Elizabeth's Secret Garden

This Howler monkey decided to take a snooze in a large tree near our rental in Costa Rica. Howler monkeys received their name because of the loud vocal calls they release. Usually they are loudest from dawn to dusk and as a group can be heard up to 3 miles away. They are also the biggest of the New World monkeys. When it comes time to “monkey around”, they use their prehensile tails for gripping and climbing. Once the Howler awoke, I was able to capture its expression with my new telephoto lens.   My YouTube Howler Monkey Video This is a Golden Trumpet flower. This Canna Lily is grown as a roadside, garden ornamental, and cultivated species in Costa Rica. Weeping Bottlebrush Common Tody Flycatcher   This species of creature is my brother! Elizabeth’s Traveling Tip: When traveling with a camera you need to protect it from moisture. You can do so by purchasing silica gel pack for your camera bag at Amazon http://tinyurl.com/3bwxsrd

While in Nuevo Arenal, Costa Rica February 14 – April 3, I have begun to truly appreciate and love the small town. Though it is not extravagant or large, the local people and community make it a truly special place that draws you in and makes you grow to love it for the sense of acceptance and friendliness that is present. Living among local residents of Costa Rica, shopping where they shop, and practicing some Spanish along the way has been a unique and learning experience. Now, I would like to allow you to experience the town of Nuevo Arenal by sharing pictures of some local businesses and individuals who are self-employed. This is the center of town where many of the businesses are located. There are bakeries, supermarkets, a vegetable market, restaurants, and even a hair salon. Above are the two supermarkets we have in town. We waited a month for the new Super Mas to open up across the street from our other supermarket option called Super Compro . For us, the opening of ...

  Above is Michelle Cloutier next to a macadamia nut tree. Michelle and her husband are owners of the Rio Frio Macadamia Nut Farm. In the previous entry, I shared pictures and information on how macadamia nut trees are grown at the Rio Frio Macadamia Nut Farm. Getting the nuts to reach maturity and the quality desired requires careful pruning along with the arrival of cooler weather in the months of January and February. Then its harvest time for those nuts that have developed properly and escaped the jaws of hungry squirrels, worms, and diseases. When harvest season arrives, the farm hires one family (3 women, 3 men, and Michelle’s sister in law, Virginia) to pick up nuts around the whole farm every 7-10 days or so. Collection of nuts during harvest season is required on a weekly basis since it occurs during rainy seasons. During the months of September and October, the whole family works about 3 days each week. The processing plant is where the nuts are husked, washed...

I recently toured the Rio Frio Macadamia Farm in Nuevo Arenal, CR. One of the owners, Michelle Cloutier, was kind enough to give me a private tour. Michelle studied forestry at the University of Tennessee. With her experience in growing trees, she came to Costa Rica as a Peace Corps volunteer in 1980. Rio Frio Macadamia Farm is a small part of a bigger farm that a USA company owned in the 60’s and early 70’s to raise beef cattle.  The government of Costa Rica expropriated most of the farm to create the Arenal Lake and reservoir; this left about 270 acres of land which was no longer big enough to interest them with the cattle project so they sold the farm to another American, Robert Case who started the macadamia nut project. Michelle and her husband now own and operate the farm. Michelle has been part of the project for 28 years.   Left photo shows nursery bags that are being prepared for starting seedlings. The farm has 2,000 trees of different ages expanding across 40 ...