Adventure Photographer Eric R. Schickler

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Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula – Part 1 – Overview, Demographics & History

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Editor’s Note: This is an excerpt from Eric Schickler’s seven-part travelogue, “Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula.”

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Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula

Text  &  Photographs by Eric R. Schickler

 

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Pura Vida!

It’s the most common expression heard in Costa Rica.

Translated literally—Pure Life.

But like many expressions, it goes well beyond the literal, and can also mean:

“Purified life.”

“Full of life”

“Enjoying life”

“Letting go.”

“Cool.”

“Happy days”

“This is the life!”

 

 

After my trip there, I might add these to the equation:

“All’s peachy, mate, going great”

“Right on!”

“Rock on!”

“Get after it!”

“Can I stay forever?”

and, “Where can I buy a place around here?”

Well, you get the idea.

Pronounced  “poor-ah vee-dah,”  Pura Vida is used to say hello, good-bye, and to express happiness or satisfaction.

Many visitors view the phrase as an expression of an easy-go-lucky lifestyle, great friendliness, and a laid-back attitude toward time.

Residents translate it as “strong community, perseverance, enjoying life at a leisurely pace and celebrating all good fortune.”

In James Hilton’s novel, Lost Horizon, the imaginary city of Shangri-La was an earthly utopia, a paradise, an endlessly happy land, removed from the outside world.

Its inhabitants were said to be almost immortal, barely showing any signs of aging and enjoying very lengthy lives.

Hey, that sounds just like Costa Rica!

I had the good fortune to visit this Shangri-La once. Since that memorable vacation, tropical daydreams are common, usually triggered while viewing my Costa Rica photo library. But I’m nearing the maximum-views-allowed limit for these images. I can’t stand it much longer. We all know photos are great souvenirs, but they don’t do the land of enchantment much justice. I desperately need a follow-up Pura Vida fix, and a new library of photos.

To temporarily satisfy my appetite, to buy some time until I go again, I added adventure stories, background information and commentary to the photos, creating this detailed travelogue. I view this document as a long-needed bookend for that first voyage, and a first step in planning my next trip to this trend-setting Central American nation.

It’s a place with a unique history, a flourishing present and a very promising future. And I definitely see a few more visits there in my future.

If you are lucky enough to make a visit, heed this warning: You may forever be haunted by its magic, magnetism and psychic influence. You will never look at where you currently live the same way. I live in a spectacularly beautiful place in the Unites States—Colorado. You’d think I’d count my blessings.

Yet the breezes of Costa Rica still swirl around me, tempting me to leave the mountains and return to the Rich Coast. I’m just not sure what the length of my next visit will be. Let’s just say, that decision is still up in the air.

 

Costa Rica Through Time and the Tico People

Costa Rica was populated for thousands of years by North American Aztecs and South American Incas.

Christopher Columbus’s fourth and final expedition to the New World in 1502 brought him to Central America and what is today the Republic of Costa Rica. He called the area “The Rich Coast,” after the precious metals he believed were plentiful there. That abundance, however, did not materialize.

But starting in 1522, a long period of Spanish conquest and settlement began. Costa Rica became valuable for its agricultural bounties.

Over the next 300 years, there was a tragic reduction of the indigenous population, cutting it from a half million to just 2,000.

Both the Nahuatl and Chibcha cultures were basically eliminated by diseases (primarily smallpox) and mistreatment by the Spaniards.

Sadly, people who descended from those indigenous tribes represent just 1% of the population today, a mere 30,000 people.

Because the epicenters of Spain’s trade operations during colonial times were in Mexico, Guatemala City and in the Andes Mountain regions of S. America, Costa Rica’s great distance made trade routes difficult to establish. The area was therefore largely ignored by the Monarchy of Spain and was left to develop on its own.

While this allowed Costa Rica a level of autonomy, it also contributed to its poverty. It was also instrumental in helping it develop its own egalitarian society, free of a ruling class vs. oppressed class system that resulted in other nearby Spanish colonies. Wealth generated from coffee and banana cultivation was a driving force in creating these wide class variations.

1821 – Costa Rica and the other Central American provinces declare independence from Spain, forming The Central American Federation.

During the next 15 years, provincial border disputes and conflicts are numerous, and the Federation collapses.

1838 – Costa Rica asserts its sovereignty.

1899 – Peaceful democratic rule blossoms with the first honest and free elections.

1948 – A presidential election won by challenger Otilio Ulate was disputed by the incumbent, Rafael Ángel Calderon, who refused to cede power. This led to a public revolt, a bloody 44-day civil war and 2,000 deaths. The uprising was led by Jose Figueres, (known as Don Pepe to Ticos) and resulted in a victory for democracy, a new constitution, voting rights for all adults (incl. women and blacks), and elimination of the military.

