Colorful Toucan Beak

This shows the more colorful style of toucan beaks in contrast to the beak that I showed yesterday.

This week we are showing photos of the monumental Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Toucan beak

The beaks of toucan are their most prominent feature.  Toucans have different styles and colors of their beaks.  Maybe that is due to different sub-species or maybe it is a male-female differentiation.

The beak of toucans have a purpose, other than to be pleasant for humans to admire.  They act like a radiator and help the birds dissipate the heat of the jungle.

Update to Identify the Large Bird I Showed a Week Ago:  A week ago I posted I posted several photos of a large bird that appeared to be part of the vulture family, but I did not know what species it is.  One of my former high school debate partners, who lives in Australia, sent me a Facebook message suggesting that it is a crested guan.  After checking the Wikipedia article, I think she is right.  I am impressed.  For someone who lives in Australia, she demonstrated impressive knowledge and research skills on Central American birds.  Thank you, Margo.

Ironically, another of my high school debate partners from high school in St. Louis County now owns a ginger farm and guest lodge near Arenal Volcano in Costa Rica.

This week we are showing photos of the monumental Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Curious toucan

This toucan seemed as curious about us as we were of him.

The government of Costa Rica is attempting to discourage zoos and discourage people from keeping wild animals as pets.  I agree that animals belong in the wild, but I also think that there should be opportunities for people to admire animals up close in humane conditions

This week we are showing photos of the monumental Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Toucan in the Aviary

One of the aviaries at the La Paz Waterfall Gardens is a toucan aviary.  I have seen toucans in the wild in Costa Rica several times, but never long or close enough to get a good photo of them.  My toucan sightings in the wild are usually in a dense forest, with dark or heavily dappled light, which makes focusing and setting the correct exposure difficult, and they fly away before I can get a good photo.

The toucan aviary at La Paz Waterfall Gardens offers a delightful opportunity to observe the toucans up close.  Their long, colorful beaks look like something that an artist would draw in a cartoon, not something that would be useful and evolve in nature.

This week we are showing photos of the monumental Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Heliconia

There are lots of varieties of heliconia plants in Costa Rica, which grow on short trees that are similar to banana trees in structure.  They are popular in gardens and landscaped areas, but also grow wild.

Plants such as this that capture rain water are important in Costa Rica because there are some species of frogs who lay their eggs for tadpoles to develop in the trapped rainwater of plants.  I will show some frogs in the coming weeks.

This week we are showing photos of the monumental Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Close up of talons

This is a close view of the  talons of the bird that I have shown during the last few days.  The bird's beak appears to be the shape of a scavenger bird, and his talons look like they could be used by either a scavenger bird or predator bird.  His body looks too heavy for a predator bird, however.

This week we are showing photos of the monumental Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Large bird close up

This is a close view of the head of the bird that I showed yesterday.  Maybe this will help someone identify the type of bird that it is.  I am not a "birder," although I am getting better about identifying specific species of birds.  Tiny Costa Rica, the size of West Virginia, has more bird species that all of the USA and Canada combined.

Today is Sunday, so we have new photos posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.  This week we are showing photos of the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco.  It is huge in scale and intricate in detail.

Large Bird

We took a short drive up from San Jose to the La Paz Waterfall Gardens, about an hour's drive up from the hotel where we stayed near the San Jose's Juan Santamaria International Airport.  La Paz Waterfall Gardens has walking trails past waterfalls, and also exhibits of tropical plants and animals.

This photo shows one of the birds in one of the aviaries. Sorry, but I checked in my book of Costa Rica birds and could not find the exact species that this is.  It looks to be from the vulture family.

This week photos of the architecture of Ronda, Spain, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Fiery Red Ginger

This fiery fed ginger is one of the many delightful tropical plants that one commonly encounters in Costa Rica.

This week photos of the architecture of Ronda, Spain, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Elephant's Umbrella Leaf

This huge leaf is called an elephant's ear.  It is about one yard (one meter) in diameter.  I took this photo while on a little day trip up into the mountains from San Jose, although we also have these plants at lower elevations near our beach condos in Tamarindo.

Comment about the Criminal Conviction of Tom Brady's Bodyguards:  In my post two days ago I commented about the declining homicide rate and the lack of gun ownership in Costa Rica.  Here is another item from the newspaper.

A Costa Rican court has just convicted and sentenced to 5 years in prison two of the former bodyguards for U.S. football star Tom Brady and his Brazilian model wife, Gisele Bundchen.  When they were in Costa Rica for their wedding in 2009, the bodyguards confronted two photographers who worked for a French press agency who were photographing the wedding from a neighbor's property, with permission of the neighbor.

When the two photographers refused to surrender the cameras and memory cards to the bodyguards and returned to their car, the bodyguards shot out the rear window of their car.  No one was hurt, but the two bodyguards were just convicted of attempted murder.

This week photos of the architecture of Ronda, Spain, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Cows it the mist

This is a closer view of the cows in the foggy mountain pasture that I showed yesterday.  It appears that these cattle in the highlands of the Central Valley area of Costa Rica are guernsey, dairy cattle.  Because of the different weather in the Central Valley, the cattle are different.  In the coastal area of northwest Costa Rica where Tamarindo is located, the cattle are primarily brahman, as they tolerate the warm weather.

