PUNTARENAS, Costa Rica

We travelled an hour and a quarter down Costa Rica's Pacific coast to the Tarcoles River where we boarded a little boat and went hunting for local wildlife. We saw monkeys swinging; we saw birds: vultures, roseate spoonbills, great blue herons, ibis and egrets (both the snowy kind and the great kind), the gorgeous red macaw, and wait, there's more. You get the idea. Each time the naturalist slowed down the boat and pointed, excitement rose, cameras were pointed, and cries of delight came from almost every mouth. Most of the sightings occurred when a bird moved through the trees like a pink blur OR a monkey swung and moved a branch - so our views were somewhat fleeting. Sometimes the animals were still; the vultures pictured here were playful fellows. They snuck up behind a crocodile (also seen here) and bit him on the tail. The croc jerked and slid away into the water; the vultures seemed pleased with themselves. Without the vultures, the crocs were so immobile they looked like logs. The star of the day was the Jesus Christ Lizard! Truly, he got everyone's attention as he zipped across the river, sprinting on his hind legs, looking a little like the Geico gecko, able to scoot without sinking. After an afternoon of craning our necks and snapping bad photos, we returned to the Whisper.

Costa Rica is an interesting place. This region has unimpressive architecture, dingy shops, and restaurants that look like old picnic barns, but the highways and tractor-trailers gleam. The folks we met seem proud to be living in a country that has free health care, free education (67% graduate from college!), 98% literacy, and NO army. They gave up that military stuff in 1948 when they decided to spend their limited funds elsewhere, including an armed police force. And ... compared to the corruption and chaos typical of other Central American countries, Costa Rica is an island of political stability, economic prosperity and contentment. And guess what - very very few citizens emigrate from here. Apparently, they like the peace and quiet.