A New Orchid Species Discovered at Bosque De Paz Biological Reserve in Costa Rica

Adam P Karremans and Melania Muñoz García are proud to announce the discovery and classification of Pleurothallis silvae-pacis, a new orchid species entirely new to science, that has been found at the Bosque de Paz Private Biological Reserve, in Costa Rica.

Adam Karremans is a researcher at Lankester Botanical Gardens, University of Costa Rica, and Melania Muñoz García is the biologist in charge of Bosque de Paz Orchid Project since 2004.

Adam first became aware of the find on a trip to Bosque de Paz in 2008. “I had never seen such a species before, and tried to give it a name. For some time I had misidentified it as Pleurothallis angusta. But then, with the ongoing research on the whole Pleurothallidinae subtribe (to which this species belongs), the case was reviewed in 2010. After careful comparison, which is done comparing flowers and plants of the type material,  illustrations, descriptions and wild collected plants of P. angusta and other close relatives, we came to the conclusion that this was a different species which had no name. The species was quite hard to place within the Pleurothallis genus because of its intermediate features. In any case Melania and I wrote an article publishing this relatively beautiful and strange new species in 2011. I am at the moment also extracting DNA from it just to be sure of its placement.”

Their findings were published in The Orchid Review in November, 2011.
Click to read: Karremans & Muñoz 2011 The Orchid Review 119(1295) 155-159 

The Orchid Review is the oldest and most influential orchid magazine in the world and essential reading for anyone with a passion for orchids. It is more than 100 years old and is the orchid journal of the Royal Horticultural Society. The Orchid Review, edited by Sarah Brooks, is published four times a year and has been chosen as the official journal of the European Orchid Council.  The new orchid species is in the Bosque de Paz Orchid Garden now for all to see.

Many bird watchers and orchid enthusiasts have visited Bosque de Paz over the years.One of them, Dr. Stephen Kirby, arrived in for the first time in 1996. Dr. Kirby began visiting Bosque de Paz, first as a birder, and then later with a budding interest in wild orchids. He now is an expert that gives international conferences about his research in orchids at Bosque de Paz. He began supporting and coordinating the orchid project in 2004, and the Bosque de Paz Orchid Garden is named after him.

Research Center Stereoscope Photo

His love of this unique and pristine vast private reserve, and its philanthropic owners, inspired him to reveal his impressions to others in the article below. Bosque de Paz is truly the old and natural Costa Rica that everyone should experience.

Bosque de Paz Biological Reserve: Elegant Lodging and Dining in an Accessible Cloud-Forest Natural Wonderland
By Dr. Stephen Kirby

Bosque de Paz means “Forest of Peace” in Spanish. For a visitor, there can be no more peaceful place on Earth than Bosque de Paz Reserve, sitting under the Terrace in a late-afternoon downpour, rain tapping on its metal roof and dripping from the trees, and the sound of water rushing down the valley. In the early morning as the sun first touches the forest and mists rise from its warmth, the sounds of howler monkeys and the squeaky-grating calls of hummingbirds in aerial combat greet the early risers. Adding to these daytime visual experiences, flashing fireflies grace the evenings, the crisp night air is often filled with perfume of night-scented flowers and, on clear nights, the glow of the moon and brilliant Milky Way light the footpaths near the Lodge.

This year marks a dozen years since Bosque de Paz Cloud Forest Reserve and twelve-room Lodge and Dining Room for the guests, began serving domestic and international eco-tourists. During those twelve years, the remarkable diversity of wildlife and plants, and the splendid forest access along the 22-km system of trails in this cloud forest, the Reserve have made it a favorite of visitors and nature guides who return again and again to explore its fascinating trails and pristine waterways.

Owners Vanessa & Federico

The Reserve started in the 1980’s when the owners, the Federico González-Pinto family, quietly began buying mixed forest and deforested land that had been used for grazing. The 1000-hectare (2500-acre) property is now an evolving mixed forest, some primary, others mature reforested, others being reforested. The aims of the Reserve are to promote continued forest conservation and forest restoration, to provide a corridor for animal migration between the Juan Castro Blanco and Poás Volcano National Parks, and to provide sustained employment for local residents, many of whom live in nearby the nearby Bajos del Toro Amarillo.

At 1500 to 2200 meters elevation on the Caribbean slope of the Central Volcanic Mountain Range in the upper Rio Toro Valley, the Reserve spans the boundary between middle- and upper-elevation cloud-forest environments. This crossroad of tropical life results in an exceptional diversity of plants and animals. Birding guides especially value the more than 370 bird species of birds that have been identified at the Reserve, more than one third of the species found in all Costa Rica. These include examples of many species of Costa Rica’s most spectacular, rare, or hard-to-find species, such as the Resplendent Quetzal, the Scaled Antpitta, the Emerald Toucanet, the Three-Wattled Bellbird, the Ornate Hawk-Eagle, the Zeledonia, the Black-faced Solitaire, the Golden-browed Chlorophonia, and the elusive Silvery-fronted Tapaculo. Especially appealing are the 27 species of hummingbirds that visit the Reserve.

Leading orchid scientists and orchid enthusiasts have also marveled at the hundreds of species of orchid found at Bosque de Paz. An orchid garden was created near the Lodge about ten years ago, with plants relocated from fallen trees and branches along the trails and now it boasts more than 215 verified orchid species.

Bosque de Paz Waterfall

With all of these visual delights from nature, the Reserve is a photographer’s and artist’s paradise. The place spans the range of light from the mists of early morning and late afternoon to the brilliant sunlight of midday. Photographs and paintings from nature grace many of the walls of the Lodge, Dining Room, and Assembly Building.

Just a two short hours drive from San José and the Juan Santamaría International Airport, the Reserve is very easily accesable. Across the valley is the northwest slope of Poás Volcano. Its central location permits day-trip tours to OTS La Selva, the Sarapiqui River, Poás Volcano, Arenal Volcano, the Caño Negro Wildlife Sanctuary, and Carara National Park. Visitors often comment that the typically mild daytime temperatures of 15 to 25 °C (60 to 80) are a welcome relief from the tropical heat of lowland Costa Rica.

Visiting this heaven from modern life is definitely not roughing it. Splendid meals are served that are fusions of traditional Costa Rican cooking, local fresh ingredients, and old-world cuisine. The comfortable lodging rooms were built from local materials by local artisans and may be described as “rustic elegant”. Service is impeccable and both English and Spanish are spoken. This is also a great place to meet like-minded travelers of the world and appreciators of nature, sharing their world experiences and the delights of the Reserve. The thousands of guests who have visited Bosque de Paz over the years are its best advertisement through enthusiastic word of mouth.

Getting there and contacting Bosque de Paz: All-season access from San José is along the Pan American Highway and from Naranjo along paved roads through the towns of Zarcero, Palmira, and Pueblo Nuevo. Transportation by van may be booked through the Reserve. There is also bus service from San José to Zarcero and a taxi may be taken from there to the Reserve.

Reservations are required, even for day tours, and may be completed online at www.bosquedepaz.com or by e-mail at reservaciones@bosquedepaz.com An on-site nature guide can be hired who enriches any hike on the extensive system of trails. Small meetings of up to 24 people without the distractions of the outside world, may be accommodated in the comfortable and attractive Assembly Building.

More pictures of orchids at Bosque de Paz

 

 

 

 

 

 

Theatrical Production Experience Aids Costa Rican Wedding Planner

Randy Gritz knows all about planning tropical weddings, and she should, as she has designed and organized over 200 of them in the past seven years! Originally from Philadelphia, Randy has made Costa Rica home for the last 20 years. She speaks fluent Spanish, has an extensive knowledge of the country and the people, which helps her successfully navigate the often unpredictable course of planning the perfect wedding ceremony and reception.

“Planning a wedding is like mounting a theatrical production,” says Randy. For years she has been an active member, producer and stage manager for The Little Theatre Group of Costa Rica. Founded in 1949 by Bert Williams, the Little Theatre Group is the oldest continuously running English-language theatre in Central or South America. A dedicated wedding professional and member of the theater group, she is always aware that this very special day is one that the happy couple and their family will remember for the rest of their lives, and therefore, must be perfect in every detail. “Each wedding has a different script and budget, and just like before the opening night of a play, a wedding requires careful direction and detailed planning,” states Randy.

“For Act 1,” Randy laughs, “no auditions are held as the leading, romantic roles are already cast! The bride and groom will be waiting in the wings after listening to my suggestions about designing how they want to play their parts. Every wedding ceremony is personalized.”

“The set designer is Costa Rica, which offers stunning backdrops of glorious beaches with spectacular sunsets, verdant green rainforests, misty mountains or a pyrotechnic display, sometimes laid-on by Arenal Volcano. Set decorations play an important part and vary from wedding to wedding.”

Over the years, Randy has built-up an extensive repertoire with professionals in the events industry. Whether you want roses, vividly colored tropical flowers or orchids, she can provide whatever your heart desires however strange your whim. Wildlife is not guaranteed, but monkeys and parrots often appear to add to the tropical ambience and décor.

“Act 2 – The rest of the cast arrives and photographers, hairdressers and make-up artists are there for the bidding. All is made ready for the perfect wedding. Then, the nuptial ceremony begins and the happy couple exchange vows. Not to worry, as all the legal requirements have been taken care of by me,” affirms Randy.

“Act 3 – The wedding feast has been carefully chosen to delight all palates, whether you want a barbecue, a Vegan menu, a 3-tier wedding cake or simple cupcakes. I’ve done banquets from 4 to 104. The celebration continues until the final curtain with applause all around and a standing ovation.”

