From Chocolate to conservation: updates from from Macaw Lodge’s Global Social Impact House Visit, New Chocolate Bars, and advances of the Pathway Proposal.

From February 8 – 11, Macaw Kakau hosted its first ever craft chocolate workshop. Our instructor, Obie Pressman, of Seattle, WA, led participants from the United States, Brazil Belgium and Canada through every step of the chocolate making process: from cultivation to finished bar.

What’s the hardest part about the road? Driving to Macaw Lodge, the nearby towns of Bijagual and El Sur, and the areas in between is now easier. It’s more accesible and you don’t have to worry about your car…

Macaw Lodge will like to thank the 12 volunteers that we received during April thru September 2017, each one of you contributed to the growth of our ECO LODGE.

Last couple of months has been amazing at Macaw Lodge; we were able to plant 5,000 mountain almond trees. The mountain almond tree is an endanger species in Costa Rica; it is forbidden to cut and the green macaw highly depends on it for its subsistence, besides feeding on it, is needed for nesting. We work with the scarlet macaw but we also work with agroforestry and we have selected the almond tree as one of the shade trees to plant cocoa. The fruit of the almond tree is associated with more than 60 species of birds, mammals and insects. Primates, parrots, toucans, oropendola and bats.

TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence 2015, has been awarded to Macaw Lodge, “as many of you know this certificate is awarded to properties that consistently achieve outstanding traveler reviews on TripAdvisor”.

It has been a wonderful and busy dry season at Macaw Lodge. We had visitors from different parts of the world. Our reviews are our testimony and our feedback to keep us on track. It is hard to pick one of these testimonies; all of them reflect the essence of what Macaw Lodge is about it: an experience for all the senses.

It has been an extraordinary year at Macaw Lodge, we have worked very hard to achieve self-sufficiency in our staple food. We are proud of being 100% self sufficient in rice and beans. For almost two years, we have produced more than half a ton of rice the traditional way, planted and harvested by hand.

If there is a place where relaxation and learning meet and complement each other it is Macaw Lodge. Visitors come seeking nature: colorful birds, exotic trees, and the sounds of a distant waterfall. Coming all the way up Costa Rica’s Central Pacific coastal mountain to this unique ecohotel provides anyone with the perfect disconnection from city life. From yoga retreats to permaculture workshops, the environment and design of the place alongside it’s dedicated staff always provides a complete experience: culinary to educational, guests return satisfied and inspired.

The first Sunday of the year 2018, Macaw Lodge hosts a group of Surinamese Congressmen accompanied by and guided around Costa Rica by Carlos Rodríguez, ex Minister of Environment. He represents Conservation International, an NGO that as the name suggests, focuses on conservation all over the world. They have already worked with 35 countries in the 30 years they have existed and focus on working on efforts towards conserving biodiversity. Today, they bring Surinamese politicians to Macaw Lodge with the purpose of a knowledge exchange between founder and owner Pablo Gordienko, an expert in agroforestation, Mr. Rodríguez as part of Conservation International and the Surinamese government representatives. This program of CI seeks to support politicians in the making and implementation of environmental laws and politics.

Surinam is a country that could become as famous and successful as Costa Rica in regards to ecotourism. The smallest country in South America, it’s biodiversity just nearly as rich: from sea turtles, rare insects and snakes to jaguars and tapirs. In 2000, UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) declared the Natural Reserve of Central Surinam as a World Heritage. Just over 90% of this pristine jungle is untouched by humans. Conservation attempts are not as strong and comprehensive as Costa Rica’s but they are starting to grow.

Around noon, the dining table at Macaw Lodge is colorfully decorated and ready to receive guests. A gentle breeze flows over the lake and brings some cool to the midday heat. The view from the lodge is a well designed landscape of trees and plants ranging from green and yellow to purple and brown. Hummingbirds a few feet from the chairs add even more color and natural beauty to the environment of this evening. Warm greetings are exchanged with the freshly arrived Surinamese delegation and everyone gathers around plates that offer a salad with kale, moringa, spinach and tomatos fresh from the grounds of Macaw’s farm. Lunch also includes rice, squash and other vegetables grown and harvested from the same earth.

