Maria and I attended the Dillman’s traveling watercolor painting workshop In Costa Rica on Feb.28 to Mar 8, 2008, with Bridget Austin as instructing artist (see Dillmans.com and Bridgetauastin.com).

This Central American country lies at approximately 9 degrees latitude and has a moist, tropical environment. It is generally mountainous with numerous volcanoes, some of which are currently active. Many of the more scenic areas are covered with tropical rainforest which grow to great heights in many areas. These forests, interspersed with lakes, rivers and waterfalls are home to a diverse population of plants,birds, animals and reptiles.

This workshop was, in our view, an ideal mix of painting as well as sight-seeing and photographic opportunities. The workshop progressed at a continual but relaxed pace. Painting was done mostly during the mornings while the temperature was relatively cool in incredibly beautiful and comfortable settings. Afternoons were spent on localized excursions to scenic locations within short driving ranges of the base hotels. Options were left open for individual interests and activities as well.

Following arrival at San Jose we traveled to the Arenal Springs Resort where we stayed for 3 days. The resort is located near the base of the active Arenal Volcano. Minor eruptions could be seen on a daily basis but the area is considered quite safe. Painting was done on the hotel veranda with a view of the colorful grounds and distant volcano. The grounds were well-manicured and contained a wide variety of vegetation including a fantastic assortment of tropical flowers. This stay included a trip to the Peace River Water Fall Gardens and an evening excursion and dinner at the Tabacon Hot Springs, where most of the participants indulged in a dip into the thermal pools. The third day included a trip to Lake Arenal and a hike down (and back up) a narrow valley to see the fantastic La Fortuna Waterfall.

The next day, we traveled to Manuel Antonio located along the coast of the Pacific Ocean, which is a very popular tourist destination, with many hotels. Our hotel was interestingly named Hotel California and was located near the Manuel Antonio National Park. As at Arenal, we were in a very scenic setting, and came with a view of the ocean.. The town of Quepos was nearby, where we had lunch and shopping opportunities. One evening we had dinner during sunset at the La Mariposa Hotel restaurant. The view from this hotel is of unparalleled beauty in all of Costa Rica.

Painting was accomplished here in a scenic upper-level veranda with a gentle tropical breeze. The hotel grounds had floral gardens with numerous Bougainvillea and Hibiscus. Monkeys could be seen in the surrounding trees and vegetation most mornings. Side trips included a Mangrove estuarine boat cruise to see a wide variety of birds and animals. Painting was also done at two beautiful beaches with large rock outcroppings and boats floating in the offshore.

Dennis and Sue Robertson as well as Stephanie Skotterud were as cordial and accommodating throughout this trip as could possibly be expected. They were tireless in there efforts to make this trip as enjoyable for us as they could.

The painting group was small enough so that each artist was provided ample individual attention. Most painting sessions were started with a demo by Bridget. She is an excellent demo artist and provided detailed verbal explanation of her painting procedures to maximize our learning curve. We would not hesitate to take another workshop with Bridget and/or the Robertsons and will likely do so as our schedule permits.

Bob and Maria Pauken