Costa Rica 2026 - Punta Leona Resort, the Pacific, and Home

Monkeys Looking for Breakfast

2/3/26 Tuesday 

We were supposed to do an outrigger canoe activity today but it’s too windy and the water is too choppy so it was cancelled. I don’t mind; we’ve done that before in the Philippines and it’s interesting but nbd.

They’ve got an alternative activity involving an aerial tram and a hike but we’re going to pass. The resort has a pool and a beach so we’ll just enjoy the sun and the Pacific for a day instead.

At least two more people in our group have come down with this cold. That makes four officially, plus Lee has had it without admitting it, another woman has symptoms but thinks it’s allergies (like I did at first), and we think our tour guide has it too, but just says she “felt a little chilled” (she was wearing a jacket in 86F yesterday!) That makes seven people out of twelve, so obviously Roads Scholar “protocols” are a joke. By the time people have symptoms it’s too late. Anyway I’m over being forced to wear a mask on the bus for 5 days.

2/4/26 Wednesday

After breakfast yesterday there were a bunch of capuchin monkeys outside the restaurant. The restaurant is outside but covered by steel fencing so the monkeys can’t get in.

One of the women in our group said a monkey peed on her lat night!!. It’s fun to watch them from a distance, but I don’t want them getting too close! If they think you might have food they can get very aggressive!

Monkey on the Roof of the Restaurant

Around 10 we headed down to the pool. It was nice, right on the ocean. We hung out there until 2 when it started to get pretty warm. Lee went back to the room but I wanted to see the beach so I took a little walk. By the time I got back to the room I was REALLY warm! It took a while to cool off so that I could take a shower.

The Pool

The Beach

In the evening we had a short lecture that recapped everything we had experienced. Like every other lecture on this trip it was great. It helped refresh our collective memories about everything we have seen and experienced, and most importantly reminded us of the names of all the people we’ve met along the way.

Our trip home went very smoothly, even without club access (we flew economy home) and a shorter layover in Houston. We got home pretty late but it only took a day or two to get back to normal.

In retrospect, I really enjoyed most things about this trip. Roads Scholar accomodations are pretty basic, but I knew that going in. The food wasn't wonderful or terrible, but that also is pretty standard for travel in a third world country if you are trying to experience the local culture. We were both very tired of rice and beans by the end of the trip! It was great that our group was only 12 people, and we traveled in a small bus. I enjoyed all of our lectures, our guides at various activities, and our tour leader, Rebeca. The only thing I did NOT enjoy was self-isolating after I came down with a cold, and having to wear a mask on the bus for the remainder of the trip. Roads Scholar needs to update their protocols, and sooner rather than later. The protocols were ineffective and put a damper on the end of the trip.

Would I do another Roads Scholar trip? It depends. Right now there's nothing on our bucket list where Roads Scholar would be the best way to go, but never say never! It was a great way to see a very diverse country like Costa Rica. We'll keep that in mind as we plan future trips.

Costa Rica 2026 - Selve Verde Lodge, The Rainforest, Over the Mountains and Ziplining

 

1/31/26 Saturday 

This lodge is pretty cool. Its called the Selve Verde Lodge. Verde is right! We're in the rainforest and its very green! Outside the restaurant they feed the birds and you can watch them. I’ve decided it’s best that I skip the rain forest hike this morning so I told Rebeca. Unfortunately because of Roads Scholar protocols (mainly left over from Covid probably) I now have to self isolate for 24 hrs. Unfortunately for everyone else  they’ve already been exposed to whatever I have. On the other hand this is a pretty cool place to hang out and be lazy for a day. I don’t mind that much missing the kayaking this afternoon. Really the only thing remaining that I would be really sad to miss is the zip lining.

In the afternoon I did a self guided hike around the lodge. Trees and flowers mostly. I also walked across the creepy suspension bridge over the river. 

 2/1/26 Sunday

On our way to the Pacific Coast. We have a long drive today., but its broken up with activities. I’m out of the 24 hr quarantine but I have to wear a mask on the bus. Other people are wearing masks too out of an abundance of caution I think. At least one other person on the tour was in quarantine yesterday too. 