This week photos of the architecture of Ronda, Spain, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Foggy Mountain Pasture

This is a photo of a foggy pasture on the slopes of a mountain outside of San Jose.  The Central Valley and mountain areas of Costa Rica get a lot more rain than the northwest province of Guanacaste where Tamarindo is located.  We have a sunny, warm and dry season from November until April, but in the mountains around Sam Jose it is common to experience rain and moderate temperatures in the 70's (F) (22-26 C) year round.

News about Crime in Latin America:  AMERIPOL, an organization of police agencies in Latin America, held a conference recently in San Jose.  The authorities addressed the fact that the homicide rate throughout the hemisphere increased by 12% from 2000 to 2010.

Costa Rica has a low crime rate compared to its neighbors, and its homicide rate dropped by another 15% from 2011 to 2012, and is dropping some more in 2013.  The Costa Rican Security Minister was quoted in the newspaper as saying that the reason for Costa Rica's success was gun control.  It seized 3,000 guns during the last year.  He said that 78% of homicides are committed with guns, and if people don't have guns they solve disputes with words or, at worst, fights, but not shooting.

The above comment is not intended to enter the debate about gun control in the USA.  I am just sharing the news about what has happened in Costa Rica.

This week photos of the architecture of Ronda, Spain, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Ox Cart Driver Portrait

This is a closer view of the farmer with the ox cart.  He was taking his ox cart down a quiet country road on an overcast, somewhat rainy day.  I don't know what he was planning to do with his ox cart that day, but he was willing to stop and cooperate with our request to take photos of the ox cart, the oxen, and him.  Of course we also gave him a gratuity.

This week photos of the architecture of Ronda, Spain, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Ox Cart Wheel

This is a closer view of the artistry of the traditional Costa Rican ox cart.  I can imagine how proud the farmers are as they pass by other farmers with such fancy paint jobs on their ox carts.

Today is Sunday, so we have new photos posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.  This see we are showing photos of the architecture of Ronda, Spain.

Close up of oxen

The fancy paint job on the ox cart included the yoke on the oxen's necks.  The oke seems to be lashed onto the oxen's heads, with the leather bonnet, which i presume prevents the straps from rubbing and irritating the oxen.

It looks to me as though the oxen could have limited visibility with the head gear that they wear.  Oh well, they probably to not need to see much besides the big stick held by the farmer that I showed yesterday.

This week we have photos of the street art of Valparaiso, Chile, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Oxen and Ox Cart Driver

Naturally we stopped our car for the ox cart and hopped out to get some photos of the ox cart and its driver.  He was pleased to oblige us by stopping his oxen and posing for us.

I guess his long pole is to make sure that the oxen listen to him, similar to Theodore Roosevelt's approach to foreign policy in the age of imperialism in U.S. dealings wiht Latin America:  "Speak softly, but carry a big stick."

This week we have photos of the street art of Valparaiso, Chile, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Ox Cart

Here is a view of the ox cart that was crossing the road in front of us.  This is painted in a traditional style.

I mentioned yesterday that in the past farmers would haul their crops to the port for export in these ox carts.  They obviously took pride in the appearance of their ox carts to paint them in this fashion.

Perhaps this is similar to people today enjoying having a fancy car.  If farmers were going to be seen by the neighbors and by customers as they haul stuff for their farms, why not impress them with an elaborate paint job?

More About Free Trade Experience:  For the last few days I have discussed the Costa Rican experience in expanding its exports after the voters approved the Central American (and Dominican Republic) Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR).  In most countries, economic interests that fear competition from foreign imports oppose free trade agreements.  Costa Rica was no exception when the CAFTA-DR vote occurred.

CAFTA-DR required that Costa Rica open up its economy to foreign competition.  That included aspects of the economy that had operated as government monopolies, which in Costa Rica included insurance and cell phone service.  So what has happened in these fields?

The state insurance monopoly has retained 95% of its life insurance customers and 90% of its customers for other lines of insurance.  The state cellular provider however, lost 30% of its cell phone customers and 80% of its mobile broad band customers from 2010 to 2012.

I guess it should be no surprise that people are more likely to change cell phone and internet plans than they are insurance companies, especially for life insurance.  Even those who have not changed have benefited because the competition has resulted in improved service.

This week we have photos of the street art of Valparaiso, Chile, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Ox Cart Encounter

Today I will begin a series of photos from Costa Rica's Central Valley, which is the area around the capitol of San Jose.  We took a drive up into the mountains northwest of San Jose in the area of Poas Volcano.

Ow carts are a tradition in Costa Rica, and we encountered this farmer with an ox cart crossing the road.

In earlier times, farmers would load their coffee bean crops into ox carts and travel days from their mountainside coffee farms to the port at Puntarenas to sell their coffee for export.

Supplement Regarding Free Trade News:  Yesterday I reported about the success of Costa Rican exports under the Central American (and Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR).  It is worth adding that Costa Rica is the only country that has approved a free trade agreement by a vote of its people.  Every other country has approved trade treaties by a decision of its government, such as ratification of treaties by the U.S. Senate.