Randy says with a smile, “I’m a romantic at heart, and I really love what I do. Each wedding is different; from helping plan an elopement to a lavish affair in a four-star hotel. This is what makes it such a challenge, just like the unique planning for each play with the Theater Group.”

Randy has coordinated Jewish, Persian, Indian and Spiritual marriages as well as many traditional ceremonies in a variety of locations all over Costa Rica, and thrives on planning the perfect wedding. “Celebrations Costa Rica is ready, willing and able to help you make your day, the happiest and most memorable one of a lifetime,” says Randy.  ”The show must go on, and with my experience with theater and over 200 wedding, the show will go on perfectly.” For more information on planing the perfect wedding, go to www.celebrationscostarica.com.

Little Theater Group "Laughter" Play

Related topics:

Little Theatre Group’s latest delivers ‘Laughter’
Little Theatre Group to open new year with ‘Steel Magnolias’
Theater group brings dreams to stage

Global Warming and Costa Rica – A Refuge from the Storm?

The World is facing one of the greatest challenges that humanity has ever endured in the modern age – global warming. Yes, we’ve all heard some say in the past that it’s junk science, but now, the question isn’t is there global warming or not, but whether it is caused by man, or just nature going through cycles. It really doesn’t matter at this point, as it is coming upon us with the inertia of a heavy flywheel.

Often I’ve heard people say, “How can we stop it; reverse it?” For me, I am of the opinion it is beyond a quick fix at this point, and what we humans must do is ask, “How we can best survive the storm at this approaching, late date?”

In many ways, Costa Rica will be one of the least effected countries in the World because of its geographical location as global warming shows its ugly face. Obviously, Costa Rica will see a lot of changes, but many experts are predicting that the geography of Costa Rica will protect it from many of the more catastrophic changes expected around the world as global warming sets in.

South America, countries like Bolivia, Peru, and Brazil are likely to witness more of a beating from stronger El Niño and La Niña, as ocean current temperatures change. Central America, starting north of Costa Rica, will likely take stronger beatings from hurricanes and tropical storms.

Take a look at the map of South America and realize the northern tip of the continent is north of Costa Rica, hurricanes move from east to west and clockwise, thus sparing Costa Rica of the problems that will plague Nicaragua, Honduras, Mexico etc.. Obviously islands like Cuba, Jamaica and the Caymans will be places of deep concern. If the predicted rise in sea levels takes place, you can expect much of Florida’s coast to be under water, along with many parts of northern Europe’s coastal towns as well.

The inland mountains of Costa Rica and the vast coastline will be the two major factors protecting Costa Rica from the damage of global warming. One of the major reasons is that Costa Rica already has such extreme variations in climates, with hundreds of micro-climates covering Costa Rica, so changes will vary from zone to zone.

Costa Rica is divided into two parts, the Central Valley with its high elevations offering a spring like climate, to the low lying beach areas. The Central Valley could well be one of the safest places in the world to be during these future changes.

The fact that Costa Rica is no more than 100 miles from the ocean at any point assures us that the precipitation from the lower coast lines will maintain the necessary wetness, thus allowing the heating up and cooling down at a slower pace, unlike large land masses. This phenomenon will insure Costa Rica of milder climate changes. The Central Valley will feel the least of the changes to come.

Water will definitely become an issue worldwide. However, Costa Rica’s fresh water supply should be the least affected with the surrounding oceans, geographical location and precipitation, it will continue to receive the necessary rains to maintain the fresh water supplies.

Costa Rica will be one of the safest countries in the world to reside in, especially in Latin America, to weather the approaching storms of global warming.

Author’s opinion by Brad Butler – Long time resident of Costa Rica and owner of Emerald Forest Properties Real Estate

More about Global Warming in Costa Rica

From SCUBA Diver & PADI Instructor to Eco Hotel Owner in Drake Bay

Rick Lane: Co-owner of the Pirate Cove Hotel and PADI Resort

How did you happen to come to Costa Rica and become a eco-hotel owner?

“Well, twenty years ago, I visited Drake Bay and enjoyed some great scuba diving at Isla del Cano. It was love at first sight. This isolated and beautiful home to deserted beaches and pristine rain forests is a natural paradise! It was hard to reach and far from normal tourist routes, but that just increased its allure. I vowed to return.”

 There was nothing here at the time, so how did you come to build a hotel?

“On a return visit, I became friends with a Swiss couple living in the area and we decided to build a small beach hotel for scuba divers and those who wanted to experience the awesome beauty of Corcovado National Park but who didn’t necessarily want to travel rough and sleep in the mud, like I had to on my first trip! We decided to call our hotel ‘Pirate Cove’, as a sort of back-handed compliment to Sir Francis Drake, who discovered Drake Bay.”  

At that time, things were really primitive, with unpaved roads and no electricity?

“Absolutely!  But now, the road from Manuel Antonio to Dominical makes the trek much easier, and we have electricity, phone lines, GSM and 3G service now.  Pirate Cove is an intimate place in the rain forest right at the edge of a very long deserted beach. The bungalows are the most popular with our guests, and all have private bathrooms with hot water showers and private terraces overlooking the beach. We also now have three rooms on the second floor of the main building, which have air conditioning.”

Are you an all inclusive hotel, as aren’t there few restaurants?

“There are no restaurants close to the hotels down here, so prices include all meals.  ‘All inclusive’ generally means alcoholic beverages are included, which we don’t, but we do have an honor bar.  Our guests rate our food as excellent, we use local produce, much of it organic, fresh caught fish and often homemade bread.”

Since you are in a more remote, but pristine area, what type of guests do you attract?

“SCUBA divers and true nature lovers!  Most guests stay between 3 and 7 days to experience and relax. The beach is safe with no dangerous tides and we provide kayaks  at no extra charge. The two most popular tours are Corcovado National Park and Isla del Cano, and during the 45 minute boat rides, whales and dolphin are often seen. Isla del Cano is the home to world class scuba diving and snorkeling. Large pelagic and colorful reef creatures abound below the surface.  For horseback riders, Susanne keeps the most beautiful and well trained horses and you can ride along the beach and into the rain forests.”

“ This is the true, old Costa Rican, Pura Vida!  If you’re looking for discos, night life and casinos, city views from behind glass windows, don’t come here.  But if you’re looking for SCUBA diving and nature, then you’ll be in paradise – guaranteed!”

Pirate Cove in Drake Bay is  working towards “Bandera Azul”, the Blue Flag Award for beaches in Costa Rica, and  in the  final stage of becoming verified as an ecological hotel by The Rain Forest Alliance.  For more information, visit their websites:Pirate Cove Hotel and Cano Divers PADI Resort.

New – Guided Dental Implant Surgery in Costa Rica

What is Guided Dental Implant Surgery?

Guided dental implant surgery is a computer-guided technology that utilizes digital x-rays enhanced with special software to allow the dental surgeon to see every angle and plan an exact procedure for placing dental implants within the patient’s mouth.

Using the guided implant surgery process, dental surgeons create a precise surgery plan, locating the optimal locations to make incisions and determine the best path to the implant area.  Because this process allows surgeons to see the human mouth in real-time 3D, they can avoid “hard-to-detect” problem areas, minimizing patient pain, surgery and recovery time.

Dr. Julian Conejo

“Colina Dental is the first dental clinic in Costa Rica to invest in this cutting-edge dental equipment to give our patients the most efficient, pain-free dental implant services available,” says Dr. Julian Conejo, dental implant specialist with Colina Dental.

“This process minimizes surgery time, dramatically reduces pain, and helps our patients heal faster than ever before.   With some patients, we have been able to provide a full set of teeth in one day, which was unheard of before this procedure.”

Risk is present with any kind of surgery.  However, new guided dental surgery technologies allow surgeons to plan solutions in advance of possible complications and help remove many of the uncertainties and risks associated with dental implant procedures.

Dr. Luciano Retana

Dr. Luciano Retana, a dental implant specialist with Colina Dental, is confident that guided surgery technology will make dental implant surgeries easier, faster and less painful for patients.  “This incredible technology allows us to see in real-time 3D, exactly what is happening inside our patient’s mouths,” says Dr. Retana.  “Because we can work more efficiently and with less invasive procedures, many procedures are completed within 3 to 6 hours, which allows our patients to leave our offices, often with a complete, great-looking smile.”

The “All on Four Procedure”

A new procedure also allows Colina dentists to provide a complete set of new teeth using only four implants.  This process is known as the “All on Four” procedure.  With the “All on Four” procedure, patients receive four implants and a complete set of new teeth that are affixed to the four new implants.

About the Guided Dental Implant Surgery Process

New dental implants require from 3-12 months to “connect” to the bone that supports them, by naturally bonding the implant with the jaw bone structure.  Once the implants have healed and are fully connected to the jaw bone, the additional new teeth are adjoined to the implants.

Since drilling into the jaw bone is necessary, Colina Dental’s computer-guided techniques ensure that their dental surgeons can see exactly where they need to place the implant.  Implant procedures performed without computer-guided technology have a greater risk of error, which can result in increased surgery time, increased pain and less effective results

A Step by Step Guide to Computer-Guided Dental Implants

1. The Dental Exam

Each patient receives a comprehensive dental exam and an inspection of complete oral health.

2. CT Scan

Once the dental exam is complete,  a 3-dimensional x-ray of the entire mouth and jaw is taken to use in planning the implant procedure.

