Costa Rica Part 3

Very bright and very early on Sunday morning Victor arrived to guide us on a bird-and-plant tour of the world-renowned Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Reserve.  But first we enjoyed Cala Lodge’s complimentary breakfast. Each guest was given a small plate of cut-up tropical fruits and a glass of orange juice. You could then choose from a menu offering granola with milk or yogurt, an omelet or the lodge’s special breakfast of eggs with rice and beans.  The delicious coffee came from a small, local farm and the home-made marmalade came from the owner’s old family recipe.

Off we went to Monte Verde. The parking lot was already crowded with “Turismo” vans and buses when we arrived. Crowds of tourists were waiting at the gate. Victor led us in, carrying his tripod. He told us how Monteverde was settled in the early 50’s by a group of Friends (Quakers) from the United States. They came as dairy farmers, but soon realized that the cloud forest had to be preserved, so they set much of their land aside as a refuge for plants and animals. The forest is a great profusion of trees, plants, ferns, bushes, shrubs, orchids and bromeliads.  Birds call from the tree tops, but it takes a trained eye to spot them and bring them to your attention. Victor pointed his telescope on this large black bird, which he said was a kind of turkey.  (He took the picture for us by placing the camera against the lens of the telescope.)

Here is a photo of the quetzal, which everyone hopes to see during a visit to the forest. (Picture also taken by Victor, who was sorry it didn't turn out "better." I was really pleased with it.)

Phil was intrigued by this “strangler fig,” a parasite that encloses and eventually kills its host tree.

During the ride back to the lodge, Victor told Phil he wouldn’t mind going to hell because he liked heat. He had visited Minnesota in the winter as a teen, arriving without a warm coat, and had been shocked at how bone-chillingly cold it was. In later years, he experienced extreme coldness again when he travelled to Amherst, MA to learn about biodiversity and conservation. Phil joked that the devil would probably see to it that there was a special cold place in hell just for Victor.

Back at the lodge, we had a problem. Two years ago Phil began feeling—not pain, he assured me—but what I guess he would have called “twinges” in his upper right bicuspid. The left bicuspid had long ago been replaced by an implant, after he’d cracked it by chewing ice. This is a man who has wonderful teeth, except for this couple of rogue outliers.  When a filling recently fell out of the right bicuspid,  he assured me that the dentist said it would be “fine” to leave things alone as long as the tooth didn’t bother him. Well, on Saturday night it began to bother him just a little. He said, “Be sure to remind me to have this tooth looked at when we get home.” Now, on Sunday night,  he said the words that opened the door to Horror # 2. “My tooth really hurts and we’re not going home for a week. I don’t know what to do.”  He talked to Barbara and Ron and we all agreed he’d have to see a dentist as soon as possible. The pain kept him awake all night.