Wednesday, February 8, 2012


We have found our perfect winter vacation spot....Culebra!  The vacationers seem almost as laid back as the locals:  no fancy "resort wear" or fancy jewelry, mostly shorts and teeshirts and walking sandals, even for dinner.  The homes and businesses are basic small Caribbean/Mexican/Central American concrete buildings, the area looks unkempt, the people are helpful and gracious and most speak some English, many are fluent. The weather is perfect; we wear shorts during the day and usually evening, unless we're outside in a breeze, in which case I grab sweater. Each day there has been a shower lasting about 5 minutes, we don't even bother to look for cover. 
Sunrise from our deck.
Breakfast for us has been:  day 1, French toast in a panaderia run by an American ex-pat, today breakfast in a panaderia that made me an excellent latte when I asked for café con leche, tomorrow we're breakfasting on a deck over the ocean where giant tarpin swim up looking for scraps.  All meals thus far have been super.  My diet starts the instant I'm back in Minnesota!


There is a U.S. Fish & Wildlife station on Culebra, which we visited yesterday.  They help coordinate a program that uses volunteers to record giant sea turtles laying eggs. I thought it might be fun to volunteer....until I found out the volunteer recorders start at 6:30 pm and stay out until dawn.  I'm just too old for such nonsense.  Here are photos of their office, logo, and one of several boats they use. Culebra is home to two endangered species of sea turtles (the largest turtles on earth), the Leather Back and Hawkbill, and two proposed for the list, the Loggerhead and Green sea turtles.
Yesterday we snorkeled in Tamarindo Bay, and what an experience!  Dave always scouts out the underwater sights first, and he was excited to see a giant sea turtle feeding on grass on the bottom. Dave swears he could see the turtle take bites of grass and chew!  Today we went back to Tamarindo.  I snorkeled a bit yesterday, but got panicky when I saw how far I was from shore, so sent Dave out alone - with lots of other people around.  He saw 20+ sea turtles, manta (or sting) rays, sea urchins, banded jawfish, angel fish, trumpet fish and other fish we don't know the names of.  He was absolutely thrilled with the snorkeling.  We're going back for more tomorrow.  Dave took pics with our disposable underwater camera, once we get those developed I'll add them to the blog.  
From the road this looks like a hill, but it is a tree covered with vines.

This is the road to Tamarindo Beach: count the potholes!!! Who says potholes are caused by the freeze, thaw cycle???? No freezing here.

 We love our Casa SuMarco, but might consider a resort/hotel next time, to try something different.  Directions to SuMarco given to us by a local:  take Hwy 250, when you pass the cement mixer for sale on the right, don't turn at that corner.  Then you'll pass a fire hydrant on the right, turn at that corner, go to the end of the block, it's the blue house on the corner.  Who needs a street address?  This is the view from our road.

Culebra has green leafy areas contrasted by dry areas:
cacti and mangroves 





Here are shots of the school and the playground.





Most of the homes are in the same pastel rainbow as the public buildings, very Caribbean looking.  Tomorrow I hope to get a good photo of Flamenco Bay, one of the top 10 beautiful beaches in the world, then I might wrap up photos until we get our underwater shots.

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