3. Treatment Plan Development

The dental implant surgeon discusses with the patient his particular goals, and prepares a custom treatment plan.

4. Dental Impression & Model Development

To assist us in the surgery and implant process, an impression of the teeth is taken.  If the patient has dentures, an impression of his gums is taken to help understand the natural contours of his mouth and gums.

5. Surgical Guide Fabrication

Using the model of your mouth and the CT scan, the computer-based fabrication equipment will create a custom guided dental implant surgery template to map out the exact location of each implant, and to help the dental surgeon place the implants with absolute precision.

6. Guided Dental Implant Surgery Procedure

When the custom mapping and planning are complete, the dental surgeon will place the implants.   If possible, temporary teeth are secured to the new implants, allowing the patient to leave the office with a full smile.   Permanent teeth will be custom made by Colina Dental’s professional lab technician team, which is on site.

7. Placement of Permanent Teeth

When the time is right, the temporary teeth will be removed, and the new permanent teeth will be secured to the implants.

Because of the precision of guided dental implant surgery, and the reduction of complications, the cost of the dental implant procedure can result in substantial savings for the patient over the conventional implant procedures.

For more information on this new technique, now available in Costa Rica, contact:

Colina Dental

Email: info@colinadental.com

US Telephone: 305-921-9667

Costa Rica Telephone: 506-2228-0141

Love in the Wild – Ep. 8: The Finale

Seven adventures and it had all come down to this – the grand finale.  Mike and Samantha vs. Miles and Heather for all the marbles, or rather a first class trip around the world.  Having won three of the adventures together, including last week’s, Mike and Samantha came into the final the odds-on favorites.

On the morning of the final competition, Samantha read a card full of encouraging words from her mom. ( Watching this, I’m thinking if only mail service were that good in the city!)  Reading how much her mom loved her, how supportive she was, made Samantha cry.  Mike got all choked up too just because Samantha had allowed to him to read over her shoulder.

Where'd Mike and Miles go?

THE ADVENTURE

The girls showed up at the starting line in their itty-bitty, teeny-weeny (minus the polka-dot) bikinis for the second week in a row.  Although I can’t be sure, I assume from previous experience that Mike and Miles were there, too.  Once Darren counted down from three, the teams took off on a final adventure that would last not one but two days, and consist of swimming, canoeing, changing clothes in front of one’s partner, assembling an oxcart from scratch, coping with a dysenteric mammal, pitching a tent, pitching a fit, and climbing to the top of a volcano only to run back down again for no apparent reason.

MILES (TO GO)

Miles must have lied on his resume.  How else to explain letting him on the show when he couldn’t swim?  The young man nearly drowned in last week’s penultimate episode, and this week the first leg of the final consisted of – you guessed it – a swim.  While Mike, Samantha and Heather were cleaving their way through the water in the direction of a couple of canoes, Miles was like a giant tortoise run aground, flailing away in a life jacket, the following thought bobbing like a lure in his brain, “I’m going to be the first person to die on national TV while wearing a life jacket.”

Once Miles managed to drag his sorry butt into the canoe, however, he and Heather nearly caught up with Mike and Samantha at the mouth of the Aqua Caliente River.  Dragging the canoe upriver to a beachhead, the couples slipped out of their gear and into dry clothes. (No reports of shrinkage as we went to press.)  Then they raced to the top of a hill, where they encountered a Costa Rican national symbol, Las Carretas, brightly colored oxcarts.  The only problem was the oxcarts had to be put together.  It was like an oxcart kit you’d get at IKEA.

FOLLOW THAT OXCART!

Heather wore the britches throughout the adventure, and here, too, she was the one who put the oxcart together, likening it to a puzzle, while Miles looked on dimly.

Having tossed a couple of hay bails in the bed, an ox-wrangler (yeah, that’s Hollywood-speak) hooked up two oxen to a yoke, and then  Miles and Heather were off in hot pursuit of Mike and Samantha.  Seeing Miles and Heather coming up fast in their rearview mirror, Mike exhorted the wrangler to go faster by saying “Andale!  Andale!” over and over again while at the same time bemoaning the sluggishness of his team of oxen.  You’d think these beasts of burden would have been beating a path to the nearest restroom, considering one of them had a bad case of the runs!

It was neck and neck by the time the teams had rid themselves of the oxen.  Miles and Heather actually passed Mike and Samantha on the way to the Day 1 finish line only to lose the lead again, coming in a scant twenty six seconds behind.

With the first day’s competition over, it was time for the teams to rest, set up camp for the night, fortify themselves with pasta and soup, get a good night’s rest, and get psyched for a strong finish the next day.

Thanks to Heather, Miles had food to eat and a place to sleep, as she was the one to pitch the little pup tent correctly – even though she’d never done it before – and get the kerosene lighter to work. Elsewhere in the savannah, Ozzie and Harriet, a.k.a. Mike and Samantha, were gradually turning into The Bickersons, what with Mike’s difficulty doing the very things Heather had done so easily, so efficiently.  Just goes to show that women are every bit as capable as men if not more so.

DAY 2

The contestants woke up to rain.  Their mission was simple but hard: climb to the top of a volcano, retrieve another map from the center of a lagoon in the cone of the volcano, then race back down the volcano to the finish line, where Darren waited with a celebratory bottle of cheap bubbly a production assistant had bought at Super Cristian #4 earlier that day.

Having finished day one with a twenty-six second lead, Mike and Samantha took off on this, the final leg of the adventure, twenty six seconds before Miles and Heather.  Considering how fit they both were, it was hard to understand why Miles and Heather could never make up the paltry twenty-six second lead.  Wait, I do know the reason after all.  It was that doofus Miles’ fault.  If Heather hadn’t made the mistake of falling for him and had instead been paired, say, with Derek, her team would’ve blown past Mike and Samantha.  She deserved to win.

Aw, the happy couple...and Darren! Thanks all for reading.

I CALLED IT or IF ONLY PICKING STOCKS WERE THIS EASY

Although I’m not sure anybody’s noticed, I’ve been blogging on this show for the last eight weeks.  A cursory review of my previous posts would demonstrate that throughout I have been consistently prescient about the destinies of the various players involved.  Indeed as early as my second post, following the premier episode, I had Mike and Samantha winning the whole thing.  Of course, when you consider that, given enough time and the laws of chance, a chimp could write all of Shakespeare’s plays, I ain’t gonna let me head swell.

A FOND FAREWELL

Well, it’s been a blast.  I’ve enjoyed following the perambulations of these twenty twenty-somethings as they searched for love in the wilds of Costa Rica.  I’ve even thought to go out there looking myself.  And, who knows – perhaps we’ll meet again here among the pages of The Tico Times.  Adieu, dear reader, adieu.

-Nick Silver blogs weekly for The Tico Times on “Love in the Wild.“

Love in the Wild – Ep. 7: The Dirty Half-Dozen

Bare Down: The final 3 couples battle to win that trip around the world...and look good doing it.

This week the three remaining couples met Darren not in the jungle but at the beach in their skivvies.  He then told them to swim for it by which he meant a boat anchored maybe 50 meters offshore.  No problem, right?  No, none – except that Miles from Minnesota, land of 10,000 lakes, didn’t know how to swim.  Fearing that he might drown, he was outfitted with a life jacket and training wheels.  Having retrieved a map from underwater, all three couples started paddling like mad (on paddle boards) in a race to find five coin-filled bags and deliver them to an oddly named gentleman at a place called Coco’s Bar in town (Ed. Note: In Cahuita, for those curious).  While Mike was smacking Samantha in the head with a paddle, Skip, stoked by the sight of Teresa’s rear end staring him straight in the face, rowed his team into an early lead.  Meanwhile, Heather was doing her best to keep Miles from ending up face down in the kiddie pool.  Having been first to retrieve a fourth bag at the pier, Skip and Teresa were feeling pretty good about themselves at this point in the adventure. The only thing between them and the win was recovering the fifth bag and delivering it to that dude at Coco’s.  But, then the unthinkable happened. Teresa lost the fourth bag somewhere between the pier and forever.  And just like that their lead completely evaporated.  Yes, they backtracked, crossed paths with a mapache, went back into the water at the pier, but it was all for naught.  They were toast.  It was a two-team race after that.

THE BIZARRO BEN

Remember Ben, Mr. Tact?  Boy, imagine if he’d been Teresa’s partner and she’d screwed up like she did, he would have been all over her like a cheap suit in a house fire.  He might have even tried to drown her in shallow water.  But, Skip, he was a mensch about the whole thing.  Although he admitted being upset, he made it clear that he wasn’t mad at Teresa but at the situation.  They were a team, he said; they won as a team, and they lost as a team.  Pretty classy.  His patience with Teresa would be tested one more time, too, at the Couples’ Choice Ceremony.

MAMBO NO.5

Mike and Samantha arrived at Coco’s first and immediately started yelling “Mambo! Mambo!” like a couple of crazy people.  Then Miles and Heather showed up, and they too started yelling “Mambo! Mambo!”  No, they weren’t trying to get the barflies to dance.  They were looking for a guy named Mambo!   Although the place was packed to the gills, none of the humanoids there could, or wanted, to help.  When the camera fixed for a sec. on a cute little beagle, I even wondered whether Mambo wasn’t a dog.  Finally, a Rastafarian-looking chap seated in a nook admitted to being the mysterious Mambo.  Per instructions, Mike and Samantha handed him the coin-filled bags in exchange for the secret phrase “amor salvaje.”  Committing it to memory, they then regurgitated the phrase for Darren at the finish line, thus winning yet another trip to The Oasis that night and a romantic sailboat ride on Lake Arenal the following day.

