Soda Cinchona Revisited

On Sunday, Isabel and I again visited Soda Cinchona (Galería de Colibrí y Soda Cinchona). The soda (small restaurant) is located on the north-central edge of the Central Valley of Costa Rica. Part of the fun is the drive from Grecia which is about an hour to the southwest. The roads wind through some beautiful countryside and pass through the community of Poasito, just south of the Poás Volcano. The road through the community is lined with small shops, restaurants and venders selling everything from strawberries to hand-painted objects made from every kind of material.

The soda, with its great typical Costa Rican cuisine, is more famous for its fruit and hummingbird feeders as well as the waterfall looming in the background. The place is very popular with tour groups and birders, and can be crowded on weekends even early in the day. It is an ideal place for watching birds as the fruit and hummingbird feeders are easily visible around the outdoor patio.

We were able to see 24 species and were lucky enough to capture some photos of some of them.

Red-legged Honeycreeper (lucky shot)

Green Hermit

Green Thorntail

Green-crowned Brilliant

Violet Sabrewing

Prong-billed Barbet

Northern Emerald-Toucanet

Crimson-collared Tanager

Palm Tanager

Cinchona waterfall