Not going to win III

After the teens were shedding copious amounts of tears in the car, where they had retreated to, the one parent with some sense asked if we could walk them to their tree house (just to make sure it was safe).

Not a problem. We walked them up, they looked inside and confirmed that there were no televisions, jacuzzis or Club-Med amenities that they were looking for.

They opted to try their luck up the road in Fortuna, where there are 100-plus hotels, and to be quite honest, we weren't disappointed to see them go.

During the very brief time that they spent inside the tree houses (no more than 5 minutes) we discovered that they probably were not familiar with the concept of indoor plumbing, based on what they did in the bathroom of one of the tree houses.

Truly amazing what some folks are capable of. This is why the owners opted not to work with travel agents a while back, as you never know what kind of people will show up when they go through an agent.

You're not going to win II

The folks arrived just a bit after dark. We told them that we would go over the trails with them in the morning, as there aren't any lights on the trails.

The largest fellow with the copious amount of chest hair breaking out from his T-shirt between his gold chains, started screaming: "No lights on the trails? What the hell do you have here? We aren't going to be safe here!!"

After assurances that all is good, the same fellow began to bellow about WiFi (not available here yet) and what kind of channels the TVs had in the tree houses. That didn't help his blood pressure, at all.

Then the kids (that's a loose term, they were all at least 15) then started crying about having to stay in a place with no TV or WiFi. . . .

Sometimes, you're just going to never win. . .

No matter what you say or do.

A few nights after Christmas, two families of four showed up to check in. They arrived with energy and seemed to be ready to check in.

Not quite the case. They were from NYC and showed up with all of the bravado and chutzpah of the big city.

After about 5 minutes, they were reduced to crying, slobbering folks that were begging the one that made the reservation to take them away.

Fortunately, the person who made the reservation was somewhat in control and quieted the folks down.

It started from there. . .

Feliz Navidad

Merry Christmas to the three loyal readers. For those that we were able to visit this year, great to see you and we hope to see you in 2014 as well, whether it be down here or in some other locale.

The editorial department was on blog strike for a while as the art department had no presents under the tree for the editorial department. All is good now, though we may be on holiday break.

We're vegans!

Well, good for you. . .

We get a fair amount here at the hotel and they always seem very impressed with the fact that they are vegans.

Not a problem, as we can get powdered soy milk and give them granola and plenty of fruit at breakfast.

In Costa Rica, though, veganism is very much a foreign concept. We have a friend that is a vegan and speaks fluent Spanish, and she still finds some meat, cheese, eggs, etc., in her dishes as the Ticos take pity and figure she can't afford any animal protein.

The guests currently have been facing the same challenge, though they don't speak a lick of Spanish. Despite a quick tutorial on different foods and their Spanish names, they are still struggling a bit.

Sigh, we can't just make this up. . .

Part of the job at the hotel is to set up tours and activities for folks that come to Costa Rica. The owners have established relationships with the best companies in the area, and they let our guests pay a cash deposit when they check in, and then the balance the day of the outing (as opposed to paying for everything ahead of time and then possibly losing out on the moolah if they don''t show up).

Recently, we sent out an itinerary to a guest and got a most puzzling response back (the first of its kind in 5 years).

Tour cost per person: $200.00

Cash deposit when you check in: $50.00

Total due at tour location: $150.00

Then came baffling question from the guest:

"We thought the tour was $100.00 each, why does it say $150.00?!!?? PLEASE EXPLAIN!!" (caps are from the guests).

We have never taught elementary school math (or any classes at the elementary level) but we did our best, and it went something like a story problem: Train A leaves the station at 10:30 a.m. and heads north, while Train B leaves the station at 10:35 a.m. and goes south. . . "

You get the picture. . . Finally, after a couple of e-mails, the guest was able to grasp the concept as well.

Not to freak folks out. . .

Though it has been warming up here after "winter" in Costa Rica. This means more of the slithery critters are coming out at night to soak up the heat from the rocks and on the trails.

Unfortunately, some of the critters are of the venomous kind. Rolando has had his hands full on the night hikes of late, whacking four or so in the past two weeks. No one has been bitten or hurt or too terribly freaked out, as Rolando dispatches the buggers quickly and quietly.

Now, we have family coming down in March and if they read this, don't worry. The chances are very small and there is nothing to worry about at all!

Pretty cool

A Keel-Billed Toucan actually came down pretty low the other day at the rancho during breakfast. Kind of a rarity, as they typically stay higher up in the trees and don't come down close too often.

This one swooped in and grabbed onto the side of a small tree about 15 feet from the rancho and just hung out there for a few minutes.