Figueres became a national hero and became the provisional president for 18 months, after which he handed over rule to Ulate, the rightful winner of the election.

Figueres then won the presidency in 1953 and again in 1970. He is considered the most important political figure in Costa Rica’s history.

Jose Figueres Ferrer (Don Pepe) 1948 –

Commander in Chief, National Liberation Army  (photo by www.elespiritude148.org)

Imagine a nation that has overcome the ravages of Spanish conquest, decimating disease, slavery, border conflicts and civil wars, and today sees no need to keep a standing army?

How could this country of four million people also become an envied model of simplistic, nature-loving, health-oriented and content living?

The local people, known for their festive and gregarious nature, call themselves Ticos, and still take great pride in their cultural heritage. They have a passion for dance, celebration and music.

The population is a varied and robust mix of peoples:  Mestizos (Spanish/American Indian), Afro-Caribbeans, Spanish descendants, indigenous Indians, and the modern-day influx of North Americans, Asians and Europeans. Nearly 12% of the population is Nicaraguan.

Today, most Costa Ricans describe themselves as white, the result of Spanish/European influence. However, natives maintain a strong connection to their Tico heritage.

The expression “Tico at heart,” “Muy Tico,” doing things “a la Tico” or “the Tico way,” are all common expressions of Tico pride. The Pura Vida concept is also an extension of the Tico attitude toward time, conflict with others and the word “no.” Costa Ricans like to talk and act with a bit of conciliatory ambivalence. They don’t like conflict. They prefer to speak softly.

 

“Yes” is much more preferred over “no.”  Answers to difficult, contentious or negative questions will elicit replies like “more or less,” “maybe,” “possibly.” Sometimes, Ticos will say “yes” even when they mean “no” or “I’m not sure.” This confounds many tourists, but sure sounds like a perfect place to meet women.

Following in this wake is the concept of “Tico time.”  Pura Vida is casual, and so is Tico time. There’s no rush. No urgency. Time moves slowly here. However, the pressures of participating in a modern global economy, and running tourism businesses, have slowly eroded adherence to Tico time mentality. But it is still common in personal interaction and affairs.

A Society Worth Emulating

Since 1949, when Costa Rica abolished its military, it has impressed peace-loving and environmentally conscious nations with its governmental support for public education, healthcare and land preservation.

It has often been called the “Switzerland of the Americas.”

More than 25% of their lands are protected from development (one of the highest worldwide). Their literacy rate is an astounding 95%! The infant mortality rate is the best in all of Latin America. Life expectancy: 79 years. Its energy production is well on its way to becoming carbon-neutral

The International Environmental Performance Index ranks Costa Rica #1 in the Western Hemisphere and #3 in the entire world.

Costa Rica ranks #1 in the entire world in the Happy Planet Index.

It is a nation that has attained much higher human development than other countries at the same per capita income levels, according to the United Nations Development Program.

Its land, roughly the size of West Virginia, represents a mere 0.03% of the world’s landmass, yet it harbors nearly 4% of all plant and animal species—more than 500,000!

The Happy Planet Index measures how much of the Earth’s resources a nation uses and how long and happy a life the country’s citizens enjoy.

The three criteria for measurement are: Life Expectancy, Life Satisfaction and Ecological Footprint.

Costa Rica is also the greenest (most environmentally conscious) country in the world according to this study.

USA’s ranking was 30.7. Norway was at 40.4. China: 57.1. Costa Rica’s index was 76.1.

The 2010 International Human Development Index (hdrstatshttp://hdr.undp.org/en/humandev/ ) ranks Costa Rica at #62 out of 169 nations. This places it in the “HIGH” category at a 0.73 index level. (The four categories are: Very High, High, Medium, Low).

Compare with…..

Norway (1st) 0.94

USA: 0.90

Japan: 0.88

Switzerland 0.87

Costa Rica 0.73

Russian Fed. 0.72

Brazil 0.70

China 0.66

Egypt 0.62

S. Africa 0.60

India 0.52

Madagascar 0.44

Afghanistan  0.35

Ethiopia 0.22

Zimbabwe (#169, last) 0.14

 

A sample of IHD Index CRITERIA:  robbery rate, percentage of protected lands, literacy rate, GDP per capita, homicide rate, education, spending on health care, Internet users, poverty rate, unemployment rate, adjusted net savings.

While most Costa Ricans (70%) are Catholic, the official religion, people are accepting of all faiths. Protestants constitute about 13%.