Grey and rainy today. If it doesn’t change I may have to dig my poncho out of my suitcase for the hike this afternoon.

Today is Election Day in Costa Rica. Everyone has to go to the town where they were born to vote. We’re passing through small towns and can see people lining up! There are 23 candidates for president so they may need a runoff election which would be held in April.

Note: one of the candidates (the more conservative one I believe) got a majority of the votes, so no run off was needed).

We stop for bathrooms and snacks. Its Cold! (50F); we are up in the mountains. Rebeca treats us, I get hot chocolate, very good! We crest the mountains, start down the other side and the sun comes out and it stops raining and the temperature starts to rise. Amazing!

We stop at a roadside restaurant for lunch. Very touristy. Bought some Tshirts for the boys and a dress for Emi. Now its suddenly very warm, in the upper 80’s!

Our hike is at Cara National Park. iI’s a dry forest so there weren’t a lot of animals but we did see some howler monkeys, two of them way up in a tree.

The last place we are staying is the Punta Leona Resort, on the Pacific Coast.  Its a very big place, very spread out. We run into a hassle getting a room key that works but eventually they figure it out and the room is fine. The food at the resort restaurant is very good.

2/2/26

On to zip lining! The place we go has 10 lines, 12 platforms. I had been so excited for this activity but it has gradually dawned on me that it’s been at least 14 years since I did this in the White Mountains with the Westie people and we became friends.

I’m older (that's my excuse) and at first I couldn’t hold the cable with one hand properly so they had me hold the cable with both hands for the first 3 or 4 lines. They said it was because I was “too light“ but I think they were just being nice.

It took me about 5 lines before I felt confident enough (and they trusted me enough) to put one hand behind me on the cable. With each line I enjoyed it more and had more fun. By the end I had a great time!!

Lee decided not to do it and that was probably a wise choice; he hates heights. I just didn’t look down.

We went to a place on a river for lunch and then went on a boat ride to see crocodiles and birds. So many birds!! They gave us a guide or I would never be able to remember what we saw! Highlights were the crocodiles, prehistoric looking beasts, and by the mouth of the river as it drained into the Pacific the flocks of frigate birds and pelicans circling in the sky.

After While Crocodile

Frigate birds

Pelicans in a tree

At the very end as we were docking we saw two scarlet macaws; such beautiful birds!

We drove back to the lodge and took a shower and relaxed for a bit. Lee walked down to reception early to see if he could get some cash (no). I followed at 5:45. I had some basic directions but because I missed the orientation because I was waiting for our room key I got lost and missed the turn to reception. I was with Mark, one of the other guests, but he got confused as well. It’s a big place! Fortunately Mark wasn’t afraid to ask for directions so eventually we figured it out. 

The lecture on the scarlet macaws was great! There has been a massive push to stop poaching and bring back their natural population. It’s working because they are providing economic alternatives to poaching for the local population. 

A few tidbits, from the lecture: Scarlet Macaws mate for life so you usually see them in pairs. If you see 3 or 4 of them the extras are chicks. Scientists know their flight paths and habits so they can count them and keep track of their population. And as poaching has decreased they have become less afraid of humans and don’t hide as much.

Harper 2009-2026

Why is it that I can write easily about people or pets if I have just a little bit of distance from them, but if I have deep, loving complicated feelings about them it’s very hard? I had this experience trying to write an obituary for my mom, one of my big regrets, because I just couldn’t do it. I should have asked someone to help me, but my mind just wasn’t working properly and I was worried about the cost.

But never mind. I don’t need to write an obituary for Harper, but this blog post will actually BE her obituary! And I’ve got to do it. I loved her too much to not pay my respects.

Harper was a wonderful dog. She was the smartest dog I’ve ever known, at least for a Westie. She was also very confident and independent, also a very Westie attribute. She loved to be WITH you but never on you. She was not a lap dog, but she was a sit-right-beside-you-as-close-as-possible dog.