It even dropped onto the ground and picked something up (still wouldn't make a move for the fruit that the other birds go for) and then flew away.

Ho, Ho, Ho

Been a while, apologies for the delay. . . Been busy with guests and getting the place decorated for Christmas, etc.

The rancho is all decked out with a tree and lights and even a straw sleigh with reindeer. Every year, folks fashion Christmas critters, Santas, sleighs, etc., out of a straw or paper-like weave. As long as you don't get them wet, they hold up pretty good.

You can see some of the little critters in front of the giant one, and they're sold all over the place; at road-side stands, by folks driving them around in trucks.

When it rains, it. . .

Yep, you all get the picture. . . We are now back in the teeth of the full season here at the hotel. This means, that the next probable opening will be in late August or early September of 2014, if the pattern of the past five years holds true.

This year has been interesting, to say the least. When all was said and done (and we counted the vacant nights) the hotel was at 95 percent occupancy. That is six tree houses, multiplied by 365, and the smart followers can figure that out. That includes 42 nights empty when we closed down each tree house for seven nights to strip, sand and re-varnish them.

Our next opening isn't until the middle of January, and we actually have reservation through January, 2015, though we aren't completely full for most of those months.

We have had folks from Australia, Denmark, Abu Dabi (sp?), India, U.S., Canada, England, Italy, China, France, Belgium, Sweden, etc., and there are more.

Fortunately, we have had the good luck to have great folks for the most part, with very few grumps.

Lest you think we're whining. . .

We really aren't. This is a great place to live and we really do love it. There is just always something going on.

For example, the other day, the art department needed to drive up to Ciudad Quesada to go to the bank, get the medical forms for the folks that work here, go to the open farmer's market for the fresh produce for upcoming breakfasts and as a bonus, a part for the chainsaw was finally ready.

During that time, the editorial department was hanging loose at the hotel. Of course, that meant that the tour company that was supposed to pick up guests at 7:30 a.m. called at 7:15 and said the van was broken down and they were delayed by 2 hours.

Then, some guests that had come in on a red-eye showed up at 10 a.m., (the same time as the late tour) while the current guests in their tree house were still in there (check out is at 11 a.m.). While the new folks were being checked in by the editorial department, another tour company came to pick up the aforementioned guests as did the drink company that brings us our soft drinks every two weeks. Then two tree houses came down to ask directions for other locations at the same time, and that meant eight folks hanging around, while the editorial department flailed valiantly to take care of everything.

Oh yeah, there was a stopped drain and leaky faucet that came to light at the same time in two different tree houses.

Still, it is a great place to be.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We hope that all of you are spending this great day with friends and family. We were fortunate enough to find a turkey for less than $50.00 (everything imported here is hit with a big tariff) and plan on a quiet dinner with friends from the area.

Back after the extended holiday, even though it's not celebrated down here.

I'd love to live here. . .

Is a common refrain from a lot of guests. It is a great place to live and we wouldn't trade it for anything.

It is a bit more work than what the guests see, though, not that we are whining (not too terribly much, at least).

This is a typical day, and it always changes, so it keeps us on our toes.

5 a.m.: Patricia, Seidy and Llanya show up for work, get the coffee up to the tree houses and start working on breakfast;

5:30 a.m.: Lucy is up and baking either cookies, zucchini bread or another treat for the guests;

5:45 a.m.: Dogs need to go out;

6 a.m.: Miguel and Keneth show up for their work on the grounds;

6:20 a.m.: Guests who have early-morning tours come to the rancho for breakfast;

6:20 to 9 a.m.: Regular breakfast then happens at the rancho, and there are directions to be given, conversation to be made and seeing what people need for their tree house;

9 a.m. to 10 p.m.: This always varies the most, as some folks are checking out to drive to the beach and need directions, others are heading to rafting, ziplining, waterfall rappelling, etc., and need directions also. While all of that is going on, folks are checking in and deliveries are being made and something almost certainly needs attention in one of the tree houses. Then there are pizza deliveries to the tree houses, night hikes with Rolando; the dogs need walking throughout the day and we're directing guests where to see a sloth or a monkey, etc.

Akila update

The newest pooch to the menagerie at the hotel is acclimating nicely.

Since Lucy scooped her out of the road about 6 weeks ago, and she weighed just a burp over 2 pounds, Akila has now filled out (OK, she has just chunked out) to nearly 12 pounds.

Gone are the ribs that poked through her skin and her hip bones, and she is now healthy and full of energy. A lot of energy, and some nice, sharp, puppy teeth. The editorial department has some small scars up and down his arms from Akila and her chompers.