In Costa Rica protectionist elements forced a referendum on the subject, and voters approved it about 5 years ago.  I will add more news and perspective on this subject tomorrow.

This week we have photos of the street art of Valparaiso, Chile, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Fern leaf study

After my disappointment in yesterday's photo, I looked at the photo a little more and decided it might be possible to salvage a passable photo by cropping the lower left corder of the photo.

I definitely like this photo better.

When Julie and I travel she has a good eye looking at our photos of street scenes or groups of people and  finding smaller segments of the photos that are better when viewed alone rather than with the rest of the scene.

News Update Re Foreign Trade:  Yesterday the World Bank issued a report that said that Costa Rica accounts for 40% of all of the exports under the Central America (and Dominican Republic) Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR)  with the United States.  This is a huge success story for the Costa Rican economy.

The diversity of Costa Rican exports is also impressive, with high technology components and medical devices leading the way, in addition to traditional exports of coffee, bananas and pineapple. 

This week we have photos of the street art of Valparaiso, Chile, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Perspective on a fern leaf

I like photos using angles such as this, although this is not a particularly good example.  I took this photo with a semi-automatic camera at an extreme zoom, so the depth of field was compressed.  

Typically it is preferable to focus on the foreground when depth of field will be limited, which I did, but I think having the center of the photo out of focus is distracting.  I should experiment more.

This week we have photos of some examples of the extensive, high quality street art of Valparaiso, Chile, posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Heliconia

Heliconias are common in Costa Rica.  They are related to ginger plants and banana trees, both of which are also common.

Today is Sunday, so we have new photos posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.  This week we are showing photos of the street art in Valparaiso, Chile.  If they had an award for the city with the best and most extensive street art, Valparaiso would be the winner.

Sunlight hitting a fern leaf

I like the play of light, filtered by the forest, hitting the leaves of ferns.

This week on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site we are showing photos of one of the most remarkable buildings in the world, the Mezquita Cathedral - Mosque in Cordova,

Tico house

Here is another in my occasional photos of typical Tico houses.

Tico is the term commonly used to refer to Costa Ricans.  The term comes from the tendency of Costa Ricans to add the suffix "ico" at the end of words for the diminutive form of the word.

This week on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site we are showing photos of one of the most remarkable buildings in the world, the Mezquita Cathedral - Mosque in Cordova,

The last slice of the sun

I always watch for the green flash after the last slice of the sun disappears, but I have never seen it, although Julie has, just once.

This week on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site we are showing photos of one of the most remarkable buildings in the world, the Mezquita Cathedral - Mosque in Cordova,

Sunset behind San Francisco Point

Yesterday's photo showed San Francisco Point at the southern end of Tamarindo Bay, so I decided to walk a little south so I could align the sunset with the point.  A few people standing on the point were obviously enjoying the sunset view as well.

This week on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site we are showing photos of one of the most remarkable buildings in the world, the Mezquita Cathedral - Mosque in Cordova,

Watching the sunset from the water

This family enjoying the surf at the end of the day obviously took a few moments to enjoy the sunset.

This week on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site we are showing photos of one of the most remarkable buildings in the world, the Mezquita Cathedral - Mosque in Cordova,

Sails against the sunset

Yesterday's photo of Tamarindo bay showed a sail against the horizon.  That gave me an opportunity to move to where I could use my zoom to set up a chance to align the sailboat against the setting sun to add a little variety and interest to the sunset photo.

This is the daily afternoon snorkel and sunset sail that is a popular activity for tourists.

This week on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site we are showing photos of one of the most remarkable buildings in the world, the Mezquita Cathedral - Mosque in Cordova, Spain.

Sunset, before the sun drops

Sunset is my favorite part of the day, and it is perhaps overused as a subject for photographers, particularly on my site, I confess.  But the variety of sunsets presents irresistible photo opportunities.

I will show a few photos during the next several days to try to add variety and creativity to the ways to photograph the setting sun in Tamarindo.

Today is Sunday, so we have new photos posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.  This week we are showing photos of one of the most remarkable buildings in the world, the Mezquita Cathedral - Mosque in Cordova, Spain.

Wooden sculpture street vendor

It is common to see people carrying pottery and jewelry and selling it on the street and beach in Tamarindo.  This vendor is selling wooden sculptures.  These are rather large to be hauling around for sale, but the cart is up to the task.

This week we have photos featuring the cathedral and street scenes of Grenada, Nicaragua, on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Theme Day: "height" -- Gyrocopter silhouetted against the clouds

Today's worldwide Daily Photo theme is "height."  If you look closely in this photo, you will see the silhouette of the gyrocopter against the clouds catching the setting rays of the sun.

The gyrocopter is similar to an ultralight aircraft, but is a helicopter rather than a plane.  The pilot flies the plane for tourists who sit in an open air cockpit and enjoy the scenery.  This is the way to view the Tamarindo area from high up.  My son has taken this flight and loved it.  I have not done it, but I think I will some day.

This week we have photos featuring the cathedral and street scenes of Grenada, Nicaragua, on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.