The Wildlife of Costa Rica

Costa Rica is a biodiverse country with 215 amphibian species, 895 birds, 1151 fish, 252 mammals, and 269 reptiles. This ranks as the 27th most biodiverse country in the world (Brazil has the highest overall biodiversity index). Yet, Brazil is 167 times larger than Costa Rica. When land area is taken into account, Costa Rica […]

La Chua Trail

A persistent dilemma for the traveler is whether to visit some place new or return to a place you have visited before and like. Of course, different individuals weigh these options differently. At a broad scale, two extremes could be: visiting the same place for vacation every year, versus always visiting someplace new. On an […]

World Animal Coins

What coins depict – people, animals, plants, events, places, achievements, symbols – tell the story of civilizations and what they value. The world’s oldest known coin was produced in the kingdom of Lydia (modern day Turkey) over 2,500 years ago. It depicts a lion. Coins depicting animals have been a common theme in subsequent centuries, […]