We're still not sure what kind of pooch that she is (her paws are huge) and she will likely get a bit bigger. Now, she has energy to burn and keeps us hopping, playing fetch and tearing around the grounds.

She is very healthy (the vets say she's not too chunky) and is settling in nicely here.

Best Christmas Present Ever

Yep, it came weeks early, but to be fair to the art department, there was no place to hide the gift.

The editorial department is now fully floating in a pillowy softness of a leather recliner.

This bad boy has slots for the TV remotes, drink slots and can sleep a (small) family of five.

The editorial department had been wanting something like this for a long time and the art department came across the recliner on a recent trip to San Jose. (As an aside, there are no soft recliners made anywhere near Costa Rica--so this is a major score).

Now that the editorial department has a place to lay its weary buttcocks do not be alarmed if the posts lag any further!

R.O.U.S.

For those who don't have an affinity for movies and pop culture from the 1980s, an R.O.U.S. is a Rodent Of Unusual Size.

It's from the movie, "The Princess Bride". A great movie on all fronts.

Recently, we had some guests staying with us, and one of them was obsessed with finding an R.O.U.S. It took a while, but the editorial department finally caught on.

Fortunately, there is an R.O.U.S. that visits the rancho a couple of times a week during breakfast to grab some fruit that the birds have knocked off of the feeders, and they were lucky enough to spot it a couple of times.

The Agouti is nowhere near as fierce as the R.O.U.S. in the movie. It's very skittish and shy and can bolt through the jungle at an amazing clip.

For comparison sake, the average Agouti that we see around the grounds is about the same size as Mini-B, our Min-Pin/Chihuahua mix.

Birding time!

Right around Thanksgiving in the U.S. is when the birds really start to show up around here, though they have been arriving more each day.

It's a great thing to see, especially at breakfast in the rancho, when there are all kinds of them fluttering around and trying to dart in and out to get some fruit before someone bigger comes along.

There are robins, sparrows, orioles, tanagers, creepers, woodpeckers, etc., all vying for some chow.

There are also feeding stations at each tree house, so the guests can enjoy the birds before they head down for breakfast.

We were never much into birds until we moved down here and the enthusiasm of so many guests sparked our collective interest as well. We have had a lot of amateur birders that could identify each species that came down, and even a professor of ornithology at Harvard that was bowled over at how many birds he was seeing on the grounds.

There has been a movie looping on one of the movie channels down here, called "The Big Year." It has Jack Black, Steve Martin and Owen Wilson in it, and it is based on the chase to see who can spot or hear the most birds in North America, annually. Great cast, great movie, though it wasn't a big box-office hit. Check it out sometime and catch the bird fever (not the flu).

Feliz cumpleanos!

As the three faithful readers of the blog know, it's tradition to break an egg or douse someone with water on their birthday.

Last week, it was Seidy's birthday and she was prepared, bringing a change of clothes to work that day.

Everyone was waiting to bust an egg on her head and she knew it was coming. However, this batch of eggs was pretty solid. It took several bounces on her noggin for anyone to break an egg over her, and the egging went on throughout the day. These were definitely not fragile eggs, and luckily, Seidy's head is just as hard.

Canine circus. . .

Since Akila has joined the brood of pooches here, she has shaken things up a bit. As she's only around 4 months old, it's natural for her to rattle the cages of Bejuca and Mini-B (both coming up on 9 years).

The other day, Bejuca decided she would join in Akila's frenetic playtime and took up the chase.

Bejuca is around 60 pounds, while Akila has bulked up to close to 6 pounds. Akila did something and Bejuca took off after her, chasing her around the outside of the house. Bejuca caught her a couple of times and pinned her down, then let Akila up to sprint off again. This went on for 5 minutes, with the two of them sprinting inside and outside the house.

Akila would take refuge under our bed, then bolt out when Bejuca was on the other side. Bejuca would let her get a bit of a start, and then lope off and catch her with a big paw.

Afterward, they both bellied up to their respective water dishes and nearly drained them both.

Would you like some ice?

The other night, around 9 p.m., some guests came down to the house/office and rang the bell. They were definitely enjoying their time in Costa Rica.

When the editorial department went outside to see what the ruckus was. A young lady was outside with her friend, teetering every so slightly.

Editorial: Good evening, what can I do for you?

Teeterer: Can we have some more ice?

Ed: Not a problem!

T: Can we order pizza?

Ed: I'm sorry, but they're closed for the night.

T: Oh. . . Can we get some more ice?

Ed: Here you go.

T: Can we get a pizza?

So close. . .

Have you ever been waiting for a flight and then hear the folks at the gate calling for volunteers to give up their seats for travel credit, etc.?

