We chose Costa Rica as our first visit to Central America. Our first initiation to this tour appeared in the form of your tour guide Rodolfo. In fact the first impression matters; if it is bad, everything goes sour and downhill. If not, we would be left with pleasant memories to savor. From the moment we met Rodolfo and until we said goodbye at Selva Tropical in Goapiles, Rodolfo remained a trusted guide and adviser. He was great to be with: polite, courteous, friendly, not condescending, knowledgeable about the people and their way of life, flora and fauna and most of all, bilingual to a point that his English communication was as good as an American's. Thanks to Rodolfo, we had a great time Tortuguero. Rodolfo was very careful about our safety during boat trips, as well as the other two tourists. He showed us not only the landscape, but also introduced us to the villagers of Tortuguero and the sustainable activities they have been involved. We then went to Arenal/ La Fortuna and to San Jose and missed Rodolfo when the other tour guides for zip lines, swinging bridges and hiking didn't measure up to anywhere near his intelligence, competence, knowledge or his ability to communicate.