Here's the continuation of my family excursion to Costa Rica. This encore blog is from December 17, 2019 - enjoy.
There is so much to see in Costa Rica.
Costa Rica is a Central American country with coastlines on the Caribbean and the Pacific. It is bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, and Ecuador to the south. Costa Rica is known for its beaches, its volcanoes, and its biodiversity - roughly a quarter of its area is made up of protected jungle, rich with wildlife, plants, and trees.
Here are more photos from my trip, enjoy.
Costa Rica is not very large. The land area measures at about 20-thousand square miles – a little smaller than the US state of West Virginia. But the views over the water are vast and amazing. We took many photos of these spectacular views.
While driving in Costa Rica, one will see numerous fruit stands – many with pipa fría, or fresh chilled green coconut. Coconut water is full of electrolytes and packed with calcium, magnesium, and potassium – it is so good and so good for you.
Discarded coconut shells are made into beautiful bowls and other natural products and sold at these roadside stands.
We visited the Baru National Wildlife Refuge, which encompasses more than 800-acres of land along the Pacific, offering spectacular bird and wildlife viewing. There are many trails through primary and secondary forests, mangroves, grasslands, and even a beach. There are hundreds of types of birds and animals, including sloths, monkeys, peccaries, and toucans. Looking up, we saw this huge ant colony in the tree.
Up in another tree, we saw several capuchin monkeys. They were all swinging through the trees playing with each other. This duo stopped to look at all the activity below.
There are four monkey species that are native to the forests of Costa Rica. They include the Central American squirrel monkey, this Panamanian white-faced capuchin, the mantled howler monkey, and the spider monkey.
Capuchin monkeys, also called white-faced monkeys, occupy the wet lowland forests on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica and Panama and in the deciduous dry forests on the Pacific coast. These animals are very curious.
The boardwalks have wire netting along the top to make them more non-slip when wet. This is a great idea.
Here’s Ari next to the buttress roots of this huge tree. In Costa Rica, these roots line the forest floor.
Here are the roots of another large tree. Like the name suggests, these roots buttress or keep the tree from falling down.
We also visited another mountain top animal facility, the Alturas Wildlife Sanctuary – dedicated to the protection and conservation of Costa Rica’s wildlife. the facility provides wildlife rehabilitation and environmental education and research.
Peccaries are adorable little wild pigs found in the deciduous dry forest, tropical rainforests, low-lying shrub forests, and agricultural areas in Costa Rica. They are quite resourceful and adaptable and live in herds of between three and 30 other peccaries, maintaining a hierarchical structure within their herd.
There are six sloth species in the world, and two of the six live in Costa Rica. Sloths sleep about 20 hours a day. Here is a pair napping in their enclosure – they didn’t mind our visit one bit.
Here’s another capuchin monkey at the sanctuary. The sanctuary has a more private area for wounded animals that need special care during rehabilitation.
This is a yellow-naped Parrot, Amazona a. auropalliata. It is almost entirely green, with a large patch of yellow on its nape.
This is the Chestnut-mandibled Toucan or Swainson’s Toucan, a brightly marked bird with a large bill. The male can reach up to two feet in length, while the smaller female reaches about 20-inches long at maturity. This toucan eats a variety of fruit, including different seeds, berries, drupes, and fruit fleshes. They also like insects or small snakes and hunt for birds’ eggs, nestlings, and lizards.
We also went on a Titi Canopy Tour – ziplining through the rainforests. Titi Canopy is the only zipline tour located close to Manuel Antonio. The company runs 12 lines, 22 platforms, one rappel, one Tarzan swing and a treetop suspension bridge. It was a great way to see nature.
We ate at my friend’s restaurant, Restaurante La Parcela, specializing in local cuisine, and seafood, as well as more beautiful views.
On another day, we looked at some of the fruits of Costa Rica. Breadfruit, native to Southeast Asia, arrived in Costa Rica with sailors in the early 1800s. In Costa Rica, breadfruit trees grow up to 50-feet tall and have smooth, brown trunks. This flowering tree, which is part of the mulberry family, can produce up to 200 fruits each year.