That was the case for the editorial department when I was headed up to the States. The art department had left a few days earlier to get some time in California, and I was traveling solo.

I heard the call and bolted up to the desk and was first in line. The offer was a $500.00 credit, plus hotel and shuttle for the night. The flight would have gotten me to my final destination just 12 hours later, so it was perfect.

Traveling alone, it was a great opportunity to pick up some credit for future travel. After 20 minutes waiting at the desk, the fellow told me that someone skipped out, and I could get on the plane.

However, by that time, my seat was given away and rather than being on the aisle in the front, I was stuck in the rear of the plane by the window.

A bummer all the way around.

Anteater sighting!

Anteater cool sighting! Rolando and a couple of guests saw a young anteater just at the start of the trail down to the waterfall and river the other night.

The guests were walking with Rolando (who is here six nights a week) and got some pictures, which were really cool and hopefully they will put on the hotel's facebook page.

It was a rare sighting, they're usually further back in the jungle.

If you go to our facebook page, you can scroll around for the great video some guests took some months back of an adult anteater crossing a log on the river at the end of the trail.

Shudder. . . (snake). . .

While I was walking around and showing the owners some of the changes here at the hotel, I noticed a dark frog that was sprinting along, and went up onto the porch. I turned and watched the critter, pointing it out to the owner, who shrieked. I didn't realize she had an aversion to frogs. Turns out she didn't. There was a snake, about 2.5 feet long, that was less than 6 inches from my leg.

The snake had reared up and was eyeballing my calf like it was a turkey dinner. I scooted out of the way and the snake went into the brush. Just had a quick look at the critter and afterward, researching it with Rolando in the guidebooks, came to the conclusion that it was non-venomous. That's my story and I'm sticking to it, or else I'll wet myself everytime I think about it.

Good grief. . .

You just never know. The other day, some guests from Chicago checked in, and they thanked us for opening up the gate. Not a problem, we do that for all of the guests here at Tree Houses.

Then, they thanked us for having a sloth on the gate. Huh? Sure enough, there was a sloth hanging on the side of the gate. Miguel went up and got the critter off of the gate and put her up into a tree, where she was much safer (and happier).

You just never know when (or where) you're going to spot some of the wildlife.

First try at video. . .

Apologies if it doesn't come out. With being basically on dial-up down here, it can take forever to get a picture up and loaded, let alone a video. Hence, you may see several videos, one or none.

This is Akila, which our vet near here sent to us while we were lollygagging in the States.

Akila is the one with the bandana on the collar (art department's choice), and she is having a blast with the other pups.

Back in the saddle. . .

We returned from a great time in the States, where we were able to visit family and friends. Most of the time was spent in Wisconsin, where, truth be told, it was a wee bit on the chilly side. There was even some brief snow flurries one evening that had all of the TV meteorologists a-twitter.

It was a great and relaxing time and much food was consumed (much to the chagrin of the folks sitting next to the editorial department on the plane ride back) and was really great to catch up with everyone.

We returned to a full house (somewhat unusual for late October) and it appears that we'll now be pretty much fully booked until the end of August or early September of 2014.

Happy Halloween!

Yep, it's early, but that's because we're out of here and won't be back until around that time and may not post again until then or early November.

We're headed to the land of cheeseheads to visit family and relax before things really ramp up here at the hotel.

Yes, Mini-B is going with us. She is getting to be a well-traveled pooch. The little one will be kenneled as she's a handful and she needs to be spayed and get her puppy hernia issues taken care of.

Just in case you're wondering. . .

We have had some other brushes with fame, though not of the big-time variety.

In the past:

**A soccer player in the UK on a team that plays just below the Premier League division and had his own fan site.

** A fellow that is the executive producer of the Broadway show "Jersey Boys" and sets up all of the off-Broadway events for the production.

**A fellow that is an actor in New York (mostly on and off Broadway) though he has been in several episodes of Law & Order--we actually spotted him on one episode not too long after he left here. He was a crusty dude who was interviewed by Briscoe and Green that didn't know much, early in the show. ("Every actor in NYC has been in Law & Order; it's not a big deal," he told us).

There likely have been others, though either we don't remember, or they didn't tell us. Once, the president of the Food Network wanted to come and stay, but we were unfortunately already booked. The art department was crushed.

A brush with fame, kinda, sorta. . .

Had some great folks from Australia down here recently and really enjoyed getting to know them and talk to them.

One of the fellows hung around at breakfast later than the others one morning and we were chatting about what he did back in Australia and various things.

He said that he had just finished a television show that took three months and he was now on holiday and looking to get as far away from Australia as possible.

