The Shindells – Four to Go

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No Need for Binoculars

By Colburn

I am a total amateur naturalist hack, my children are clearer on some concepts than I am. Therefore, I do not claim anything I write can be thought of as fact, true or believable. I couldn’t begin to compete with Mr. Darwin, the BBC or National Geographic. However, I am on fire with fascination with the Galapagos – and, yes, most of what I am describing hopefully will make you want to look some of these ideas up on Wikipedia.

It has been a week since we left Otavalo, Ecuador – world of Otavaleńos, textiles, the Saturday animal market and smoky cool high altitude breezes. We arrived Monday last week on San Cristobal Island and oriented ourselves to the Galapagos – I have had some difficulty knowing my cardinal directions – frequently I am stunned to see the sun setting in the east! Once oriented, I relax and enjoy the incredible sunsets.

The Galapagos Islands, what we have seen so far, is mesmerizing. There are several themes that have emerged from the first week that we expect will continue through the next three weeks we are on the archipelago – a shallow tabletop of islands 600 miles from the coast of South America. First, the volcanic action that results from the smashing of three enormous tectonic plates in this location is omnipresent. When you head to the beach or inland, away from the human developments, lava flows of various ages are everywhere.

It is important to know that the islands are all moving about seven centimeters per year in an south-easterly direction. Therefore, the islands on the east side of the archipelago are the older siblings – San Cristobal and Santa Cruz being the oldest. Our journey is from east to west – so, in theory, we are going forward in geologic time as we move to the far western islands later next week into the end of September. We will be exploring Isabella – home of several active volcanoes – and also Fernandina – one of the youngest most raw and volatile of the siblings in the archipelago. These volcanoes are the reason these islands exist – the lava flows over millions of years have accumulated over time. The islands sit on a tabletop plateau, formed by the volcanoes, which drops precipitously on the western edge. These islands are also at the confluence of not only three smashing plates but also three significant ocean currents.

Second, four major currents impact the archipelago: Pacific, from the east, Humboldt, from the south, Cromwell, from the west and Panama from the northeast. Each has its own season of ebb and flow – right now it is the cold/misty Garúa. Season, marked by the increased flow from the colder Humboldt Current. The food and nutrients hit the shelf of the archipelago and upwells for feeding vast sea life.

Third, adaptation – I could go on and on. My head spins with the fascinating examples of how land and sea life has adapted to the archipelago and, more specifically, have adapted to each island.

Giant Tortoises, there are now eleven species from the fourteen that once existed – all, I am reminded are descendants from a single ancient species which made it out here somehow – debris raft, floating island, who knows. The shape of the tortoise’s carapace (shell) is a result of millions of years of the successful tortoises passing the helpful genes to their offspring. If the food is high on bushes on a particular island, the successful tortoises have a shell that makes room for them to reach the food- therefore, they live, the ones with the wrong shell shape die. The right shell shaped parents have kids who have the right shell shape – there, that was first attempt at explaining natural selection through transmutation! Naturalists can determine the home island of a tortoise by the shape of their carapace. Go research this- it’s fascinating.

Finches – good lord – it goes on and on. The finches did the same thing as the tortoises. One lone family of fiches were blown out to sea from Ecuador most likely and found a home on the archipelago. As they spread throughout the islands, they encountered differing types of seeds, fruits or foods that began to select which finches would survive on that island. If there were mostly hard nuts on an island, the parents with short crushing beaks survived and had kids with the successful beaks. Those without the right shaped beak died. There are over a dozen species of finches on the Galapagos now. Several visit us in our apartment – they are fearless – as is most every living thing on the islands. No need for binoculars.

Marine Iguanas – yes, there’s only one species and it inhabits only one place on earth – the Galapagos. Somehow iguanas made it out here and they split into two species – land iguanas and marine iguanas. The ones which could deal with the harsh saltwater survived and have thrived on the coast – eating sea lettuce and green and red algae. They can swim really well – only with the swish of their tail. From a distance, with the head out of the water, they look like a cat swimming. The marine iguana expels the excessive salt in their system by sneezing the salt out of their nostrils. So, as you walk the tide pools, you will usually first notice a colony of marine iguanas by the sounds of sneezing. Otherwise, they are so well camouflaged you are likely to come close to stepping on one. Since they are exothermic, they spend a lot of time on the hot black volcanic rock or sand sunning themselves. The cold pacific water sucks the heat right or them, as it does Mac and Lucia.

