One of the most favorite trips I took was to Costa Rica. Not only is the country super beautiful, the flora and fauna are the most I have ever seen travelling. After my trips to Peru and Mexico, I got hooked on attempting to speak Spanish and enjoyed my experiences in those Latin American countries. I decided that I wanted to try to visit as many countries in Latin America as I could before I turned 40. The flights were quick from Florida and sometimes super cheap. The first country I visited in Central America was Costa Rica. REI Adventures (yes, I'm hooked) had a multi-sport trip which you saw the east and west coast of Costa Rica. During the trip we hiked, kayaked, white water rafted, and ziplined. I packed my bags and off I went.
I flew into San Jose, the capital of Coast Rica. Found the guy that was going to take me to my hotel with a cool sign that said my name and headed to my hotel. Yes, the little things excite me. I was not meeting the REI group until that evening for a group dinner so I had time to explore downtown. Luckily the hotel was in walking distance of downtown. I needed food and money, Costa Rican Colon, pronto. I was quite overwhelmed at first. The city was full of life, noise, and many people in the hustle and bustle of their everyday lives. I found an ATM and got some money out then headed to find a place to eat. I settled on a food court in a mall; I figured it had lots of options. I attempted to order but froze when the lady behind the counter started talking really fast in Spanish and asking me questions. I told her to slow down and we pieced together a meal through me attempting Spanish and her attempting English. The cook and the lady behind the counter were super nice and patient with me. I did get some yummy food of baked chicken, rice, and a salad with a Pepsi. So, I'm feeling pretty good about myself until I got turned around and ended up in the not so nice part of the city. But I made it back to the hotel in one piece.
I met up with the REI group that evening for dinner. The group was made up of one couple, a family of four, two older single ladies, and one solo married guy. Our guide was one of the top guides at REI Adventures. She is a cross-fitter and born and raised in Costa Rica. I would soon figure out why she was the top guide and how knowledgeable she was of her home country.
We had a passenger van for the first part of our trip. We started out exploring the east coast of the country. It took a few hours on very bumpy and mostly unpaved roads to get to the place where we met the boat to head to Tortuguero National Park. What was interesting about the drive is that we started in a city, drove through a tropical rainforest, and ended up at a beach. We found our boat to take us to our hotel. It held about 20 people and their suitcases. While trekking through the river, we saw many birds, lizards, snakes, and alligator. We got to our hotel, Mawamba Lodge, and were greeted with fresh fruit juice cocktails. The bungalows had two double beds and bathroom. There was no AC nor hot water (but I think the hot water was broken for us, typically they have it). The food for all meals was served buffet style. Though it was a buffet, the food was fresh and tasted great. Typically, you have chicken, rice, beans, and veggies. The best part of the lodge was that the small town was within walking distance, it had a nice pool and lounge area (with bar), a cafe, the grounds had multiple types of birds and was perfect for bird watching, many local iguanas (who enjoyed fresh fruit), a 'Ranario' (frog) area, and a hammock area. I spent most of my time there in a hammock reading.
During out days in Tortuguero, we went kayaking. We had a boat of people and a boat with kayaks on it. They would drop the kayaks in the water and you would load into them off the passenger boat. There was no way I was getting into the water with alligators and snakes. The kayaking was calm and serene. We saw all kinds of animals in the water and in the trees. I finally saw my first sloth (in Spanish, perezosos meaning lazy) ever. (Side note: when I was a kid, almost all my school projects were about sloths. I just love them. They are my spirit animal.) I was so happy that I bought a new camera for this trip with big zoom feature. I was able to capture so many animals during our kayaking adventures. We saw howler monkeys, white face capuchin monkeys, spider moneys, squirrel monkeys, anhinga (or snake bird), tiger herron, blue herron, turtles, snakes (one below is a vine snake), and much, much more.
On our second night in Tortuguero they had a surprise for us. We were going out at night to see a sea turtle lay her eggs. I had always wanted to see this. They handed us red lighted headlamps and spit us up into small groups. The turtle that we watched had one short, not fully grown flipper. Some volunteers had to help her dig the hole to lay her eggs and help her get out of the hole once done. It took well over an hour for her to do her business. She then headed back to the ocean. It was one of the coolest things I had ever seen. Nature is amazing! The next morning you could see multiple turtle tracks in the sand going to and from the ocean. We flew out the next day in a tiny little airplane back to San Jose and you could even see the tracks from the plane, up and down the beach. Note: the beaches on the east coast of Costa Rica are not like the beaches at home in FL. They had really bad tides and rip currents. You are not allowed to swim or surf in the water. It was my first time in such a tiny plane. We flew over the rainforest and you could see so many waterfalls and cloud forests. It was breathtaking and thrilling.
Once back in San Jose, we loaded the passenger van again and headed to the west coast of Costa Rica. The drive took us about 3 hours to get to Manuel Antonio National Park. We stopped along the way to eat at what are effectively truck stops. The food was great, unlike in the US. Once at Manuel Antonio, we hiked to the beach. Also, during the bus ride, we stopped to look over a bridge into a river. There were hundreds of crocodiles. Some people brought raw chicken to throw over bridge and watch them eat it. Sheesh!! The water at the park was so clear and blue with white sandy beaches. It was quite a contrast to the beaches on the east coast. We spent about 30 minutes watching a sloth move from tree to tree. It was a super slow process but I got all kinds of video (like in slow motion but real life). It was like the sloth was showing off. Our guide was great at pointing out animals along the hikes. We saw some small bats that looked like black dots to me but in her binoculars, they were truly bats.