Costa Ricans make great efforts to preserve their country’s cornerstones of life: education, democracy, peace, tolerance, equality for all, stability, prosperity and a strong sense of family.

No wonder the nation’s residents have been categorized as “the happiest people on earth,” based on their view of their overall quality of life. As a result, some areas of Costa Rica boast the world’s longest-living people. Healthy lifestyles, spirituality and lack of stress obviously have great benefits.

They invest heavily in theater, cinematography, and are crazy for futbol (soccer). In most towns, the futbol pitch (field) is at its epicenter.

Almost all villages are equipped with all the basic public utilities and services for residents: schools, electric power, water and phones.

Spanish is the official language, but schools require students to be bilingual. English is the most common second language because it is most often used by visiting tourists, followed by French. Creole, a kind of Jamaican English, is the unofficial second language on the Caribbean coast.

Tourism is big business in Costa Rica. Nearly a million foreign tourists come here annually, spending about $1.3 billion. Unlike most Central American destinations, prices are higher for almost everything due to the higher standard of living. But, hey, it’s worth it—you can drink the water and eat the foods without fear of stomach ailments!

The geography is characterized by rugged forested mountains and the continental divide in the center, coastal plains, volcanic regions, dry forests in the north, and lush wet forests in the south.

It doesn’t take long to catch on to the Pura Vida spirit in the natural areas of Costa Rica.

Its popularity as a vacation destination is growing annually, attracting people from all over the world.

If the complete aura of peace and tranquility doesn’t wrap your mind, body and emotions in a comforter, the Pura Vida friendliness and contentment of the people will.

To continue travelogue, click here to view Part 2:   http://adventurephotographer.us/costa-ricas-osa-peninsula-part-ii/

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© Eric Schickler Adventure Photographer

All photos, text and artwork seen here (unless otherwise noted) is copyright-protected and the exclusive property of Eric Schickler Advrenture Photographer.  No downloading, use, reproduction, manipulation, sale and/or distribution permitted without express written consent.

A Life Lived Well … from Starting Gate to Finish Line. Tribute to Jimmie Heuga.

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A Tribute to My Friend, Jimmie Heuga

Photo by Jim Heath

The public relations business requires that its practitioners promote, protect, market, and manage the reputation of a product, service, company, or in some instances, a single person.

At the heart of the PR business is careful management of media coverage and public opinions.

In my 25 years of work in the PR business, spanning promotion of complicated high-tech products, building materials, transportation projects, recreation services, health services and a myriad of Internet businesses, the greatest job I ever had in the PR/marketing business was assisting in the promotion of the man Jimmie Heuga, and the Jimmie Heuga Center.

Being hired as part of the Heuga Center, as its PR Director, was a indeed a privilege. Joining Jimmie and all his supporters in promoting the philosophies and programs of the Center quickly became so much more than a job. It became an avocation. A labor of love. A train ride.

I recall during one of my first chats with Jimmie, he said, “Ya know, Eric, the Center is growing, we have plans to do a lot more, and expand nationally. You’re our first designated PR man. You can keep the job if you can accomplish one thing:  make those media people spell my name right! It’s Jimmie with an “ie,” not a “y.”   Then he flashed that incomparable smirk and walked out of my office.

After just a few weeks working with Jimmie, I knew my work was indeed part of a shared mission. It was never difficult to get up in the morning to go to work at the Heuga Center. It was, however, often difficult to feel like the day’s work was done, even as darkness fell each night. We had only to watch Jimmie and the grueling schedules he would keep to squeeze a few more hours of work out of ourselves each night.

I cannot count the number of friends I gained through working alongside him to help people fighting MS. The experiences shared with co-workers, the tireless fund raising efforts, the long winter seasons traveling from ski resort to ski resort to make each SKI EXPRESS event as successful as possible. The national media promotions, interviews and partnerships. The special events and dinners.

As staff people at the Heuga Center, we occupied an interesting position. We were the intermediaries between legions of the greatest friends, volunteers and donors in the world, and the people around the United States who were searching for some hope in dealing with the ravages of multiple sclerosis.

Fueling it all, inspiring it all was Jimmie Heuga. Jimmie was our spiritual and enigmatic leader. He was the fulcrum of this great, unique, developing storm against multiple sclerosis. The momentum was unstoppable as more and more people found out about who Jimmie was, what he sought to do, and how he was doing it.

Photo by Jim Heath

The most rewarding part of my job, as with my various other nonprofit, human-service jobs, was seeing the human benefit that resulted from all the public support, fund raising events and work of the staff, volunteers, and board members. That was what fueled my energy for the years I worked for the Heuga Center.

