Marcial a couple of years ago and tasted his scrumptious sausage, I immediately thought it might be helpful to him in marketing his product to give out a little recipe brochure with each kilo of the tasty meat. We happily helped him develop a chili recipe using Italian sausage that won 2nd Place at the 2012 Atenas Chili Cook-off and 5th Place at this year's event, giving Team Sperone satisfying recognition in a world full of beef chilis. But of course, time passes and as regular readers know, Layne and I do manage to keep a full dance card around here, so the notation "recipe booklet for sausages" remains on my "To do" List, still lacking the critical checkmark indicating "completed."

Seidy, Marcial and Yours Truly in 2013

With nothing in particular to write about today, and being long over-due for a blog post, I thought I would offer here a dish I recently made which uses the Sperone sausages and chayote, one of many inexpensive local vegetables, a native Central American squash sometimes known as vegetable pear. The chayote has a crisp light texture that picks up flavors readily so it's a great companion to the distinct Italian taste of Sperone sausage. So without further ado, I offer you Chayote and Chorizo Stew! Bon appetit!

Chayote and Chorizo Stew

Ingredients:

         3 Sperone Spicy Italian Sausage links, casings removed

         1-2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

         1 onion, chopped

         1 chili dulce (or red bell pepper), chopped

         3-4 cloves garlic, minced

         1 lrg. or 2 med. chayote squash, seeded and chopped into ½ in. cubes

         1 -2 jalapeño peppers, finely diced (taste for hotness and use as much as you like)

         1 - 15-oz. can diced tomatoes or better yet, 2 -3 medium organic tomatoes, diced, including juices (use fresh tomatoes, if possible, to avoid BPA in the white-lined cans of tomatoes)

         1 - 15-oz. can black beans, rinsed well and drained

         1 cup frozen corn or 1 small can of whole kernel corn

         ½ tsp ground thyme

         1 tsp (or more) chili powder

         ½ tsp cumin

         salt and pepper to taste

Place a large saucepan over medium-high heat; cook the sausage in the skillet until browned, breaking it up as you saute; remove from pan and set aside. Add the olive oil. onion, chili dulce, jalapeños and garlic to the skillet; cook and stir until the onions are translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Return the sausage to the pan along with the chayote squash; cook and stir until the squash begins to soften, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, black beans, corn, thyme, cumin and chili powder; season with salt and pepper. Cook until it has all become well acquainted, about 30 minutes more. 

(Variation: Try using basil and oregano in place of chili powder and cumin. For less spicy dish, use Sperone regular Italian in place of the spicy Italian sausage.)

Adapted from Allrecipes.com

Check out Layne's book "Moral Turpitude," now available for FREE 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. A great read! Pick up your copy here --https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/159570 

   

Health Fair in Atenas

Just quick heads-up for my readers in and around Atenas: Macrobiotica Vida Natural is having a cool little Health Fair this weekend and running through Monday. I stopped by today and picked up a bag of Himalayan Salt, the kind with all the minerals in it. So much salt in Costa Rica has added floride, I was delighted to find this pure product. I was also tempted by a number of other goodies displayed on tables in the plaza outside of the shop. Some folks up from Parrita on the Pacific Coast were there with homemade Austrian bread made of hearty whole wheat, full of sunflower and flax seeds, peanut and oatmeal cookies, alongside homemade organic jams and jellies, some made with sugar cane itself and others using unrefined cane sugar. Also offered were a couple of spicy salsas, one named Salsa Fuego, which I was warned was hot enough to merit its name. Another table offered fresh coffee and green tea, while another was giving away samples of a medicine for arthritis. There was even a beautiful set of stainless steel cookware and utensils on sale but priced a bit beyond my budget. Samples of some of the foods were being given out to visitors.

