charliedoggett.net
One of the neighbor couples, Russ & Holly, had their second Solstice Party yesterday and it was cloudy (but never rained) meaning no really good photos, but an example of expat life in Costa Rica. 🙂
¡Pura Vida!
¡Feliz Navidad! — Merry Christmas!
 |
| Washing a Horse in the street . . . That, cowboy hats and boots, means it is “Tope Time!” A tope is a horse parade & this year at night, 1st in 3 years! |
 |
| It is suppose to be about horses, but is mostly about partying & beer! Lots of beer! |
The last time Atenas had a night Tope was three years ago (before I came) and the story is they trashed downtown Atenas so much they had to take a 3-year break. The later it gets the drunker people get I’ve been told and it is not pretty.
 |
| Flash Back plays for dancing at Augostos Restaurant tonight |
 |
| Scarlet Macaw at Zoo Ave |
 |
| Keel-billed Toucan at Zoo Ave |
 |
| An Injured Toucan rescued and nursed to health |
 |
| Green Iguana, one of many around the park |
 |
| Wild Spectacled Owl visiting Zoo Ave |
 |
| Striped Owl at Zoo Ave |
 |
| Crested Owl at Zoo Ave |
 |
| Emu at Zoo Ave |
 |
| Great Curassow Male at Zoo Ave |
 |
| Great Curassow Female at Zoo Ave |
 |
| Squirrel Monkey at Zoo Ave |
 |
| Spider Monkey at Zoo Ave |
 |
| Helicopter Damselfly at Zoo Ave |
 |
| Baird’s Tapir or Central American Tapir at Zoo Ave |
Zoo animals are ambassadors for their cousins in the wild.~Jack Hanna
 |
| Merry Christmas from my Terrace where I added Poinsettias to a potted palm. A cell phone selfie. |
AND TONIGHT I DID WHAT I WAS TOO SICK TO DO LAST CHRISTMAS EVE! I went to the Christmas Eve Candlelight Service and Lord’s Supper at Iglesia Biblica:
 |
| It started with some from the Spanish congregation singing two Christmas Songs in Spanish. Beautiful! Then with the help of screens, we sang Christmas Carols, most with one verse in English & repeated in Spanish. Nice! In between the carols the English pastor read portions of the Christmas story from Luke. |
 |
| We ended with candle-lighting and singing of Silent Night. Then to fellowship hall for punch and Christmas Cookies plus visiting. I decided tonight to start attending regularly again, even though I still don’t care for praise bands or all the Wednesday night Bible studies (too complicated to explain). But I need the Christian fellowship! |
“It came without ribbons! It came without tags!
It came without packages, boxes or bags!
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before!
‘Maybe Christmas’ he thought, ‘doesn’t come from a store…
Maybe Christmas perhaps… means a little bit more!'”
– Dr. Seuss
 |
| One portion of the sidewalk I cleaned off. A community project, not the city! |
BIRTHDAY GOOD DEED
I decided a few days ago I wanted to start a new tradition for each birthday: Do a good deed, service project, or something that helps other people. One I have been wanting to do is contribute to the neighborhood community-built sidewalk on the road leading to my subdivision. So this morning after breakfast I spent an hour and a half, before getting too hot, shoveling gravel and dirt and sweeping parts of the sidewalk. In short, someone left a pile of gravel for the concrete on top of the sidewalk so all of us who use it have to walk around it into the street. So the first thing I did was use my very small garden shovel to move the pile of gravel off the sidewalk onto the shoulder of the road. Hard work! Then another longer section of the sidewalk has a dirt wall along side it that is crumbling onto the sidewalk with each rain or bump of anything into the wall. I started shoveling a drainage ditch between the walk and wall and putting the dirt in the street which will be removed when they come to repave and widen the street. Then I swept the sidewalk and parts of the street. By 8:30 it was very hot with no clouds and I had to quit. But I plan to go back and finish the job! Lots of women and children and old people use this sidewalk and I want to help make it safe and usable!
BIRTHDAY PRESENT
 |
| Birthday Present to myself is two handmade wooden rocking chairs. That’s sillas mecedoras in Spanish |
 |
| Sometimes you just don’t want to sit at the table! Now I’m looking for a matching small table to sit drinks, etc. on. That will be mesa pequeña in Spanish. No luck yesterday. |
BIRTHDAY LUNCH
David & Corrina with their full-time assistant at Su Espacio plus helpers Jason and Roni walked to my house at about 6:35 PM and they later found in my baby book that I was born at 6:35 PM – spooky huh? They are all young and full of life and brought everything for my feliz Cumpleaños party. It was a blast! And Jason even brought a gift, a Pura Vida coffee mug! My Tico friends are my best friends here and I will always remember this birthday party!
 |
| Waking up to Yellow Bells blooming out my bedroom window Hacienda La Jacaranda, Atenas, Costa Rica Yes, I really could see this while lying in my bed this morning! Same tree where I made some of those earlier bird photos. |
 |
| Kevin and I eat breakfast on top of a mountain and photograph the vista at La Casita del Cafe, Atenas, Costa Rica Pacific Ocean is on the far horizon |
 |
| Monumento del Boyero – National Monument to Oxcart Drivers Atenas, Costa Rica (Yeah, it was cloudy, but not a drop of rain yet!) |
 |
| “Adios Snowbirds” dinner party before Canadians and Europeans return north Hacienda La Jacaranda, Atenas, Costa Rica |
Tomorrow we tour of Atenas’ El Toledo Coffee Farm and eat lunch in a family farm home there.
 |
| Gary from Quebec grilled 1 inch thick pork chops and sausages! Delicious! |
 |
| The rest of us brought side dishes. |
 |
| Our Tico couple brought the birthday cake. an old family recipe for a Caramel Cake – One of the best cakes I’ve ever tasted! Yum! |