I watched countless inspirational talks by Jimmie, in front of numerous and diverse audiences across the U.S.  But the best talks were those between him and the people he understood so intimately—the participants in the medical programs—other people who had MS.

I witnessed the sense of yearning, desire, hopelessness, despair, frustration, anxiety, uncertainty, anger and fatigue in the folks who signed up or were sponsored to attend the Heuga CAN DO programs.

After five days in the program, assistance from the many talented health and wellness specialists, and daily interaction with Jimmie, these people’s outlooks, spirits, and energy were lifted out of the mire. They were changed human beings.

They were now hopeful, enabled, confident, eager again to continue their lives within the limitations of MS. Now they were oriented toward what they still COULD DO; the focus was no longer on the limitations.  The Heuga Center gave them the individualized templates they needed to live again. To love life again. To cope and prosper. And it was all borne out of what Jimmie experienced and did for himself in his mid-20s, when MS cut short his promising competitive skiing career.

After witnessing this miracle time after time, program after program, I was equipped with the tools, the beliefs, the buy-in, the motivation and a clear awareness of mission to perform what I consider to this day my most meaningful and rewarding public relations, marketing and fund raising work.

As Jimmie’s PR guy, I had something most PR people never have…..a tireless, talented, dedicated, inspirational, extremely kind and likable PR machine. The Jimmie Heuga Express.

His life story, his revolutionary, iconoclastic ideas about dealing with MS, his vision and plan and mission, coupled with his undeniable magnetism, resulted in thousands of changed lives.

Even for those of us who don’t have MS, if you ever met the man, if you had the privilege of spending time with him, learning from him, and watching him do his magic in life, you are now a richer person. You’ll forever be on board the Jimmie Heuga Express.

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High on the Winner’s Podium

I was fortunate enough to spend time near a man in Colorado who possessed enviable courage and inspired countless people around the world to live productive and meaningful lives.

He transferred his exuberance for skiing into an exuberance for living daily life, despite the debilitating constraints imposed on him by Multiple Sclerosis.

His courage and his smile were infectious. He rallied so many toward his cause and created a family of supporters, a family of friends, all of whom loved him dearly.

With his bright outlook, his witty humor, his energy, his tireless dedication to helping others with their MS, and his daily endurance of his own MS, Jimmie Heuga became a champion in life.

Yet that champion would happily engage in a personable conversation with anyone he met, anywhere, anytime. He even offered a ride to my hitchhiking brother one cold Colorado night in the 1970s, along a dark road in Vail. He was just a great guy, a great local in the Vail Valley. My brother had no idea he got a ride from an Olympic champion.

His reach in life was enormous. His impact immeasurable. He touched so many lives.

But what will endure most for me is his simple, inspirational and transformational message of hope. He helped me develop a strength within my own self when I was a young man; he became a mentor. I will always strive to keep the lessons Jimmie taught me through his example foremost in my mind:

“There is no need to complain about your woes in life, …… cope with them, be strong, focus on what you CAN DO, not on what you CANNOT.”

JIMMIE HEUGA

1943 – 2010

Denver’s Union Station and the Colorado Ski Train

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 Union Station:  the Alpha and The Omega

After a harrowing slide down the mountain in my trusted Mazda MX-6, I lugged my ski gear across the frozen parking lot, slipping on the fresh snow. (Better to slip on my feet, I thought, than off a mountain road in my car).


Sunrise over Denver from the Evergreen foothills.
Photo: Eric Schickler

 

The fallen snow had created a scenic white cityscape, unusual in Denver even in the middle of winter, and made Union Station look more prominent and historic than ever, its monstrous white-stoned bulk lurking in the foggy haze. Its juxtaposition in a relatively open area of Lower Downtown allows it to be seen like a statue in the center of a courtyard, from a greater distance and more perspectives than is usually afforded in tight city street grids. Its classic 1914 architecture makes it stand out in a downtown district that sees a new building pop up almost monthly.

Denver_union_station

The large lighted red letters that crown the building boldly announce where you are, and in a circus-attraction manner, promote a specific mode of transportation as if it were the latest fad worthy of curious exploration — “UNION STATION — TRAVEL by TRAIN.”  It reminded me of the entrance to Disneyland or the inviting allure of the lettering over an  amusement park. It was definitely a throwback to the past.  But that was part of the charm.

The station is indeed a testament to Denver’s colorful, historic past, when train travel was the fastest and most comfortable way to get around. And as we are learning, the station will again become a bustling transportation hub and social center for Denver. Will it become the giant it once was, or become even more magnificent, as its history and crucial location are blended with new commercial and residential development, travel technology and a myriad of visitors from even more distant lands? The dark quiet morning gave way to the glow of warm lights and activity in and around the terminal. The massive arched windows above the entrance beckoned me inside, as did the warmth of its cavernous hollow. I slipped into its massive hull, inhaled, swallowed up — like a wandering fish by a giant whale.

