How to do Costa Rica in a week Radhika Aligh
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I m inches away staring at the most beautiful bird I ve ever seen, the scarlet macaw. And although it looks half as pleased to see me, I m utterly mesmerised by its grace and vivid shades of red, blue and yellow.
A few trees along, a couple of cobalt-coloured hyacinth macaws are perched on a branch accompanied by green parakeets. Now that in itself is a successful day of birding by any standards; except, we are not in the wild but at Rescate Wildlife Rescue Centre (formerly ZooAve) in Alajuela on the outskirts of Costa Rica s capital San Jose. Built on 34 acres of tropical forest, the centre rescues over three thousand animals every year, the vast majority of which are released back in the wild.