Monkey Business

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to go on an AFS trip to Tortuguero, Limón.
I got to enjoy a close-up view of Costa Rica's rich wildlife with fellow AFSers.
There is definitely a climate difference between Tortuguero and my town, Cerbatana. When our guide took us on a hike through the dense rainforest, my clothes were completely soaked from the humidity. On the hike, we saw a few tucans resting in the lush upper canopy-- too far away to take a good picture, but the memory is still awesome. Our guide also showed us a tree infested with termites and he told us to eat them. At first, I wasn't going to, but then I thought, 'How often does one have the opportunity to eat termites?' It turned out that I was the second person to try them in our group. They actually have a salad-ee flavor. Once the termite-eating trend started catching on, our guide had to say, 'Leave some for the other tourists.'
The hotel in which we stayed was on the channel and nestled in the rainforest (only accessible with a 90 minute boatride through the channels.) Because of its great location, I was able to see lots of wildlife walking from my cabin to the pool. I saw lots of colorful birds and intersting trees. Oh, and by the way, I saw MONKEYS! On my way back to the cabin after eating lunch, I heard some noises up the trees and they were monkeys! Fortunately, I was one of the few people who saw them , so I kind of had a private tour. To add to the already excellent situation, my tourguide happened to be standing right next to me and showed me the tree where the monkeys live! I took some great pictures of the monkeys, including a pregnant one and babies. It was so interesting to watch the monkeys use their tails as a fifth arm.
Apart from the tucans and the monkeys, I also saw giant spiders, a baby crocodile, a viper, a chameleon, an iguana, AND a yellow-billed cuckoo.
Without a doubt, a nature filled weekend.