Cacao tree (chocolate!), on way to Brasso Seco, Trinidad

A few years ago, I remember coming across a Chocolate Tree in the Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. I loved how the tiny flowers and buds were growing directly on the trunk and branches. I was thrilled to bits to see Cacao trees growing on the island of Trinidad. Day 5 was a full-day Blanchisseuse Road field trip in the Northern Range of Trinidad, on 17 March 2017, which included a lovely lunch at the Brasso Seco Visitor Facility, prepared for us by local people who work there. Most enjoyable! As well as the meal, we also were given a demonstration of how chocolate is made. I will post several photos of this in the next few days. We could buy packets of coffee or cocoa powder and chocolate bars. The smell when I open the packet of cocoa powder at home each morning is heavenly.

We also saw some really neat birds this day, including a very distant Channel-billed Toucan and a tiny Ferruginous Pygmy-owl : ) What a thrill - I had been really hoping we would see some kind of owl and our guide made it happen. Another day, he found a pair of Tropical Screech-Owls for us, though they were so well hidden behind branches that you couldn't really get a proper photo.

This 8-day (plus 2 travel days) was only the second holiday (or was it actually my third?) of any kind, anywhere, that I have had in something like 30 or 35 years! The other holiday was a wonderful, one-week trip with my great friends from England, Linda and Tony, when we went down south to Yellowstone National Park and the Grand Tetons in September 2012. I have had maybe half a dozen weekends away, including to Waterton National Park, which have helped keep me going.

Six birding/photographer friends and I decided that we would take this exciting trip together (from 12-21 March 2017), spending the first two or three days on the island of Tobago and then the rest of the time at the Asa Wright Nature Centre on the nearby, much larger island of Trinidad. We decided to take a complete package, so everything was included - flights (we were so very lucky to get Black Friday prices, which were 50% off!), accommodation at both places, all our food, and the various walks and day trips that we could chose from. Two of my friends, Anne B. and Brenda, saw to all the planning of flights and accommodations, which was so very much appreciated by the rest of us. I could never have done all this myself!

What a time we had, seeing so many beautiful and interesting things - and, of course, everything was a lifer for me. Some of these friends had visited Costa Rica before, so were familiar with some of the birds. There was a lot more to see on Trinidad, so we were glad that we chose Tobago to visit first and then spend a longer time at Asa Wright. It was wonderful to be right by the sea, though, at the Blue Waters Inn on the island of Tobago. Just gorgeous.

The Asa Wright Nature Centre, on Trinidad, is such an amazing place! We stayed in cabins up or down hill from the main building. Really, one doesn't need to travel away from the Centre for birding, as so many different species visit the Hummingbird feeders that are right by the huge, open veranda, and the trees of the rain forest high up a mountainous road. The drive up and down this narrow, twisting, pot-holed road was an adventure in itself! Never would I ever do this drive myself - we had a guide who drove us everywhere in a van/small bus. I had read many accounts of this road, lol! There was just enough room for two vehicles to pass each other, and the honking of horns was almost continuous - either to warn any vehicle that might be coming fast around the next bend or as a sign that drivers knew each other. The drive along this road, from the coast to Asa Wright, took just over an hour each way.

Even after five weeks, I still miss the great food that was provided every single day at Asa Wright and even the Rum Punch that appeared each evening. I never drink at all, so I wasn't sure if I would even try the Punch - glad I did, though, as it was delicious and refreshing. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were all served buffet-style, with a great variety of dishes from which to choose. To me, pure luxury. So very, very grateful to have been invited to be part of this amazing adventure.