Phila Airport Parking Vacations

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It began with Teddy Roosevelt and started at the Matterhorn. Today we call it eco tourism and what started as the germ of an idea on a cold, forlorn Swiss mountain now leads thousands of people each year to a tiny gem that Christopher Columbus named “Costa Rica” over 500 years ago.

About 20 years before he became one of America’s greatest presidents, Roosevelt, always the explorer, went to Europe to climb the famous Matterhorn Mountain in Switzerland. He was chagrined by what he encountered on the mountain or, more accurately, what he did not find.

The mountain was virtually barren. Where once there had been wilderness there were no longer goats, mountain sheep, bears, wolves, or other great animals.

Though “eco tourism” didn’t enter the language lexicon for nearly 100 more years, Theodore Roosevelt was the world’s first eco tourist and, I would say, the responsible for today’s eco tourism.

How do Roosevelt and the Matterhorn relate to Costa Rica eco tourism? Perhaps more than you might imagine. From his observations at the Matterhorn, Roosevelt realized that unless vast tracts of land were set aside, relentless exploitation would ultimately lead to disaster. So, when he became President and, despite the powerful robber barons and vested interests who fought him, he was the first to set aside wilderness and parks—an incredible 230,000,000 acres—an extraordinary achievement for America and singular accomplishment for the world.

Roosevelt’s bold vision led to an extraordinary discovery: common citizens would gladly pay money to visit nature. Sustained use of land through eco tourism had important economic consequences, perhaps more valuable than exploitation in many cases—in America.

But, America’s experience was one thing. It was wealthy and developed. Costa Rica was, seemingly, very different. Here was a place that in 1519 its Spanish Governor called “the poorest and most miserable Spanish colony in all Americas.” Four and a half centuries later, now independent and free, most of its forests had been cut or burned to make farm land. Big (American) business dominated its primary product, bananas, and the country was almost completely dependent upon the export of bananas, coffee, and other agricultural products for its economic life. United Fruit Company controlled the banana market and its relations with Costa Rica were often stormy, sometimes icy. Then, in the early 1970s, prices for coffee collapsed during a glut of the product on the world market. The country’s future looked bleak.

With challenge comes opportunity for the bold and thoughtful and, in an apparently unlikely alliance, conservationists and business interests argued in favor of setting aside resources for sustainable, rather than exploitative, development. For whatever reason, the government agreed to this rather bold experiment and, in just three decades, has now set aside nearly 25% of the country for parks and preserves. Roosevelt, ever the visionary, would applaud if still here.

In the span of just 30 years, the results have been stunning. While most countries were burning and cutting their forests, Costa Rica was reforesting. Today, there are 20% more forests than just 25 years ago. Birds and mammals are returning to places where they haven’t been seen for a generation or more. Costa Rica has enthusiastically embraced sustained development, rejecting the siren’s call of Big Oil by refusing off shore drilling for oil. Indeed almost 100% of its electricity now comes from renewable, non-polluting hydro-electric power and it is embarking on wind turbines for additional generation. Researchers from Columbia and Yale researchers now categorize it in the top 5 of all environmentally sensitive countries on the globe.

Costa Rica tourism and eco tourism have skyrocketed and the country has vaulted into the #1 position on the Happiest Place in the World Index. Turns out that Columbus was prescient when he named this place “the rich coast” or “Costa Rica” and the Spanish governor who derided it as “the poorest and most miserable Spanish colony in Americas” was dead wrong. Somewhere, Roosevelt smiles in triumph.

To close, we need to revisit the Swiss Matterhorn, the impetus behind Roosevelt’s sudden clarity that parks and preserves were essential to saving wildlife and Costa Rica’s wise extension of that idea leading to today’s incredibly successful Costa Rica eco tourism. Consider the irony here. Costa Rica is often called the “Switzerland” of the tropics but it learned from Swiss failures. Ironically, Switzerland has learned nothing. Costa Rica’s mountains are today filled with life and eco tourism helps fuel its economy. One of every five species of plants and animals on earth are found there. Meanwhile, the magnificent Matterhorn remains silent because its life was exploited and destroyed, not cherished and preserved.

