Else Kientzler Botanical Garden

We toured through the Else Kientzler Botanical Garden on the way home on Sunday afternoon. All over Costa Rica there had been a satellite broadcast from Salt Lake for all of Central America so we had gone to church in the town of San Carlos on the way home from Arenal, then saw some of the interesting towns and sights on the way home. The first is a concrete decorative head at the entrance to the gardens, next a pretty heliconia, a close up of a pretty leaf, a unique flower that seemed to be an epiphyte in a tree, and a very pretty blossom of a type of bromiliad. Laurie and the kids had a little rest and some fun in a swing. Next is a shot of some really tall palm trees. a plant with red and green leaves, and an interesting concrete spiral.

ZooAve with Austin

First photo is of Austin taking pictures of the peacock, and then a couple more of the beautifully colored peacocks that roam freely at ZooAve. There are a couple of shots of huge iguanas that also roam freely at ZooAve. This one was eating something, I think it was flora rather than fauna. Note the huge hind legs and claws. They are good climbers. Then a couple of Toucans and another bird with an interesting yellow beak. Go! Cougars! A monkey and a couple more close ups of the peacock who decided to display his tail feathers--front and back views.

Manuel Antonio

The first several shots are of the huge crocodiles we watched from a bridge high above the river where they live on the way to Manuel Antonio. You see Laurie, Richard and some of the kids watching from a safe distance. Then a photo of a large yacht off the coast just before we got to the park. This time in the park we didn't see the capuchin monkeys. But we saw a sloth high up in a tree, a large lizard, several big black birds, and a large iguana on the rocks close to the water. There is an interesting epiphyte with large leaves growing in a tree, and a couple of shots of the beautiful beach. A fun day.

Hike to the Waterfalls at La Paz

It is a long hike to see a series of 5 impressive water falls. There is a lot of flora along the way, and probably some fauna that mostly stayed out of our way. Everybody enjoyed the beautiful waterfalls, smiles on everybody's faces. Fortunately for all, they meet you at the end with a bus to take you back to the lodge so you don't have to hike both ways.