Seidy and Stefanie greet Health Fair customers

Located in Plaza Central across from El Rayo, Vida Natural is my favorite health food store in Atenas, not only because of the good selection of quality products they offer but also because of the friendly style of the charming proprietress Seidy and her lovely daughter Stefanie, both of whom speak perfect English. My Spanish just doesn't stretch far enough to discuss health care issues and the pros and cons of this skin cream over that one so I greatly appreciate their bilingual abilities.

Seidy has recently enlarged her corner space to make room for new products including organic ginger, chia seeds and fresh herbs, as well as a private room for massage. Her current inventory includes some products I just cannot do without such as low-salt soy sauce, tahini and rice wine vinegar. In addition to the normal vitamins and food supplements, essential oils, face and body creams and lotions, she also sells high quality (glass bottled) extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, jasmine rice, quinoa, tofu, aloe vera drinks and lots more.

The Health Fair will continue all weekend, with a physical therapist present on Sunday and other health care specialists around on Monday. Stop by and tell them Kat sent you!

Check out Layne's book "Moral Turpitude," now available for FREE 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. A great read! Pick up your copy here --https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/159570 

Oh, When the Ants Go Marching In...

When friends from the States ask us about life in Costa Rica with lots of bugs and other tropical creepy-crawlies, we say, hey, we have bugs here that eat the other bugs, so no hay problema! Little did we know just how apt that phrase really was. But if we needed any confirmation, we got it recently when our rancho was literally invaded by ants. Not just a few ants, not just a bunch of ants, but thousands and thousands of ants! And they showed up in no time at all. We had done a load of laundry that morning in the rancho where our washer is located and there had been no sign of ants, just the normal iguana skittering away at our approach. But by mid-afternoon when Layne went out to get the barbeque grill for me, the place was swarming with them, great huge lines of mid-sized brown hormigas, busily trooping along the bottom wall, up the sides, under the cabinet. It was downright spooky!

Since we were uncertain whether to be concerned about this, we turned to our friend and neighbor Marcial, our go-to guy for all things Costa Rican. Even though it was Father's Day, he soon arrived at our gate to take a look. After studying the creatures up close, he assured us they were not only harmless but were actually "cleaning house." According to Marcial, this particular type of ant comes en masse and in the space of a few hours carries away the eggs of other ants, cockroach eggs, dead ants, wasp nest eggs and the larvae of all manner of other unwanted critters. Drawing our attention to one or two which were toting little white balls on their backs, he assured us those were eggs of some undesirable insect. He did say they carry a mean bite so avoid getting stung but he also said they are not out to get you. And sure enough, within a couple of hours, they had disappeared completely. Who knew?

We did have to keep little Winston, our new foster puppy, out of the rancho while the ants did their thing as he seems to relish nibbling on ants. With their reputation for a mean sting, we didn't want him getting a mouthful of those guys. Winston, of course, is getting a reputation of his own; you might even say he's world famous. (After all, this blog has readers in lots of other countries, including Russia, China, Germany, France, Japan, Latvia, Australia, as well as the U.S. and Canada!) This morning as we were breakfasting at Natural restaurant, friends Joni and Mike drove up and immediately recognized Winnie from having read my last blog post with his photo. It's not surprising that he makes friends everywhere he goes. For instance, at VGym this morning, as he was waiting patiently (well, sort of patiently) by the door while we did our workouts, everyone stopped to give him a pet and rave about what a pretty boy he is. Naturally, we agree. In fact, as some friends predicted, we have decided to adopt him. Big surprise, eh? He's just too nice a dog to let go, a real find, we think. We look forward to many joyful years with him in our lives.

With all the attention, Winston was pretty tuckered out by the time we got to Natural for breakfast so he fell dead asleep by Layne's chair while we enjoyed another fabulous meal at this new eating place. If you haven't made your way there yet, you'd better go soon before there's a waiting line to get in. The food is so delicious -- fresh, wholesome, much of it organic and beautifully presented. My new favorite is the House Special fruit, natural yogurt and homemade granola dish. Today I asked for extra granola and then learned just how carefully it is prepared, using coconut oil and honey instead of vegetable oil and sugar. The extra care really shows in everything proprietress Maria prepares. The fact that she herself is so charming and sweet is icing on the cake, so to speak.

