Yep, we're milking it. . .

Especially since the editorial department discovered that another picture was worth putting up!

Besides, can anyone really complain about too many sloth pictures?

Advance warning. . .

Is always appreciated, and the electric company sent out fliers earlier this week that said: Electricity will be cut from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on July 28.

This is for the whole area, not just us.

It was a bonus to get the warning ahead of time, so we can tell the guests.

Perhaps the shutdown won't last as long as advertised. That would be nice as there are five tree houses checking out that day and five tree houses coming in. That translates into a lot of laundry that may not get done until the late afternoon hours of the day.

Hence, no e-mail, no phone, etc., for a good long time on Sunday. At least it's not NFL time.

Lucky you live Costa Rica. . .

Is what 95 percent of the guests say when we talk to them. That, indeed, is the case.

However, just because everyone else is on vacation, it doesn't mean that we are.

For example, yesterday, we had just two tree houses checking out and two checking in. There was also a tree house that was moving from one tree house to another.

7:45 a.m.: First guests show up for breakfast as they are going to the local wildlife rescue center.

8 a.m.: More tree houses show up at the rancho for breakfast.

8:10 a.m.: Private transportation to pick up departing guests arrives outside the gate.

8:25 a.m.: Wildlife rescue center is late; a phone call and they say they're on their way to pick up the family.

8:30 a.m.: Guests that will be changing rooms finish breakfast and are ready to head out.

8:32 a.m.: Run up to another tree house, collect the keys and the gate opener before they hike to the waterfall, so the other guests can have the keys when they return later in the day.

8:35 a.m.: More guests at the rancho for breakfast (they spotted toucans on the way up).

8:38 a.m.: Different private transportation shows up to drop off guests who will be staying in the same room that the others are still in (with different transportation).

8:44 a.m.: Departing guests come down to drop off keys and pay for beverages.

8:45 a.m.: Incoming guests still waiting to be checked in.

8:46 a.m.: Last of guests head to the rancho for breakfast.

8:47 a.m.: Departing guests on their way with transportation.

8:50 a.m.: Check in newly-arrived guests.

9 a.m.: Newly-arrived guests go to the rancho for coffee.

9:01 a.m.: Driver and editorial department take new guests' luggage to their room and editorial department strips down the linen.

9:10 a.m.: Two tree houses come down to ask directions and questions on where to go and what to do.

9:30 a.m.: Breakfast time for the art and editorial department.

9:34 a.m.: More guests need directions and suggestions on where to go.

6 p.m.: Last guests check in for the day. 

Still, we wouldn't trade it for another gig.

Toucan-palooza

The other day, when we were walking around the grounds, we were lucky enough to spot to different toucans and a cousin, the Collared Aracari.

One variety of Toucan sounds like frog that has been made a eunuch (high-pitched and croaking); the other is more of a sharp screech. While the aracaris like to come down and feed close to the tree houses and the rancho, the toucans prefer to hang out high in the trees.

The toucans, while very pretty, are kind of gnarly things as they will raid nests and trash the eggs of other birds. Why? No clue, though we're welcome to suggestions.

Pizza John

On the far side of Lake Arenal, past El Castillo, is a little town that doesn't see a lot of tourists. Up a dead-end road, there is a place called Pizza John's.

Owned by a character, cut from the punk-rock scene of Los Angeles, the pizza was great and the home-made ice cream was truly a cut above plain vanilla.

We only had the pleasure of meeting Pizza John a couple of times and each time was a delight at his place overlooking the lake.

Pizza John passed away recently and he will truly be missed.

And this is what you get from the art department. . .

Nice to have the art department back in the fold! A great picture is worth, in this case, a lot more words.

A picture!

This is what happens when the editorial department grabs the camera.

The sloth is there, though it's not nearly as good of a picture that the art department takes.

However, when you need a pic, this isn't too bad, considering (awaiting derision, etc. from other non-snappers).

This critter has been hanging out by the rancho for the past couple of days and actually came down about 15 feet from terra firma, which was a bonus for the non-photogs here at Jungle Journey.

Welcome Elvira. . .

Our newest co-worker at Tree Houses. Elvira (not pronounced like the Oak Ridge Boys' song, but El-vee-ra) is the sister of Patricia, who has been here for nearly four years.