Lucia and Mac are right there with us on this expedition – they are excellent naturalists – curious, fun loving and relaxed. We have to find thicker full coverage wetsuits, as the shorty wetsuits we brought with us are not warm enough for Mac and Lu. They come out of the waster blue-lipped and shivering but excited with stories of what they saw underwater. Lucia spent a few minutes swimming with a Galapagos Green Sea Turtle. Already cold and blue, when we spotted the turtle from the sea-kayak, she hopped back in, not wanting to miss the chance to see one up close. Mac wanted to see a Marine Iguana eat. So, yesterday, on the rocks at low tide the iguanas began heading out to the exposed edge of the rocky coast where they found sea lettuce. Mac watched. Blue Boobies fly by or sit on nearby rocks – I have not pulled out my binoculars that often. At a startling frequency, the life on land and in sea is fearless of us – indifferent to our presence. The finches, boobies, fur seals, tortoises and turtles, to name a few, keep doing their thing as we sit, swim or walk by.

Finally, the place is both a convergence and a divergence. Plates and currents meet here, yet the life that inhabits the islands have undergone a long drawn out separation from their ancestors to survive on their assigned island. All these animals I have described are neighbors on islands of the same archipelago, yet so far away from their distant descendants just across the channel – separated by millions of years of divergence.

September 16, 2013
And on to Ecuador!

After a long travel day, we made it to Quito in the wee hours of September 2. We had rented a sweet old colonial house in the old section of town. After a few pretty “basic” weeks in Costa Rica, we felt as if we were living the high life with a full kitchen, four levels, and private bedrooms! And, best of all, the climate had gone from hot, sweaty and buggy to cool and dry! Quito is at nearly 9,000ft, so the evenings were cool enough to want a sweater – something we hadn’t considered since leaving upstate New York. We were in heaven.

The Old Town part of Quito is a World Heritage Site and its easy to see why. The area is small, maybe 12 x12 blocks, surrounding three main plazas. Many of the homes have been restored and the Colonial Churches are awe-inspiring. The house we rented, like all colonial homes in South America, has a large stone and stucco facade right on the sidewalk, leaving no “front yard”. The only indication that there is a home inside are the two large heavy wood doors. These doors open to a hallway that in turn opens to an interior courtyard surrounded by public rooms (i.e. kitchen, sitting room, etc.), hammocks, and two outdoor seating areas. The bedrooms and library are on the second floor and more rooms and a great roof top terrazzo on the third floor. The basement floor had a small chapel (which kind of freaked us out at first) and what appeared to be a storage area. Throughout the house the walls had ceramic murals, beautiful sculptures, and hand-painted floral designs. And, all of this for $100 per night! I would have loved to know more about the history of the house as it probably has many stories to tell.

The morning that we arrived was the weekly changing of the guard at the Presidential Palace. Since we were only three blocks from the main square, we felt that we absolutely had to see it and we were glad that we did. Accompanied by the requisite pomp and circumstance, it was quite a sight to behold – parading horses, ceremonial guards with shining lances and colorful pennants, protesters, indigenous folks dressed in traditional clothing, water coca leaves and sun hats being hawked, kids offering shoe shines, and the actual President doing a meet and greet.

Having been part of the entourage that took the former President Clinton and his family rafting on the Snake River, I had seen the various levels of presidential security, all of which seemed to be present for this weekly activity. There were even a couple responses to minor threats as evidenced by the Secret Service guy with dark suit, reflective glasses, communication thing in his ear and in his hand goes running in to the crowd with the uniformed “Presidential Police” guy in full riot gear only to come walking back a few minutes later. Apparently that situation had been handled and all was well. For only the second time in our trip, we felt that we were truly “somewhere different” (the first was doing the land border crossing from Costa Rica in to Nicaragua).