Not wanting to pry, the editorial department didn't probe further at the time.

Later though, a Web search turned up that he was the very first bachelor for Australia on the TV show "The Bachelor."

Guess the show finally filtered down under.

After reading some articles that the press have written about the fellow (the show is about halfway through its run and it seems that after the filming is done, everyone goes into hiding to not give away the ending so they can claim their rewards afterward) he can't be blamed for heading halfway around the world with his friends to escape the madness.

With monkeys on a tree house

Comes some challenges. First of all, the monkeys love to leave not-so-small deposits of their presence on the deck of the tree house.

The guests the other night were a little worried, asking if the monkeys would attack them. No, they are not chimps and they won't go all nuts on you. We even put in a call to the rescue center up the road and they said they have never heard of a howler monkey attacking a person like that.

There is a baby in the family, so common sense dictates don't approach the baby, even though it doesn't come onto the tree house; just the alpha male.

The other morning, the male was outside of the tree house on the railing and was leaning across the railing and putting his hands on the glass, peeking in. This was about a foot above the bed where the guests were at. Possibly a Peeping Tom of the simian world.

Best guest comment--ever

The other day, we had some fellows check into the Frog tree house. Their friend (another dude and his buddy) made the reservation.

About 5 minutes after they all checked in, these two strapping lads from Texas came up to our house/office and wanted to know if they could be moved.

The conversation went like this:

DUDE 1: Do you have a tree house with more than one bed?

DUDE 2: Mm-mm!

ME: There are two single beds in the loft of our your tree house, just climb up the ladder.

DUDE 1: (audible sigh) Great! I just want to go back to Texas the same man as I left.

DUDE 2: Mm-mm!

For the record, all of the tree houses have at least three beds in them.

We have a winner!

Kind of. . . sort of. . . maybe. . . aw, crud, we're keeping her.

The art department couldn't bear to part with the little critter after she was rescued off of a busy road (think the 1980s game Frogger and that was the art department and the pooch last week).

This will bring us up to three pooches (all girls) here at the hotel.

We have dubbed the newest one Akila. She was just a belch over 1 kilogram when she came to us, and since she's a girl, here in Costa Rica, you drop the "O" and make the last vowel an "A". We just tossed the other "A" on the front for grins and giggles (though Akeelah and the Bee was a great movie with Laurence Fishbourne--shameless plug and endorsements welcome).

So, for the legions of you that put in a claim on her, she is here now and you can visit her, and us, whenever you head down this way.

People often ask. . .

How can you tell the difference between a male monkey and a mama monkey? .

Well, with this picture, it's pretty obvious to tell which is which.

Another monkey on a tree house!

Can't tell you how jazzed we were down here to see the critters on a tree house porch. That hasn't happened since we've been here for nearly five years.

While the alpha male (pictured) did leave a bit of a marking on the porch, it was really great to see them up and close.

Another poochie shot. . .

OK, so she has a bit of doberman in her. And give her a break, this was the first real meal that she had had in her 6 weeks or so before the art department plucked her from the road.

You can count the ribs if you can zoom in close enough, and she plays very nicely with Bejuca and Mini-B.

At first, it was a massive sniff-in between the three of them (the little one being the sniff-ee) and they're all in a nice routine now.

She's just waiting for the right folk (hint, hint, Tokyo, Waianaie, Kalihi--ditch the cats--Hawaii Kai, Lewiston, Madison, D.C.) to step on up!

Here she is again. . .

For you lucky winner from Japan, Honolulu, Idaho, Wisconsin or D.C. (we did not forget about the Magnuson family, the kid need a pooch!).

She's a smart little thing and while still a bit shy, she knows when it's time to be fed.

As of now, she's a lap dog, though since she's 3 pounds, who knows what will happen in a few months?

Either way, she's a sweetheart and is looking for a good home (Hawaii Kai is also nice this time of year!)

Monkey on a tree house!

This is one of the tree houses here, and that's a monkey hanging out on the porch.

We're not going to tell you which tree house is is, we're just going to tease you with it.

There was a bit of a morning surprise on the veranda from the bugger, but the folks didn't care as the critter was hanging out right outside of their door when they came out to get their coffee, which is delivered hot and fresh to the tree house every morning.

Muchas gracias, Mrs. Eidson

Eight years ago today, Lucy gave into poor judgment (fortunately) and said "I do."

It was in Walnut Creek, Calif., and several of the loyal readers actually made the journey to celebrate the big day with us, and we are very grateful.

We've been lucky enough to celebrate our past few anniversaries down this way in the jungle and will do so again today. We may catch a break with no one checking in or out tomorrow.

