ABSTRACT
In Costa Rica, our guide, Jorge Fernandez, told us that this herb or shrubs stems, steeped in alcohol or water, was one of the best things out there to settle the stomach, especially after too much food or drink, both as a preventive and as a cure. Marcos Soto, who had accompanied us before as well, had pretty much the same idea, but stressed that it was good for drunkenness, hangover, and liver problems, a sort of poor man’s tico milk thistle. As a matter of fact, the guides were kind enough to purchase a specimen for me, steeping in their nasty moonshine sugarcane rum from a local bar at the bottom of the hill, near Monte Verde, where they sell it rather regularly to regular drinkers, to help prevent the consequences of overindulgence. Jorge told us also that when he lived in the bush with his Cabecaras tribe, they were involved in the moonshine business, more recently rendered illegal. Ironic that he should tell us that his father (or was it grandfather) had survived four or ve different snake bite cases. “Hombre grande” also has quite a reputation for snake bite as well.