By the way, she is looking for a new house to rent, nothing fancy but comfortable enough for her, her two children and her mom. Of course, we hope to find her a place here in Santa Eulalia, but if you know of a nice low-cost Tico home near Atenas with a yard for the kids, please let me know and I'll pass it along to Maria. Or drop in for lunch and tell her yourself!

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 
  

New Eating Place in Atenas

We just had breakfast this morning at the a brand new restaurant in Atenas and boy, was it a treat! Called Nátural, it will feature as many organic and fresh ingredients as the charming young proprietress María can muster. Located diagonal from the ICE offices, the restaurant's open-air patio seating allowed fresh breezes to keep us comfortable as we enjoyed one of the best breakfasts we have had here in Costa Rica -- and that's saying a lot!

María at the feria

Our introduction to María and her excellent products came a few weeks ago at the feria, the local farmer's market where we pick up our supply of fresh fruit and vegetables. As we strolled the sidewalk where the vendors set up their stalls, we came to a new one. Just a simple table with small jars of green sauces beside a basket of torn bread chunks, it was staffed by a stunningly beautiful young woman. We stopped for a taste of the goods and were delighted with the incredible flavors of a dip made of several finely chopped herbs swimming in rich, buttery extra virgin olive oil. Next to the dip were samples of pesto sauce and marmelades, also quite delicious. But the dip, with its slightly picante or spicy flavor, was just addictive. We immediately bought a jar and proceeded to demolish it within three days. 

María told us she had recently moved to Atenas with her mom, who has always lived in the bustling capital city of San Jose. As they settled in, her mother was enthralled by the laid-back rural feeling in our little town. She felt like she had moved to the country, María said, and they both have fallen in love with our friendly community. At the feria that week, María informed us that she was planning to open a restaurant which would offer all natural, healthy foods. Well, we could hardly wait. After the closure a few months back of Cafe Cultura, the most recent effort to bring healthy organic fare to Atenas, we had almost given up on having a local eatery that would satisfy our desires for nutritious locally-sourced food. We love Gallo Pinto, of course, the popular beans-and-rice dish of Costa Rica and several local restaurants offer good food, but for us, nothing compares to the pleasure of knowing you are indulging in pesticide-free, unprocessed, all natural food.

Our waitress Margarita 

Well, it would seem that María is positioned to fulfill our wishes! Layne enjoyed a beautiful omelet made, according to our pleasant English-speaking waitress Margarita, with organic eggs and chock-full of perfectly sautéed vegetables -- mushrooms, red bell peppers, onions, carrots and spinach (did I forget anything?) -- luxuriously surrounded by a beautifully melted cheese, perhaps a Gouda. Gosh, it was good! Sharing the plate were three small slices of a dense, rich fresh-baked whole grain bread and a flawless salad in a light vinaigrette. Margarita even offered Layne a small dish of that fabulous herb dip we love. Although I stole some bites off Layne's plate, I only had a fruit smoothie because of the diet I'm on to help cure my eczema. But those tastes were enough to show what quality this place offers. And the prices were great as well. My smoothie, which was a beautiful combination of fresh fruits, not from concentrate, mind you, was only 1100 colones or about $2.25, including the tax, and Layne's omelet was just 2400 colones, a bit under $5.00. Very reasonable.

Layne's excellent omelet

Veggie-stuffed bread rolls

When we arrived after breakfast to pick up our organic veggie order from our friend Nathalie, we mentioned the wonderful food we'd just enjoyed. It turned out that she had had lunch at Nátural's the day before. She proceeded to rave about the veggie-stuffed bread

specialty that María had shown us just prior to popping them in the oven, as well as the apple pie, which Nathalie said was so good she had to have seconds!