CONGRATULATIONS! YOU'RE A WINNER!!!!!!

Thanks to the miracle of blog technology, we can tell who is the first to click on a given day.

Get ready for a pooch parcel!

That means, one of our lucky three readers (from Japan, to Waianae, Kalhihi, Idaho and onto Wisconsin) get the first dibs on the little critter here.

The art department was coming back two days ago from a run to Fortuna, when this little critter (she who-shall-not-be-named) was playing Frogger in the middle of the road.

The art department scooped her out of the road, and no one, naturally, claimed her.

She's about 6 weeks old and weighed in at a whopping 1.2 kilograms (according to the vet), which is just a burp shy of 3 pounds.

Saturday Special!

Happy Birthday to Pa Eidson!

Another year older, wiser and definitely prettier!

Modesty prevents us (as well as physical threats) from revealing his age.

The art and editorial department is accepting donations in Costa Rica for gifts and of course, they will get up to Wisconsin!

Staff focus. . .

Here is Seidy, Elvira and Miguel, three very integral parts of the hotel. Any one of them can do re-wiring or plumbing when the need arises, which makes them invaluable here at the hotel.

Group pic. . .

And here's the whole group again. We are very blessed with a fantastic group of folks that we get to work with here.

This picture came close to making the cut on the Web site, but not quite, though we like it here.

Juan Carlos

This is THE MAN, when it comes to exploring the Fortuna/Arenal area.

Juan Carlos grew up in the shadow of the Arenal Volcano and knows the area like no other.

We are lucky in that he found us and he only works with the guests here at the hotel.

Juan knows all about the plants (and their medicinal value) and it is really, actually, good stuff. We have had guests that have had welts all over their bodies from bug bites, and he can pull out some leaves and roots and the bumps have dwindled down in a matter of hours.

Even Mom and Pop Eidson have gone with him and enjoyed the hikes, lest folks think we are shilling shamelessly.

No pic. . .

As the editorial department would not have had the presence of mind to take the picture (and the art department was tucked away for the evening).

Rolando clanged the bell outside of our house three nights ago in a frenzy.

He wanted to show us a tercipello (fleur-de-lance) that he had whacked while walking his rounds on the back trail at night.

It was only about 3 feet long, but it was a chunky bugger. The fleur-de-lance are in the viper family and very venomous, which is why Rolando will go out of his way to get rid of them.

That would be No. 7 in five years for Rolando that he has whacked.

So, for all of the folks hesitating (we know you're out there--Honolulu, Janesville) it doesn't happen very often, so get on down here!

Good and bad. . .

Part of the, ahem, glamour, is walking the Back 40 to make sure that the neighbor's fence line is secure.

This is photo evidence that shows that it is.

Along the way to get to the fence line (about 25 minutes of hard trekking) is through some pretty dense rain forest, where there are all kinds of critters (slithery and warm-blooded).

Have only seen a few of the slithery buggers back there and just tracks of the larger critters, so life is good.

It is very rugged, though incredibly peaceful, for the most part.

That time of year. . .

When we are not completely booked, and that means. . . more work for everyone.

In September and October, we close down one tree house for a week and sand/strip/varnish the bugger for the upcoming year.

September and October are the only two months when we are not completely full, hence this is when we do the hard work.

We got a chuckle out of an online newspaper two days ago that said this is the time to come to Costa Rica and bargain for a great price on a hotel room, as most places are laying folks off.

That is true for a lot of hotels in the country (especially this region), though not so for us.

Here, we are having folks work more hours to refurbish the tree houses, and we're still at 60 percent occupancy (fully booked from early November through the first part of September) and we are running around like crazy. It's the time of year when we recharge the fire extinguishers, polish up the grounds and get everything ready for the soon-to-come influx of folks coming to visit us.

Double take

Just in case you all thought the art department was slacking. . . well, that's still the case. .  .this is from one of the owners who caught this snap a few years back. Yes, we are going through the archives.

Staff picture time. . .

Yep, it's that time of year when we all get together (with serious grumping and groaning) to update pictures on the Web site.

Here's a shot of everyone that works at Tree Houses. This, of course, will be followed by more pictures as the art department wanted to make sure there were plenty to choose from.

Judging on the various facial expressions in the other pictures, that was an excellent call.

Moon River. . .

Of course, is one of the songs that Mercer wrote; made famous by Andy Williams and others. Mercer did write the song about a river (it would be more like a slough where the editorial department grew up) though it was not called the Moon River. (Apologies, we can't remember the original name of the river).

For some reason, the name of the song was already copyrighted, so Mercer changed it to Moon River ("Wider than a mile," etc.).