Quito also has a great Museum of Archeology chronicling the human history of Ecuador. The bottom floor is pre-colonization history and the upstairs is post-colonization. On the first floor, Mac was fascinated by the dioramas of the different ancient peoples that inhabited the various climates of the country. We probably spent 20 or more minutes looking at each one (there were 6 or 8 of them), finding the similarities and differences between the jungle people and the mountain people across time, how they hunted, what they ate, what animals were where, how the lives of folks changed with “progress”, etc. It was quite engaging for both of us.

Lucia and Colburn spent their time perusing the pre-Incan artifacts and reading about the history as well. This part of the museum is very well done but we were all struck when we went upstairs to view the post-colonization section. Gone were the dioramas and objects of daily living. Instead, the entire upstairs was devoted to Spanish Colonial Christian antiquities including gilded alters, a plethora of graphic crucifixes, paintings of damnation and other many other fear-inducing artifacts. After about 10 minutes, the kids had had enough of the torment of Jesus and we headed out for a little time in the park to clear our minds of the images we had just seen.

After a brief stop at the “Middle of the World” (literally on the equator – Mac is checking the GPS to make sure it read 000,000,000), we headed up to Otavalo, a smallish town a couple hours away known for its weekly indigenous crafts market.

While many of the guide books state that this is now largely a tourist market, we did not find it to be overrun with tourists. Perhaps because we are here in the off-season, we felt as if we experienced folks going about their weekly routine purchasing meat, plastic pots, clothing, etc.

Yes, many of the stalls are dedicated to souvenir-type objects, but there were also many selling traditional clothing (which, despite the high cost, people still wear on a regular basis), underwear, cell phones, horseshoes, leather belts, brooms, vegetables, plastic tarps, etc. (Note on photos below: Our family is not standing on anything – they are on the sidewalk, even with the other folks)

The market is definitely the place to be on Saturday as what is normally a quiet small city becomes a bustling metropolis over night. Streets and sidewalks are congested with people and cars, restaurants and food stalls are packed, and there is the constant soundtrack of the pan flute everywhere.

There is also a Saturday live animal market that coincides with crafts market. Colburn and I had been to several “meat markets” when we were in Asia years ago, but never one for live animals. The kids had never been to any such an event before.

In this market there were chickens, geese, and ducks in all the different stages, guinea pigs by the sack-full (literally they are carried in old rice sacks), and sheep, goats, pigs and cows tethered to makeshift ropes. There were even puppies and kittens being sold as pets, not a food source.

Each animal received a thorough evaluation by the buyer before purchase. If the chicken was not heavy enough or the guinea pig didn’t pass muster, they were put back and another one offered for inspection (note the movement of the guinea pigs being proffered).

People walking away from the market had live chickens hanging upside down form both hands or tucked neatly under an arm, a lamb in a baby carrier on their back, or a squealing squirming bag of guinea pig slung over their shoulder.

One thing that we have learned though long term travel is that, unlike one or two week trips, we cannot handle multiple events in one day without blowing a fuse. Spending a few hours watching the changing of the Presidential Guard, wandering through the weekly market, or sometimes just getting from one place to the next can be enough exploration for one day. We like to spend time just hanging out together. We do school work with the kids, make reservations for our next destination, play games, or just veg-out with iPads, audiobooks, or a movie. Our family has now been together 24/7 for more than two months and it seems to be getting easier, not harder.

So, now we are off to the Galapagos for the next month. It is somewhat surreal to think that we will be going to a place that I have always dreamed of going, but never thought that it would actually happen. We loved the wildlife in Costa Rica and are hoping to get our fill out there.