We wish María every success in her new venture and want to assure our Atenas readers that you will not be disappointed if you walk the block and a half from the Central Park to enjoy a meal at Nátural, Atenas' newest and best healthy food restaurant. Buena suerte, María!

  

Parties, Protests and Photo Projects

The "late crowd"

Given how close we live to a "blue zone" here in Costa Rica, one of those areas around the world where people seem to live much longer, you might think that turning seventy would be no big deal. After all, if you're likely to live to be 100 or more, seventy is practically a teenager. Nevertheless, when we learned that our good friend Marc was leaving his sixties behind, it seemed like a good excuse for a party. So on Friday the 2nd of November, Layne and I hosted a big to-do for Marc and about thirty of his friends and it turned out to be a festive event indeed. Even our favorite bus driver Johnny and his wife showed up plus several people we didn't even know were invited!

As luck would have it, just before party starting time, the heavens opened up and we were hit with the kind of downpour that only happens in the tropics. Although it did deter a few people who were coming from a distance, most locals braved the weather and made the trip up to Santa Eulalia. Unfortunately, the inclement evening made dancing on the back patio difficult since chairs were congregated on the "dance floor." 

The crowded "dance floor"

But my spaghetti -- made of course with Marcial's Italian Sausage -- Eroca's eggplant parmesan and Stephen's fabulous salad were welcome treats for the stalwart group. At the birthday boy's request, his cake was the decadent Delicious Temptation chocolate-on-chocolate-topped-with-caramel concoction made by the crew at Kay's Gringo Postre; it was definitely the star attraction of the dinner. Wow, what a cake! 

Marc with that Delicious Temptation cake

The early crowd soon made way for the late crowd and even with Eroca's invaluable help in the kitchen, Layne and I were still cleaning up as midnight came and went.

Eroca on KP

Nevertheless, the extravagance of Friday was no excuse to avoid our walk on Sunday morning but at least we all agreed to push the hour a bit later. At 9:30 a.m. Layne and I were on our way to Marcial and Seidy's, Marc and Eroca's, then on to Stephen and Bonnie's place where we hiked off cross-country toward San Jose Sur, a community up the road toward Palmares from Santa Eulalia. Along the way, we were met by a horde of racing bicyclists as they tore along the back roads, watching carefully to avoid potholes. As some of us took a break on a bridge, we noticed a huge nest in a tree hanging out over the stream, apparently home to a zillion termites. 

Bicyclists heading our way

A home for termites

Stephen under a huge Guanacaste tree

The plan was to time our walk so we could enjoy lunch at the beautiful El Mirador el Pueblo, a glass-enclosed restaurant with killer views that boasts some of the best fish around. The owner is an old friend of Marcial's, as he used to run a small bar and restaurant just around the corner from our house and thus almost across the street from Marcial and Seidy's place. Naturally, we got first-class service at El Mirador. Most of us chose a "casado," a curious Tico term that means "married" but also refers to a typical Costa Rican plate of rice, beans, salad, plantain and your choice of meat. In our case, we opted for the excellent corvina, or sea bass, browned to perfection.

After such an indulgent weekend, Layne and Bonnie and I dragged ourselves to the gym on Monday morning to work off some of the good times. At the grocery store afterwards, we happened to see our friend Eric who runs the organic market here and who informed us of a demonstration set for the next day in San Jose to protest the introduction of genetically modified seeds into Costa Rica. Since Layne and I had plans to go into San Jose anyway, we decided to put on our journalist hats and attend the event in order to write up a report for The Costa Rica News. It turned out to be well worth our time with almost 100 people standing against transgenicos, as genetically modified products are called here. You can read my article in the Eco section of TCRN tomorrow.

"Perro" protester

Our trip into San Jose was originally set up with Felipe, Marcial and Seidy's oldest son, who is interested in photography and had done some excellent wedding photos recently for his friends, using Layne's high-end camera. Layne has been helping him package the photos into a professional-looking portfolio and a wedding album for the newlyweds. This trip was to have high-quality prints made for the album. After the bus trip into town, we walked a few blocks searching for the photography shop, no easy task since, as you recall, there are no street addresses here. But with a phone call by Felipe (in Spanish, of course), we soon located the store and he and Layne gave the instructions for the print sizes. 

