Magical Monteverde

Looking back, I have mixed feelings about my experience in Monteverde the sixth week I was here. I thought it was a beautiful area, but it didn't have much that was within walking distance or budget-friendly. Monteverde is most known for its cloud forest biological reserve and for having the longest zip line in Latin America. That's what really brings tourists, the forest, the zip line, and bungee jumping. I got to do some pretty cool things, like hike in the cloud forest and go to an orchid garden, but the amount of time I stayed there was way too long considering I didn't bungee jump or go zip lining. I did some zip lining when I went canyoning in Arenal, so I was not about to pay $50 to do it here. Or the $60 to go bungee jumping. If I really wanted to do it, I probably would have, but I'm glad I didn't, because I would have done it more out of obligation, and financially speaking, it wasn't the best use of my money.

Friday, November 6
I left to the bus station not long after my Friday Spanish class ended for the day. Not wanting to stand like I did for the ride to Puerto Viejo, I made it to the bus station early, but unfortunately, I had to wait about an hour before the ticket vendor came back from lunch. I did get a seat, thankfully, and prepared myself for the 4 1/2 hour long bus ride. It was a bit inconvenient, because the bus didn't leave until 2:30pm and I had waited since around 12:30pm, but it was whatever. The bus only comes and leaves twice per day, once at 6:30am and once at 2:30pm. When I arrived in Monteverde, confused, I walked ten minutes in the wrong direction of my hostel until I finally went into a hotel and asked the front desk how to get to my hostel. I turned around, went down the giant hill I had just ascended, and finally got to my hostel. It was dark, so I was thankful that I found it quickly. Because it had rained earlier, the credit card machine wasn't working, so I had to walk a couple blocks to an ATM to pull out cash to pay the remainder of my balance. The hostel was pretty chill. It offered free breakfast, free coffee and tea, wifi, and the rooms weren't bad at all. They consisted of two bunk beds and a shared bathroom. I was okay with that for around $10 a night. Tired, I decided not to get dinner, and went straight to bed. I had planned to go hiking in the cloud forest the next day, and knew I would have to get up early for that, so I passed out, looking forward to the next day.

Saturday, November 7

I started off the morning enjoying the free breakfast provided by the hostel. And when they say free breakfast, they are not talking about some continental style thing -- they are talking about homemade plates of food and a separate plate just for fruit. I scarfed down the delicious food quickly and headed to the bus stop to go to the cloud forest, which was conveniently located right outside of my hostel.




















My first adventure for the day was hiking in the cloud forest. Because it was a biological reserve with many trails, I figured I'd spend the whole day there, but that is not what happened. I arrived at the information desk to get my ticket, speaking Spanish as I should be. The man at the desk was very nice and complemented my Spanish skills. He highlighted the longest route he could find after I told him I'd like to stay there as long as I could. The route was supposed to take five hours, and near the end, provide me with a trail to see a waterfall. Ecstatic and happy to be in my hiking element, I set off on my journey. I saw a lot of nature, in terms of plants and trees, but not much wildlife. This is because most of the wildlife live in the canopy level of the forest, which makes sense. Regardless, the temperature was in the sixties, which was so refreshing. The path took me on various trails with varying levels of difficulty. There were several viewing points, a hanging bridge, and a waterfall along the path. Despite the fact it was supposed to take five hours, it took me about two and a half hours. Being 10:30am when I finished and not knowing what to do the rest of the day, I was disappointed, since I had planned to remain in the forest the whole day, I headed into the souvenir shop to wait for the return bus. I bought a postcard to send to the little girl I tutor at the Bridge Project and a gift for my brother. I boarded the bus and headed back to Santa Elena, the town that I was staying in.


I returned to my hostel and relaxed for a little while. I decided that I should go explore the town, since it wasn't that big and because I didn't know what else to do. I ended up running into some girls from my program, so I hung out with them and browsed the shops. We ended up going into a large souvenir shop where I purchased a couple of items. When they were ready to head back to their hostel, we parted ways and talked about meeting up for dinner. We didn't end up meeting, due to a lack of wifi on their end, but that was cool, and I ended up eating casado at one of the restaurants. They seated me at a table for four, which I found hilarious, but the food was good nonetheless. I headed back to my hostel to contemplate the rest of the evening.

