Couple of Skippers

Possibly the most common broad category of butterflies in Costa Rica is the Skippers and there are 3,500+ species of Skippers!

Though I may have seen both of these before, I don’t believe I have previously named them or shared photos of either.

DISCLAIMER: Uniquely colored butterflies are easier to identify than the thousands of brown Skippers which are very difficult to identify, even if in the book or online (and all are not). Thus no guarantee of the accuracy of these identities! 🙂

Skipper – Gold Costa

Skipper – Common Brown

“Just living is not enough, said the butterfly, one must have sunshine, freedom and a little flower.” – Hans Christian Anderson

¡Pura Vida!

See my Butterflies & Moths of Costa Rica Photo Gallery – 85+ species!

For most identities I use the book A Swift Guide to Butterflies of Mexico and Central America: Second Edition

Another joy of being Retired in Costa Rica!

🙂

October 9, 2019October 8, 2019

Green Orchid Bee

I had several of these in my garden yesterday. Colorful bee! Read about them on Wikipedia. Or see my earlier photo of one in 2015. Or my gallery of More Insects Costa Rica.

When the flower blossoms, the bee will come.

~Srikumar Rao

¡Pura Vida!

October 8, 2019

Sitting on Rocks? Park Remodel Update…

The other day I showed that they were now building the concrete seating in a circle around the “Kiosk” or Band Shell. Well today as I walked by before my haircut I noticed something interesting. Instead of using re-barb inside the huge concrete two-level seating they are using locally harvested rocks – yep – big rocks around which they hand-pour concrete from buckets. Hmmm. Well, it does help fill in the space with something more than just concrete! And I’m not an engineer, so maybe it is as good as re-barb though I have my doubts, especially since we regularly have earthquake tremors around here. Oh well, not my problem! 🙂 Pura vida!

Step 1: Fill each level of form with rocks.

Step 2: Hand pour concrete around rocks.

Step 3: Finish with smooth concrete.

Step 4: Finished product looks great!

“Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.” ~George S. Patton

¡Pura Vida!

My growing gallery of progress on the Atenas Central Park Remodeling.

The city has a Facebook Page presenting the remodeling with architect drawings of how they expect it to look.

October 6, 2019October 5, 2019

Potluck Supper Last Night

You guys considering a move to Costa Rica might be interested to know that it is common for neighborhoods to get together for potluck dinners occasionally. We did when in the apartments and we have in Roca Verde as last night. I’m on the RV Social Committee and we are now planning on 3 or 4 potluck suppers a year to get to know your neighbors better. And another fun part is how international it is in most neighborhoods with Costa Ricans, Europeans from multiple countries, and of course persons from the U.S. and Canada. Great food too! 🙂 Plus I got an invite for an American Thanksgiving Day Feast at one of the homes! 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

Sorry I did not get any photos last night but I have other social and fiesta photos in my photo gallery! 🙂

October 5, 2019October 4, 2019

Of the Marvelous – Trip Book

Sorry there were two posts yesterday, the old man gets flustered on the computer sometimes and makes mistakes! I intended for one of those today and this one for tomorrow, but here it is anyway! 🙂

I think this is one of my best books yet on travels around Costa Rica, this one about my week in Uvita on the southern Pacific Coast, whale-watching, many birds and other wildlife, sunsets, a river trip and visiting one of the most beautiful waterfalls I’ve seen yet in Costa Rica, Nauyaca Waterfall, my 27th waterfall to photograph here!

You may see or “Review” every page of the book electronically for free without having to order. Enjoy another one of my tropical adventures in Costa Rica! ~Charlie

The book: https://www.blurb.com/b/9678019-of-the-marvelous

Or click the book cover image:

“In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.”
~Aristotle

And for even more photos see my “Trip Gallery” 2019 Cristal Ballena, Uvita

¡Pura Vida!

October 4, 2019October 4, 2019

Progress?

Architects have forever been changing the look of our world, all around the world, including in this little coffee farming town of Atenas, Costa Rica. The other day I snapped this photo as just one example of many modern buildings coming up in Atenas. Some, like this one will, soon sit adjacent a “historic” or “antique” building providing the continued contrast of old and new across Atenas and around the world. My response is to just “go with the flow” and find beauty and joy in everything! ¡Pura Vida!

“You can’t stop the future
You can’t rewind the past
The only way to learn the secret
…is to press play.”
― Jay Asher

For more images of Atenas, see my gallery Atenas. Check out other galleries to see how I have adapted to “change” – old age, retirement, loss of family and work and encroachment of the future by embracing nature in this beautiful country dominated by nature. ¡Pura Vida! Retired in Costa Rica!

October 4, 2019October 4, 2019

Life Essentials

I encourage you to watch this brief 1 minute video ad that will be appearing in larger city TV markets in the U.S. and Canada this year. Then plan your trip to Costa Rica for the “Essentials of Life!” in Costa Rica! – 🙂 – ¡Pura Vida!

And/or be inspired by my photos in Charlie’s COSTA RICA! photo gallery!

And for the bird-lovers & nature-lovers up north, are you aware of the tragedy of our lifetime? Nearly 3 Billion Birds Gone from U.S. & Canada – staggering! Link is to article from The Cornell Lab of Ornithology. We are destroying the earth little by little. I’m thankful to live in a small haven of nature, Costa Rica!

Retired in Costa Rica

www.charliedoggett.net

October 2, 2019September 30, 2019

Central Park Update – SEATING

They continue to work very slow (muy despacio) but have started the concrete seats that will circle the round stage or theater in the round. As some say here “It will be nice if they ever finish it! 🙂

The city has a Facebook Page presenting the remodeling with architect drawings of how they expect it to look. Nice! The vision of an architect! AND BEST VIEWED AS A MANUAL SLIDESHOW! Click on a picture, then the right or left arrows.

“There is no power for change greater than a community discovering what it cares about.” – Margaret J. Wheatley

And these photos are being added to the others in my photo gallery called: Remodeling Central Park Atenas for a pictorial history of the park remodel.

¡Pura Vida!

October 1, 2019September 28, 2019

New Butterflies

Two butterflies scurrying around my garden the other day captured my attention much because of how fast they traveled and thus difficult to photograph. The one with red & pink is a Transandean Cattleheart (Parides iphidamas), while the one with turquoise is a Short-tailed Flasher (Astraptes brevicauda). These are both identifications using A Swift Guide to Butterflies of Mexico and Central America, Second Edition. On the Cattleheart especially, I trust the book more than the internet where the many different types of Cattleheart butterflies do not have their photos as finely separated as in the book.

The unknown yellow butterfly was on the parking lot by gym at Colegio Liceo (college-prep high school) – must have been pretty when alive but can’t find him in the book. CLICK images to see larger.

Transandean Cattleheart

Short-Tailed Flasher

Unidentified Butterfly

So we’ll live, And pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh at gilded butterflies. ~William Shakespeare

🙂

¡Pura Vida!

And check out my Butterflies & Moths of Costa Rica photo gallery! I have not found another online Costa Rica Butterfly gallery yet with as many labeled butterfly photos, more than 80 with names!