That river is still near Savannah, though it was only changed to Moon River after Mercer's death, to honor the lyricist.

Lest you think. . .

That we were ghouls on our trip to Savannah and visiting Johnny Mercer's plot, this is what Wikipedia has to say about the famed scribe:

He is best known as a lyricist, but he also composed music. He was also a popular singer who recorded his own songs as well as those written by others. From the mid-1930s through the mid-1950s, many of the songs Mercer wrote and performed were among the most popular hits of the time. He wrote the lyrics to more than fifteen hundred songs, including compositions for movies and Broadway shows. He received nineteen Academy Award nominations, and won four.

Still on vacation mode. . .

While in Savannah, we went to the Bonaventure Cemetery which is really pretty cool for a cemetery. Got to see Johnny Mercer and his family's plot (if you don't know who Johnny Mercer is, then you're really young -- even younger than the art and editorial department -- and haven't watched too many old movies.

Mercer did a lot of great, old songs that you probably don't even realize until you hear them. His family is still in Savannah and there is still plenty of room in the Mercer family plot for more.

Soccer fever--please let it end. . .

Ever since the U.S. beat Costa Rica in March in a CONCACAF match for the world cup in a snow-filled stadium in Colorado, the entire country of Costa Rica has been waiting for a rematch. The prevailing thought was that the U.S. cooked up the snowstorm that resulted in a 1-0 win for the U.S.

The rematch was last weekend and pretty much everything came to a standstill in the country. Schools let out a bit early (the pre-game analysis started about 8 hours before the match) and according to news reports, downtown San Jose near the stadium was completely closed off with 500 additional police officers around.

Costa Rica got its revenge, cruising to a 3-1 victory.

The three loyal readers of the blog do know that the editorial department considers soccer a poor substitute to American football, and all of the fields down here would be better put to use for baseball or grazing.

Back. . .

From a trip and took a while to get back into the groove. We were in Savannah, Ga., which is a fantastic place.

Lot of history there, though it was really put on the map by the book "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" which was a movie with Kevin Spacey and John Cusack. The book was better than the movie.

The house that we stayed in for the week is actually across the street from one of the most "haunted" houses in all of Georgia (and Savannah bills itself as a haunted city).

Savannah is also the hometown of Johnny Mercer, and we got to check out some of his old haunts, as well.

Hasta luego. . .

Time for another break. We're going to meet Ma and Pa Eidson in the States to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary.

We're heading to the land of 'Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil' where we will hopefully stumble across some haunts, more good than evil.

We'll be back at the end of August and will start posting around that time again for the other loyal reader (that won't be in the south at the same time as the art and editorial department).

No pics, but really cool. . .

The other day, we were all eating lunch at the house/office, when Mini-B started to go bonkers. Not unusual for Mini, though we spotted a reason for her nuttiness.

There were some baby armadillos feeding across from the house across the driveway. There were five of them and they were foraging and scrumming around in the leaves and detritus to the side of the driveway.

The little buggers are very cute, and blind, so we could get up to a few feet from them while they were digging about.

As long as we can keep the baby-armadillo-killer Mini-B in check, they will have a better chance of survival and get up to 10-plus pounds in a year or so.

Then Rolando can catch them by their tails and wow the guests.

The price is right. . .

For Bejuca and Mini-B, at about $200.00 for the two of them for the doping up, cleaning, removal of tumors (Bejuca) and grooming--clipping of nails, making them smell like a baby advertisement.

No root canals, but not a bad price at all. The vet is a young fellow that we found in Florencia about a year ago and Bejuca and Mini-B were some of his first patients, so they get a little bit of extra attention, which isn't too bad.

Happy Mother's Day!!!

While the editorial department is notoriously slow in good tidings, that is not the case this time. Today is Mother's Day in Costa Rica.

It is a big deal in the States and it is a huge deal in Costa Rica. Banks are closed, hardware stores are closed; if it doesn't have anything to do with tourism, it's closed today.

So, happy Dia del Madre to Patricia and Maria and all of the other madres out there.

Bejuca came through just fine. . .

Though hauling a doped-up, 70-pound lab/rottweiler out of the back of a car is a chore.

She came through with flying colors and the vet even noted that she has lost about 3 pounds since her last visit.

That meant time for Mini-B to head out. Mini-B definitely has anxiety issues, in not wanting to be away from Lucy for too long.

However, Mini came through just fine (not nearly as rummy as Bejuca--though no tumors removed, just teeth cleaning and nail clipping).

While the editorial dept.

Has been whining about its dental woes, the pooches here (Bejuca and Mini-B) have undergone their own teeth cleaning.

