Hammocks

In the afternoon, hammocks cast a long shadow

Private inholdings in Costa Rica's national parks offer a
perfect place for relaxing on the beach

A multi-colored hammock casts an upside-down rainbow reflection
on a still pool near the ocean

When you think of a tropical retreat, maybe you picture a quiet beach hotel to which you bring one suitcase of books and one suitcase of clothes. A friend of mine mentioned that she was planning this sort of trip next month to Saint Martin in the Caribbean. A hammock on the beach, someone to bring you a drink... that's a vacation.

Nothing could be more different than our visit to Costa Rica and Panama. For us: no time to lie down! Each day we had two or three activities on foot or by boat: identifying birds or trees, scanning for monkeys or iguanas, and learning new things about digital SLR settings and framing images effectively. In fact, the rainbow hammock above was pointed out by one of the two photo professionals on our trip. While the ship was moving, we listened to lectures or workshop sessions about photography or learned from the naturalists aboard about the history and background of our visits. One evening, we watched a Nova special about the Panama Canal. No hammocks for us, except as photo subjects.