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Costa Rica is a very small Central American country bordered by Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the south. Many who visit find a tropical paradise. It got its name 600 years ago by Christopher Columbus who, when he landed along its Caribbean coast was so enraptured he named the place ‘Costa Rica’ or the ‘Rich Coast’.

In a part of the world often known best for its instability, Costa Rica is a proud, stable democracy and, along with Switzerland, only one of two countries in the world without a military. With an ever-improving tourism infrastructure and two international airports, it is a great place for a spectacular vacation. There is nearly an endless list of things to do and see in a country famous for its incredible diversity of plants and animals.

Costa Rica tourism is struggling due to the world’s economic problems. Still, a challenge always presents an opportunity and today is no exception. Now may be exactly the time to travel to Costa Rica. Airfares are down and you will find some great travel and accommodation bargains. To check out a few, simply Google ‘visitcostarica.com/crplus’ to go to the Costa Rica government’s official Institute of Tourism (ICT) website that has discount coupons but lots and lots of other hotels and resorts are offering special prices right now.

For many, Costa Rica is particularly famous for its plants and animals. Though tiny, only about the size of West Virginia, Costa Rica boasts one of every five species of plant and animal on the planet. There are more kinds of butterflies than on the entire African continent. Little Costa Rica has almost as many different kinds of birds as in the continental United States and only about 100 fewer species than in all of Europe. The diversity is simply staggering. You are going to find fascinating tropical rainforests, spectacular cloudforests, beautiful beaches and rugged coastlines along two tropical oceans. It even has a teeny, teeny park, just half the size of New York City, which National Geographic calls ‘the most biologically intense place’ on earth. Hundreds of kinds of birds, six species of wild cats (including the mighty jaguar and puma), reptiles, amphibians, and (yes!) insects galore in a staggering array of primary rainforest only 20 miles long and 8 miles wide.

Perhaps you would like to see a volcano. There are over 100 in this little country but only a handful are active. Arenal Volcano is the most active and with some frequency erupts with spectacular shows. Hot springs resorts have popped up nearby and lots of folks sit in the warm waters, tropical drinks in hand, and marvel at the nearby volcano. Just minutes away is Lake Arenal, Costa Rica’s largest lake, famed for its great freshwater fishing and world-class windsurfing. Or, just outside San Jose, nearby the international airport, nestled in the cloudforest, is Poas Volcano with the second largest volcanic crater on the planet. My advice is to visit this place early in the morning (before the clouds come in) and on a weekday (because it is packed with Costa Ricans on the weekend). And, by all means, drive to the top of mighty Irazu early in the morning. Only a few miles from San Jose, it is like no place else you’ll ever go. Why? Because, on a clear day, you can stand on an active volcano and see the Pacific and the Atlantic oceans at the same time! I love the romance of this place because, just a few months before he was killed, JFK flew into Costa Rica and was greeted with a spectacular eruptive salute. Two greats in awe of one another!

Do not forget Costa Rica’s Seven Wonders, chosen by Ticos themselves. Two great volcanoes: mighty Arenal Volcano and spectacular Poas Volcano near San Jose International. World famous for its ecotourism is Monteverde Cloudforest Reserve with its great plant and animal diversity—including its spectacular orchids! Hop a boat for a get-away to magnificent Cocos Island (300 miles off the coast), described as the “most beautiful island in the world” by Jacques Cousteau, a famous pirate island with millions of dollars of still-missing buried treasure, and the best large animal diving anywhere. The tallest mountain in Central America is called Mount Chirripo where you will hike from tropical forests to glacial lakes. Unknown to most folks is the Rio Celeste (Celestial River) where the river changes, literally and almost magically, from crystal clear to sky-blue in front of your eyes. And, for real nature lovers, there is remote Tortuguero National Park along the Caribbean coast, the world’s largest protected area for green sea turtles and waters teeming with great sportfish.

No vacation is complete without visiting several of its simply amazing beaches. You are going to find nearly 800 miles of beaches: white sand beaches, brown sand beaches, black sand beaches, even coral beaches. Along two oceans. Dozens have been awarded the famed ‘Blue Flag’ certificates meaning they are the best of the best ecologically. The north Pacific coast is increasingly developed with great resorts, hotels, and golf courses. Meanwhile, the Caribbean coast remains far more undeveloped while maintaining its particular Caribbean flavor. There are very popular beaches (particularly over Easter and Christmas) and virtually deserted beaches. To go from one to another is often just a few minutes’ drive.