After some great hiking, I was ready to relax a bit at the hotel. Our hotel was ridiculous. La Mariposa hotel sat on top of a hill with an infinity pool overlooking the ocean. The views from our room were jaw dropping and the shower was crazy huge (and we had hot water, halleluiah). We were greeted by hotel staff with pina coladas. This hotel was a complete 180 from the place we came from. Of course, it is because this area is more touristy and less ecofriendly. During the evenings, we ate dinner in town. It consisted of all kinds of fresh seafood. One evening a sloth was slowly moving on the power lines downtown. It was a crazy site to see. I guess that is why they have animals as well as humans on the slow street sign. Breakfast at the hotel was just wonderful. I hated to leave the hotel at the end of the trip. You overlooked the ocean and ate all kinds small bites. I was in food heaven.
Here is a quick tour of my bed and the view from our balcony. Amazing!! I didn't capture a video of the bathroom, but trust me, it was posh.
The next day we headed out to zipline and white-water raft. On the way to the excursions, I saw some scarlet macaws flying over and yelled at the bus driver to stop. We backed up the bus (even with the beeping) and got out to bird watch. There were over 10 macaws on a palm tree. I took at photo of my group members because it was so funny being on the side of the road with our cameras and binoculars watching birds. We did this several times on our trip. For the white-water rafting trip, we had to load into another van. It had rained overnight so the unpaved roads we were on were quite rough. We had to go up a large incline and the bus couldn't make it and got stuck. The guides and passengers all had to bounce up and down in order to get unstuck. It took about 5 attempts to get the bus up the incline. The rapids on the river were about 1-2, nothing huge. We stopped along the way to wade in a waterfall. At the end of the trip, they had fresh fruit for us to eat. After a bagged lunch we got from a local bakery, we ziplined in the afternoon. They were quite quick ziplines. It was super fun times. The day was jam packed with activities.
The next day we did more hiking and wading in waterfalls. Our first stop of the day was hiking with a local named Visai and visiting his house in the mountains. He did not speak any English but it was translated by our guide. We had another bagged lunch during our hike. His house was small on a hill, surrounded by gardens. We met his family and his wife made us homemade rice pudding. He showed us his vanilla orchids (I didn't realize vanilla was an orchid) and how he cultivates cinnamon from the bark of a tree (again, did not know this). The hike was gorgeous and more difficult than the one at Manuel Antonio. On the trail we met another family and their family pet parrots. The birds were sitting on their shoulders and were bright green. Next up, after a quick snack at another roadside cafe (hot cocoa and a cheese topped tortilla), we went hiking to a waterfall within Los Campesinos Reserve. The trail started out with a long 131 foot high hanging bridge we had to cross over. It was very wobbly and high up but it wasn't as scary as I imaged once I started walking on it. The water in the waterfall was freezing but quite refreshing since it was so hot outside. Again, another super busy day. This day we walked almost 20 thousand steps. The whole trip we averaged about 12 thousand a day. WOWZA!!
That evening after another fancy dinner in town, we walked to the beach to watch the sunset. Boy was it breathtaking. Mother nature did not disappoint at all. This was our last night at La Mariposa hotel. We had so many activities throughout our trip that I didn't get to really relish in the fancy hotel. I maybe swam once in the infinity pool. Otherwise, I slept and ate the crap out of the breakfast there.
The next day we had one last activity and then headed back to the hotel in San Jose. We sea kayaked this day in a city called Jaco. I wasn't the biggest fan of sea kayaking because you have to constantly keep moving or the current will take you in the wrong direction. I like leisurely kayaking and taking photos; you couldn't do this on the ocean. After we changed our clothes (believe me when I say it was hard to take off wet clothes to put on dry ones when you are already sweating half to death, so hot in Costa Rica), we stopped at a family owned "soda" (aka local restaurant). The food was some of the best I had in Costa Rica and the owner was so nice and welcoming. If you are ever in Jaco, stop by and have a bite to eat at Soda Las Lapas. We loaded the van one last time and headed to the hotel. We had one last group dinner that evening and then bid farewell to Costa Rica. I know I'll be back to explore other areas of the country like volcanos and the western peninsula. I agree with the Costa Ricans, Pura Vida is the way to live. What an amazing trip.
What I learned on this trip:
Pura Vida. Simplicity in life is not a bad thing. I needed to simplify my life and not focus so much on obtaining "stuff" but to focus on experiences, mother nature, and living a more sustainable life.
Learn and read more about food and nature. I need to educate myself as to what is in my food and stick to fresh and local products. Also, in order to have a clean Earth for future generations, I need to know how to reduce my carbon footprint and put it into practice.
Kayaking is fun but it is not so nice to my shoulders. I need to work on regular weight training to get my body stronger.
Be happy in all that you do. Always look on the bright side of things. If you are happy, the people around you will pick up on the happiness radiating from you.
What I will bring to Glamp GVL:
Hammock and places to lounge and read a good book are a necessity. At Glamp GVL we will have hammocks and chairs throughout the resort.
We will try our best to be sustainable and recycle.
Hot water is a must.
Greeting people with fruity drinks is not a bad idea. I did enjoy the drinks and welcoming committee when we reached each lodge/hotel on this trip.
Supporting local is so important. One thing I love about REI Adventure trips is that they pair with local vendors and businesses to give you an ultimate experience. I want to instill the same at Glamp GVL. Greenville is a great city and there are so many small businesses to support.
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