What I didn't see

February 03, 2017

Buenos dias mi amigos. Yesterday had some outstanding moments. February 2nd was the 5 month anniversary of being in Costa Rica. I saw my first motmot. Such a gorgeous bird! It literally made me hold my breath. I wish it had sung it's song. It's called a motmot because of the sound it makes.

I went for a walk with a friend of mine, and it was the most peaceful afternoon I could have hoped for. Most of it was in the shade, which was nice. Yesterday was hot! Dripping hot. My Mom said it best though. She lived where there were cold winters and she said that the cold hurt, like when warming her hands back up once she was inside. But the hot sun only makes her uncomfortable.
Before we got to the secret trail I've passed many times - we saw the motmot. Then we went on a hike up a mountain. And went down what's called "100 stairs" to a small beach. I'm not sure, I didn't count them, they were steep, small, and not even entirely flat! I call it the "pay attention! stairs". It was completely amazing. It was a hike through the jungle. A path through trees that blocked the view of the sky. A vast array of trees. At least 10 different kinds of palm trees. Big trees covered in spiked thorns. Monkeys in trees. We watched them watch us. 3 coatis crossed the path. Or that is the name that's easiest to say - they go by many names.

It was a good hike. Samara is full of ridges that go up and down, close together. I was in awe looking up and looking around. But then it was weird to look down too. I guess I just missed it, but there were a lot of flowers on the ground that fell from the trees. It's the summer season here. I had to watch where I stepped, it wasn't a lovely even trail. There were big beige/cream flowers on the ground, the kind that made me want to tuck one behind my ear. There were purple trumpet looking flowers mixed in occasionally with these flowers that looked like orange troll doll hair. I didn't have my camera, I'm so sorry.

It was so steep that we had to walk, pause, admire things, and then keep going. And if the way up was hard, let me tell you, the way down was not easier. I was mistaken to think that, although the false hope helped me as I walked up. We were also racing the sun. We had never been there before, so we were trying to get to the beach before the sun went down. We made it with 15 minutes to spare. The beach was so small, that 12 people made it seem almost crowded. The tide was high and still coming in, the waves were loud, the sound bouncing off the wall of hill. The sky and water were constantly changing color. There was very little beach, and it was magical. We saw a good sized fish jump out of the water. Not super big, but a decent size. We left the second the last glow of the sun disappeared over the horizon. My favorite part is how the sun dims in brightness, turns more orange, and grows in size as it drops down over the ocean. Then it was trying to get back before it was too dark.

It wasn't just what I saw, it was what I didn't see. I didn't see billboards, or garbage (except one over flowing garbage can on the small beach...). I didn't see any news, or talk of any political opinions. What I did was have a lovely chat with a lovely friend. I heard so many birds! And we were serenaded by howler monkeys on the way back. I didn't hear traffic. The only music I heard was the best of nature with all those bird songs.

The sunset was glorious. Pure and simple.

Oh, and we snuck in to a big abandoned house. Shhhhhhh. Don't tell anyone. It was creepy cool. The spookiest part was trying to walk through and not disturb the spirits. Here's what I mean. The whole house was raised up. It was a very big house. Underneath was big enough to have maybe 15 ceiling fans, I think it was a restaurant under there, from what I could tell. But the whole house was covered in small wasp nests. Some had wasps on them. Which of course we didn't notice until we were in the thick of things. But all of the wasps were in small groups on some of the nests high above our heads. They didn't bother us, so we didn't bother them. I felt like whispering though. I felt like a teenager again! And yes, Mom, I promise I won't do it again. Until the next time... Oh, and we saw a loofah tree/vine. Coolest thing!