Costa Rica

Posted by Marci on Dec 2, 2010 in | 0 comments

I walked out of the canopied jungle and stepped onto the white sandy beach of Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica. In its stillness, the bright blue water looked more like a lake than the ocean. I continued to walk along the jungle path, the sunlight streaming through the leaves. Red flowers perfumed the air as I sat down under a tree and closed my eyes.

Something thunked against the top of my head. I looked up and a tiny face peered down at me. The cappuccino monkey’s white fur spread out like an out of control beard. His dark brown eyes seemed to look straight through me as his face took on human expressions. He took another piece of his fruit and dropped it on my head taking great delight in his actions. When I stood to move out of his throwing range, he ran higher into the tree.

I walked to the water and dove into its warmth. As I relaxed in the salt water, floating under the bright sky, I looked to the beach. A woman had left her bag by her towel and two monkeys moved towards the prize. They began to dig through lifting her sunglasses, wallet, scarf, and shirt from the purse. They must have decided they liked all of the contents because they placed them back in the bag and dragged the entire package to the jungle. The owner of the purse finally noticed and ran from the water screaming for them to stop. As they hit the trees they couldn’t carry everything so they chose the wallet and sunglasses as they made their way to safety. It was hours before she was able to get her items returned.

Costa Rica is a beautiful country of rivers, volcanoes, beautiful beaches, botanical gardens, and ocean reserves. Each night, back at my hotel, after a day of zip lines, hiking, or sitting in the hot baths created by Arenal Volcano I lay in my hammock swaying in the ocean breeze. It’s a place of great beauty that must be preserved, but as with many places in the world, development threatens this place of pristine beauty. If we don’t protect our world, there will be nothing left.