Trip to the tropics warms body and soul

When a friend living in Costa Rica invited me to come for a visit, there seemed to be no appropriate reply except “Yes” and “When?” As some of you may have guessed from a previous article, it took some preparation before I was free to fly over cotton candy clouds and frozen fields to a warm paradise.

When asked what we were going to do when I arrived, my thought was that we were going to laugh, and we certainly did. What a treasure friendship like this can be.

One of the first things that caught my attention was the friendliness of the people in Costa Rica. At the airport I was generously assisted in getting through customs, making a phone connection and catching a shuttle. While I received differing information on average wages, it was less than $3.50 per hour. Tipping is not as common as in the U.S., but tips were gladly received. The dollar is widely accepted, though its value has declined in the last year. Having some cash in small denominations was very useful but we also tried to use local currency. Not every establishment accepted credit cards.

In the early morning and again at dusk, the chorus of birds is sometimes so loud that holding normal conversation outside is impossible. At our resort, pelicans swooped over emerald green waves. Scarlet macaws and green parrots circled overhead early in the morning and again at dusk, while tiny, red-headed woodpeckers tapped at a tree.

I wished I’d remembered to bring binoculars. There are hundreds of kinds of birds here and so many other animal species seen nowhere else. Ecotourism is thriving for this reason.

I was glad I’d brought sunscreen, hand sanitizer, facial wipes and Picardin, an insect repellent that has a pleasing scent. Those items were useful when we rented all-terrain vehicles and drove them beneath a forested canopy, climbed dirt and rock roads to a waterfall, then to view points where we could see farther than from the Lewiston Hill. A troop of squirrel monkeys chattered from above.

We also saw one capuchin monkey running along wires above the highway. A huge iguana with an orange face hissed when I tried to take a photo. Brahman cattle grazed on steep hillsides and meadows, accompanied by egrets.

Renting cars in Costa Rica ran as high as $150 per day, but buses are plentiful, and many excursions will pick up tourists at their hotels. Scooters also were available to rent.

Driving frightened me a bit, as people on scooters and motorcycles passed on both sides of the car on twolane highways and crossed double yellow lines. At night people often walk in dark clothing along the narrow corridors. Many vehicles have a snorkel-like apparatus attached to their hoods because roads flood during the rainy season, known to locals as the “green season.”

There was so much to do — wildlife tours, zip lining, bird watching, fishing charters — and so many wonderful places to eat. Everything was so fresh. Our meals were four-star worthy and ran from $10 to $37.50, including drinks. The more expensive dinner included queen lobster and a cocktail. Locals eat a lot of rice, beans and fruit. Pork and fish also are favorites in the area we visited. Fast food wasn’t readily available, but we certainly didn’t miss it. We passed a factory that produces palm oil, a common ingredient in food products and items like lipstick. Check the labels — it seems as though it’s in everything. Pineapples, bananas, melon, mangoes and fish are sold in booths sit- uated along the highways. Coffee is another export product of Costa Rico, and it tasted wonderful. Even minus cream and sugar, it had no hint of bitterness.

Local crafts and artwork are so colorful. I bought a beautifully woven hat for $12. The afternoon sun was hot and sunburn can sure ruin a vacation.

We saw beautiful ladies in gauzy sundresses or shorts and flip flops along the beaches and streets. We met people from England, Canada and others from the U.S. Some worked remotely, but expats cannot take a job in Costa Rica that a local is able to do.

While the pace of life in Costa Rica is slow, the days of my vacation passed quickly. Leaving temperatures above 80 degrees to return home over the snowcovered, meringue-like peaks of the Sierras was quite a contrast.

I guess I’ll have to return to Costa Rica because I missed seeing turtles hatch and so many other wonderful things. I didn’t see a sloth. They’re hard to spot high in trees because they move so slowly and come down only once a month. There’s more adventure ahead, but right now there’s no place like home. Besides, I like to think my puppies missed me.

Christiansen lives in Lewiston. She can be reached at petpal535@gmail.com.

> APRIL 1

Helen Riggers, 90 Helen Riggers, of Lewiston, was born in 1933, in Mandan, N.D., to Cecil and Tillie Newman, the fourth of seven children. The family moved to Nampa when Helen was 2, and later moved to Culdesac, where she graduated from high school.

Helen married Clarence Riggers in September 1951, and they had eight children. Raising the kids was Helen’s primary job over the years, though she fully participated in life on the farm.

More retirement.

She kept a large garden, canned produce and was an excellent cook.

After the kids were raised, she worked compiling agricultural statistics and assisting with selling fire insurance. In their retirement years, she and Clarence moved to Clarkston, where Clarence died in 2014.

Over the years, she has greatly enjoyed her 16 grandchildren, 19 great-grandchildren, and one great-great-grandchild.

A celebration was held Saturday.

> APRIL 7

Gloria Cleto, 95 Gloria Cleto, of Orofino, has seen and experienced much over her long, rich life.

She was born in 1928 in Pilar, Bataan, Philippines, where her childhood was interrupted by the Japanese occupation during World War II. After the war, she completed her schooling, graduating as a pharmacist.

Gloria married Stan on May 5, 1955. Stan established his clinic in a back room of Gloria’s pharmacy and the two worked side-byside until 1968, when Stan immigrated his practice to Orofino. Gloria and their children joined Stan in 1969. Ever since then, Gloria has called Orofino home. Her focus became her home and family. She delights in her children, Jean (Dan) Johnson, Rebecca Cleto, Clarissa (Mark) Jackson and Con Cleto Jr.; and even more so in her granddaughters, Amy Eddy, Jen Kaufman, Tancie Doruth, Lauren Espinosa, Hailey and Sydney Jackson, and her 14 great-grandchildren.

She fills her days reading her favorite books and preparing dishes for the next family gathering. She is a regular attendee at St. Theresa’s Catholic Church and the Orofino Senior Center. The family appreciates the support Gloria has received from the community for many years.

> APRIL 8

Iris Mallory, 100

Iris Mallory, of Troy, Ore., was born in 1923 to Matilda and James Fordice in Enterprise, Ore. She and her mom rode the train from Enterprise to a logging settlement along today’s Oregon Route 3, then in a buggy onto Lost Prairie, near Flora in Oregon, where five brothers waited.

Iris attended school in Lost Prairie and Wallowa, Ore. In 1939, she married Willard Mallory. They had five children. At first, they lived in a walled tent on the Grande Ronde River in Anatone and then moved by wagon and horseback to their lifetime home near Troy, Ore. Willard died in 2001.