That evening, bored while trying to maintain wifi, I managed to drop my phone off of my bed. Mind you, I had the top bunk. Never having damaged my phone before, I didn't worry, until I saw the screen. It was cracked. Of all the times I dropped it, it took a bunk bed to actually do some damage. I was pretty unhappy after that occurred. It pretty much ruined my evening, until I got a new roommate.

One thing that is really cool about hostels in particular is that you can meet people from all over the world. That weekend, I had done that. The first night, I roomed with a pair from Switzerland and a dude from Ireland. They were pretty chill, especially the Irish guy. I briefly chatted with him the night before about his travels and how he was planning on going zip lining and bungee jumping. The next night, I roomed with the pair again and a dude from Panama. We talked for a long time, and the next day, about his travels, and what Panama is like, and what he thought of Costa Rica. He was really chill too!

Sunday, November 8
My day started off early, jumping out of bed to eat the free breakfast and packing up my things. Unlike most hostels, whose check out time is around 11am, this hostel had a checkout time of 9:30am. Considering the earliest bus wasn't until 2:30pm, I was not very happy about this. I walked around the entire day with all of my belongings; though not much, they were bulky, and I was not a fan of that. Unlike the bulk of travelers who visit only to zip line or bungee jump, I thought my time would be better spent exploring to find cheaper and less touristy options and not spending $60+. Nothing wrong with doing the longest zip line in Latin America, but I couldn't justify it to myself, especially since it wasn't something I was yearning to do. But that decision didn't leave me with many options. Because of the few options that were affordable and did not require a reservation, I decided to wander to find what I could do for the next several hours.

"bailarinas de oro"

The first place I stopped by was an orchid garden right near my hostel. I paid the entrance and a guide walked me through the garden, giving his tour in Spanish as I had requested. I was so proud of myself for understanding the tour in its entirety! Back to the garden -- I learned so much about orchids that I would never have learned otherwise, like how to tell which orchids are natural and not created, how to tell a flower is an orchid, things that are interesting but not really talked about in regular conversation. I learned that most orchids are actually small, very small, and reside on the tops or bottoms of leaves. Hate to break it to ya, but most orchids in the US are not natural; they're likely hybrids and you wouldn't really find them in nature. I also had the opportunity to see the smallest orchid in the world, which you need a magnifying glass to see, and it also happens to be native to Monteverde and only found there.

hybrid; not natural

After wandering a while longer, I stopped into the herpentarium, which houses snakes, turtles, and frogs. Though it was great to learn about these animals and about their presence in Costa Rica, it felt like I was at a zoo, and zoo's aren't as great as they appear. Nonetheless, I got to see some pretty cool frogs, including one that is essentially invisible since it is see-though, some chill turtles, and some creepy snakes.



My last stop, after hours of wandering around the familiar with nothing left to do, was at a cheap restaurant where I ate a hamburger and fries. It was the cheapest restaurant there and I was so exhausted that I wasn't all that concerned that it wasn't traditional Costa Rican food. I had attempted to go to another restaurant earlier that advertised paninis, but as soon as I got the menu and saw that the food started at $12, and small beverages started at $4, I left right away; I felt kind of bad, but the prices were ridiculous for a traveler on a budget.

Note to future travelers: Santa Elena is tiny, and there is not much within walking distance, though there are many things to do if you have transportation and reservations. Also, know that there are only two buses each day, one at 6:30am and one at 2:30pm, so you could be stuck wandering waiting for the bus if you choose the later one with no actual plan for the day.

Santa Elena

Ridin' [the bus] solo

Traveling Solo

I am constantly being asked by others where my travel companions are, or if I am waiting on other people. I reply that I am traveling alone and many seem shocked by that concept. "By yourself?" "Why would you do that?" "Don't you have friends?" "It's not safe to travel alone." "Aren't you scared?" are some of the phrases that often follow the initial shock. Yes. I am traveling through Costa Rica by myself. Yes, I have friends, but I choose to travel alone, for many reasons. I've never felt unsafe traveling alone. And no, I'm not scared. The concept of traveling alone is foreign to many people and not very much understood, so I thought I'd at least attempt to explain why I choose to travel alone.

