Excursion with Mom and Dad - Hannah

We've spent the last few days exploring Costa Rica with my parents. We've seen many beautiful things and really enjoyed being with them.

We started our excursion Thursday morning at a
small butterfly garden. 

Te amo mi familia

These beautiful butterflies particularly liked Michael
(I don't blame them). I took about a million pictures trying
to get a photo of the butterfly with its wings spread.
And I finally got it :).

Caleb also had a butterfly friend. This is the same kind of butterfly--the
outside of its wings are brown while the insides are blue.

Mom thought this pattern would make a great fabric for a dress.

The butterflies enjoyed the rotting bananas.

Jonah learned about butterfly life cycles and we saw
these empty butterfly cocoons.

Next we stopped at the crocodile bridge--this was not Mom's favorite part.

After the bridge, we spent the afternoon at Punta Leona, a beautiful beach within a bay. Michael and Julia had previously gone to this beach with the young men and young women, but it was the first time for the rest of us. It was a calm beach with clear water, and we relaxed, floated and snorkeled. Michael and Dad went to the other side of the bay near some reefs to do some snorkeling. They saw a skate at the bottom, and a school of large fish swimming by. When they were done, they took a swim across open water to get back to the rest of us.

That night we stayed at a house in Esterillos, and watched I Am Sam, a movie about a mentally handicapped father who goes through a court battle to retain custody of his daughter. The next night we watched Places in the Heart, about a mother whose husband dies and she is left to support her young son and daughter; she grows cotton during the midst of the Depression, against advice from those around her, but with the determination to do all necessary to keep her children with her. We noticed that our movie choices had themes about the importance of families, showing what people will do to hold their families together. It seemed appropriate to watch those movies while my parents were with us.

The next day, we played at the beach in Esterillos. Michael went early in the morning and surfed for a couple hours while the rest of us slept. After breakfast, we all went down to the beach. We took some sandwiches and our boogie board, and rented some beach umbrellas and chairs as well as a couple surfboards. 

This is the awesome-ist picture ever--my 66 year old
dad reliving his California youth on the waves. It's
only too bad it ended in a bruised, swollen toe.

Jonah following in Grandpa's footsteps

That evening we had a great dinner. Michael had bought a couple fish from a local fisherman that morning. Apparently they start fishing at dusk and fish all night in their little fishing boats. We got a red snapper and a yellow fin, which were both delicious. We bought some beans at a local restaurant and cooked up some rice. We cut up some mangoes--the best I've ever had--and some watermelon. It was muy delicioso.

This morning we packed up and drove to Carara National Park. We stopped at one beautiful spot along the road and saw our first scarlet macaws--Dylan has a new favorite bird. They are absolutely gorgeous, though they have an ugly, crow-like call. Apparently you can be beautiful or sing well, but you can't have both. The macaws can live a long time, some of them up to 70 years. And unlike most other birds, the males and females are equally beautiful. My video is a little shaky, but Dylan really wanted me to post it anyway.

We arrived at Carara National Park, and Enrique, our guide, was very helpful in showing us things we never would have seen on our own. Here's Michael by the map of the park. 

We saw lots more scarlet macaws, as well as a few different species of lizards and bats. Some of us were able to see monkeys and toucans, but they were more difficult to see.

I love him!

This is called a Jesus Christ lizard, because it walks on water

You can see bats resting to the left of the tree

We also enjoyed the lovely scenery and these homo sapiens. 

Dylan was thrilled to find this macaw feather sitting by the side of a tree. It's now sealed in a plastic bag, to be preserved forever. Dylan even matches the feather.

All in all, it was a wonderful trip. My parents were real troopers, and very generous in helping make it happen. I enjoyed spending time and talking with them. We will miss them lots when they leave on Monday.