September 8, 2013
What We Have Learned So Far

Time flies…especially when you are having fun! We have just completed our second month on the road and it’s hard to believe that it has been that long because time has passed so quickly. Three weeks in the US, four weeks Costa Rica and one in Nicaragua has bolstered our travel-confidence in that we have faced mild challenges by navigating land border crossings solely in Spanish, fended off raging mosquitos, dealt with stifling heat/humidity, and eventually found our way to dinner after being moderately lost (in the dark … during a down pour of biblical proportions … on an unlighted dirt road … in the middle of no-where) without losing our sense of humor. We have learned that it is much easier to do school work before a big activity (white water rafting, zip lining, etc.) rather than afterward, that cookies and a cold drink really do make a sweaty day much more bearable, and that we likely don’t need half of the stuff we thought that we did.
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Costa Rica and Nicaragua have been a blast – if nothing else for than the sheer amount of different things there are to do here. In the past five weeks we have tried kite boarding (largely a bust because of little wind the week we were there), learned to surf, went for our first family white water trip, looked in to the crater of an active volcano, found incredible wildlife everywhere we went, hiked through incredibly dense primary cloud and rain forests, went zip lining (including a 1 km long superman style cable), milked a cow, lived with a Costa Rican family on their farm, jumped off of a 30 meter platform on a Tarzan swing, went for two different horseback rides to beautiful waterfalls, and spent a week working with rescued wild animals.

We have played with baby capuchin monkeys and had their wild counterparts visit us in a tree house. We have watched a caiman hunt a tilapia fish and swallow it whole. We have seen the effects of the war in Nicaragua and been able to contrast that with the relative wealth and stability of Costa Rica. We have learned about the black market pet trade and the impact of US wealth on other nations.

The kids have been simply awesome. They have truly embraced the challenges of travel with aplomb and grace. This is not to say that it has been “easy” for any of us. We still miss Moxie and the comforts of our home. Lucia had to learn to deal with the real threat of spiders and scorpions when we were in Nicaragua. But, after a few days, she said, “You know, it’s really not a big deal. You just have to shake out your clothes and watch where you walk.” Mac has had to adjust to near-constant transitions, not something that comes naturally for our little home-body. He has, however, developed an understanding that change will happen whether or not he wants it to happen but that fighting the change doesn’t help the process any. Instead we are now trying to include some “down time” when we get to a new place so he can settle more quickly and make sure he knows what to expect for the next few weeks.

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Both kids have embraced the differences in food – Lucia loves mamones (lychee fruit) and casado for lunch while Mac found heaven with fresh pineapple juice, plates of grilled meat and nachos in all of their different forms (he wouldn't even try them in the US). During our week with a Costa Rican family, neither kid ever asked for special food – they ate at least a little of everything they were served and asked for seconds of the things they really enjoyed.

When their Spanish teacher was not able to come one day at the animal rescue center,
the kids volunteered to work all day instead of going to the movies for the afternoon. Cleaning up a stinky peccary pen, getting dive-bombed by parrots and scraping monkey poop off of the floor isn’t all that much fun, but they were troopers and didn’t get distracted all afternoon. The gentleman they were working with said, “Los muchachos son muy valiente” for working all day. We couldn’t be more proud of them and their positive attitudes.

Now that we have had a good chunk of time in this part of Central America, we are ready to head off on our next adventure, South America. We understand that Costa Rica is much more developed and Westernized than many of the other Central American countries but now feel that we are ready to experience the cultural differences of South America without being overwhelmed. Our first stop is Ecuador (including the Galapagos), then off to Peru and a small excursion in to Chile and then Argentina for Christmas and New Years.

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August 31, 2013
Costa Rica and Nicaragua – Getting our Travel-legs

When we were putting together our initial itinerary, we knew that we wanted to start of with something easy – something that was different enough from what we usually do that it was interesting but would allow us to get our travel-legs underneath us without freaking out too much. We decided on Costa Rica as a good place to start. We would be able to see lots of “different things” and get from place to place easily. Realistically, it is a vacation rather than travel – exactly what we wanted based on the level of stress we have each carried over the past few year.

We began with a week of kiteboarding lessons in the very north of Costa Rica, just 25 km south of the Nicaraguan border. We rented a little house on the Bahia Salinas bay and took kiteboarding lessons every day that the wind was strong enough to fly a kite. Unfortunately, that was not very often! While the wind is usually quite consistent in this location, the week we were there, it only really blew a couple days so neither Colburn nor I were able to get up on a board. Disappointing, yes, but there was plenty of relaxing and adventuring for us to do in the area, so it was a wonderfully slow introduction to travel. The area we were in is quite rural and exploring the back roads and national parks proved to be great fun. Mac has a keen eye for wild life so we quickly realized that when he said, “Stop, I see something!” we really should stop and see it. If you’ve read the kid’s blogs, you have been keeping up on our wildlife tally – the diversity is quite impressive actually.

