Continuim

So much has happened. School takes up much of my time, but I am enjoying it. I made a few new friends, and have been paying close attention to the environment around me.

This weekend I needed a break from the city and smog, and took a trip to Playa Hermosa, which is a 2 1/2 hour bus ride from downtown San Jose. I have ridden in some crowed public buses before, but I have a new idea of what constitutes "personal space". The buses are filled to the brim, and since it rains so much and people don't want to get wet, they keep the windows up, making it over 100 degrees inside. I tried to read as much as possible (Currently: Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future). In between I observed the small farms on the country side, and practiced my Spanish with a kind gentleman who is a nurse in San Jose.

It is amazing at how quickly temperature (and complete climate) can change here, by traveling just short distances. Playa Hermosa was a full 10+ degrees warmer than San Jose the entire weekend, even in the evenings, and the humidity never lets up. Playa Hermosa is a small town known for its waves and quaintness. There were so many mangos on the trees there, you eat for free, if you have the patient enough to get them down (I got some pointers). I photographed the black sand beach, fed the iguanas some of the over-ripened watermelon I bought on the side of the road. I watched the surfers catch huge waves, sat quiet and bird watched (spotted a Macaw!), followed the little trails of wild hermit crabs, and stood at the edge of a some rivers and lagoons, where many crocodiles live. From a distance, I saw one croc that had me by a couple hundred pounds or more.

Since it is the rainy season, it is unsafe to drink the water anywhere below or at sea level. Even the locals buy bottled water, and unfortunately many plastic bottles congests the beaches. When I asked the locals about the recycling, the ones who are conscious of that is is actually being done in town, told me that it is very difficult to get others to join in and that "it is just not part of the culture here". Many places had modest recycling bins, but not one was filled with recyclables, and I made an effort to check out every single one I saw. In 14 days there is going to be a "Reuse, Recycle, Reduce" event at Playa Hermosa, that has been organized by a few expats living in the town, and I am thinking of returning to be a part of the beach clean up, document the event, and take the opportunity to see where the plastic and garbage is being sent here.

I also taking careful notice of the various water collection systems that people have employed themselves, without any fancy equipment, as to insure clean and safe water for their families.

While I am told that much of Costa Rica can grow food year round, I have not seen many small plot gardens in the city, none at all actually, though I have been keeping a close eye out.