Montezuma Gardens

Kleen Kanteen

ryan — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 15:09:51 +0000

In en effort to reduce the amount of plastic water bottles used in the area we are now offering one free 18oz Kleen Kanteen stainless steel BPA free water bottle with your room stay. Also, free Agua Cristal water to fill your new bottle during your stay!

In 2004 Klean Kanteen® created the first BPA-free metal bottle for personal hydration to give consumers a safe, reusable alternative to the polycarbonate and lined aluminum bottles on the market. We are proud to help distribute healthy re-usable water bottles to our clients and guests.

Agua Cristal

ryan — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:43:48 +0000

We now offer free filtered water with your stay at the Mariposario! In an effort to reduce the amount of non re-usable plastic water bottles, we are now offering complimentary 18oz Kleen Kanteen water bottles with your room rental. During your stay at the butterfly garden you will be able to fill your stainless steel food grade re-usable water bottle with clean fresh filtered water from Agua Cristal free of charge. Come and stay with us in Montezuma and let us be your gateway to Costa Rica!

Jungle Living

ryan — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 23:16:49 +0000

I have to constantly pinch myself while living here in Costa Rica. Am I really here? Is this really happening? It is, and I love it. Everything is surreal and you are constantly in perpetual motion. As soon as one project finishes the next appears. It keeps you on your toes and it keeps you young. The sun fills you with joy and warmth everyday and the moon completes you with stillness and peace. A constant compliment of twelve hours each to give you total balance. I love Costa Rica!

Sunsets

ryan — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 22:03:38 +0000

Well, its Sunday and it is the first day it isn’t raining in well, the last week or so. Still it is very overcast and threatening to dump buckets at any second. So I thought it would be nice to talk about the times when it isn’t raining. We have some of the most amazing sunsets here in Montezuma. And when we are lucky, they are followed by the most amazing moon rises over the Pacific Ocean. Just a short 25 minute drive from here and you are on the other side of the Nicoya Peninsula where Santa Theresa and Mal Pais are located. Some of the funnest things to do here is spend the day in Santa Theresa and enjoy the sunset. On a clear day the sun falls, melting into the ocean and at just the moment it is about to disappear, if you are lucky, you will see a green flash. Now this doesn’t happen all of the time but it does happen and it is amazing. The picture that you see here was taken by a good friend of mine on his way to the Nicoya Peninsula while on the ferry to Paquera. If you are lucky enough to be arriving in the evening(which most people do) try to catch the 5 pm ferry. Here you will see the amazing sunset over the mountains of the Nicoya Peninsula. It makes the ferry ride just that much more enjoyable. Pura Vida!

Diaethria Marchalii

ryan — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 21:16:49 +0000

This beautiful butterfly is most commonly encountered near human habitations, where it is a familiar sight to see individuals perched head down on buildings. Its association with human habitation is most likely due to the fact the host plant is a common secondary-succession tree species with a very wide distribution in Costa Rica. Although the butterfly is widespread and common in Costa Rica, away from human habitations it is found as solitary individuals and never with the great abundance seen in other species. Both sexes feed on the juices of rotting fruits and sewage, and the males visit water seepage and wet laundry. Its closely related cousin Callicore pitheas or “pura vida” butterfly is often seen here at Mariposario Montezuma Gardens.

Whiptail Lizard

ryan — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 20:03:19 +0000

At the butterfly garden in Montezuma we have to remove all predators to keep our Mariposas safe. The 5 most commanly found lizards in the garden are the Black Iguana, Green Iguana, Anole, Skink and the Whiptail Lizard.

The whiptail lizard, or Ameiva festiva, can be found from Southern Mexico to Columbia. The ameiva genus contains about 30 different species. Certain species of whiptail lizards reproduce by parthenogenesis, a form of asexual reproduction. Whiptail lizards and many other lizards carry the bacteria Salmonella so be sure to wash your hands if you happen to handle one of these guys.

Coconut milk!

ryan — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 18:18:02 +0000

Since moving to Montezuma, Costa Rica in 2005 I have been exposed to a number of new healthy alternatives to cows milk, sugar and processed foods in general. With an abundance of fresh fruit and veggies year round it is very easy to live and eat healthy.

One of the many alternatives to cows milk is coconut milk. I find this to be very savory in coffee and in almost all of my baked goods like plantain bread, pancakes, French toast, cookies ect., ect..

Since coconuts are in abundance here it is very easy to make your own coconut milk. First you have to remove the nut from the husk. This can be difficult but with the help of a very sharp machete, that we always have around, things move on a bit quicker. Once you have done that you must remove the coconut water. You can either drink this water or use it to make your coconut milk. Once the water is removed you have to remove the meat or the white stuff that is in the coconut. This is also a bit tricky and tedious but it is done with a lot of care and a sharp little knife. When that is all removed you place the coconut meat inside of a blender with your coconut water or distilled water. Mix and strain through a colindar or cheese cloth. Voila, homemade coconut milk!

One of the many alternatives to cows milk is coconut milk. I find this to be very savory in coffee and in almost all of my baked goods like plantain bread, pancakes, French toast, cookies ect., ect..