Leaving Bahia Salinas, we had to make our way by public transport to the Nicaraguan border. It was the first real test of our travel mettle. First we had to take a public bus to the border and negotiate leaving Costa Rica in Spanish. Because we had not been on the main tourist trail, I had dusted off my high school Spanish and felt comfortable with this part – it was relatively easy.

Once “out” of Costa Rica, we had to walk a kilometer or two across no-man’s-land with our bags under the blazing equatorial sun in order to enter Nicaragua. This part was not so easy. Between the sun, the humidity, carrying our bags and the chaos of Central American border crossings, I was pretty much a wreck. As we were standing in a mass of humanity ready to enter Nicaragua, Lucia commented that she had never seen me sweat so much and I have to agree, I don’t know that I have ever been that sweaty before. Part of the sweat definitely came from nerves. As the only one in our family with any Spanish skills, I was the chief translator and person to figure out where we had to go and what forms needed to be filled out. If you have never done a border crossing by land, it is something that has to be experienced to be understood…at least in Central America. The buildings are not marked, there are no signs pointing the way or providing instructions (i.e. fill out this form), and it is dusty and hot. Unlike entering by air, there is no control over who is between you and the immigration official. There are swarms young men with official looking identification offering to help you get to the front of the line and telling you want to do for a “small fee”. Our passports had to be checked by at least five different officials at various points along the way. There are money changers and bus touts and old ladies selling food. There are dogs with pleading eyes, lines of tractor trailers getting sprayed with disinfectant, work crews building a new road and European 20-something backpackers with dreads and baggy pants looking equally confused. Interestingly, unlike entering Costa Rica by air, we did not see one other white family in the whole crossing process. We felt like intrepid travelers. Once we cleared Nicaraguan immigration, the stress was over as we were being picked up by a shuttle driver to take us to our destination in an air conditioned van.

The focus of our time in Nicaragua was learning Spanish and taking surfing lessons. We signed up for two hours of immersion Spanish each day and all made progress with our language skills. Eventually were able to have an introductory surfing lesson and all of us were able to stand (briefly) by the end of the lesson. Despite the threat of sting rays and sea urchins, we all had a blast and want to make an effort to get more lessons when we go back to Costa Rica. Kiteboarding lessons were fun, but at our age, learning a new “extreme sport” may not be the best idea. If we had gone through the learning curve 10 or 15 years ago, it would probably have been great, but we didn’t, so it is probably not something we will develop a passion for at this point. Surfing, however, was an absolute hoot, does not involve nearly as much gear and does not pose a substantial threat to personal safety. It was definitely something we can all see doing together. The beaches of Nicaragua are phenomenal and the whole place was an adventure. We wrapped up our time in Nicaragua in the city of Granada, one of the best-preserved colonial cities in Central America. Granada itself is beautiful with wonderful food and churches and deserves a longer look. Unfortunately we did not have much time, but it did whet our appetite for a return visit at some point.

After completing the same border crossing process in reverse (much easier the second time when you know which buildings are which and what you need to do at each), we’re back in Costa Rica now and up high (about 4500 feet) in the cloud forest at Monteverde. We have a little tree house just a couple kilometers from the biggest reserve and have had a blast. Monteverde is known for canopy tours, wildlife, and waterfalls. We have been busy every day doing something adventurous (ziplining, wildlife hike, coffee/cane sugar/chocolate production tour, etc.) and getting some school work done. We are definitely settling in to the process of travel and getting our “travel legs”.

One question we are often asked is which country do we prefer – Costa Rica or Nicaragua? Honestly, Costa Rica is a lovely vacation destination, but not much of an adventure. It is fun, but rather bland. You can find pancakes, hamburgers, and chicken tenders on every menu. Nicaragua is definitely an adventure, but is still an easy adventure. While it has a substantial tourist infrastructure, Nicaragua has not sold out to American tastes yet and retains a bit of character.