When we got Harper we did not really know that much about the best practices for training dogs. And because Harper was so headstrong, she was a challenging dog to train sometimes! But Diane, our wonderful breeder, helped us a lot. We took several training classes with her and Harper learned very well to sit, stay, COME! Walking politely on a leash was much harder and we never completely mastered it. And like a lot of Westies, Harper was very happy to chase a ball, but bringing it back and dropping it? That was hit or miss. She would do it if you had a treat, but if you tried to trick her she always knew if a treat was forthcoming or not. Too smart!

Harper loved both her people, but truth be told she loved Lee the most. In her younger years, when Lee was still working, he traveled for work frequently. Harper always knew when Lee was planning to leave. If the suitcase came out Harper would get very upset, crying and trying to plant herself in Lee’s baggage! He took to putting his suitcase in the car the night before, which helped.

When Harper was about 2 years old, we adopted Cosmo, a 5 month old Westie puppy, from Diane. Cosmo had an inflammatory bone disease so she couldn’t sell him, and she was too tender-hearted to euthanize him. Besides, it was a condition that with care, a dog could grow out of, so we took him instead.

Harper LOVED Cosmo! They had so much fun together. He was happy for her to be the boss and she loved having a silly funny sidekick to play with.

We had a sailboat and sailed up and down the New England coast, from Newburyport , MA all the way to Newport, RI. The dogs loved it, and we did too.

Harper’s mother was Heather. When Diane retires her mamas she keeps some of them, but she can’t keep them all so she gives them to people she knows and trusts. Heather was the reason we had Harper in the first place. Diane used to hold open houses so people could meet her dogs and see if they were a good fit for them. We realized later that Diane was also checking out the people, deciding whether they were someone she would trust with her dogs. When Heather came trotting down the stairs that day, wagging her little Westie tail, so happy to greet everyone and get some pets, we were smitten! We knew we wanted one of Heather’s pups.

So when Heather was around 6 yo, she was retired. Lots of people wanted Heather, but Diane wanted us to take her. At first we did NOT want 3 dogs! But Diane waited us out. It took around 6 months but we finally caved and became a 3 dog family.

Harper’s reaction to Heather was much different from her reaction to Cosmo. She was NOT pleased. First of all, three dogs are suddenly a pack, and pack dynamics emerge. Harper had to make sure Heather knew her place, which was at the bottom of the pecking order.

Secondly, I think Harper didn’t like that Heather was a girl. I think it made Heather more of a threat to her dominance. AND she was jealous! She didn’t want to share Cosmo with Heather. Any time Cosmo and Heather would start to play together Harper would break it up. Poor Heather.

Eventually Harper relented and stopped being so mean. People used to ask us if they knew that they were mother and daughter. I always said how in the world would I know! Ha.

We acquired an RV and that was another very fun thing to do with the dogs. We traveled all over; to the midwest to visit family and friends, to Canada, and eventually down to Florida every winter. The dogs had a great time and so did we.

When Harper was almost 9 year old we moved to Minnesota to be closer to family, especially our new grandson Leo. It was hard to leave New England but it was time.

Harper took to our new environment easily. She was always very accommodating in that respect. She handled the year in our rental house and then the move to our new house with aplomb. That was Harper!

But age started creeping in, alas. She lost her hearing. She had ccl surgery at 13 yo and came through that with flying colors. But her arthritis made it hard to go on walks even though she still wanted to. Cosmo passed away, and then Heather did as well. We got a new puppy, Sophie, and Harper was happy, but didn’t really have the strength or energy to play with her very much.

Then she started to lose her sight, and developed a neurological disorder that made her twitch. Then she started having recurrent bouts of diarrhea. We put her on antibiotics, and it would clear up, but if we tried to stop the medication it would come back.

On February 23rd Harper had a very bad day. She was in pain and couldn’t get comfortable. We knew it was time. On February 24th we went to the vet and said goodbye. So very hard and so very necessary.

The will never be another Harper. We both have mixed feelings about her death. We are heartbroken and at the same time kind of relieved that she is no longer in pain or suffering. And of course we’re grateful. What an amazing experience to have such an incredible dog grace our lives for over 16 years! I feel very very lucky.

Rest in peace, Harper darling. See you at the rainbow bridge, someday.