Despite Mother Nature’s best efforts, we succeeded in flying from Dayton to Charlotte and ended up in San Jose, Costa Rica. We transitioned from 11 degrees F to 50 degrees in Charlotte to 70 degrees in San Jose. What a change in one half day! The immigration line at the Airport was truly unbelievable. It was extremely long and ran back outside the customs hall to a long narrow hallway. Luckily for us, one of the security folks pulled us out of line and escorted us to a very short special line. Once through Customs, we emerged into chaos in the main terminal area. The entire area was jam packed full of taxi drivers looking for fares and companies picking folks up. Once again we lucked out and a gentleman took us outside where he called our driver and set up a meeting point.

Finally on the road, our driver, Coco, was very informative about what was going on around us. We are headed to the Macaw Lodge located up in the rainforest. Our ride was great, good roads, crowded but traffic was moving; then we turned off on a side road which Coco said was a little bit bumpy. That was an understatement! The next 45 minutes were on gravel, dirt and some paved roads. We went round and round curves and kept going up and up until, voila, we arrived at the Lodge.

The Macaw Lodge is located in the rainforest and is pretty much totally sustainable. The electricity is solar powered, the food harvested o”n site or locally sourced. The building was constructed with local materials. The main building at the Lodge is a beautiful octagon shaped structure with 8 guest rooms on the upper level. The rooms are all wood and bamboo walls, floor and ceilings. The bathrooms ha”ve stone floors and the water is solar heated. The downstairs area is a large open area for dining, gathering, and socializing. Our dinner, the first night, was a wonderful vegetable soup, followed by Spaghetti with local vegetables and Flan for dessert. Every meal is accompanied by a big pitcher of local fruit juice, which changes daily, based on availability. At night, guests go to bed to the sounds of nature in the surrounding area. The Lodge is amazingly quiet and peaceful. The 264 acre property began years ago as a reforestation project. All the trees and vegetation the owner planted were aimed at providing food and shelter for the local birds. Once this system was established, he added botanical gardens, orchards and greenhouses. The result is pure magic.

Our first morning, after a great breakfast, we headed out to hike to one of the waterfalls. We wandered up and down a trail made of some gravel, some clay, some concrete block steps and tons of beauty. The area is completely natural with large trees, stands of bamboo and under canopy plants. When we finally reached the waterfall, it was beautiful, isolated and very peaceful. A bench, place in the shade gave us a chance to sit back, relax and enjoy nature. Steve even decided to go for a swim in the pond at the base of the waterfall. Then back at the Lodge, we rehydrated, and relaxed before lunch. The list of birds we have seen is amazing, to name a few….Green Ibis, Kiskadee -Bientevemo Grande, Jacana Centroamericano, Limpkins- Carlao, and of course Macaws!

After a wonderful lunch of chicken, sweet potato mash and zucchini, we took up residence on the sunny side of the Lodge. We spent the afternoon relaxing and watching the local birds go about their daily routine. Following another outstanding dinner, this time vegetarian, we again relaxed in the rocking chairs and listened to the sounds of the night. The frogs and crickets were in fine voice, and extremely loud, as all the males were competing with one another. Our last night, we fell asleep to the sounds of the frog competition. This morning, we were up early to watch the birds come for breakfast. Megan, the manager, places bananas on the branches of a dead tree down near the ponds. It is quite fun to watch the birds gathering in anticipation. We even saw a duck try and perch on a branch with no luck! Once the bananas were placed, the birds showed up including a Scarlet Tanager and a Boston Oriole. After the excitement, we ate breakfast, interrupted by a sighting of a pair of mating Macaws….. babies on the way!

Unfortunately, today we leave this piece of paradise and head to Puerta Caldera to pick up the Azamara Quest for our cruise. Our stay at the Macaw Lodge has been amazing. Everything is done at a leisurely pace. If you are in the middle of eating and leave to go get a picture of something, everything is still there when you return. The Lodge is without a doubt one of the most peaceful places we have been, very few Americans even know about it, a well kept secret. We also lucked out because they were not very busy and we had the place pretty much to ourselves. Now we are off to the hustle and bustle of civilization! However we definitely hope to return here in the near future.

Pura Vida Amigos !!

Kate and Steve