Although the areas we have been to in both areas are culturally similar, the differences are still striking. Everything that Costa Rica is, Nicaragua is not. Everything that Nicaragua is, Costa Rica is not. I am very glad to have experienced both. Costa Rica is very orderly (people follow traffic signals), safety conscious (everyone wears seat belts and helmets), and the dogs are fat. In Nicaragua, we didn’t see anyone using a helmet or seat belts (we had to jerry rig our Jeep so that we would not become projectiles), a bit chaotic (cars parked willy-nilly on the street) , and the dogs were very skinny. Nicaragua was genuinely welcoming and English was the exception. In Costa Rica, people seem to be nice to you because it is part of their livelihood and English is relatively common. Nicaragua was an adventure, a bit wild, and Costa Rica is very interesting but well-trod. In Costa Rica, someone comes to your house/hotel in a spotlessly clean van to pick you up, in Nicaragua you have to make your own way to where you want to go. Costa Rica relies on international volunteers to protect turtle nesting sites while in Nicaragua the same types of sites are patrolled by the National Army (complete with automatic weapons). Nicaragua is very poor while Costa Rica is quite wealthy by comparison. Nicaragua has a developing government where Costa Rica has a relatively stable and competent governmental system. For being so close together, they are very different. Now that we have our travel legs, if I had to choose only one location, I would say that Nicaragua is more interesting.

August 16, 2013
Stock Photos of Olive Ridleys

Since we could use flash photography last night, the lights may disorient the turtles, I wanted to share a few pictures from the internet. Colburn

August 3, 2013
Our Evening with Olive Ridley Sea Turtles

Our Evening with Olive Ridley Sea Turtles

Lu, Mac, Deb and I joined a conservation tour trip out to witness female Olive Ridleys coming to shore to their place of birth and dig their nest, and lay their eggs. It was a late night: vivid stars, shooting stars, Milky Way. The Nicaraguan military protect these beaches from poachers with armed personnel on the beach throughout the night. Eggs are extremely valuable on the black market. Costa Rica, which has no standing military, a whole separate topic, relies on volunteers to patrol nesting beaches. The group we joined was very controlled and monitored. We probably saw 10-12 turtles in some stage of laying their eggs. We left at midnight and the arrivals of turtles seemed to just get started. We named one of the turtles Mirtle. It was amazing to witness the female head from or back to the ocean. Our group was small – mostly French and American – two other families in addition to ours. This species of turtle has been engaged in this annual nesting process for 185 million years. The females return to the exact beach where they were born. One in a 1000 hatchlings make it to adulthood. As a family, this was a fabulous evening. Personally, this experience fulfills a lifetime dream.

August 3, 2013
Things the Kids Won’t Write About in Their Blogs
Eco – an intact brindled pit bull

In no particular order, some interesting things that the kids have said since leaving –
- “I’m excited to take Spanish lessons so that I won’t be locked out of the Spanish-speaking world….but I guess that is how Spanish-speaking people feel about the English speaking world.” Mac – after a week in Costa Rica.
- “If it was up to me, I would give $1,000 to each family so that they could have a safe place to live and all of the basic things they need.” Lucia – while driving through the countryside.
- “I thought that slavery ended after the Civil War?” – Mac on Cape Cod after observing that all of the people working in the front of the restaurants are white and all of the people working in the kitchens are black.
- “Now I know why you wanted to take us on this trip – so we could see just how much stuff we have that other people don’t.” Lucia.
- Similarly, Mac said, “You guys sure know how to spend our wealth well” – when I asked him what he meant, he followed up “By taking us on this trip so we can see what the rest of the world is like.”
- “What is that sticking out down below his tail?” both kids regarding testicles on a dog….apparently they have never seen an intact male before. They know what testicles are, but have never seen them on a dog because all the ones we have had are neutered.
This is stuff that you couldn’t possibly script. Now the question is do they become numb to it after a while?

