We are up shortly after 5:00 A.M. slicing potatoes and onions and cracking eggs for breakfast. Louis has promised to bring me coffee this morning and he arrives, shortly before 6:00 A.M. with a coke bottle filled with strong tepid coffee. Tabra doesn't drink coffee and I was anxious that I would not enjoy our jungle hike without my morning cup. I add milk and he walks out to his motorcycle, pulling out a knotted plastic bag containing humidified sugar. I drink the thick sweet brew gratefully, flashing back to an early morning hike in Flores, Indonesia, when John and I hiked with a guide to a viewpoint to watch the sunrise over Kelemeto Volcano. A grizzled old man, in a dirty and worn sarong hiked miles each morning to sell coffee to those making the trek to watch the sunrise. That cup of coffee, and today's coffee are two of the best cups I've ever tasted. We share our breakfast with Louis and at 6:30 A.M. we lock the cabin to explore Tabra's jungle property. We start down along a dirt road, Louis leading the way, the morning warm and humid already. Tabra inquires about the landmarks and the boundaries of her property and he points and gestures, mostly to her satisfaction. He caretakes for several property owners in the Turrubaras area. We leave the road, hiking downward. The upper part of her property is more forest than jungle, but Louis carries a machete and slices through vines and underbrush to clear our pathway. We encounter several shallow, narrow streams, wider than I can jump, and he places his foot in the center of the stream, and motions me to use the toe of his rubber as a stepping stone. As we descend, the jungle grows more dense and we scramble down the steeper embankments, gripping tree branches, vines, and often an outstretched hand for support. Tabras' property is 35 hectors, or approximately 85 acres. There are several springs on her property and a year round river with monumental boulders and waterfalls, that are impressive, even at the end of the dry season. Louis cools off with a swim in the river, but Tabra and I are not inclined to bare our thighs to this young man, so we rest on cool bounders and take photos. I find the return trip easier than the descent and we stop to observe insects, mushrooms and seed pods on the way home. The humidity hangs heavy as the morning heats up and we are drenched with sweat by the time we return to the cabin 4 hours later.
Birds have built a precarious nest on the support beams just below the tin roof of Tabra's porch. We watch the parents come and go, feeding their fledgling babies and obviously disturbed by our presence. The tell tale splatters of guano decorate the floor beside the dining table. Unable to resist, we move the table over to the edge of the porch and I am able to stand on the table and photograph the birds within the nest. I am careful not to use flash, and observe that these babies will leave the nest shortly. Mango trees grow on Tabra's property and she gathers the fallen ones and we feast on the ripe ones that the worms have not yet discovered and spend the afternoon keeping cool in her pool. A tiny jeweled green iguana does push ups at the side of the pool. He has red markings down his long tail and allows us to watch him for some time.
It is the beginning of the rainy season and the sky turns dark and the rain begins gradually. Our plan is to drive into Orotina to send e-mail, go to the market and eat an early dinner. We lock the cabin about 3:00 P.M. just as a deluge of rain hits. It is my job to unlock the padlocked gate leading to the road and I am utterly drenched by the time Tabra has maneuvered the rental car through the gate. The rain continues to come down in torrents making the drive challenging, but Tabra proceeds with the upmost caution and I operate the defrost and windshield buttons allowing her to focus on the road ahead. Ordinarily the trip to Orotina should only take 30 minutes, but it takes us much longer under todays conditions. There are few cars on the road but those that are, all seem to be in a hurry. We come to a suspension bridge spanning a wide river. The single lane bridge is shrouded in fog and the steel cables sway with the weight of our car. Tabra is careful to keep the tires of our car centered on the wooden slats of the bridge and we cross without incident.
Orointina is a reasonably good sized town with several restaurants, markets and two internet cafes. We choose an attractive open air restaurant for our meal, order the filet of beef special and watch the rain continue to fall. We are only one of two occupied tables, but it after 4:00 P.M. neither lunch time or dinner time. The waiters mop rain water off of the terra cotta tile floor, a seemingly a futile exercise until the rain ceases. Next on the addenda is to find an internet Cafe and we each spend the an hour checking on our separate businesses and sending e-mail. Our final stop is a small but modern supermarket where we buy potatoes, onions, eggs and other staples to get us through the next two days in the cabin. It is already growing dark by the time we are back on the road and start for home. Our intent was to be home before dark but we are at least grateful that the rain has stopped. We retrace our path across the suspension bridge, cold steel hanging over black water, driving slowly in the dark. Our headlights illuminate the road ahead and we see small grey stones in the road that we had not noticed earlier. We drive over several of the rocks and then realize to our dismay, that they are large toads. I believe that we drove over and did not squash the first of the toads, but our return trip is even slower, punctuated by my exclamations of caution whenever I spot a lump in the road.
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