Why I Choose to Travel Alone

1. A Journey of Self

Traveling is a great time to get to know oneself and do some serious self-reflection. I've been able to better uncover my likes, my dislikes, what ticks me off, what I'm passionate about. It's allowed me to also reflect on how I fit into the world and allows me to just be. I don't need to have a reason for my existence when I'm traveling alone. I can just be out in nature and enjoy it for its inherent beauty. 

2. Doing What I Want to Do

Traveling alone allows you to do all the activities and go to all of the places you want to do without feeling held back by others. That's not to say that friends and fellow travelers are roadblocks; that's not the case at all. It's fun to travel with friends. But sometimes, you might come across something you really want to do, like hike in a national park, that maybe some of your friends are not down for. There's nothing wrong with going to do that on your own while your friends do something else that they want to do.

3. Learning to Be Alone

It's an important piece of your development to learn that it's okay to be alone sometimes. Growing up, I felt lonely because I thought the key to life was always having people around you. Yes, relationships with other people are important, but your relationship with your self, how you see yourself, that's extremely important as well. Traveling alone allows me to feel more comfortable about myself and to take time for self-reflection.

All The Right Fun in All The Right Places

These are not all of the amazing places I've been able to visit alone, just the ones I happen to have pictures of. This visual is not exhaustive of my adventures though. But traveling by myself has been pretty incredible.

San José, Costa Rica

Mall San Pedro, exploring downtown San José, Barrio China, Castillo Azul, Avenida Central, volunteering at el Hospicio de Huérfanos, Casa Amarilla, Catedral Metropolitana, Plaza de la Democracia, Plaza de la Libertad Electoral, Museo Nacional, Festival de la Luz, Parque Morazan, Parque España, Museo de Arte y Diseño Contemporáneo, Parque Nacional

Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, Costa Rica

Playa Negra, Rocking Js (sleepin' in a hammock), Finca de la Isla Botanical Gardens, Luluberlu Art Gallery, a yellow sand beach, exploring Puerto Viejo

Monteverde, Costa Rica

Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Reserve, Sloth Backpackers Hostel & Bed and Breakfast, Orchid Garden, Herpentarium, exploring Santa Elena

Jacó, Costa Rica

Playa Jacó

Volcán Poas, Costa Rica

what was supposed to be a crater selfie...

Picturesque Puerto Viejo

Though my adventure to picturesque Puerto Viejo started off less than ideal, it ended up being a pretty great weekend. Between sleeping in a hammock, exploring the town, going to a botanical garden, stopping into an art gallery, and soaking up the sun on the beaches, this trip was definitely one for the books.
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On Friday, I left my Spanish class early and hung out for a bit until I met up with some girls to head to Puerto Viejo with. With five of us, we split up into two taxis. Our first taxi ride was not very pleasant. Even though I stressed to the taxi driver that we needed to go to the bus station for Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, not Puerto Viejo de Sarapiqui, he ended up taking us to the wrong stop anyways. I basically fell trying to out of the cab, and lost one of my flip flops along the way. I ended up just throwing the other one away because what was I supposed to do with only one shoe? When we arrived, I had a very strong feeling we were not where we were supposed to be and that was confirmed when we made it to the ticket counter. We rushed to find a taxi to take us to the other station. We sat in traffic for what seemed like forever, but eventually made it to the correct bus station. Unfortunately, the taxi driver had taken us to the wrong terminal. Upon our looks of confusion, one taxi driver was kind enough to give us directions to the correct terminal which was a couple of blocks away. We started following his directions, but when the route appeared to be sketchy, we turned back and stood hella confused on the corner. He ended up driving up in his taxi and reiterated his directions so we wouldn't get lost. Without that kind taxi driver, we would have never made it to the right terminal.

We arrived at the correct terminal about a half an hour before the bus was set to leave. Unfortunately, when we arrived at the ticket counter, all that was left were standing tickets. Keep in mind, this is a five hour bus ride. Not wanting to be separated from the other girls once again, we decided to just roll with it. We paid for the tickets, boarded the buses, and things were finally looking up. We were finally on our way to Puerto Viejo and the other girls no longer were freaking out (and rightfully so) since they couldn't get in touch with us. After about an hour and a half of standing, the two other girls and I decided to just sit on the floor. With all the jerks and turns and countless times I almost fell, I was over it. We were near a staircase in the back of the bus, so we ended up squishing near that. About three hours into the travels, a woman walked with her toddler to the back of the bus toward the staircase. We got up from the stairs and moved out of the way so the woman could get through. I assumed that she was going to exit the bus. Soon after, she pulled down her little girl's pants and the little girl proceeded to pee all over the stairs. Well, so much for sitting down. Interestingly, five minutes later, we made it to the quick pit stop for everyone to get off, stretch, get some snacks, and use the restroom. We reboarded and stood most of the way. Many folks got of in Calhuita, so we were able to find seats for the last 30-40 minutes of the ride there.