We had to take Bejuca in as we thought she had a bot-fly (just a small growth on her paw) and while she was there, we decided to have her teeth cleaned, her nails clipped and her coat shaved.

She came back looking like Brittney Spears after a rehab stint: Clean and looking lean.

Fortunately, the tumors were just growths, nothing serious.

We decided that since Bejuca sailed through, it was time for Mini-B.

Doesn't get cooler than this. . .

And I'm sure that the three loyal readers are tired of the editorial department's whining about some teeth.

This is a real picture, taken by one of the owners. No idea of how you can do it to get the fore- and background in focus like that, but it's pretty cool.

There are a couple of others like this that we'll put up later on .

Paying for the pain. . .

And, when everything was said and done, and I was dribbling at just a slightly slower rate than the doc's 6-year-old with his juice box, I got the news of the bill.

For each root canal, it was 110,000. That means 220,000.

Colones.

Out of pocket (no dental insurance here).


That's for the whole process, including the follow-up to do whatever they do for root canals. It comes to $440.00 for the entire shooting/drilling match, including the follow-up.

For the follow-up, it took a while to schedule it as the doc is booked ahead of time and the editorial department needs a quiet day at the hotel to get away.

Finally, it was settled for two weeks later at 5 p.m. -- when the "Big Bang Theory" is on the flat screen embedded into the ceiling of the office.

The lot has been cast. . .

And there was no real reason to back out at that point.

I did ask the doc how much it was going to hurt (and in between him admonishing his 6-year-old son who was bouncing around in the room with us to keep somewhat quiet) he said he could have everything done in 45 minutes.

However, I would need to return in two to four weeks time for him to finish off the process.

Not wanting to bail out in front of a 6-year-old, I submitted and let the work begin.

The bonus was that there is a flat-screen TV hooked up to the ceiling where I could watch. And, the assistant was like a personal remote control, asking what I wanted to watch.

Really.

They didn't get the NFL Network on the cable system, so she kept flipping through while I was numbing up until there was something in English that I could zone out to (Two and a Half Men).

At the office and in the chair. . .

 

Which cleared a lot of hurdles for the dentist-ically challenged editorial department.

Fortunately, the specialist was a young fellow who spoke better English than my Spanish (thus alleviating any fears of having everything pulled out). However, he did say that he cannot spell all that great. No worries, I thought, we're not writing a novel.

After we talked and he took some X-rays, and I explained to him that my dentist said I needed a root canal, he concurred.

Doc: "Yes, you need a root canal here."

Editorial: "OK, great, let's get it over with."

Doc: "You also need a root canal here."

Editorial: "Uh, so I need two root canals?"

Doc: "Yes, I will draw it for you."

Which he proceeded to do and though he flubbed the spelling of what he was doing, it was clear that I was in for a double drilling.

Rainy season. . .

Last year was a bit of a dry spell for the "green" season here. There wasn't as much rain and certainly no torrential downpours.

This year has been different. The rains are back with a vengeance and enough to cause all of the gutters and ditches here to overflow.

Naturally, it's accompanied by thunder and lightning (the thunder booms so big it sends Bejuca and Mini-B scurrying for cover) and it actually knocks clocks and paintings off the walls.

The other day, the rain came down so hard, and so fast, that it took out three houses in La Tigra (about 8 miles away). Fortunately, no one was hurt.

However, the deluge also took out the water mains for the whole area (carried away in the flood, who knows where they will wash up).

Hence, no water at the hotel (save for our little tank) so everyone gets to do a sponge bath for a day until the pipes can either be found or new ones can be brought in.

It doesn't just affect us, but several hundred folks up and down the aqueduct's route.

Delaying the inevitable. . .

At last, there were no more excuses and there was some down time at the hotel, so off I went to get my first root canal.

As a young buck, I had all but two of my baby teeth pulled by Dr. Roth, a very nice kid's dentist (though at the time, I thought he was a sadistic little man) as the roots of my teeth were deeper than the norm.

Hence the fear of a root canal.

"No necessito preoccupado," said my regular dentist.

"Todo bien, no hay problema," said the assistant.

"Suck it up, buttercup," said the art department.

A bit of a break. . .

This is actually somewhat of a decent excuse.

The editorial department had been putting it off for about a year, but it was finally time for a root canal. The local dentist that we go to had been harping for me to get it done.

Naturally, being a big-time wuss, I put it off as being too busy, heading out on vacation, etc.

What helped was that only specialists in Costa Rica do root canals, not your regular dentist. There's only one such specialist in this part of the country and he's booked up quite a bit ahead of time.

However, finally, ultimately, the time came and it was time to get it done.

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.