Athletic Accomplishments Abound

I climbed Chirripo, Costa Rica's highest peak at 12,500 feet above sea level!  I started my adventure by driving down to San Gerardo with two fellow teachers, Dave and Tom.  We stayed at Casa Mariposa, a perfect little guest house only a few meters from the trailhead.  Despite the giant tarantula right outside our door, we all slept really well in the dorm.  We rose before sunrise to get an early start.  The hike was steep and long, climbing from 5000 feet, but pleasant.  We hit the water refueling station after 5 miles.  Had a brief respite, then attacked the hill again.  After about 6 hours, we reached the base camp, the lodge at Crestones, at 11,000 feet.

There was no doubt that we were fatigued.  After we checked in, we all took a nap.  Later, Dave and I took a little walk up the trail toward the Crestones on the other side of the valley, to catch a sunset view.  Then, after a decent dinner, we went to bed at 7:30, in preparation for our 2:50 a.m. wakeup for our final ascent to the summit.  We started hiking the final 5 kilometers to the summit at 3:15 a..m. using flashlights and headlamps, under a gorgeous starry sky.  Then, at about 4:30 a.m. first light appeared.  Not wanting to miss the sunrise, Dave and I surged forward to reach the summit around 4:45.  The final section of trail was actually a steep section of bouldering up to a craggy summit.  We were the first to arrive that day and the summit was ours.  

While the sunrise was only a brief tinge of pink, and Costa Rica was blanketed below with swirling clouds cascading across other mountain peaks, we were exhilarated to have accomplished the feat of climbing to the top of Costa Rica.

The hike down was long, wet, and painful.  Tom, Dave and I had done 15 miles of hiking that day and our feet were not so happy.  But we made it.
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Marina competed in a inter-school swim meet this weekend and took home 2 third place medals and 1 second place medal.  Way to go, Marina!

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I competed in the Cerros de Escazu hill climb 10K race a few weeks ago and, after putting in a lot of miles training, was able to pull off a victory in my 40+ age group.  This is the first real race that I've won in my adult running career.  Next year, I'm going to try to complete the 21K.  It's more than twice the distance and twice the elevation gain. 

Bubbles in Bajamar

What a riot of bubbles and bubbly at the weekend retreat of Doctor Antonio and Alicia:  New friends, silly splashing, and time with family...


We dined on steaks and drank wine for lunch and feasted on pesto burgers and bubbly champagne for dinner.  Breakfast was lamb sausages, pancakes with strawberries and chocolate sauce, gallo pinto and eggs.

  We spent no less than 5 hours submerged in water: in the pool, at the beach and in the jacuzzi- filled with half a bottle of bubble bath soap!  

Point of interest:  Bajamar, near Orotina, happens to be next to the marsh in which all the birds that are migrating between South America and North America make a stop. The marsh is full of shrimp (and crocodiles) and the air is full of mosquitoes and bugs.

The company was delightful and we can't wait for another weekend getaway.

How to See the Resplendent Quetzal Bird

Not Our Picture

Our Picture

Up until recently, I thought the terms "resplendent", "magnificent" and "elusive" were exaggerated descriptions of Costa Rica's resplendent, magnificent and elusive Quetzal bird.   They are not hyperbole.  They are accurate accounts.

We stayed the night in San Gerardo de Dota at El Manantial Hotel.  At 5:15 in the morning, rather than wasting time looking for birds, we went out in search of SUV's and minivans and were happy to find them clumped on the side of the road about 3 km up from our hotel, where a sign for our hotel and Trogon Lodge read "Trogon 3K"  There, crowds of binoculared tourists pointed and oohed and ahhed.  We joined the crowd, and lo and behold, a quetzal landed right overhead.  People with cameras whose worth could feed a small country snapped shots better than ours, but our eyes had our fill, spotting more than four or five quetzals in the next hour. Two of the quetzals were just hanging out in the trees of the blackberry and cow-pie ridden property across the street from our hotel!

We also fished in the unfairly easy, stocked pond at Hotel Las Cataratas, where they fried up our delicious trout for dinner.  We all agree that it was yummy, but the experience was not without pain, as the kids learned and shed some heartfelt tears over  concussing and killing an innocent fish.

Overall, a powerful experience.  Thank you bird and fish.

Orosi Valley and JMUN

Orosi Valley never fails to please.  You can't beat the view from the Mirador--free and gorgeous...just watch out for the sharp wire I stepped on accidentally in my flip-flops.  No matter.  Steve has a TV MD.  His medical knowledge, gleaned from watching 1000 episodes of ER is extensive, as you can see in the photo: apply pressure and elevate!  Sure hope I got that tetanus shot....

In the evening, we traipsed through the coffee fields to the local (Free!) "Jacuzzi" in the river, where you can stew in the hot water with a lot of drunk guys and their unattended children.  Lots of fun!

Tapanti Park is marvelous, hiking to the cool river and enjoying the warm boulders for basking.

Orosi is only 1/2 and hour from Cartago, and just an hour and a half from San Jose.  It's an easy day trip.  You should go!

In other news....Benji won Best Delegate at his Model United Nations conference at the Lincoln School last weekend!  He wrote a resolution and passed it, representing Russia and taking on prison reform.  Way to go, Benji!!!!!!!

Bar and Bat Mitzvah Magnificence

We feel blessed to have shared this special ceremony with friends and family from far and near.   On March 19th, Benji and Marina read from the Torah from the portion Vayikra.  With poise and thoughtfulness, they spoke about their thoughts on the portion and read and chanted in Hebrew.   Granny, Grandma Evey, Papu Al, Aunt Tmarah and Aunt Arielle and Jimbo all came in to support the kids and share some celebrations with us!

On Thursday, the kids wrapped tefillin for the first time, and wore their tallit as they read from the Torah, elevating them to adult status in the Jewish community.  Our congregation here at B'nei Israel in Costa Rica is so supportive, and Rabbi Dario really helped the kids to learn and understand the process.   We celebrated for days, and now have about 20 pounds of lasagna in our freezer.  (Come visit, we'll defrost a slice for you...)

After Saturday's big event, we enjoyed the company of family and friends at a lunch at the shul.   We enjoyed the friends who stopped by Saturday evening, and also spent a few days showing our family Poas volcano, the beach, and downtown San Jose.

We are sooooooo proud of these awesome kids.