Interconnection

As I was doing the prep work for our dinner tonight - I like preparing our food ahead of time as much as I can - it occurred to me that much of our dinner was due to our connections here in Costa Rica.

Tonight we are having lentils with sausage and kale. The jalapeño sausages are made by Marcial Artavia, Sperone Italian Sausage, here in Atenas. He sells them at our feria every Friday.

The kale was given to me by our friend and neighbor, Sharon (owner of the famed dog Diogi). Sharon also gave us a bag of lettuce and a yummy quiche which we had for dinner the other night. All bought at another feria (farmers' market).

The onions, garlic and carrot that go into this dish came from the markets in Atenas. So as I chop and cook, it is nice to know that so much of what we are eating here in Costa Rica is local.

Orchids

I've always been intrigued with orchid plants. I had a collection when we lived outside Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. When we decided to move to Costa Rica, I gave them all away.

Orchids in Costa Rica are very inexpensive to buy, compared to Canada. Plus, they are so easy to look after. They can stay outside all year around, they don't need greenhouses or special treatment.

I do have to watch out for fungus problems, but I have a spray for that.

Here are photos of one of my favorite orchid plants.

 

 

Two flower stems from one orchid, covered in these small flowers.

My "orchid tree". Convenient to have them in one place.

This isn't my entire collection. I have others on windowsills and hanging in other places.

 

June in Costa Rica

We are about a month and a half into the green (or rainy season). The mornings start out sunny and warm and I try to get my laundry done early and out on the line to dry. Everything has really greened up.

Today, we taxied into Atenas to have lunch with our friends Carol and Paul. We ate at Restaurante Antaño and, as usual, we had good food and good service.

Back home and now it is just a bit after 5:30 pm - we had rain earlier - now we are covered in cloud. Sounds from the neighborhood are muted.