Luckily, coconuts are in abundance at the beach and is very easy to make your own coconut milk from them. First you have to remove the nut from the husk. This can be difficult but with the help of a very sharp machete, that we always have around, things move on a bit quicker. Once you have done that you must remove the coconut water. You can either drink this water or use it to make your coconut milk. Once the water is removed you have to remove the meat or the white stuff that is in the coconut. This is also a bit tricky and tedious but it is done with a lot of care and a sharp little knife. When that is all removed you place the coconut meat inside of a blender with your coconut water or distilled water. Mix and strain through a colander or cheese cloth. Voila, homemade coconut milk!

Lobster anyone?

ryan — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 18:18:10 +0000

Summer and I went to watch the soccer games on Saturday and I noticed Pedro was selling Lobsters. We couldn’t resist and bought ourselves 4 giant lobsters. This particular Lobster that you see here on the Nicoya Peninsula is called the Spiny Lobster. They have a couple of obvious differences from your true lobster. Spiny lobsters have no claws and have much longer antennae. They mainly live in warm tropical waters on rocky coastlines. So while here in Montezuma you can surf, snorkel, Scuba Dive, fish and eat lobsters! Buen Provecho!

Hare Krishna

eddy — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 01:00:43 +0000

Our offering of our food to hare...

Its been a long time since my last entry and today seemed like a good day to stop and reflect because today was my first Hare Krishna meal! As many roads cross here at the Mariposario it always seems to bring together an eclectic mix of people and energy. Although it wasn’t much different than any other meal I have had, we did pay homage to Hare by sacrificing the first portion of each food for him to eat on his little made altar. Hare received a portion of Rice, Dahl, curried cauliflower, broccoli and Pumpkin Soup(made by yours truly). Then after he received his fill, we were able to all sit down and eat. After this ritual the monks considered the sacrificed hare food to be very blessed and will often fight over that portion. We didn’t have any monks present so we didn’t see any fighting. I liked the food so much I had two helpings! Thank you to Roger for bringing us all together on this Sunday afternoon here at the butterfly garden.

Renee’s first Blog

eddy — Wed, 25 May 2011 00:42:35 +0000

It is my second day here at the Mariposario in Montezuma, Costa Rica, and so far I have had quite the introduction to the place by the wildlife. In Chicago, it is easy to forget all about nature, as we live in sanitized, insulated boxes with piped in air and greenish artificial lighting. We have lights lining our streets, and what actual ground isn’t paved is manicured, weeded, and sprayed into submission.
Here in Montezuma, it is all but impossible to forget about nature. The first night I was here, I was greeted by purple and neon orange crabs in the bathroom and geckos that hang out on the ceiling and laugh intermittently with timing that is remarkably comedic. I have also been hazed by hooting Howler Monkeys and hand-sized tarantulas, both of which I have never encountered outside of a zoo or otherwise without the protection of thick glass and/or bars. Here is some footage of me and some garden workers ‘talking’ to the Howler Monkeys: Apparently, the Howler Monkeys will not only howl at you, but will also throw things at you if you rile them up enough. I have not attempted this yet, but I have three months to go. Hopefully, they will throw a mango at me, as they can reach them and I can’t. I’d love a fresh picked mango!
To give you a better idea of what it is like here, I will describe the office in which I work:
Obviously, there is no air conditioning; only a fan to help move the air. The weather is not bad, however; it rains a lot, and though the humidity has turned my hair into a crazy tangle of gravity-defying curls, I find it loads more pleasant than the obnoxious cold I have to deal with anywhere indoors during Chicago’s sweltering summers. Something about the drastic change from intense outdoor heat to meat-locker frigidity indoors seems unhealthy. The body adjusts to the temperature outside, and I haven’t had any discomfort.
In the room with me is a gecko, a blue wasp, some kind of moth, three yellow flying ants/termites (not sure exactly what they are), and a little purple and orange crab that just scuttled out the door. I also saw a black and orange baby tarantula the size of a quarter hanging out in the corner.
Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, I can see a plantain tree, a noni bush, a mango tree, a papaya tree, and this strange tree that has large pods that is supposedly related to cacao. There are also palm trees, and other tropical plants and flowers. The magnificent Costa Rican morphos is an iridescent blue butterfly, and can be seen flitting in loopy patterns outside from time to time.
In the distance, I hear the throaty call of the Howler Monkeys from time to time. Right outside the window, two different types of hummingbirds have visited a hibiscus plant.
Over all, being this close to nature is simultaneously awe-inspiring, exhilarating and terrifying. I remember being a kid, playing out in the woods of Tennessee with toads and snakes and daddy-long legs, and thinking nothing of it. I am reminded of that when I see four year old little girls playing with tarantulas with no reservations. I am also reminded of my self at that age, and how living in Chicago for 15 years has made me extremely squeamish and…well, different. I like that I am getting accustomed to living side by side with nature again, as terrifying as that can be (in the case of seeing four hand-sized tarantulas in my living quarters…ack!).
Whatever ends up happening, I know I’m in for an adventure!
Next up, I will be posting a virtual tour of the butterfly garden (also known as Mariposario) here at Montezuma Gardens. Stay tuned!Talking to Howler Monkeys