Also, as a clarification about the “I thought slavery ended” – the reality is that Cape Cod experiences a huge influx of tourists during the summer and have to hire foreign workers to meet the need. Many of these workers come from the Caribbean Islands. This, of course, brought up a discussion about guest workers and immigration policy with an 8 year old….
August 3, 2013
The Last Good Byes

The first few legs of our journey have been visiting Colburn’s family and saying more good byes.   At this point, quite frankly, we have tired of saying good bye. It has become a protracted version of “death by 1000 cuts”.   Our first good bye was to Deb’s sister back at the end of April (before she and Roland headed out on their adventure to Alaska for the summer), then to our friends and colleagues in Reno, and then leaving Moxie and the Lowells, and finally Colburn’s family. Now, three months later, we have finally said the last “good bye”. Interestingly, the first ones were the most difficult. We have become accustomed to feeling somewhat melancholy when we drive away.   We each do our own thing to process our feelings (watch the scenery go by, listen to music, play on the iPad) then seem to regroup an hour or so later and get on with it. And, although sad to have to say good bye, we have had an absolute blast at each place!

We began this section of good byes with 10 days at the family camp on Big Moose Lake in upstate New York with Grandpa and Grandma Donna. We have spent time there most every summer since Colburn and I first started dating and it seems that there is something new there each year. For the first time, we were able to be there for the 4th of July festivities – and ,wow, what an event that is. Despite being a relatively small community in a rural area, they know how to have a fireworks show! A couple families (not professionals, just folks who spend summers there) put together a fireworks show of amazing quality. All the folks on the lake come out on their boats, barges, and floating docks and watch from the water. We had arrived on the early side so had a front row parking spot.   We all felt as if we were in the fireworks show, not just watching it. Amazing!

This year also was special because Lucia learned to water ski and Mac found a passion for getting thrown off of the inner tube. Having cautious children, we were proud of them both for their accomplishments. Grandpa surprised the kids by renting a giant water trampoline with a slide that provided hours of fun! Unfortunately, most of our time on the trampoline was when it was raining, so we don’t have any pictures, but we definitely have the memories! Thanks for a great week Grandpa and Grandma Donna!

After the Camp, we were off for the fourth annual week at Cape Cod with Granny and Jean as well as Richard (Colburn’s brother and his family and Caroline (Colburn’s sister) and her family. The summer rendezvous at the Camp and Cape have truly become a tradition and anchor for this side of the family. The Latin-American Shindell’s brought their 11 year old cousin, Juana, this year which was great fun for Lucia. She now has a friend in Buenos Aires whom we will visit in November.   Our days were spent swimming in the kettle ponds, playing in the ocean surf and eating our fill of seafood. Lucia has floored us with her love of seafood – one night when we were out for dinner, she wanted to order a dozen raw oysters and a steamed lobster. We had to say, “you know honey, that’s a little too much for a 10 year old.” She ended up with a half dozen oysters and grilled lobster tail…not much better.   Mac has also committed to trying new things – including raw oysters and raw sushi. The sushi was a winner, but he said, “I think I will pass on the oysters next time.”

Now we are in Costa Rica and adapting to our new life on the road now that we have said our last good byes.

July 30, 2013
Mac’s First Post

Mac’s First Post – we’re just getting his blog set up so this one is posted many places.

Road School – Colburn's Blog

We are in Costa Rica. It is our third day. We have seen three types of monkeys: Central American Spider, Howler, White-faced Capuchin. For birds, we saw wild and caged parakeets, Brown-footed Boobies, The Magnificent Frigate Bird, Black Vulture, Brown Pelican, Slaty-tailed Trogon, White-throated Magpie-jay, peacock and a Great Curassow. I hope to see a Toucan, Scarlet Macaw, and the Resplendent Quetzal. We have seen reptiles, including Litter Skinks (I caught two of them), Central American Whiptails, and I caught a Central American Smooth Gecko. Of course, I let them go. I saw a Ctenosaur, which has a cool name. It’s also called a Black Iguana. I saw a small bird on the beach and I think it is called a Sanderling.

Later I will post about arthropods, especially crabs and Parasol Ants. Dad helped me type this and soon I will do the typing myself.

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July 28, 2013