Before coming to us, Elvira worked at two different hardware stores, so she knows her stuff when it comes to the basics of wiring, plumbing, etc.--which is a bonus as the three loyal readers know how challenged the editorial department is when it comes to the basics of handyman stuff.

Bad timing. . .

There has been a fellow that has called every day to see if there has been a cancellation here. Every day, I tell him, sorry, but no. Send us an e-mail and if there is a cancellation, we'll definitely let you know.

Juan is an amicable fellow on the phone and we are on a first-name basis when he calls.

However, Juan did not heed the e-mail advice. We did have a cancellation and did Juan happen to call on those two days? Nope. No phone number or e-mail to let him know, so no joy for Juan.

Do Not Touch

The other day, Patricia called us while she was cleaning the Monkey tree house.

"Fire" was all she said (Patricia is not one given to hyperbole).

A power line that linked two tree houses had been cut by a falling branch, and the live wires were setting leaves, etc., on fire. Luckily, there is so much rain here, not a big deal: just some minor flareups that burnt out quickly.

Miguel was around and he came by and we were able to patch up the power line (after cutting power to the entire hotel) and after 2 hours, everything was back to normal.

In passing. . .

While living in the jungle is a hoot and a holler, it does remind us that we do live outside of the U.S.

Recently, we have had friends who lost a child and a husband to illness. Whereas before, we could easily get to a service, that, unfortunately, is not the case now. Still, our thoughts and prayers are with our friends.

Neighbors. . .

We had a family from Florida down recently and they were in the Monkey tree house; there was a couple of fellows in the Hummingbird tree house (a couple of hundred feet from the Monkey) staying at the same time.

One afternoon, they met while they were returning to their respective tree houses and it turned out that they lived about 10 minutes from each other, and the family shopped at the same store where the fellows worked.

Coincidence, or, conspiracy?

Hail to the chief. . .

Nearly forgot this little tidbit. On our June trip back to the States, we flew from San Jose to Dallas and then onto California.

On our flight from San Jose to Dallas, we noticed that the former president, Oscar Arias, was on the same flight as us.

He has been out of office for a couple of years and was in business/first class and was on his own. No security detail, no secretary; just himself.

While we were gone, the current president, Laura Chinchilla, was embroiled in a bit of a scandal for flying on a private plane of a known drug dealer to a conference in South America. The traveling secretary for the current president lost the gig after that gaffe.

Island history. . .

One of the great benefits to working at a hotel is that you get to meet interesting folks from all over the world.

Recently, we had a guest and her husband down here and she was born in Hawaii. We got to talking and she said that her grandfather (or maybe it was great-grandfather) was a pilot way back in the day in the Islands, and the main airport in Maui (code: OGG) is named after him: Bertram J. Hogg.

Pretty cool to meet someone with ties back to the Islands.

One big bugger. . .

Wilson, a driver that we see a lot of here at the hotel, was up the other day and he had a picture on his cell phone that pretty much ensured that the editorial and art department won't be leaving their house for the next few decades.

A fellow driver and friend of Wilson, took a picture of a fer-de-lance that some guides killed on the Sarapiqui (about a 2- to 3-hour drive from where we are at).

We have seen several fer-de-lances since we have been here and they are one of the most venomous snakes in Costa Rica.

This one, though, was amazing. It was 3.8 meters long (we know that the three of you are smart enough to do the conversion to feet) and its head was larger than the editorial department's size 11 sneakers.

That's something that you see in the movies, not when you're out in the jungle (in theory and that is what we will keep telling ourselves when we have to go out and about in the jungle).

Hopefully Wilson will forward us the pic from his cell phone and we will be able to post it here.

Border wars. . .

Here in Costa Rica, squatters have a lot of rights. Sneak onto some property, throw up a fence and if no one notices, folks can claim it as their own.

The man that owns the 70-plus acres behind the hotel (and lets just our guests use it to hike to the waterfall and river; and a fellow named Israel who runs some cows back there) is always worried that someone will do just that, as the 70 acres are pretty remote.

That happened recently, as Miguel and Keneth found out when they were clearing the fence line deep into the property. No idea of who put the fence up, though best guesses are the yahoos who own the property on the other side of the river.

The next day, Miguel and I went back there to check it out so I could take pictures and send to the owner of the property.