We finally arrived in Puerto Viejo that evening. Unable to find any authorized taxis and not knowing how far the hostel was, we ended up taking a pirata, which is basically a person who uses their personal car as a taxi. They tell you how much to pay them, rather than starting a meter, or a maria  as they are called here. You basically hop in a stranger's car and pay them to take you somewhere. A little sketch, but we didn't have much of a choice. Some of the girls had utilized piratas before and assured us it was safe. We hopped in an soon arrived at the hostel of choice: Rocking Js.

Rocking Js is THE hostel to go to in Puerto Viejo. I received the recommendation from a friend, because it's where everyone goes. You have the option of sleeping in a hammock (the cheapest option), tent, dorm, or private room. It's known as the party hostel with an on-site bar. The hostel is basically outdoors with some roofs over the top. It's really chill and artsy, with mosaics covering every wall and piece of the ground. Though it's a walk from the main part of the town, it is right off of a beach, albeit a rocky one you probably wouldn't swim in. I knew as soon as I stepped in and got the key to my locker that was conveniently located next to my hammock that it could only go up from here.

Hungry, we settled in and then took off in search of food. Another student from the program had recommended that we check out this restaurant/bar called Hot Rocks, so that's exactly where we headed. Friday nights were karaoke nights, and in between eating and drinking, some of the girls and a couple of the boys we knew got up and belted some songs. I have videos, but I won't post them, out of respect for the fact that the boys were drunk and in respect of their identities. If they ask me to post them, I will later on. It was a good time. Exhausted, we headed back to our hostels and went to sleep in our hammocks and tents.
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On Saturday morning, I woke up well before sunrise, one, because for my first time in a hammock, I didn't really know how to position myself to sleep, and two, monkeys were howling non-stop. Luckily, a couple other girls woke up as well, so we decided to go watch the sunrise along the beach. It was hard to see because of where it was at and how far we could get out without getting into the water, but it was beautiful nonetheless. After watching the sunrise, I headed back to sleep for awhile while the other girls prepared for their trip to Panama.

I decided to sleep for awhile longer after watching the sunrise. I started the rest of the day by exploring the town. I first stopped into the supermarket to buy snacks as well as a towel, since I didn't have a beach towel for the beach or a towel for the shower at the hostel. It didn't cross my mind to pack one back in the states. I browsed a ton of the local shops. There was so much I wanted to buy, but I stuck to my mission: a postcard for my tutee back in the states and maybe gifts that were made in Puerto Viejo. My favorite shop was this store that had a little bit of everything. The majority of the projects there were made right there in Costa Rica. There were even a ton of natural products that I was sure my best friend back home (Alex Q) would love. After purchasing a postcard and a small wristlet (I really needed something smaller than my owl purse), I finished exploring the shops along the main roads and headed back to the hostel to research things to do in the area.

While I was researching, a Tico student from a local university asked to interview me for a project for his English class. I said sure. He and his classmates were interviewing English speakers for their conversations class to see what non-natives thought about Costa Rica.

I found a couple of places to visit thanks to Trip Advisor. I had discovered them earlier during the week, but I wanted to confirm that they were open and exactly where they were located. The first place I visited was La Finca de la Isla. La Finca de la Isla is a tropical botanical garden. With a three mil entrance fee (about $6), I started on a self-guided tour. I got a chance to chill with some red poison dart frogs and another type of poison frog that I can't remember the name of. There were so many beautiful plants, like flowers, fruit trees, and more. After my self-guided tour, I got to try various fruits, fruit juice, and chocolate from the garden, which was delicious. I would definitely recommend it; I will say it is quite a walk from the main part of town, though.