THE NEW, NEW NEWLYWED GAME

Since nobody was going to be changing partners so late in the competition, it was decided that the best way to weed out the couple least likely to find love in the wild was to play The Newlywed Game.  Well, sort of.  While keeping his hair in check, Darren divided the couples by gender and asked each a series of questions to see how well they knew one another.  Having been given two points to start thanks to their first place finish, Mike and Samantha were the first to five and a spot in the next week’s final.  Just a point behind at the start of this elimination round, Skip and Teresa stood a good chance of beating Miles and Heather if they could just answer one extra question correctly.  Both couples got the first question right, but when Darren asked Teresa who was more adventurous when it came to intimacy, she answered “both.”  Poor girl didn’t realize that that was an illogical answer since it was an either/or question. Guess all that make up she wore had finally penetrated her frontal lobe and caked up the synapses.  Skip couldn’t believe his ears,  grousing under his breath, “What the !#!$! are you doing?”  That made the score 3 – 1.  And, when Miles concurred that her gluteous maximus was his favorite part of Heather’s body, the finals match-up was set.  As we watched Skip and Teresa remove their bracelets and saunter off into an uncertain future together, he gently asked her, “Both?  Really?”

THE BIGGEST BONEY EVER

Periodically awarded to contestants guilty of especially boneheaded moves, this week’s boney – the biggest ever – goes to Teresa.  First losing bag number four, and then answering “both” to an either/or question was, considering the stakes, beyond boneheaded. It was catastrophically boneheaded!

Skip applauds his girl Theresa for winning this week's Boney.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

• The more I hear Miles’ voice, the more he sounds like an extra from the movie Fargo, “We’re making pretty good time, eh?”
• Guess Darren got the memo about remembering to comb his hair before arriving on the set.
• Bob Eubanks should have been the host at tonight’s Couples’ Choice ceremony.

Having watched the show now for seven weeks, I see that all the snark has been misplaced.  It’s a sweet show, a harmless show.  Thus, please be advised that next week’s final post in this rather tedious blog will be sans snark.

-Nick Silver blogs weekly for The Tico Times on “Love in the Wild.“

Love in the Wild – Ep. 6: Bad luck turns into good luck, which turns back into bad luck

Last night episode began with a ‘big ass’ armadillo sighting.  Among some indigenous peoples, this apparently is a sign of good things to come.  If only Steele was conversant with aboriginal folklore, he would’ve known when he saw that ‘big ass’ armadillo – that his luck was about to change.

THE ADVENTURE

Have you ever had to find a carved stone mask hidden in a fichus tree?  Well, neither have I.  But, that’s exactly what the remaining five couples had to do last night.  Then, they had to find 4 more hidden variously on a rock pile, a guava grove, on top of a boulder, and behind a waterfall.  I won’t bore you with a tedious blow-by-blow description of the adventure.  Suffice it to say, Steele and Erica miraculously came in second, Skip instructed Teresa to find a horse with a “nice ass,” and, upon sliding into a mud pit, Erica emerged to say she detected the smell of horse**** in the air.  Along with another night at The Oasis, winning couple Samantha and Mike also won immunity and two tickets on a zip line.

ABUSE IN THE WILD

Ben, the villain of Love in the Wild. Boooo

I thought the show was about finding love in the wild.  That’s certainly not what Brandee found, however.  She found abuse – and plenty of it – thanks to Ben.  He spent a lot of time apologizing for having hurt her feelings, but when it really mattered, when the rubber met the road, that is, during the adventures, he was all over her like white on rice.  Partly because I had to use the facilities, I lost count of how many times last night he yelled at her, sounded exasperated, and barked “c’mon, c’mon, c’mon.”  He even called her “one hundred and thirty pounds of dead weight,” in front of the others at The Cabins the morning after the competition.  Sanitariums are a thing of the past, right?  People with nervous conditions go elsewhere nowadays, don’t they?  It got so bad out there in the wild, that I’d guess Brandee is probably convalescing at Walter Reed Hospital right about now, suffering, alongside our veterans of foreign wars, from a bad case of post-traumatic stress disorder.

COMEUPPANCE AT COUPLES CHOICE

Uh oh, Steele senses commitment.

Spooked by the prospect of becoming Erica’s BFF, commitment-phobe Steele cut her loose and asked Brandee to be his new partner instead.  But, Brandee declined, claiming it was a case of too little, too late.  This must have come as a great shock to the man of Steele since practically every other girl on the show had just about wet her pants at the thought of being paired with him.  Thus, Steele found himself in the so-called unmatched area despite a second place finish.  Dispensing with her dignity altogether, Erica asked Steele if he wanted to be partners again – even though he’d dropped her less than two minutes before!  Steele demurred, stating that he didn’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings.  Thus, Erica found herself standing next to Steele in the unmatched area.  Then Ben asked Erica to “stick it out with him.”  But she said no even though it was her only chance to stay on the show.  And that placed Ben tambien in the unmatched area with Steele and Erica.  Since all the good ones were already taken, Brandee declined to choose either Steele or Ben when it was her turn.  She then joined the other three. Then, genial host Darren McMullen mowed ‘em all down with a Tommy Gun in a scene reminiscent of the St. Valentine’s Day massacre.   No, no, no – just kidding.  That only happened in my mind’s eye.

The math is getting so weird now that the field has been winnowed.  Last week three people ended up in the unmatched area, this week four.  Perhaps next week, everybody will end up there, and we can all go home early.

THE CURSE OF STEELE

By finishing second, Steele had finally managed – after six episodes – to remove the curse.  But then, figuring no woman – least of all poor, abused Brandee – could withstand his charms, he thought he could let Erica go and just keep on keeping on.  Ain’t it funny, though, how the cookie crumbles?  As we already know, Brandee turned him down flat, immune to his encantos masculinos, and just like that the curse was reinstated.

Let’s listen in now on the telephone conversation Steele had with his Hollywood agent immediately after being eliminated from the show.

“Steele, baby, it’s not about love.  How many times did I tell you that?  Even on the tarmac, I tried to get that concept through your thick furry skull.  Don’t you remember me yelling over the whir of the propellers, “IT’S NOT ABOUT LOVE! REMEMBER: THE SHOW IS NOT.ABOUT.LOVE!  It’s about WINNING.  Winning an all-expenses-paid trip around the world.  It’s about keeping your pretty little mug on TV for a couple more weeks.  It’s about People magazine.  Erica could’ve looked like Janet Reno, and it wouldn’t have mattered!”

LOVE – WHAT A CONCEPT!

Around the time Heather and Erica were consoling Brandee poolside, I realized that I had absolutely no business blogging about this show.  The show’s about finding love, finding that one person – albeit in the jungle.  But, I gave up on love a long time ago.  I shouldn’t be here.  I shouldn’t be doing this?  Perhaps somebody could finish up for me.

DARREN’S HAIR STYLING TIPS:

Fill a pillowcase with loads of gooey hair gel.  Slip pillowcase gently over head and face.  Massage with fingertips for two minutes.  Then, in one sudden, uninterrupted motion, rip pillowcase off head.  Under no circumstances look in the mirror before stepping outside.  Presto!

RANDOM THOUGHTS

• None whatsoever.  Check back next week.

"When we're laying in bed with my arm around you, I wanna put that moment in a (this beer) bottle and carry it around with me forever."

THE BETTING LINE

With Derek long gone, Mike seems to be the most competitive fella left in the competition.  As long as he and Samantha keep getting along, I’d say they’re the odds-on favorites to win it all.  On the other hand, the show teased trouble in the offing for the pair, so who knows?

*A reminder to my many readers: comments from people not related to me by blood are nonetheless welcome. Please comment!

-Nick Silver blogs weekly for The Tico Times on “Love in the Wild.“

Love in the Wild – Ep. 5: The Ol’ Switcheroo Trick, eh?

Uh oh, the ol' switcheroo.

At some point between episodes 4 and 5, somebody somewhere decided that the show had become just a tad too cozy.  Attachments had formed, couples had coalesced, but the show wasn’t even halfway done yet!  So, this week producers decided to mix it up a bit, to gum up the works.   Once Darren had described the week’s adventure in minute detail to the six remaining couples, he pulled the ol’ switcheroo, announcing that, before setting off on said adventure, the men were to pick brand new partners.  It didn’t come as much of a surprise when last week’s first and second place finishers, Derek and Ben, respectively chose Erica and Samantha to be their new partners.  Likewise, it was hardly a shock, that, despite his good looks, all the girls dreaded the prospect of being picked by Steele, fearing the curse.  (Cue thunder and lightening.)

THE ADVENTURE

After Darren counted off three, the newly formed couples raced downhill to a spot where they had to open a box secured by a combination lock.  Problem was Darren had only provided them with the first number of a three-digit combo – fittingly, the number six; they still had to figure out the other two numbers in order to unlock the box and withdraw a map to Lost Canyon from inside.   Derek, the class of the boys group, and his partner Erica managed this first.  Apparently weighed down by all the pancake batter on her face, Teresa executed a perfect face plant at this stage of the competition; luckily, her lips saved her. Having located two wooden crates – one for each partner to carry – with their names on them, the couples then tried to persuade mules parked nearby to haul the crates to a hitching post by Lost Canyon.  Watching the boys and girls try to reason with the mules, it became ridiculously clear why we sometimes refer to the obstinate among us as being “stubborn as a mule.”  Trying to get his particular mule to cooperate got Skip, for one, so frustrated that he gave up altogether and decided to carry the crates himself.  Tying the mules to a hitching post, the boys then proceeded to break open the crates with crowbars, bringing back misty memories of Christmases past to this wretched scribe’s eyes.  Anyhoo, inside they found helmets and a harness.   At this point, it was neck and neck between teams Derek and Erica and Ben and Samantha.  Meanwhile, back at the finca, Miles and Brandee were still trying to figure out the combination to the lock.

