Woah, this place is wild!

Woah, this place is weird!
John William Stewart
5/29/22
For anyone who doesn’t know, I am currently in Costa Rica on a month-long study abroad. We are almost a week in from the day we arrived, and it has already been a pretty incredible time! It’s safe to say that this place is different from anywhere I have ever been. I’ve had such a great time seeing the insane amount of biodiversity all around me. Wait! I’m going to take a step back for a moment. I think that a chronological account of the things I’ve done and seen in this past week is the best way to share my experience…so here it is!
After intense packing last Sunday, I headed to the Indianapolis National Airport at around 2:30 AM EST. My flight was leaving at 5:40 AM, and I wanted to make sure I had enough time to get there without being in a rush. After all, it was my first time flying in years and my first time ever flying internationally. In fact, I’ve never even left the U.S. before last week’s flight! I had two flights. The first flight was to Miami, and the second straight to San Jose, Costa Rica! Before the first flight, I met quite a few people that were taking the same flights as I was! It was nice to feel like I was already getting to know some people I would spend the next month with before even leaving my home-state. The first flight went pretty smoothly. We landed in Miami without a hitch. I wish I could say the same for the second flight. After arriving at the airport in San Jose, the pilot informed us that he was not granted permission to land. Apparently First Lady Jill Biden was at the airport and we were not allowed to land because of “security reasons.” So instead we circled around the airport for 15 minutes in a holding pattern. After no change in our landing clearance, the pilot informed us that we had to land at another or else we would run out of fuel. We sat at the other airport for almost 2 hours before heading back to our original airport. Not sure how landing an aircraft of tourists and people wanting to go home is a security risk, but I digress.
I thought that San Jose was a really cool place. On our long bus ride to our first main location. I loved looking at a metropolitan unlike anything I had ever seen. I’m not sure how to describe it…the buildings were all really close together and made the best of the rolling landscape. I thought the cars were pretty cool too, nothing too crazy but there were a lot that I’d never seen. There were tons of billboards and storefronts that I couldn’t really read. I tried to use them as a last second refresher on my weak Spanish skills. The remainder of the ride was pretty much just rural Costa Rica, equally as captivating but for a different reason. The winding roads felt like they were carved straight through mountains. For most of the drive, one side of the bus looked out onto a steep hill with intense greenery while the other overlooked deep valleys. Since it was raining, small waterfalls streamed over the steep walls next to us. Over the mountaintops and valleys, translucent hovering clouds floated ambiently. It was really beautiful. Our destination was La Selva Biological Station, where we’re spending the first 11 days of our 4-week trip. It took us two hours for the 33 mile drive to La Selva. The winding roads really extended our travel time! I didn’t really mind though, I really enjoyed my surroundings during the ride. After we arrived, we immediately ate dinner. It was really good! It’s been consistently good everyday. There’s always, and I mean always, rice at every meal. I never knew rice could pair in so many different ways!
I think that La Selva is a really special place. It’s pretty much in the middle of a rainforest. In fact, the amount of conserved land at La Selva is pretty impressive. The site is nearly 4,000 acres and most of it is dense rainforest! This land has been used for research and teaching for about 60 years. I know that I’ve not been here for long, but I can’t really imagine a better place to do it! Students and researchers come from all around the world to see and learn about biodiversity here! The other day I accidentally bumped into an Australian man, and when I apologized he said “all good mate!” I thought that was kind of funny, no one has called me that before haha! We’ve been here for 6 days, and the impeccable natural landscapes here are defintely the main point of attraction. La Selva has thousands of different species to observe. There are hundreds of different species in all sorts of classifications. There are eighty-something species of bats here alone! There are about 400 different birds, and an extremely high amount of reptiles and amphibians too. However, the diversity of other species pail in comparison to the insects here. There are hundreds of THOUSANDS of different insect species. You definitely have to get more comfortable with bugs if you hope to have a good time in the rainforest!
Over our stay so far, we’ve had many opportunities to explore forest. These opportunities include guided tours during both day and night, a bird watching tour at sunrise, and many class activities that have taken us out into the forest. The guided tours were especially great, because the knowledge guides here at La Selva are experts in spotting great animals. I’ve seen so many amazing animals. I’m posting pictures of my favorites! There are two animals specifically that have really captivated me. Firstly, the Honduran white bat. Our guide, Heyner, told us that there are only two species of white bats at La Selva. Apparently they’re pretty rare, so when we found them on the first day I was ecstatic. To my surprise, the other species that captivated me was the golden orb spider. These unique arachnids have a distinct pattern, sharp features, and their webs almost have a gold sheen. Be sure to check out the picture! Apparently their webbing strength is comparable to steel! A few years ago, the U.S. military began to research their webbing for practical application, or so I heard. I cannot understate the sheer amount and diversity of species in the rainforest. I’ll talk more about that and the research we’ve done here next week. I still have so much I want to talk about! Expect a longer post next week!