And do you know what this is? Theobroma cacao also called the cacao tree and the cocoa tree. It is a small evergreen tree in the family Malvaceae. After four years, the mature cacao tree produces fruit in the form of elongated pods; it may yield up to 70 such fruits annually.
If you saw my photos on my Instagram page @MarthaStewart48, you may have seen these two black vultures, Coragyps atratus. We saw vultures everywhere – these large, mostly black birds with bald, wrinkled, charcoal-black heads and wingspans up to five feet. With keen eyesight, they can spot carcass from far distances, but these scavengers have a poor sense of smell.
And, on our way back to the airport, we went over the famous Tarcoles River. Driving over the Tarcoles Bridge, you might see dozens of crocodiles. We saw glimpses of some just under the water.
And look at the gorgeous view beyond. If you get the chance, visit Costa Rica – you’ll have a great time. We certainly did.
As we continue the holiday week, I hope you enjoy this encore blog from my vacation in Costa Rica. It was originally posted on December 16, 2019.
I hope you are all enjoying this holiday season.
Some of you have asked for photos of my Thanksgiving. This year, my family and I went away. It felt odd at first - no turkey, no cranberry sauce, and no pie, but once we got to Costa Rica, near Dominical, a beach-front town in the province of Puntarenas, I started to relax and loved every minute of the five days we spent there. We enjoyed the beaches, the wildlife, and of course the many spectacular views from our villa.
Enjoy these photos.
Here I am at Los Elementos, an extraordinary villa built on a hillside overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
The house is superb – a large, secluded home built by two very talented garden designers. The pool area was one of our favorite spots.
Los Elementos has four levels and is reminiscent of an open-air house in Bali. In fact, the house was inspired by five Balinese elements – water, earth, fire, air and ether. All the couches were so beautiful and generously sized.
The entire space was so tranquil – look closely at the hammock at the back. There were many spaces in which to lounge.
There were also some resident pets – this cat was so friendly and loved entertaining my grandchildren.
Here is my gorgeous daughter Alexis. She did her yoga exercises every morning by the pool.
Los Elementos has a wonderful infinity-edge swimming pool. Jude and Truman, who love the water and are excellent swimmers, swam nonstop.
Los Elementos is just a short walk to some of the area’s most beautiful and secluded beaches. Here I am with our friend, Milena. She loves the beach.
The views from the beach were endless. Dominical Beach is well known around the world as one of the best places for surfing.
My grandchildren played and played and played – they adore the water.
We were there for the end of the “green season” or wet season, which runs from May to mid-November. The weather was excellent – mid to high 80s during the day with lows in the 70s – perfect beach weather.
The modern garden at Los Elementos was designed by Dennis Schrader, owner of Landcraft Environments, Ltd., a pre-eminent wholesaler of tropical, tender perennials, and exotic annuals, in Mattituck, New York. This garden showcases tropical plants, including water lilies, Calathea, palms, and Heliconia.
Bismarckia palms, my favorite fan palm, abound in Costa Rica.
The water lilies are so beautiful – they are in full bloom every morning.
Here’s a closer look at the water lilies, Nymphaea. These are hardy pond plants that live as rhizomatous aquatic herbs in temperate and tropical climates. The family contains five genera with about 70 known species.
I was so intrigued by this extraordinary vine. Its leaves cling to the tree trunk, all separated and exposed to the light.
Jude floated purple flowers in the pool. She also loves photography and took this picture herself.
And here is another photo by Jude.
The flowers are picked off this pergola – the gardens were so well-maintained – everything was groomed and swept every day.
Here is a beautiful sunset seen from the infinity-edge pool. The sunsets were so stunning.
Here is a photo I took one early morning of a gecko on the screen. It reminded me of an Aztec lizard print.
We also visited Playa Ventanas. The name comes from the caves that look like little windows – ventanas means windows in Spanish. The caves of Playa Ventanas are natural formations.
Our boat was able to go through some of the them – this can only be done at low tide.
Playa Ventanas is located south of Dominical and Uvita and north of Ojochal and San Buenas.
At both ends of the beach are huge boulders covered with lush vegetation that extends to the sea.
Here is another view of one of the “windows.”