Derek and Erica were the first to repel down the canyon and begin wading through a moist stream in search of a wooden idol.  Skip felt like a girly man when Samantha repelled down the canyon faster than he did.  After wading through a stream for about a quarter mile, Derek and Erica were the first to find a wooden idol.  Derek hoisted it on his back, and then he and Erica started climbing uphill to what they probably thought was a sure first place finish.

GAMECHANGER

Looks like Derek needs a TOE truck? Ha ha. Just kidding...he needed an ambulance.

Derek was running away with the competition – with or without Jess – when lady luck chose to take a powder.  Toting the wooden idol up a steep set of stairs, and well on his way to a third straight first place finish, the unexpected happened.  Carved out of a heavy trunk, the idol slipped out of Derek’s hands and fell with all its weight on his foot, not only opening a bloody gash in his big toe but breaking it in the bargain, too.  He sucked it up, though – despite being in excruciating pain – and, with Erica in tow, crossed the finish line in third place.  Then, he promptly got in the back of an ambulance and went bye-bye.  This would turn out to be a game changer in more ways than one, however.  Jess was so concerned about Derek’s big toe that her interest in the adventure evaporated mere meters from the finish line.  Not wanting to spend the night at The Oasis with anyone but Derek, she persuaded Skip to let Ben and Samantha pass them and take home the dubious first place prize instead.  Interestingly, immunity was not awarded to the winning couple this week.

AT THE OASIS

Ever the caballero, Ben asked Samantha upon entering their room at The Oasis whether she and Mike had sullied the sheets during their stay there.  They uncorked a bottle champagne in the room, then later took turns downing flaming shots of nitro at the wet bar.  Having had one too many, Ben began trying to flirt with Sam, complimenting her pretty blue eyes and telling her she was the perfect girl.  Having none of it, she suggested they go visit the other at The Cabins.

AT COUPLES’ CHOICE CEREMONY

Everybody showed up and took their seats according to how they finished – that is, except for one person: Derek.  Well, that’s not exactly true; he did show up but just to say goodbye.  Apparently, it was decided that, with a broken big toe, he just couldn’t compete anymore.  (With the likes of Steele as competition, I’m not so sure that was the case.)  But, Derek was determined – the show would have us believe – to let Jess know that 1) he really did like her – really! – and 2) that she had an standing invite to his bungalow on the Venice Beach Boardwalk.   Then, he limped off into the jungle at roughly five of nine at night.  Apparently, he has been heard from since.

GOOD SAMARITAN AWARD

When it was Jess’ turn to choose, she chose not to choose.  Having watched her one true love limp off into the jungle and into a waiting microbus, she just couldn’t bring herself to choose any of the other men, saying essentially that Derek was the only one for her.  Plus, she just didn’t have the heart to break up any of the other couples, or so she said.  She then walked over and took her place between Ben and Brandee in the unmatched area.

THE CURIOUS CASE OF BEN AND BRANDEE

Awkward ...or just creepy?

Last night’s episode began with Brandee complaining that, despite having been through a few adventures together, Ben still had not kissed her.  Then, when Ben and Samantha dropped by The Cabins the night of their victory, it became painfully clear that he just wasn’t that into her; this so hurt her feelings that she stormed off into the Tiki lamp-lit night.  Later, while lying in bed fully clothed with Miles, she again tried to wrap her head around her curious relationship with Ben.  She admitted to never before in life having been the recipient of so much rejection.   So, at Couples Choice, when Ben – having been dropped by Samantha in favor of Mike – asked Brandee to rejoin him, she retrieved her dignity – ever so fleetingly it would turn out – and said no.  That created the highly unusual situation of placing three people in the so-called unmatched area.  Personally, I was half-hoping that Ben would get the boot, thus allowing Brandee and Jess to pair up.  But, since we’re still not there yet as a society, Ben and Brandee got back together again – if for no other reason than to stay on the show for a little while longer.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

• Why is the sky blue?
• What the hell am I still doing in Costa Rica?
• What else is on?
• Does Ted Danson have children?
• Was the combination 666?

LET’S CHECK THE STANDINGS

Farewell to Derek, but at least the ladies love ya.

With Derek and Jess gone now, the frontrunners appear to be teams Mike and Samantha, Miles and Heather and Skip and Teresa.   I’d bet my bottom dollar that next week we’ll be saying adios to either team Ben and Brandee or team Steele and Erica.  Of course, you’ll have to tune in to find out – or, you can be the very first visitor to my blog here at Tico Times Online.

-Nick Silver blogs weekly for The Tico Times on “Love in the Wild.“

Love in the Wild – Ep. 4: Jason, The Horse Wimp-erer

Remind me.  Had we seen the contestants chatting in the aftermath of the previous week’s Couples’ Choice Cermenony to start an episode before?  Well, that’s what happened last night.  It was illuminating too in so far as Derek told everyone within earshot, including his partner Jess, that he nearly dumped her for Samantha, explaining that – hey, he could always ‘circle back’ if things didn’t work out with Samantha.  When wiry little Mike got wind of this, he tried to impart the hands-off message to Derek.  May have even worked, too, in the end.

Jason and Jessi looking bitter (and blurry.)

Thanks to creepy Night Vision Goggles-O-Rama, we got to watch a couple of the new couples dispensing with pleasantries and getting right down to a snog  (Yes, I’m writing from England) in bed.  We also got to see Ben bring Brandee breakfast in bed on the occasion of her 26^th birthday, and the sad sight of Jessi blowing off Jason’s gift of a bouquet of freshly cut jungle flowers.

THE ADVENTURE

Who thinks these adventures up, anyway?  It seemed to me that this week’s was especially complicated.  First, each couple had to find a hanging ladder hidden on a tree or in the brush.  Then, guided by a map, they had to hike 2K’s till they reached the mouth of a cave.  Donning hard hats, they then entered the caves, squeezing through tight quarters and low ceilings, and waded through water, and oh’d and ahh’d at the high adventure of it all until they arrived a hole in the ground, through they descended thanks to the hanging ladder they’d lugged there.  Down in the hole and under a waterfall, they had to distinguish a stone idol from a pile rocks (harder than it seems, believe me), then reemerge into the light, where, lo and behold, trusty steeds waited.

Derek and Jess had no difficulty traversing this first section of the course, and so were the first to mount a horse they would affectionately name Freckles.  Derek, like all the men, chivalrously allowed his female companion to occupy the saddle while he walked alongside.    There was a little hiccup when they arrived at the stream, however.  As Freckles was reluctant to cross with the petite Jess on top, Derek jumped in the saddle and led them across the fjord.  Alas, crossing the stream on horseback proved too much for team Jason and Jessi.  Their horse, which for the purposes of this article will remain nameless, decided to cross the stream without them.  This so humiliated the normally mild-mannered Jason that he ripped his helmet off creekside and threatened to punch the horse in the head. This also ended any fantasies he might have entertained of sticking with Jessi, as he’d already been hanging by hilo dental with her anyway.

STEELE’S APPLICATION TO MENSA IS REJECTED – AGAIN!

Believe me, this dude’s porch light burned out a long time ago, and nobody’s been around to replace it yet.  Like his partner Erica said, “Thank goodness he’s pretty…”

"Thank goodness he's pretty..." Yep.

For your amusement and edification, I herewith present this week’s edition of “Steele’s Litany of Stupidy:”

1. Although he’d just been told to look for a ladder and – incidentally at the same time as Mike – quickly saw one wrapped around a tree, he chose not to fight for it, because, in his words, “it wasn’t the right kind of ladder.”  Apparently, he was looking for a stepladder tied to a tree.
2. While all his rivals built insurmountable leads, he couldn’t spot the one remaining ladder even though it was staring him straight in the face.  It took Erica pointing it out for him to see it.
3. “A stone idol? Uh?  What’s a stone idol?”  (Psst, Erica had to point that out to him, too.)
4. Walking right past the bar that represented the finish line.  Here, too, if Erica hadn’t clued him in, Steele probably would’ve kept walking till he crossed the border into Nicaragua.   According to some reports online, his parents are so embarrassed by his performance thus far that, despite his being fully grown and all, they’ve put him up for adoption.

LEADERBOARD

Derek on his high horse again, with Jess along for the ride.

Four episodes in and I must admit to still not being sure of the scoring – or, for the matter, why I’m still watching.  On the one hand, Derek and Jess are obviously in the lead, having won two successive adventures and maintaining a flickering, intermittent chemistry.  Now, if it were possible to find love in the wild solely with oneself, then I’d put all my money on Derek, but since, apparently, the point is, to follow in love with another person, I’m not sure Derek is in such good shape.  The actual leaders appear to be Miles and Heather and Mike and Samantha.  But, Mike’s got to watch his back as Derek has his eyes on Sam.

