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...

Magnificent Manuel Antonio

Evening at the beach

For my third weekend in Costa Rica and my last "free" excursion with ISA, we headed to Manuel Antonio. To be more specific, we headed to a beautiful hotel next to Manuel Antonio National Park, located near Quepos, Costa Rica. That trip had a bit of everything: hiking trails, beaches, swimming pools, wildlife; it was magnificent. I got a chance to see monkeys, the first time I've ever seen them outside of a zoo. I got a chance to return to my Colorado element by hiking through the national park, but at the same time enjoy the different type of hiking: in a forest, at a low altitude, humid, with views of the ocean. I also got attacked by a bat and almost had raccoons steal my belongings. Overall, I'd say that it was a successful weekend.

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I started Friday, before I even left for Manuel Antonio, already having a good time. My Spanish class took a field trip to an amusement park to play traditional Costa Rican children's games with the other Intermediate 1 classes and to go on a scavenger hunt within the "old town" area of the park. No, we didn't get to ride any rides, play carnival games, or eat amusement park foods, but we still had a good time. Each class taught the rest of the students a couple of games that they had learned within their classes. My class was assigned "Arroz con Leche" and  a game that very much resembled "Red-light, green-light" (I forgot what the name was).

Arroz con Leche is a game apparently played by young Costa Rican children. It starts with someone in the middle. Everyone sings the song to the game:

           Arroz con leche. Yo quiero casar

           Con una señorita de la capital

           Que sepa barrer, que sepa caser

           Que sepa abrir la puerta para ir a jugar

           Con esta si, con esta no

           Con esta señorita me caso yo

Upon the end of the song, the person in the middle points to someone. That individual picks a number and everyone has to form a group with that many people. The people not in a group are out. The game continues with the chosen person in the middle.

Though the game is fun and silly when played by college students, it is a great illustration of the culture of machismo that is present within Costa Rica and other Latin American countries. In these countries, women are seen as the caretakers of the home, the good mothers and wives. Catcalling is a regular part of the culture and is meant to be taken as a compliment. Women are seen as inferior to men and their place is in the household. Though gender roles reinforce this machismo, and though women are supposed to be limited to the household, they are very much respected in that role. Women are the heads of household and have a lot of power in that domain. With newer generations, we see a shift in this belief that women are limited to the home, with more women out in the workforce and obtaining educations than ever. For example, my mama tica is a dentist, as is my papa tica. Catcalling definitely exists here, and I've received it, but for me, I think it's more of a problem in the US because in the US it is more forceful and persistent, whereas the catcalling doesn't really go past the initial call. 

When your professor decides to play jumprope too

Other games included jumprope (which the professors joined in on), hide-and-seek, and a couple of others I missed out on because the people who were sent to find us during hide-and-seek never came and found us. After a good 10-20 minutes of hiding, we gave up only to find everyone else playing other games. We ended our field trip with a scavenger hunt around Pueblo Antiguo and my team, despite our lack of competitiveness, got some snacks as a prize for being one of the first groups done. I wasn't looking to beat the other teams, but I won't say I didn't enjoy the treats.


After the field trip, I headed with the rest of my program to Manuel Antonio. On the bus ride, we got to see a couple of monkeys just hanging around the town. When we arrived, I was not expecting to see what I saw: this big giant hotel right next to the national park. The amenities and view were amazing! There were pools, a view of the national forest, balconies, several beaches within walking distance, and the architecture reminded of me of that which you would see in Morocco. There was even a little underground tunnel that led to one of the beaches nearby. That evening was pretty chill. I ate dinner with some of the other students at a small place by the beach, explored the hotel, and watched part of Man of Steel with my roommate and some of the guys from the program. While exploring the top floor of the hotel, where there was an adult only pool, bar, and several lounge areas, a bat flew out of nowhere and ran into my face. Needless to say, that was the end of my exploration.
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On Saturday, I was fortunate enough to spend my entire day within Manuel Antonio National Park. This park is much different than the ones I'm used to seeing back at home. The park had many different hiking trails with different viewing points, as well as several different beaches. While the people I normally talked to headed straight for the beach, I ran into some guys from my program who desired to hike most of the day, as I did. I asked if I could join them, and that was that. 

Our first trail to hike was a short one which led to a small waterfall. Right away, I knew hiking in this park would be so different from other hikes I had been on. Back at home, trails are basically just marked terrain. Here, they were almost like sidewalks with wooden staircases. I thought this was odd and a little unusual, but kept at it anyways. 