Layne and Felipe order prints

The finished product is terrific and today Felipe is delivering the album to his friends. It's been a very satisfying process for Layne and me to help guide this young man in developing his talent in photography. We hope this is the start of a productive and lucrative vocation for Felipe and we're very proud of his hard work. 

  

Turtle-speed Internet and Goat Cheese Goodies

Despite our love of the country, Layne and I would likely not be in Costa Rica if it weren't for the Internet. "How's the Internet?" has been one of the first questions we ask when looking for housing over the last two and a half years. Speed and reliability are critically important to us both. Thanks to the plethora of news websites, we stay in touch with world events, United States politics and other news. With email we communicate with friends and family around the world. Signed up now with USTVNow, we can watch U.S. programming such as the presidential debates, baseball playoffs or just the Food Network. With Google and other search engines, we are able to look up virtually anything, offering us a far broader range of research sources than even the largest public library. With Skype or Magic Jack I can call my mom every week just as I have for many years and we can chat with friends by video or voice. All in all, it's a mainstay of our happiness and contentment here.

The other day I had occasion to feel like I was ON the Food Network as I faced a basket of disparate items and a goal of making a dinner out of them, a la the cooking program "Chopped." Somehow we had ended up with way too many beets in our organic order for our normal consumption as well as some goat cheese that was close to going bad. In town that day thinking of hamburgers as a backup plan for dinner, we had picked up some ground beef. So there I was with three ingredients in a less than  obvious combination for a meal. How was I to use all that?

Off I went to the computer, entered "hamburger, goat cheese, beet recipe" in Google and up came a predictably weird recipe but one that now, having made it, I would count as a new favorite. The subtle goat cheese flavors in the ivory-colored garlic cream sauce along with the addition of fresh herbs in the meatballs, both topping the crazy red spaghetti, makes for a colorful and tasty dish. I didn't think to take a photo of my version of "Goat Cheese Meatballs, Beets and Spaghetti" but I'm sure Diane, the author of Created By Diane, the blog where I found it, won't mind my use of her shot. I encourage you to give it a try if you like beets and goat cheese and if you need a vegetarian version, just omit the meatballs! The cream sauce is a sure winner.

And speaking of food, there's a nice new restaurant in town -- Cafe Cultura. Well, it's not actually new, just under new management and the changes are welcome. The earlier effort at Cafe Cultura could claim some good food but the service was marginal. Once Layne ordered French toast and it was delivered to the table sans butter or syrup! Plus, there was no whole wheat bread and the food was sometimes served cold, among a few other limitations. The new and improved Cafe Cultura still offers delicious Eggs Benedict and the standard Tico breakfast of Gallo Pinto and eggs but also lists Smoothies, croissant sandwiches and lots of other goodies on the menu. Pleasant outdoor seating provides a lovely fresh-air dining experience. 

The new owner is putting in gardens in the back where he plans to grow his own organic veggies and herbs. Apparently the ambiance suits one shelled reptile that surprised us with a stroll across the lawn. It made an entertaining video and I'm sure he was going at top speed as he eyed the dangerous humans nearby, but let's hope we never have Internet as slow as this turtle!

Costa Rica Dance Card: FULL!

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. 

Perils in Costa Rican Paradise

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. 

Don't forget Layne's book "Moral Turpitude" is available for only $2.99 at Smashwords.com. https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/159570

          

Back to Pura Vida in Costa Rica

Layne's and my last suitcase is unpacked and (mostly) put away and I finally have some time to update my blog. It sure feels good to be back in beautiful Costa Rica! Our time in the USA was successful in re-financing and fixing up the house and included some fun times with friends and family but overall was pretty stressful. If you saw my blogs from there, you know how much physical labor we faced. Not only the mere unpacking of the barn, moving boxes and furniture, but also the extensive yard work required to get things back in order.