THE TRUTH HURTS

Jason finally had to face the cold, hard fact that, like Adam and Peter before him,  none of the girls on the show – not even bottomfeeder Jessi – was into him.  Choking back tears, he admitted that, despite his best efforts, he’d struck out with all three girls he’d been paired with.  And, I must say, I don’t quite get why.  Sure, he was perhaps a little too chatty, but he was sufficiently handsome and requisitely ripped – certainly better looking than that bottomfeeder Jessi – to have attracted some XY attention.

BONEHEAD MOVE OF THE WEEK

The Boney Award? Er, congratulations Jessi.

When Ben refused to break up Steele and Erica, I felt like a defibrillator had been applied to my heart.  I thought – here, finally, a chance to get rid of these two narcissists.  A chance to get rid of Erica and her maneuvering, and a chance to get rid of a guy who ‘s better in theory than in reality – all at the same time.  It was all within grasp – that is, if only Jessi had a realistic perception of herself. Did she really think that Steele, with Erica still sitting next to him at Couples’ Choice, would choose her scrawny butt instead?  Me thinks someone doesn’t own a mirror.  If she’d really wanted to stay in the competition, she should’ve hung on to Jason for dear life and not let go for at least another week.  Thus, this week’s boney (I wonder, does The Tico Times have a prop. department?  Hey, editor, perhaps we could work up a prototype ‘boney’?) simply must go to Jessi.

THE BIGGEST QUESTION OF THE NIGHT

Has to be why didn’t free agent baller Derek jettison Jess for a shot at Samantha?  After all, it would’ve been an offer that Samantha could not have refused?  Was it brinksmanship, or did he simply not have the heart to break Mike and Sam up, especially after the little chat Mike had with him at The Cabins.  Of course, he might still be interested in Jess, and figures he can wait a week more before stealing Sam away.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

• Why are Skip and Teresa even on the show?  How can viewers be expected to care what happens to them when the show’s producers don’t seem to, either.
• I was surprised that the contestants didn’t happen to run into Peter Paris in the cave.
• Did Adam and Kym share a taxi on the way back to San Juan Santa Maria last week?

Hopefully, these questions – and still more that will no doubt come to mind when I’m trying not to think about more pressing concerns – will be answered when we all reconvene to watch the 5^th episode of Love In The Wild on NBC next Wednesday at 8.  How’s that for a plug?

-Nick Silver blogs weekly for The Tico Times on “Love in the Wild.“

Love in the Wild – Ep. 3: Snakebitten

…So, let’s see now, with Vanessa having been given the boot last week and Peter having been redirected to the caves at Lascaux, eight couples entered last night’s episode…

THE ADVENTURE

Steele rowing Kym to her doom.

Darren informed the sixteen competitors that they would have to race down a path leading to the shore of Lake Arenal, where, having first located a map, they would then jump into one of eight waiting canoes.  Their destination?  The ominously-named Snake Island (Ed. Note: For the record, not a real place in Costa Rica).  Derek and Jess pushed off first, while at the other end of a very short spectrum, Ben and Brandee couldn’t even find the gol’dern map.  Hitherto happy loving couple Samantha and Mike ran – er, paddled into (for the first time in three episodes) choppy seas, when Mike, being of the XX chromosome variety, insisted on rowing to the right when everybody else was rowing – correctly, I might add – to the left.  It was like watching a guy refuse to ask for directions – for fear that it would impugn his masculinity – while driving the family Winnebago off a cliff.  Samantha managed in the end to get all their oars in a row but not without losing a little faith in his stewardship of both the canoe and their budding romance.  Mike, however, wasn’t the only man in hot water in the lake.  Adam, who’d spirited Heather away from Miles in last week’s Couples’ Choice Ceremony, just couldn’t get a handle on the subtleties of rowing, thus sacrificing precious brownie points with the aforementioned Heather.

SNAKE ISLAND

Derek and Jess, quickly followed by Steele and Kym, came ashore first.  Using the map and a compass discovered at a Indian totem, the couples raced through dense jungle to a tableaux that almost certainly was imported directly from the backlot at Universal Studios in Burbank: a downed Cessna Piper Cub with a bunch of mysterious crates scattered about.  I think I may have even spotted Harrison Ford’s toupee among the debris.  All the big boys had to do now was hoist a crate onto their sinewy backs, march back through the jungle to the canoe, and ferry said crate back to Darren and his waiting hair.  Sounds simple enough for these boys except, that is, that the crates were covered with snakes, and I don’t mean of the rubbery variety you find in gift shops all over this fair country.  Upon seeing the slithering invertebrates, Erica claimed that snakes were her biggest fear.  Paging Young Dr. Freud!

STROKING ALL THE WAY HOME

Everyone's favorite couple Mike and Samantha finally run into some troubles.

It was a dead heat between four of the six couples as they jumped back into their canoes, each with a crate in tow.  Then, per usual, Steele turned from a Prince Charming back into Cinderfella.  First, Mr. Hunky couldn’t figure out how to get into the canoe, at least not with another living breathing human being in it.  The canoe flipped over a bunch of times and filled with water.  The capper was when his lifejacket comically floated away.  In short, the dude nearly drowned in two feet of water.  It was like watching a remake of the Titanic set in a bathtub.   Despite Skip’s gruffly pushing past them on the way back, Derek and Jess kept a firm grasp on first place at this stage of the competition – a lead, I might add, that they would not relinquish.  Jess was duly impressed with Derek’s will to win.  Samantha, on the other hand, was not a happy canoer.  Still smarting from the trip there with Wrongway Feldman, she bellyached about the rowing, and complained that the plank on which she sat was proving to be a pain in her “boney” butt.  Erica saw her long-term prospects with Miles fade since, as she readily admitted, the only help she provided was as a kind of ballast.  Once back in the saddle – er, hollowed-out tree – Steele claimed, on the row back, to have made up a hundred yards on his nearest competitors, but still let crazy, kooky Ben beat him to a mediocre sixth place finish.

TALE OF THE TAPE

Crossing the finish line first, Derek and Jess got – along with immunity, of course – to look inside the mysterious crate.  Turned out Derek had lugged back a bottle of Dom Perignon and some straw all the way back from Snake Island.   Skip dragged cosmetics counter habitué Teresa to a second place finish.   Impressively, Samantha and Mike came in third despite all their troubles along the way.  And, as rowing had proved a little too complex a task for Adam, he and Heather came in last place, thus exposing them both to the greatest vulnerability at Couples’ Choice

COMMITMENT PHOBIA AT THE OASIS AND BEYOND

Commitment phobe Derek and his "lucky" lady Jess at The Oasis.

While Jess was enthusing at The Oasis that she’d never been in such a beautiful hotel room before, Derek was giving off numerous semaphores that 1) commitment freaked him out and 2) that the wandering half of his two eyes found Samantha attractive.  Steele, too, freely admitted to being a commitment phobe, stating that the most serious relationship he’d ever been had lasted three to four months.  Or, was that three or four seconds?

IS THIS CINEMA VERITE OR REALITY TV?

While displaying his pasty six-pack, Mike tried to iron out things out with Samantha, but, tellingly, without ever apologizing for not listening to her during the adventure and nearly steering them to St. Barts.  Sensing that she might opt-out at Couples’ Choice, he tried subtly to coco wash her into believing that they were still meant for each other.  Then, the next morning, he served her a pickle sandwich and a nice Chianti for breakfast?!  Huh?  What?

COUPLES’ CHOICE CEREMONY

I called it.  I knew Jughead, a.k.a. Adam, was on a slow boat to Dogpatch long before it actually happened.  It was clear from the get-go that Heather was not about to stay with him a second after the video cameras stopped rolling.  Her heart is set on Miles, and when he dropped Erica – for the second time – and picked her, one could see that her heart was all aflutter.  Speaking of Erica, the show telegraphed that she’d be available come Couples’ Choice by showing Steele debating whether to choose her or stick with Kim.  I was sad to see Kim’s corpus delecti leave, less so her insipid personality.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

• What exactly did Jason think he was doing lying, all wrapped in a blanket, in that thing that looked like a crib?  Did he think that Jessica had a thing for infants?
• Did I just see Skip and Teresa step into the shower together?  Huh?  Wasn’t she worried that her mascara and lipstick, which she appears to apply with a trowel, would run, and she’d look like a naked Bozo the Clown in there?
• Peter, Adam, and Jason never stood a chance.  None of the girls were ever into them, instead all agog at the sight of casino-chips-for-brains Steele.  Just goes to show women are as superficial as men.
• Where’s the personality, man?  None of these people radiatesa lot of charisma.  I mean, why would producers even choose people like Adam in the first place, unless, of course, you’re angling for the droopy-eared, slope-shouldered hick demographic.

THE BETTING LINE

Poor, clueless Jason.

Hard to call at this point.  One thing I do now, however, is that, despite his general dreaminess, the ladies ought to avoid Steele like the proverbial plague.  Choose him and he’s liable to drop you at Couple’s Choice, plus he’s so lousy at the manly stuff that there’s a good chance that you’ll come in last if paired with him.  Another bet I’d be willing to make is that next week’s gonna be Jason’s – and his poor imitation of Taye Diggs – last.  The question is, which one of the girls will go with him.