After enjoying the view of the waterfall, we hiked back to the main path, following it straight until it divided in two. At that fork, we saw our first couple of monkeys. There were white-faced monkeys and howler monkeys. They were cute and pretty energetic, not really enjoying all the foot traffic, trying to pee on all of the people below. I don't blame them though; how would it make you feel if people were exploring your home every day and taking pictures of you all the time? At that fork, we decided to take the left path, which held three hiking trails, a private beach, and a beach that's not really swimmable, while the other path led to several beaches and one hiking trail. Since hiking was our focus, we headed left to begin with.

The first trail we hiked was the sloth trail. Apparently, this trail follows the areas where the sloths were likely to hang out. Though there were some great viewing points, we didn't see any sloths. It was rather disappointing.

The second trail we hiked was the mirador trail, it was the longest trail of the park and led to a beautiful view of the ocean at it's end. We spend some time there taking pictures of the landscape and taking some selfies of us taking selfies with the background, or "self-ception" as we called it. The views were unlike those I would normally encounter back home. Normally, hiking views consist of city skylines or mountain ranges. Here, the views consisted of the ocean and beaches. You don't get those views in Colorado.



The third trail we hiked was that to Puento Escogito. The view at the end was beautiful, but not quite like that of the mirador trail. We noticed a ladder than led down to a rocky beach below. Half of us stayed to explore, while the other half headed down the path to the beaches. Looking back, I regret going down that ladder. When I got off the ladder, which was so high of the ground that I about fell off of it, all that was below were a ton of rocks and a little private beach that would be difficult to get there. I decided to take this as a challenge. I climbed over rocks, trying to not squish any of the hermit crabs chilling on them. At several points, I fell into the water, and at one point, my camera fell into the water and stopped working. Thankfully, I set it to dry out back at the hotel until we left and now it is working once again. When we finally made it to the private beach, I was over it. I was soaked, dirty, and my camera wasn't working. There was a tiny island that one could explore, but that consisted of even more rocks and struggle. I decided I was not about that life and headed back. Trying to get back up the ladder was a struggle because of my short stature, but when I got back up, I decided I was done with that kind of exploring for the day.

The private beach that almost killed me

Heading back down the trail to the fork in the road, I stopped at the non-swimmable beach along the way, Playa Gemelas. I took my tennis shoes off, put my feet in the sand, sat down on a rock, and wrote in my journal. After my less than pleasant experience at the private beach, I was ready to sit down and relax. I stayed their for awhile just enjoying the view and the sun. After some time, I put on my sandals and headed back to the fork.

Hide yo wife. Hide yo kids.
Hide everyone cause these raccoons be stealing yo stuff.

This time, I took the other path. My first, and little did I know last, stop in the park was Playa Manuel Antonio. It was a big, popular beach where tons of people were swimming and soaking up the sun. I laid out in the sun for awhile, making sure to keep my belongings near me. I had just seen some raccoons steal some food from some of the other visitors and I was not about to let them steal my belongings too. I headed into the ocean to cool off and swim, and then headed back to lay out in the sun. I did this for awhile, until it started to rain. Knowing I was over hiking for the day, and that I really didn't want to be caught in a downpour, I exited the park and headed back to the hotel with the guys after reuniting with them at the beach. 


Upon our return, we changed and got ready to go eat, since it was well past lunch time. I woke up my roommate so she could eat too and we went on a hunt to find food. We ended up going to a restaurant down the road right off one of the beaches and then explored some of the nearby shops. I ended up catching up with my other roommate at the beach, and went with her, my other roommate, and their new friend to the same restaurant we went to for lunch a couple hours earlier. Not hungry, I just chilled. We then moved to a really cheap bar. Having been in the sun all day, I was not about the alcohol life, so I chilled once again. I ended up heading to the store to get some snacks in case I did get hungry later that evening and headed back to the hotel. I was supposed to meet back up with them to go to the city, but I ended up getting distracted and sitting in the hotel watching tv. I was content.

We missed the sunset by like 15 minutes. Unfortunate.

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On Sunday, I spent the day talking a walk along the beaches and exploring the shops. I wish I would have been able to enter the Nacional Park again and finish the last hiking trail, but I was not about to pay an entrance for an hour or so. I walked around but didn't buy anything. We also stopped to eat lunch in Jaco. I wish I could write more, but it honestly wasn't that eventful.

Tantalizing Tamarindo

My excursion to Tamarindo was tantalizing! It was amazing and interesting and full of firsts. First time seeing the deep blue ocean. First time feeling the soft sand of a beach between my toes. First time feeling the cool waves rush up against my skin. First time ducking my head below water searching for any signs of life along the coastline. First time taking a boat through the open water, without a care in the world, enjoying the sun, the views, and the breeze flowing through my hair. Those firsts were unlike anything I have ever felt before (literally).