My lonely drive from the foothills into the deserted city streets gave way to an instant feeling of connection as I let the doors close behind me. Connection to the city, connection to people wide awake at 6:30 a.m., to the rail tracks that ran along the rear of the building, and to faraway destinations at the other end of the tracks. I was thankful for the activity and my senses were awakened. A wave of warm air met my frozen forehead, condensation formed on my eyeglasses, then my friends approached with a hot cup of coffee and warm greetings. Conversations quickly shifted to the nature of the approaching voyage we would make together.

moffat

Footstep echoes flittered across the grand atrium, mingling with muted, yet excited voices. Bundled-up children sat restlessly in the long wooden pews, as if they were about to witness a church service. But the facial expressions were not those you’d see as old Father Murphy marched past them to the alter. They were more like those you’d see on Christmas morning. The eager hum among the children grew with each passing minute. Even grown adults exuded child-like anticipation and excitement.

Everyone readied themselves and their baggage for boarding the quarter-mile-long train for the 7 a.m. departure for the mountains. Most city rail stations would see a 7 a.m. train screech to a halt, fill up quickly, depart, only to be followed within minutes by the same ritual, another train. With short visits from only two Amtrack trains per day, however, the activity around Denver’s Union Station today is like the flickering flame on the wick of a near-empty oil lamp. It’s akin to life in a western ghost town, where a smattering of weekend tourists provide enough commerce for seclusion-hungry locals to cling to a bare-bones existence.

The stark, expansive room seemed haunted with its early 1900’s decor and rich ambient history. In the few minutes I had before boarding, I imagined what it was like to be a child lost in the middle of a bustling throng of Depression-era travelers, filing in and out if the station during its heydays when nearly 80 trains a day pulled in and out. What a contrast to life at Union Station at the very end of the 20th century. Union Station stood as a static relic, an anomaly in Denver’s revitalized and vibrant Lower Downtown district. An unprecedented surge in LoDo’s economic activity was ignited by the 1995 opening of Coors Field. It was followed by widespread residential and commercial development, new businesses, sports, entertainment and cultural attractions, restaurants, galleries and shops. But the decline in rail travel and train commerce had relegated Union Station to a shadow of the activity center it once was.

Z-6352

 On this day, as the snow continued to fall, Union Station was as busy as it ever gets. It was a weekend in the winter, so the two daily Amtrack trains would be complemented by the Rio Grande Ski Train, which carries passengers to Winter Park Resort for a day of downhill fun or sightseeing, as it has for 60 years. People rave about the Ski Train. It’s a must for every Coloradan.

I had driven from Evergreen to Denver before dawn, and would go back up the hill later that evening.  Was all that effort worth a train ride? I was joining a group of friends for the excursion, my first ever on the Ski Train. I was just as excited as any of the children making their first trip. And I was just going for the ride — I had a broken heel at the time and could not ski. That made no difference. The best parts of the day are the train rides.

On the train, I delighted in the fact that I and 749 others were sitting back enjoying the passing countryside, instead of clinging white-knuckled to my steering wheel as I maneuvered snow-packed I-70, U.S. 40 and Berthoud Pass. For two hours, we rode 56 comfortable miles, climbing 4,000 feet in elevation, passing through 28 tunnels. Then we approached the final mountain underpass, the 6.2-mile-long Moffat Tunnel, the highest railroad tunnel in the U.S.

www.skitrain

But for some reason, the visit to historic Union Station was the most memorable part of my day. That building was the first and last impression of my trip, and it dawned on me that it’s the place where you say goodbye and hello, where you cry, smile and hug loved ones. Union Station is like the old worn leather cover of a great novel. The start and the finish, with so many memories in between. And you always end up sharing it with someone you love.

The last time I traveled any great distance by train was 1987 in New York State. After visiting Union Station and taking that ride on the Ski Train, I now think differently. I’ll look for an excuse to ride the train, and take my friends. Recent security concerns in airline travel have forced people to think again about rail travel. I’ve been thinking about it ever since I first walked into Union Station on that wintry morning.

Oh, getting back to my question…. Was it worth all that effort just to ride a train?  Oh yes. To ride a train and visit Union Station. When it comes to trains, the journey is the reason you ride, but I just love going through that station.

* All photos in this article (except sunrise image) courtesy of Denver’s Union Station and The Ski Train.

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© Eric Schickler Photography, Communication & Design