-Nick Silver blogs weekly for The Tico Times on “Love in the Wild.“

Love in the Wild – Ep. 2: Peter’d Out, Karma’s A *****

Jessica and a frightened Derek on Costa Rica's Hanging Bridges

And, then there were nine – nine couples, that is, what with Dawn and Jared having been eliminated last week.  This week, the newly-minted – and not-so newly minted – couples were informed by affable Scotsman Darren McMullen that they’d have to circumnavigate a slew of bridges slung perilously across gorges, chasms and voids – and even a bat cave for good measure – in pursuit of six so called tethers.  Said tethers were not only charged with “symbolic” significance, but also tested the couples’ ability to work in tandem so as to avoid certain death in that they literally connected boy to girl like an umbilical.  Like last week, the winning couple would get a night’s luxe accommodation at some place called The Oasis and, as an added bonus, the next day, a scenic helicopter ride and romantically situated lunch for two with an outstanding view of the majestic and still quite lively Volcan Arenal.

L’AVVENTURA

Victim of a double cross: Vanessa

For several of the couples, finding the tethers, secreted, as they were, in trees, on the fraying cables of hanging bridges, and even in a tunnel filled with an extended family of bats was not an easy task.  Ben, or, as I like to call him, Mr. Warmth, began yelling at his partner Brandee when she didn’t find the tether in the bat tunnel even though he has exactly the same number of eyes as she.  Looking but not finding tethers had Vanessa seeing dreamboat Steele in a decidedly different light, too, causing her to refer to him as Dr. Jekyll and Mrs. Hyde.  And, Derek was such a wus crossing a bridge with Jessica that afterward he probably had to shower in paint thinner just to get the big yellow stripe off his back.  Miles, on the other hand, was a real mentsch, helping a skittish Heather across the gaping maw of death with manly calm.

WINNING!

Boston bred competitors Kym and Adam crossed the finish line first, winning not only a night’srespite from the molestations of the jungle but from the other contestants as well.  The silver medal, as it were, went to complete opposites Pete and Jess, while the bronze, incredibly enough, was awarded to Ben and Brandee, even though, at one point, the former accused the latter of nearly tipping over a bridge because, as he said, her left buttock was bigger than her right.

LEADERBOARD

Well, if Steroid boy Adam hadn’t yanked Heather away from Miles at Couples Choice, I would have them neck and neck and neck and neck with Samantha and Mike.  Although the show teased problems in the offing for Sam and Mike, through two episodes at least, there’s no denying that they seem to have the greatest chemistry.  Coming up fast on the outside, however, are Derek and Jess as they seem to enjoy each others’ sense of humor.  And don’t count out the dark horse couple – self-proclaimed male member Ben and his beleaguered paramour Brandee – as they “stick it out” together for another week.

CRUELLA DEVILLE AWARD

Don't be cruel, Erica.

And the cruelly this week goes to – drum roll, please – Erica based on the following litany of offenses: basically being a biotch on the adventure, telling her partner Jason on more than one occasion that he annoyed her, then even going so far as to tell him to “SHUT UP” (no, really!), for producing a odious whiff of – dare, I say – racism by opting to spend the night on a chaise by the pool instead of in the same room with Jason, and then for being a right tease at breakfast such that Pete decided to double-cross Vanessa (not that she didn’t deserve it, mind you, since she was playing him, too, in order to stay on the show), then double-crossing him at Couples’ Choice Ceremony by declining when he chose her.  I mean, she really ought to  have been brought up on charges.  Gendarme!

 

BONEHEAD MOVE OF THE WEEK

Poor Peter Paris.

This week’s Boney simply must go to Peter Paris, a.k.a. The Geico Cavemen.  Knowing that he didn’t stand a chance of sticking with his partner Jess into the next round, we saw him at The Cabins rather shrewdly striking a bargain with Vanessa – who herself had just been given notice by Steele – whereby he agreed to pick her during the Couples’ Choice Ceremony.  But, then, instead of sticking with the plan, he let his nether parts do the thinking.  He figured that, since Erica deigned to respond to his witticisms at breakfast the following morning, he actually stood a chance with her.  Pity the fool who listens to the siren’s song.  I almost reached for the Kleenex when, after being shown the palm-fringed door, Pete had this to say, “I don’t fit the mold that all these girls are looking for.”  They don’t make molds of that size and configuration, Pete.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

• Darren’s hair appears to have a life – if not an outright personality – of its own.
• Teresa and Skip, the stealth couple.  Do they even know this is a competition?  They’re so nonchalant about the whole enterprise that they belong in Jamaica, not Costa Rica.
• Them’s some ears on Kim.  But, in this particular letch’s opinion, they do not detract one iota from her slammin’ chassis.
• What is it with girls calling guys, “dude?”  Me don’t like.
• Can you catch The Dengue just from watching people run around in the jungle?  Ow, what was that?!

OK, now let’s see here.  We’re two weeks into this mega search for love in the wild, and we’ve already winnowed the field by four.  The competition is heating up.   Love’s out there somewhere, or so we’d like to think.  The question is who’s going to find it now that early favorite Peter (yeah, sure) has left the building…er…jungle.

-Nick Silver blogs weekly for The Tico Times on “Love in the Wild.“

Love in the Wild – Ep. 1: The Adventure Begins…

On last night’s premier episode of the new NBC reality series, Love In The Wild, we got to meet the twenty contestants for the first time as they stood nervously in a leafy grove in the middle of the jungle in Arenal.  In brief video segments, we learned that basically they had all embarked on this once-in-a-lifetime adventure to find true love, having apparently run out of legitimate opportunities in the concrete jungle back home. At the young ladies’ choosing, they then all paired off and set out on their first, so-called adventure together – essentially an obstacle course – during which they raced to bring samples of air, earth and water back to the show’s genial host, young Scotsman Darren McMullen, waiting sweatily at the finish line.

THE ADVENTURE
Right out of the box, the couples – and, dare I say, especially the men – were given the difficult task of turning a bunch of logs and twine into a raft that could be used to cross the croc-infested Rio Porto Viejo all the way to terra ferma – and the remainder of the course.   Eventual winners Samantha and Mike demonstrated the desired compatibility quotient in this event, as did pair Miles and Erica.  Jared and Dawn, on the other hand, lost valuable time thanks mostly to the former’s very poor imitation of Bob Villa.  They ended up in the drink with the fishes when their flimsy construction disintegrated midstream!

WINNING!
In the end, Mike and Samantha’s apparent compatibility, as evidenced by the sea-worthiness of their raft and the speed with which they completed the remainder of the course, had them crossing the finish line first.  Along with immunity in the next round, Mike and Samantha also received first class accommodations at a resort called Oasis, where the burgeoning loverbirds ate – and canoodled – in front of a picture postcard waterfall.  (We’re sure that wasn’t a cardboard cutout, right?)

CHEESECAKE & BEEFCAKE
While Samantha and Mike were enjoying the spoils that come with winning, we finally got a chance to spend some down time in the jacuzzi and to rather gratuitously watch the also-rans flaunt their wares – and by wares I don’t mean the sorts of quaint tschotskes one sees on Antiques Roadshow.  Personally, I would have bid on what Kym Nguyen was selling, but that’s just me.

THERE’S NO CRYING IN BASEBALL
Things went mostly as expected during the elimination round.  It was hardly a surprise that the victors, and newly-immunized, Samantha and Mike decided to stay together.  Likewise, it’s not like I coughed up popcorn when Ben decided to part ways with Heather, since she’d made it amply clear – even while in bed together – that she couldn’t stand him.  That’s not to say, however, that this portion of the program didn’t produce the unexpected.   Good guy Miles decided to cut ties with Erica even though she’d made it clear throughout that she found him attractive in all possible ways.   But, she took it like a big girl, even cracking a joke about it.  Then there was the “Steele Shocker,” but more about that under lo siguente header.

BONEHEAD MOVE OF THE WEEK
Steele: half man/ half haircut/half-wit?  The dude is all follicles and pecs and dopey charm, but what he’s gained in those departments may have come at the expense of actual brain cells.  I mean, he’s perceptive enough to realize that Vanessa is trying to place him in a little bird cage, so to speak, but then, when, during elimination, he has the opportunity to cut the ties that bind and pick another girl – and when that one girl is Dawn – in whom he has already expressed interest, he chooses to stay with Vanessa anyway, thus proving, at least in this viewer’s eyes, that he’s not in it to win it. Or, perhaps he just has abandonment issues.

THE LEADERBOARD
Well, at this point, I think anybody who actually watched the show would have to place his bet on Mike and Samantha.  First of all, they won the first compatibility adventure.  And, Samantha actually seems smitten.  I’m not sure that we can trust Mr. Ears Mike just yet; I mean, he’s a guy, after all.  On the other hand, he does think Sam’s “hot,” plus he’s working hard to impress her.

THE WALK OF SHAME
I’m sorry, but the entire episode was an exercise in embarrassment for Jared.  He squandered an early victory, namely, that of being the first guy picked by utterly failing to build a serviceable watercraft out of lego logs.  Dawn’s lucky she neither drowned nor was consumed a la carte by a crocodile.  I do give him credit for a deep, soulful voice, but that’s about it.  I would imagine he’ll get ribbed about his performance to no end back home, especially since he wasn’t gone long.

VILLAINS?
Best bets here, at the early stage of the competition, I’d say would have to be Ben and Derek.  The former’s got Gary Busey eyes and an unquenchable need to speak his mind no matter how many people he alienates, while the latter looks for all the world like a playa.  Watch out, girls.

RANDOM THOUGHTS
    Boy, the humidity really seemed to be getting to Darren’s hair at one point.  It looked like radioactive spaghetti.

