Our Trip to Costa Rica: January, 2012

Judy among large friends.	Statue in Alajuela to honor Juan Santamarķa, the national hero of Costa Rica.	Judy at the Poas Volcano. Poas is an active volcano having erupted 39 times since 1828. Latest eruptive activity was in 2009.	The Poas Volcano: The crater is more than one mile across - second largest in the world. Steam is seen in this photo.
Judy and Richard at the Poas Volcano. This volcano is active. Steam is seen in this photo.	Doka Coffee Estate: Staff member explains how the coffee berries are picked & prepared for processing.	Doka Coffee Estate: In this initial process, bad berries float, & good, ripe berries sink & are further processed.	Doka Coffee Estate: After the coffee berrries are processed, they are dried by the sun on this patio.
Judy and her new Costa Rican friend	Judy on a trail in a lush forest typical of Costa Rica	Judy on a trail in a lush forest typical of Costa Rica	Waterfall in a lush forest.
Judy next to beautiful wild orchids	Houses in a rural area.	Judy with her new Costa Rican boyfriend - in the gardens behind the Hotel Bougainvillea where we stayed.	Store in a small village.
Judy surrounded by beautiful plants and flowers.	In a small town	Many modest and upscale houses are surrounded by iron bars and circular barbed wire on top of the bars as seen here	Judy next to "Walking Palm" trees: "Walking Palms" slowly "walk" toward sunlight by growing new roots - old roots die.
Pond in the Botanical Orchid Garden in the town of La Garita.	Judy with a few of the many orchids at the Botanical Orchid Garden	Randall with orchids at the Botanical Orchid Garden. Randall is an award winning orchid grower and a nice guy.	Countryside
We stopped at this restaurant owned by expatriate Israelis who live nearby. Hebrew words are on the sign.	Store in a small town	House in a rural village.	The Arenal Volcano (on the right: tip of it covered by clouds). It erupted in 1968 and has remained active ever since.
Students at a small, rural school. The teacher is wearing an orange blouse. The parents are sitting in the background.	Students dancing at a small, rural school. The teacher (orange blouse) is playing music on a boombox.	Judy dancing with students at a small, rural school.	Students dancing at a small, rural school. The teacher is playing music on a boombox. The parents are in the background.
Judy and Richard with the student dancers at a small, rural school.	Two students in a classroom at a small, rural school.	A well camouflaged sloth (center-slightly to the right) at the Luna Nueva Rain Forest Reserve. (See next photo for close-up.)	Close-up of a sloth at the Luna Nueva Rain Forest Reserve
"Brilliant Forest" frog - blends perfectly with ground cover in rain forests. Photo taken at the Luna Nueva Rain Forest Reserve.	The Arenal Volcano as seen from the small farming town of La Fortuna. The volacano is active.	The central park plaza in La Fortuna & La Fortuna Iglesia de Cristo (Church of Christ). Arenal Volcano is in the background.	Judy outside our unit (room) at Hotel Arenal Manoa. The nearby active Arenal Volcano can be seen as a reflection in the window.
"Orange-Barred Sulfur" butterfly. Costa Rica is home to an estimated 10 per cent of the world's butterfly species.	The Arenal Volcano as seen from the grounds of the Hotel Arenal Manoa where we stayed. The building is the hotel's restaurant.	Judy outside our unit (room) at the Hotel Arenal Manoa watching the Arenal Volcano nearby.	Lake Arenal - the largest lake in Costa Rica
Judy eating lunch at Tom's Pan German Bakery in the village of Nueva Arenal. German expatriates live in the area.		Rural houses	A wild monkey (black) in a tree at the side of a road. (See next photo for close-up.)
Close-up: A wild monkey in a tree at the side of a road.	Judy at a crafts stand beside Lake Arenal - the largest lake in Costa Rica	Countryside	A machine to extract juice from sugar cane. As part of a demo, Judy pushed the wood board in a circle to extract the juice.
Judy waiting for lunch at the restaurant beside the demonstration of how to extract juice from sugar cane.	Sunset over the Pacific Ocean. View from our patio at the Hotel El Establo in Monteverde - high in the mountains.	Judy was admitted to this hospital (CIMA) in San Jose 5 days into our trip - our trip was scheduled for 13 days.	Staff on Judy's ward at CIMA Hospital. The doctors and nurses who cared for Judy were compassionate and competent.
The view from Judy's hospital room. San Jose is in the valley in the background. Judy was in the hospital 8 days.	Judy passing a street security guard after she was released from the hospital. The guard stares. Does she look suspicious?