It was not an easy hike that deep into the forest and took about 30-plus minutes each way. With all of the rain lately, it made for some fairly treacherous footing and the editorial department only stumbled a few times. In some places, a wrong step can send you down about 30 feet and into the river.

When we finally got to the new fence, it was obvious that it was really new (no rust on the barbed-wire, and you could see the cut marks on the fence posts were still fresh) and hadn't been there for much longer than a couple of weeks.

It was an odd thing, as it basically formed a loop from the river. You can see the far boundary of the fence in the picture. It runs up for 20 to 30 meters from the river and 150 meters long.

It is clearly the current owner's property, which extends to the river. The odd thing: from May through the first part of November, a heavy rain is going to flash-flood that whole fenced-in area. It's useless for any sort of building.

After some legal papers are filed tomorrow, Miguel and Keneth will head back down and wrap up the fencing and cut up the posts.

Hopefully that will be the end of the border battle.

Be vewy, vewy quiet. . .

OK, we weren't hunting (not allowed in Costa Rica) but Miguel and I were trekking through the jungle the other day en route to check out a fence that someone had put up on a neighbor's property (more on that later).

It was through the jungle, no trails, nice and slippery from the rains and some amazing sights. There are trees back there that are just monstrous; some have fallen over, which makes the way through even more interesting.

Miguel noted that that deep in the forest when the wind is really blowing is not the best place to be.

Along the way, Miguel stopped and pointed out some tracks that were easy to see.

"Jaguar."

They were a pretty good size, maybe just a tad smaller than what Bejuca's would be, though they were pretty deep (it was muddy and slick back there).

Miguel has worked here and on the back property for at least six or seven years and has only come across two of the big cats while working. He thinks it's great to see them, I'm not so sure.

Help Wanted

Needed: A physically fit person that can cook breakfast, clean rooms and do a variety of tasks at a hotel in Costa Rica. 

Qualifications: Desire to work hard, interact with people from all over the world and put up with odd requests from folks at times.

Benefits: Working with a great editorial and art department in the jungle.

Oh yeah: Must be able to climb around 20 steps at six different tree houses spread over 8 acres, plus ladders in some of the tree houses to change sheets, make beds, deliver coffee, clean up the mess of kids (and their parents) and cater to the needs and demands of said kids and adults.

We’re looking for a new person to work at the hotel after Darling announced she was leaving after nearly 4 years to get married and raise a family. Darling actually started at the hotel before we showed up and worked part-time for a while and then became full-time. 

Always friendly and a hit with the guests, she will be missed.

Happy Fourth of July!

Of course, no such holiday here in Costa Rica, but we will still celebrate down here with the guests we have from the States. No fireworks, as it will probably be a little damp in the evening as it typically storms in the afternoon.

Ballpark indulgence II

However, after the burger in between two doughnuts, we noticed the “Elvis.” Naturally, the editorial department had to posit the question as to what exactly an “Elvis” was.

This incarnation was a hotdog, wrapped in bacon, deep-fried, then put on a griddle, slapped between a hotdog bun and slathered in peanut butter, bananas and drizzled with honey.

This. Was. Awesome.

It made the doughnut burger seem like a Weight Watchers Special and as odd as the combo may sound, it was really quite tasty.

Ballpark indulgence

Being that we don’t have the opportunity to indulge our junk-food fetish too often down here, we made the most of our visit back to the States. OK, the editorial department made the most of the food-fest.

One night, we went to a Madison Mallards baseball game. We saw the signs and heard the announcements for a burger special and figured we had to at least try it. 

A bacon-cheeseburger that is folded in between two glazed doughnuts. I’m sure there is a name for this, but we cannot remember the name now. Pretty sure someone on the Food Network came up with it at some point, and we decided to give it a shot.

It was. . . OK. . . nothing to crow about. 

We thought that it might be a bit better with the sweet and savory, but it wasn’t anything special (or something we would try again—considering it probably took 5 years off of our lifespan).

Back to work. . .

Back from vacation. 

We had a great time visiting family in California and Wisconsin. We also ate ourselves into oblivion and when we weren’t overstuffed, just enjoyed hanging out and seeing family and friends.

Mini-B made the journey with us and did pretty good. She was pretty fidgety on the first leg of the flight, then calmed down nicely (with the help of pooch pharmaceuticals) for the others.