Mexico City airport

Our return trip went smoothly enough but was incredibly lengthy. Aeromexico decided to cancel our original flight connecting from Mexico City to San Jose, Costa Rica. With that itinerary we would have arrived in Costa Rica about 7:30 p.m. Wednesday evening. As it was, we endured a 14-hour layover in Mexico City following our red-eye from San Francisco. Fortunately, we had learned that the Hilton located right inside the airport offered a "day rate" for us weary travelers so we were able to crash on comfortable beds and sleep for much of the day. Still it was 11:30 p.m. that night before we finally landed in San Jose, another hour before we were home and about 2:00 a.m. when we hit the bed, exhausted.

Our wonderful landlords here, Isaac and Sonia, had done some significant improvements, making this home even more comfortable and attractive. 

Shrubs along the walkway to the rancho

New shading for the plants

New guest bed

Happy bamboo orchids

New shrubs along the back walkway, a green shading material over a garden area to protect my orchids and herbs from the sun, a new larger ceiling fan in our bedroom and the smaller one from there installed in my office and finally a grand new queen-sized bed in the guest room. The gardener had been busy pruning and planting and the maid had the whole house spic and span.

Darlene (on sidewalk), Glenn, Marcial, Seidy & Layne

So with Thursday to chill out and begin unpacking, we were ready for the feria on Friday to pick up a few groceries and where we were sure we'd see many of our local friends. We were not disappointed! It was as colorful and festive as we remembered with Jan selling bread in her booth, Gabriel with his organic local coffee, Marcial and Seidy standing by with Italian sausage for their customers and lots of our friends, Tico and Gringo, strolling along the sidewalk. We were royally welcomed by all.

As we later walked around town running errands, we were reminded of one of the reasons we love this place so much: without fail, virtually everyone we met - whether we knew them or not - greeted us with "Buenos dias," direct eye contact and a big smile. What a friendly country.

"Corn as high as an elephant's eye!"

It's the early rainy season here and the plants and flowers love it. They are absolutely springing up by inches each day. In what was a cornfield next to us there is now a thriving sugar cane field, with red beans and corn where the sugar cane was last year, a form of crop rotation we assume. As the old song says, "the corn is as high as an elephant's eye!" Our neighbor Rosa has promised us some fresh red beans when they ripen in just a few days.

On Saturday, however, we had an awkward, if humorous, incident when we went to pick up our organic veggie order. While we were still in the States, I had contacted the organic sellers by email but learned that Melissa, the coordinator who speaks English and several other languages, was in Mexico so I had to communicate with Iris, who speaks no English. My Spanish being what it is, I attempted to send in our order only to find that my instruction for .5 or ½ kilo of carrots and .5 or ½ liter of goat's milk had been interpreted by Iris as 5 kilos of carrots and 5 liters of the milk. That's a lot of carrots! Fortunately, Melissa was back from her trip and very graciously worked things out so that we were not stuck with such huge quantities. As it turns out, we quite like the goat's milk and have almost gone through the two or three liters that we took.

Felipe at work

Bonnie and Layne

With our energy somewhat restored by Monday, we took a walk over to Bonnie and Stephen's, where I had left some of my herbs in Bonnie's care. Sadly, most hadn't survived and I left the one remaining basil with her. Stephen was away in his new position teaching photography at a local school but it was fun to visit with Bonnie while Marcial's son Felipe was painting some trim in their cute Tico cottage. Their big news was that Stephen and Bonnie had just gotten married on Friday after some years of living happily together. But for residency and Social Security reasons, they had decided to tie that knot. Apparently all that was required was for them to sign a book with Marcial and Seidy standing by at witnesses. Muy facil! (Very easy!)

So all is well in the land of Pura Vida and we are so happy to be here. It may be quite awhile before we feel the need to wander again.