In Costa Rica there are activities to suit just about everyone. While you can go in for the extreme sports, many people take part in swimming, cycling or sunbathing, all pastimes which are particular popular for tourists to Costa Rica. Costa Rica is also famous for having some of the best tropical golf courses in the world. And, if that is not enough, here are a few more things to do to keep you busy during the days: 1. Fish the deep sea for marlin (I recently fought a 450 pounder before releasing it), sailfish, huge tarpon, snook, and dozens of other varieties. 2. Surf! Don’t know how? Go to surf school. 3. Raft or kayak in some of the world’s best whitewater or leisurely raft a tropical river with the kids. 4. Sail or take a dinner cruise. 5. Windsurf at Lake Arenal, considered the second best place in the world. 6. Defy death and bungee jump into deep canyons or at night. 7. Take an ecotour 8. Zipline 80 feet up the air through tropical forests. 9. Become a bullfighter. But beware that in Costa Rica the bulls cannot be harmed, anybody can jump into the ring with these critters, and you can buy insurance just before you take your life into your hands. 10. Take a horseback ride in the mountains, along the beaches, or even across the entire country. 11. Take a hot air balloon ride or go hang gliding. 12. Become a canyoneer and rappel tropical waterfalls. 13. Take a train ride—in a genuine Swiss train to a genuine Swiss mountain hotel or from San Jose to the beach. 14. Visit a tiny park, Corcovado, only half the size of NYC but the most biologically intense place on earth. 15. Scuba dive or skin dive in a Caribbean marine park at the largest coral reef in the country. 16. Watch whales (Costa Rica has the world’s longest whale-watching season). Wonder at the sea turtles as they have nested since the days of dinosaurs. 17. Enjoy tropical gardens or tour plantations where the finest coffee in the world is grown. 18. Hike, bike, rent motorcycles or ATVs. 19. Take a walk on the wild-side into the crater of an active volcano. 20. Tour an African wildlife park. 21. Take a photography tour. 22. Go on a volunteer vacation. Enough ideas? I have more!

Night provides more attractions. Bars, restaurants, nightclubs (many are very adult in tone and tenor), gambling, and, of course, beautiful women. Costa Rica is world famous for its women of the night. For gays and lesbians, there are an increasing number of places to go and things to do as well.

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All our luggage and camera gear is packed in the van by 8 a.m. and we are on our way to our first destination, soon to become a real life adventure. We are on a photography tour so everyone is talking cameras and pictures. This is the first day, we are getting to know one another, and the level of excitement in the van is high looking forward to the tour.

We are on our way to Arenal, an active volcano in Costa Rica, but there are a few stops along the way. First, we stop in Sarchi, famous for its tropical furniture, where magnificent, brightly decorated ox carts are made in an eighty plus year old water powered factory. From there, we drive to the little mountain town of Zarcero where the focal point is the old wooden church with its much-photographed double row of topiaries leading to its entrance. You can fill your camera’s memory card just at these two places with the colours and patterns in Sarchi and the fantastic shapes of the topiaries in Zarcero.

The roads in Costa Rica are famous, not only for the magnificent land which they traverse but for their condition. Our driver, Luis, knows that we will encounter many potholes so he is cautious and as a result we are passed by most everything on two or four wheels. Many drivers here, from the ubiquitous taxistas to truck drivers, think they are Formula One drivers. Indeed, reportedly there is a bus driver whose passengers frequently find religion on his overland route.

After Sarchi and Zarcero we stop for lunch in La Fortuna and are now just a few miles from the lodge in Arenal. Upon leaving the main highway for the lodge we find ourselves traveling in, out, and around potholes. The rainy season ended about the beginning of December so many roads are still in very poor condition. Our road is unique because it was built out of crushed lava.

We round a curve and a come to a clearing at a river and there is Arenal Volcano! Most have never been face to face with a volcano before and it is truly an awesome sight to see, a perfectly shaped volcano.