Peter Paris

    What was Ron Perelman doing there?  Oh, right, that was Peter Paris.  For a moment there, I thought somebody had changed the channel to an old episode of Beauty and The Beast.
    “Steele.”  C’mon, that’s not his real name.  His parents did not, of their own free will, name their newborn baby “Steele.”  If I’m wrong about that, I sure would love to have seen the short list of baby names they chose that from.  “Let’s see we could name him Copper or Titanium – no, let’s go with Steele.  That sounds more manly.”  Follow me while I think ahead here a little…if he and Vanessa fall in love in the end, win the competition, and get married, they could name their first born son, Steele, Jr.  Or, perhaps, Son of Steele.

Anywho, I’m pumped to see what happens next on Love In The Wild.  Hopefully, the power will be on next Wednesday around 8.

-Nick Silver blogs weekly for The Tico Times on “Love in the Wild.“

Turn on (at 8), tune in (to NBC), and, for God’s sake, throw away the meds

Hi.

Hello there.

My name is Nick Silver. (In some, slightly grittier, parts of this big blue-green ball we call La Tierra, I’m also known as Dirk Shank, but that’s a story for another time, another place, a fatter paycheck.) By way of introduction, I have been tasked with the awesome responsibility of blogging, for the benefit of Tico Times readers far and wide (those high and low are welcome to read along as well) on a new reality series called “Love In The Wild” premiering tonight at ten on the peacock network, otherwise known as the National Broadcasting Company – NBC for short.

I’m an expat. Living in Costa Rica, who, after years of high art preening, has finally come to appreciate the true meaning of TV, i.e., that it works best as a kind of sedative., preferably one administered by a busty nurse. Nothing outside of prescription medicine (prescription medicine in Costa Rica – perish the thought!) quite takes the edge off like a couple of hours in front of the ol’ flat screen. In my case, I’ve so come to appreciate – and depend, really – on this aspect of TV that I’ve sworn off Lexipro for good. Valium, too. OK, so I got a death grip on the Prozac. Go ahead and sue me. As for my shrink, that kook Dr. Vargas – well, he can take a hike in the proverbial cloud forest, too, for all I care!

As to the critical question of ‘why now?’ – well, the show is premiering tonight for one thing. Plus, there’s no time like the present; I remember somebody telling me that a long time ago.

Why this show? Good question. Well, it’s elementary, my dear Watson. (Insert yawn here.) It just so happens the show is set in Costa Rica, our collective home away from home, hence you’re supposed to care. Don’t worry, though: it ain’t another iteration of the CSI franchise, this time set in the crummy streets of San Jose. No, no. Instead, it’s a charming lark among the camera-ready flora and fauna of Costa Rica – ergo the title, by which is meant – or so I gleaned from very briefly glancing at the show’s website – photogenic locales like Volcan Arenal, The Blue River, and Tommy’s Bait and Switch on Isla Coco.

Apparently, the dealio is as follows: 10 fetching adult girls and 10 strapping adult boys – 20 homo sapiens in all – have been flown in from The States to see if they can’t make a love connection while testing their mental and emotional intelligence in the leafy and humid environs of prime Costa Rican jungle. Dunno ‘bout you, but to me it sounds like a reanimated Frankenstein’s monster made up of bits of Survivor, Temptation Island, Get Me Out Of Here – I’m A Celebrity, and The Bachelor. Then, of course, every week – ah, you know the drill by know – the castaways are winnowed by a factor of two until, at the very end, by means of a series of diabolical competitions, the canny producers at NBC will hope to have produced a modern day version of Tarzan and Jane., minus the chimp. (Of course, Tarzan and Jane will announce their separation soon after the wrap party.)

Sadly, I have some bad news to impart. If, like me, you were hoping to see the one and only Chuck Woolery hosting in a loin cloth, it pains me deeply to inform you that instead we have to countenance yet another British interloper as MC. This time it goes by the name of Darren McMullen, a Scot by way of Australia, who, at least based on his online vlogs, will be a genial and sometimes cheeky host in the manner American audiences might associate with Craig Ferguson. China overrunning American manufacturing is one thing, but the British invasion of American media must stop at once, I say! Enough with the Pierses and the Simons and now the Darrens. I can’t take it anymore!

Anyway, I’m gonna be turning on and tuning in to NBC tonight at 8 – that is, as long as power doesn’t go off – and trading in my meds for a piping hot bag of Jack’s microwave popcorn – that is, as long as the power doesn’t go off – while the premiere episode of “Love In The Wild” unfolds before my bloodshot eyes. Why don’t you join me? Loosen the ties on your straitjacket and sit a spell. Trust me, you’ll feel better.

Rapid Growth in Costa Rica’s South Pacific Coast, Through the Eyes of a Vacation Rental Owner

Even though the real estate market has slowed greatly in most areas of Costa Rica in the last several years, the Dominical and South Coast areas seem to be immune, with previous lot buyers now building their dream home.

Glen Love - rental owner

“When we first started building our luxury homes in Dominical in 2003, there were only 4 listings for the Dominical area on the entire VRBO website. Now, there are more than 90! That is certainly amazing growth for this once difficult-to-reach area,” related Glen Love, owner of Paradise Costa Rica vacation rentals. “Even before the improved Costaneras coastal highway from Manuel Antonio to Dominical was built, that didn’t seem to deter people’s interest in this pristine, remote area, including ours. It used to take almost two hours to drive the pot hole-filled dirt road with rickety, one lane decrepit wooden bridges – a real daring experience! Even so, the area grew rapidly.”

Known for its mountainous tropical rainforests cascading into the sea, similar to the terrain of the Big Sur Coastline in California, the South Central Pacific coast of Costa Rica has always attracted the more adventurous nature lovers and ecological travelers. There were few comforts or amenities of any kind just ten years ago, but that didn’t deter many, like Glen and Youval, from becoming intoxicated with the stunning ocean view lots for sale. Consequently, they decided to purchase raw land during their first visit to Costa Rica, an uncharacteristically impulsive move.

But, then, they did something different than most – they actually followed through on their dreams and built not just one spacious home, but two! “Well, we started out with the idea of having a small ‘casita’ to stay in until we would build our ‘dream vacation home’ further away on another lot. But when we started to draw the designs, we began adding extra bedrooms and bathrooms for our two kids, an additional den and bar area, expanded kitchen area, living room, and balcony… and the casita become a 3000+ square foot villa!”

Side by side vacation rental villas in Dominical

“Then, we figured that we would like to invite relatives or friends to come visit, and that they should have a place to stay in that was just as nice! So we ended up building a second, three bedroom and three bath home on the property, close to the ‘main’ house, but also very private. Of course, each villa had to have its own lap size swimming pool! All of this was quite an expansion from our original plans.”

View to the Pacific Ocean from tropical rainforest

“Since your villas are vacation rentals when you’re not here, what are some of the main comments of your guests?” I asked. “Are they as excited about what initially impressed you?” Glen laughed and said, “Yes, they love the monkeys, toucans and other wildlife, the views, the many activities in the Dominical area and the privacy. They remark about the unique, lush tropical landscaping that Youval designed, and the personal service provided by our on-site property manager / concierge – something that few rentals offer. They also comment about how we maintain the villas in top condition, something that is difficult in a tropical rain forest, especially being close to the ocean.”

Glen described other changes that have happened in Costa Rica’s south-central pacific coast over the past few years. “When we purchased our lot in 2002, there was no electricity or telephone service. Now, not only do we have electricity and a ‘land’ phone line, there is cell phone service, and last year, we were able to install high speed internet. The south coast has really come into the modern age.”

Years ago, Dominical was a sleepy little fishing and surfing village, known only by a few adventurous travelers and surfers. But now that there is easy access to the area, a variety of restaurants, shops, and other activities have moved in, so tourism has increased significantly, and home building continues at a steady pace, unlike most other beach areas.

More info about the Dominical area and Paradise rentals.

From Civil War Survivor to Rental Car Entrepreneur

The interview with Rember Guevara of Service Car Rental was ending when he looked at me pensively and said, “There is really so much more, what happened in my life, and how I got to Costa Rica.”  I said, “What do you mean?” not knowing anything about his past.  He then explained how he and his mother and brother were fugitives from the horrible civil war in El Salvador in the ’70’s and ‘80’s – the intimidation, the atrocities, and luckily, how they eventually were able to flee to Costa Rica.

To me, this put an even a greater emphasis on his story of entrepreneurship that I had just listened to.  Here was a person that had started out with some of the worst disadvantages in life, and now, he was the owner of a successful rental car company in Costa Rica, which is an extremely competitive market.  What a compelling testimony not only to him as a person, but also to Costa Rica for providing the environment in which he could reach his potential.

Rember Guevara - Owner Service Car Rental

CAD/CAM Dental Technology Comes to Costa Rica

Medical Tourism Patients Benefit from CAD/CAM Technology

In an effort to offer its patients the best and most modern equipment and procedures in the cosmetic and restorative fields, the Colina Dental Clinic in Escazu has now instituted the proven treatment advantages of the CAD/CAM Dentistry technology, (Computer-Aided Design and Computer-Aided Manufacturing in Dentistry).

Colina Dental is one of the first, and very few dental offices, to offer to their patients this new and innovative technology.   The Cad-Cam technology consists of an advanced software that allows the dentists to design their restorations by computer, whether they are crowns, veneers, inlays or dental implants preparations.

With the “CAD” portion of the procedure (Computer Aided Design), the dental technician specialized in this training has the capability of doing and undoing different patterns and designs, showing these to the patient for his approval.  The CAD approach can also simulate the behavior of the restoration to see if it will ultimately be successful in the mouth.

Dr. Maricarmen Gutiérrez takes a CAD impression inside a patient's mouth