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We boarded the bus for Tamarindo Friday afternoon upon the conclusion of the morning Spanish classes at noon. I attempted to take a long nap on the bus, but I am awful when it comes to sleeping in moving vehicles, so I watched the movies they had playing and chilled until our arrival around 5pm. I stepped off the bus with this image of this dark, soft pristine beach in the background of a beautiful hotel; luckily, that is exactly what I saw. The glistening of the light on the ocean and the outdoor pool, the clean, fancy-looking lobby. It was so much to take in. I had finally seen the ocean for the first time and it was more incredible than I could have imagined. Breathing in the salty hair, feeling disgusting from all the humidity, looking at the clear, deep blue water and the clear night sky; it was just great.

I headed to my room to unpack and get ready for dinner. The hotel provided us with a buffet dinner, which consisted of pasta and the like. We were also treated to cultural dancers, who reminded me very much of when I participated in baile folklorico back in the states when I was little.

The rest of the evening consisting of figuring out what form my fun take for the evening. This fun took the form of hanging out with other ISA students in one of the other rooms in the hotel, wavering back and forth between paying two mil to enter the local club, The Crazy Monkey, or walking back to the hotel alone. After analyzing the club from the outside for a couple of minutes, I decided it was not worth the money and chose the later option. Luckily, one of guys also decided to turn back, so I had a walking companion back to the hotel. We ended up talking to some other ISA students upon our return, and I eventually settled on a nice night of getting cozy in the hotel bed and watching American Horror story. As many of you know, I like to go out sometimes, but clubs, bars, and drinking are just not my thing, so I was very much content with the remainder of my evening.

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On Saturday morning, I was determined to get an early start. I had planned to fit in some time exploring the beach and ocean before I boarded a catamaran for a tour. I got up early, around 7am or so, chowed down on some breakfast while watching the waves of the ocean, and prepared to experience the beach for the first time. I took off my sandals and grabbed a towel and stepped onto the smooth, soft sand of the beach for the first time in my life. It's hard to explain my emotions as I felt the sand of the beach run between my toes and the crash of the waves upon my body as I made my way into the ocean for the first time. Many children go to the beach when they're young, so they don't always have the memory of the first time they went. For others, it's so common for them to go to the beach that they don't have as much of the excitement each time they return. For me, being almost 21 years old and never having stepped foot on a beach, I was able to create a memory, filled with happiness and excitement and those rich sensations of touch, and I will be able to remember that moment vividly for the rest of my life.

I spent about 4 or so hours just soaking up the sun, playing in the sand, and cooling off in the warm, clear, salty water of the Pacific Ocean. It was soon time for my catamaran tour, another adventure filled with firsts for me. The catamaran tour was not only my first time on a catamaran, but my first time on a boat, period. I stepped onto the speed boat that quickly took us to board the catamaran. I made a snug spot for myself near the front of the deck and looked over the side. The feeling of the breeze flowing through my hair, the saltiness of the air on my skin, and the incredible views is something I didn't expect whatsover. We traveled through the water, eating chips and salsa and taking advantage of the limited, but open bar. I had a couple of house drinks, which was a fruit juice mixed with Cacique, also known as Guaro, a Costa Rican brand of liquor. I also had a rum and coke. Besides drinking, I had the opportunity to just enjoy the view.

During the tour, we headed to a small coastline where we had the opportunity to snorkel, kayak, swim, or walk on the private beach. I chose snorkeling. Even though I suck at swimming, I was thrilled after dipping my head into the water and seeing the rocks near me, as well as the many different types of fish swimming around. I was so into the view that I ended up swimming straight into a giant rock. I quickly recovered and decided to go sit on the beach for a little while and soak up the sun. Upon my return swim to the boat after an hour, one of the guides was holding a puffer fish beneath the water. With snorkeling gear, I had the amazing opportunity to see a puffer fish for the first time. Unfortunately there was not enough time for me to hold it, as the other students did, but is was enjoyable nonetheless.

Upon our return to the boat, we were treated with lunch and music. We made our travels back to shore just in time to watch the sunset on the catamaran. It was beautiful. 

I ended the evening with getting tacos at a nearby stand and hanging out with friends from ISA. I didn't go out to the bars like the other students, mostly because I had drank all day on the boat and also, they're just not a thing to do all the time for me. I don't really get that much enjoyment out of it.

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Sunday was pretty carefree. I spent the morning saying goodbye to the ocean that was my first, saying goodbye to the beach that was my first, and browsing the shops in the little beach town. Everything was super expensive and super touristy, so I decided against getting anything there. 


Until next time, Pura Vida.