The top of the cone is shrouded with little fluffy white clouds against a blue sky. It is picture perfect and we quickly stop and everyone piles out of the van attaching cameras to tripods, some of us wading into the river to capture an image from a different perspective and others shooting from the riverbanks.

Who is to say how dangerous being this close to an active volcano can be? Fortunately, Arenal is very predictable and today is closely monitored so there is a very low risk of a serious, catastrophic, unexpected eruption. Only 1 km away from the base of the volcano and 2 km to the top of the cone is the lodge where we stay and without a doubt any activity attracts the attention of everyone.

While unpacking and getting settled in, Arenal speaks. It is a great roar, smoke and gas billowing many hundreds of feet into the sky and the sound of the rocks tumbling down the slopes. After the eruption, the Mantled Howler monkeys are extremely vocal but we do not know if they are protesting the roar of the eruption or just answering back.

While sitting in the lodge dining room enjoying our dinner Arenal speaks again. Everyone had been told of the many photo opportunities in Costa Rica but who would imagine eating dinner and having something like this happen? And this was only our first day of the tour!

Most of us do not get much sleep for the first two nights. Instead, we find some comfortable chairs in the common area outside our rooms and attach cable releases to our cameras and put them on a tripod. From past experiences I decide to use an 80-200mm lens set at 80mm and an aperture of f8, the camera shutter set at “B” for time exposure.

With the activity of the small flare-ups at the cone and the lava flowing down the opposite side I think a time exposure of more than twenty minutes will produce an ugly yellow blob of light, so if there had been no eruptions after this length of time I will close the shutter and start another exposure. Using a cable release makes these exposures very easy and Arenal puts on quite a display while we are there.

What a magnificent first day of the tour in Costa Rica. Eight more days of photography to go and everyone is anxiously looking forward to what exciting adventure tomorrow will bring.

Many in the general public, who have always taken a traditional recreation tourism vacation, will not be very familiar with the concept of ecotourism. But this “new” idea has actually been around since the 1980s.

Some would say that the concept is actually older than this, beginning with the first traveler who forsook a pleasure trip for one that involved education and gathering of information. But in the past few years, the idea has gained significant momentum, until the term “ecotourism” became more widely recognized and accepted.

The complete story of ecotourism, from its roots as an idea to its current status as a viable industry, would take a volume. (Maybe someone will write a book about it.) The interesting tale of environmentally and culturally sensitive travel covers several years and a great deal of trial and error along the way.

In the latter part of the ’80s, ecotourism was looked on by some as no more than a novelty. Most would not have projected the growth of this concept into a profitable industry. At first, the “movement” involved a few entrepreneurs who saw a chance to make some money by organizing events and trips for those who could pay. But these adventurous businessmen soon realized that travelers wanted something more. The tourists wanted to experience nature in its unspoiled state and they wanted to visit remote destinations that had not been on tour itineraries before.

Some enterprising individuals bought land or leased property, then provided facilities they called eco-lodges, in which the accommodations were quite simple and kept the visitor close to nature. These were the humble beginnings of ecotourism.

In the decade of the 1990s, the idea of profiting from ecotourism moved beyond individual entrepreneurs to community leaders and government officials on the regional and state level. This awareness increased the number of eco-lodges, as ecotourism companies went to work in remote locations around the globe. It is at this point, according to many industry watchers, that the true character of ecotourism began to emerge. Ecotourism became a defined entity in the 1990s. Just before the turn of the century, communities of varying sizes realized that they could be instrumental in helping local people start projects that would attract tourists and improve conditions at the same time. These towns and cities began to work with individuals to create projects and identify places that would be suitable as an ecotourism destination. Some of these first projects were as simple as restoring a section of land or planting trees.

Currently, the concept of ecotourism operates under some global guidelines, though there are numerous variations to the policies followed in local projects. Fortunately, the definition of “ecotourism” has been accepted by most in the field, so that some boundaries are set for future projects and destinations. Some see the task as a race to identify wildlife, indigenous cultures and land areas that must be included in the ecotourism industry. Others feel that the various local and regional governments, with help from private groups, can select sites much better than a global organization. If there is a sense of urgency, it is because there is a small number of committed individuals for such a large job.