On my way back to the hostel, I stopped at an art gallery/shop called Luluberlu. There were so many cool pieces of art that I wanted to purchase, but I didn't have the money. I really enjoyed browsing the shop. All of the art was created by local artists in Puerto Rico. I ended up buying natural soaps made right there in Costa Rica, which didn't cost too much. I wish I would have had more money with me to buy more. The art was beautiful and the atmosphere there was so friendly. Those artists in Puerto Viejo are very talented. My bestie (Alex Q) would have loved it.

The rest of the evening consisted of my getting caught in the rain, eating dinner, and then passing out it my hammock. The only notable thing I feel like was my frozen mojito that I had with dinner. It was delicious. Oh, and I almost forgot -- there were fire twirling people at the hostel. Pretty cool.

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On Sunday, I started the day early, hoping to get in some time at different beaches throughout the day. Despite having bought snacks, I decided to search for real breakfast. Upon walking around, there were not very many cheap options for the breakfast. I decided to head back to the hostel and eat there. Upon my return, right outside the convenience store across the street, a fight broke out between two guys. They were going hard at each other, one with a bat and the other with a giant rock. I passed them as they continued fighting. I heard a loud pop. I wasn't sure if it was sort of weapon, so I sped up to make it back into the boundary of my hostel. I ended up eating there, as they have cheap breakfast options.

The first beach I headed to was a beach located about a 15-20 minute walk from my hostel in the opposite direction of town. It was a nice yellow, sandy beach, that was not as packed as the other beaches closer to the town center. I laid out in the sun for awhile, then enjoyed the waves for awhile. I alternated like this for awhile until the heat and sun and humidity, that nasty combo, began to get to me. I headed back to the hostel, purchased a Powerade from the convenience store, and took a break from the sun.


The second beach I headed to was named Playa Negra. It is a small beach with black sand. Because it is often compared to Playa Jaco, another black sanded beach which is apparently beautiful, not many visit it. It wasn't crowded, so I laid out my towel and spent some time just dipping my toes in the pretty sand. I alternated between laying out in the sun and enjoying the waves. I preferred this beach over the other because the waves weren't as intense and the water was the perfect temperature. I stayed here for a couple an hours until the afternoon rain looked like it was going to begin. Not wanting to get caught in a downpour, I gathered my belongings and headed back toward my hostel. I stopped to get a drink to quench my thirst at the super market just as soon as it started pouring. I had forgotten my umbrella and rain jacket, so I waited it out for awhile, as many others did. When it was clear that it was not going to stop for awhile, I headed out into the rain and walked the rest of the way back to my hostel.

 I hung out at the hostel until I ran into the girls again. They had decided to visit Panama that weekend as well. I joined them for dinner at a nearby pizza place. The pizza was so delicious, as were the desserts. We had a great, fun time, one of the few people in the restaurant, probably because it was pouring.
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Monday morning, I checked out of Rocking Js and headed to the bus station. This time, I was determined to get a seat. I bought my ticket and relaxed in the mini park while waiting for the bus. I took the bus home. On the return, traffic was backed up due to the protests in Limón. If there are people that know how to organize and protest, Ticos are up there. They have regularly scheduled protests. That Monday, they were protesting about wages, employment conditions, and governmental corruption. It was great to see this action being taken by the citizens. The other people on the bus thought it was great too. It was nice to be around people that didn't shrug it off or say that the people were just complaining and that they were causing trouble like I hear people say about protests in the US.

I eventually made it back to San José. I was out of cash (well that I brought anyways) for the most part, since I overestimated how often I would be able to use my card. There are taxis that take credit cards, but they are difficult to find. I was about to go on to a search when I was approached by a taxi driver asking where I needed to go. I told him Universidad Veritas, but unless he accepted credit cards, I couldn't take his taxi. This woman overheard me and said that she was going to Veritas as well and asked if we could share a cab. I explained to her that I needed a cab that took cards. She relayed that they are very hard to fine and offered to pay. I felt bad not paying anything, but she was insistent, so I hopped in the cab and rode to Veritas with her. Turns out, she is a local who lives in Puerto Viejo but had decided to go back to school and take classes at Veritas during the week. Since she lives and works in Puerto Viejo, she stays with a friend during the week since it would be a long commute. We arrived at Veritas and parted ways. I will always remember that act of kindness.