Here is Milena standing at the entrance of one of the caves. During the low tide, one can walk through and see the waves breaking inside.
At night, we enjoyed dinner back at Los Elementos. Jude and our friend, Ari, who also accompanied us on the trip, made these arrangements for the table. In my next blog, I will share more photos of our holiday in Costa Rica.
And here are more fun photos from that memorable holiday party in 2017. It was originally posted on December 22nd of that year.
It makes me so happy to hear how much you’ve enjoyed these holiday party blogs.
My recent gathering was a huge success - delicious food, beautiful decorations and quality time spent with friends and family. Here are more photos from the festive evening, including some with my special guest, Santa Claus.
The party was scheduled from 3pm to 5pm in the evening. Everyone was very punctual.
We put this tree out on my terrace parterre – one of a handful of real trees we used this year. I never like to cut down trees, but this was the top of one tree that needed some good pruning.
Coat racks were placed on my large porch, so guests could remove their coats and shoes at the door.
Here are some guests in my Brown Room enjoying eggnog, hors d’oeuvres and good conversation. (Photo by Peter T. Michaelis)
Creme Brûlée didn’t seem to mind all the noise at all. Here she is in her Christmas red.
Here is the gorgeous Buche de Noel we made – brought inside and ready to serve. Everyone loved it. Buche de Noel is made of sponge cake to resemble a miniature actual Yule log – it is a form of sweet roulade, and so delicious. (Photo by Peter T. Michaelis)
Chef Pierre Schaedelin from PS Tailored Events and his talented team did such a wonderful job preparing the dishes. Here he is making red caviar appetizers. (Photo by Peter T. Michaelis)
There were selfies being taken in every room. (Photo by Peter T. Michaelis)
Outside, my driver, Carlos, helped bring guests from their cars to my house.
My friend, Jim Klinko, gifted me this beautiful 18th-century planter – I think it will look perfect up at Skylands, my home in Maine.
And here he is, the jolly ol’ man himself – Santa Claus.
Everyone loved the oysters from Norm Bloom – we ordered 400 delicious oysters, served on the half shell with cocktail sauce and mignonette. http://www.coppsislandoysters.com (Photo by Peter T. Michaelis)
Here is my gorgeous Empress Qin looking up at Kevin as he captures this quick snapshot.
We also had four wonderful carolers singing on the terrace parterre.
Santa wished everyone a Merry Christmas as they walked from house to house.
My property director, Fred Jacobsen, and some of my outdoor grounds crew – Chhewang, Chhiring, Pemba, and Phurba – took this nice photo with Santa.
Here is Santa with the daughters of my nephew, Morgan – Beatrix and Kit.
My driver, Rock Pereira, and Heather Kirkland, who is in charge of all these special events, posed for this photo.
Here are my friends, Laura Blau, and her husband, Michael Citro.
Here are Carlos and Wilmer.
This is our head of programming and development, Kim Miller-Olko, and her family.
Churchill is Susan Magrino’s miniature poodle – he’s pictured here with Susan’s driver, Laurentius Surca, and of course, Santa.
Here’s my friend, Muffin Dowdle, aboard the sleigh with Santa.
And, here’s Terre Blair and Melinda Shea.
Allyn Magrino also took a fun photo with Santa Claus.
On Santa’s left is Dr. Pedda Reddy – he is a very passionate peafowl breeder and has given me several beautiful peacocks and peahens. He attended the party with his lovely wife, Leela, and their son.
Dawa, who is in charge of caring for all my outdoor birds, brought up the day’s chicken eggs and took this quick photo with Santa.
My special eggnog, made with rum, bourbon, cognac, and whipped cream folded in, was very popular. (Photo by Peter T. Michaelis)
Here is my kitchen – bustling with guests having a great time and enjoying all the delicious food. (Photo by Peter T. Michaelis)
Kevin, and my friend, Richard Christiansen, joined me for this photo. (Photo by Peter T. Michaelis)
And here I am with Santa – I hope you all have a very special holiday with you and your families.
Everyone had such a great time at the party. Over the next week, I will share some of our best holiday blog memories from years past. (Photo by Peter T. Michaelis)
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