First full day.....great day in Costa Rica, February 26

Today we woke up to a beautiful sunrise over the central valley with 4 volcanoes in the distance, 3 of which are still active.

We are at a B n B of only 9 rooms and have met some very nice and interesting people,

mostly Canadians and mostly very knowledgable birders which is great for us as rookies. They are incredibly generous with their time and knowledge.

We relaxed all morning and had a fabulous breakfast. In mid morning we drove into Atenas, found a bank, the post office for stamps, bought some food. It is definitely hot, but not humid. Can't complain after the winter that Nantucket is having.

We had two dips in the pool and I looked over the proofs of the book Frank and I have just written.  A hard day at work on the terrace in front of our room, overlooking the valley.

We had wonderful chat with the Belgian owner, Vera who moved here on a whim 10 years ago. She is warm and welcoming, as is the place. The internet was out a good deal of the day, but we weren't bothered at all; it is nice to be cut off from tv etc etc.

We also tried to Skype with Nick, Cole and Sage, but Nick's computer was not cooperating, so will try again tomorrow.

In the evening we went into town with the Canadian biologist, Christine, to La  Trancha which was recommended by Vera. Yum! Mark and I had their specialty salsa sauce with shrimp. Plus, we ate outside in an atmosphere that reminded us of restaurants in Egypt.

Birds galore for us and almost all "life birds."  Brown jay, Rufus naped wren (my favorite and with a great song), 3 unidentifiable hummingbirds, social or grey capped flycatcher, painted and indigo bunting, (living together in sin?), black and turkey vultures, blue grey tanagers (maybe another favorite of mine)

A really love first full day in Costa Rica!