there is so much to be grateful for each day.
|
a bonnie garden | ||||||||||||||||||
| A SPACE OF GRATITUDE there is so much to be grateful for each day. |
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||
Costa Rica, A Country Worth Visiting Bonnie Moss(c) 2010-08
Costa Rica is located in Central America, between Nicaragua to the North and Panama to the South. It is becoming a Mecca for ecotourism, loosely defined as "come, look, see, experience, but don't touch". Respect us , so we can preserve the rewards of ecoology for future generations of tourists and Costa Ricans to enjoy.
The national motto: Pura Vida- pure life says it all. The tour guide was well informed, explained a lot to us with a passion that exudes the pride he takes in talking about his country. He was proud of their ecological practices and the results. They do not just preach ecology- they practise it. This is evident by the lush countryside, the preserved rainforests , the rich flora and fauna.
Earthquake Fault Lines and Volcanoes
Umbrella plant on the volcanic slope
On the way to Manuel Antonio Park, the guide showed us the fault lines where the tectonic plates come into contact with one another, the mantle can be cracked or there is a fissure. Fault lines create quakes, the ground is constantly in a state of slow motion. The guide mentioned that there is frequent earthquake activity during the day, but of very low magnitude that it is hardly felt. There are 112 volcanic formation in Costa Rica called Pacific Rim of Fire. Seven of them are considered active. Their activity is connected with fertile soils, which cover the majority of Costa Rica territory. The terrain around each Costa Rican volcanoes are under protection- many of them are within the national parks.
Rain Forest
.. plants growing on the branches of this very old tree.
One can apppreciate the lush vegetation along the highway to the rainforest. Palm tree plantations dot the highway to Manuel Antonio National Park.
There are extensive mangroves- very helpful roots that act as filter for debris thereby protecting the flora and roots of other trees nearby. Our tour guide stopped along the way for a leaf from a teak tree- rub the leaf between your fingers and you get a red stain coming out of the leaf. This is used to make ink.
Along this highway, branches are cut off from a tree and planted as fence- in time this branch grows to a tree. Once we reached the rainforest, it was a treat to be close to a sandy beach . Walking along the trail of the rainforest, the lush vegetation, fauna and flora are amazing. Among the trees are a variety of monkey species, birds- I saw a beautiful ibis, a small iguana and more. It was interesting to see a sloth- an animal that hangs on to the branch and is too lazy to move. Ferns abound, bamboo trees along the trail and there was a big tree where ferns and other lilly- like plants are growing out of the branches- fascinating.
Exotic blooms abound in our garden tour- a wide variey of orchids, including the world's smallest orchid, bromelia, birds of paradise and many, many other flowers. There is some degree of deforestation to make room for housing development and agriculture. The few days I spent in this country was most refreshing and makes me believe that we can save our world if live by that credo and not just pay lip service to saving this earth.