It’s hard to believe I lived in Costa Rica for a year and a half. Well, that’s not entirely true. Some days it felt as if I’ was there for an eternity and never had any life other than the one was currently living. Some days it felt as if the magic of living above the streets … [Read more…]
The walls of the open-air lounge at Rancho Armadillo Estate are adorned with newspaper clippings with headlines that read “The Kindest Hotel Owner in Costa Rica” and “Rancho Armadillo: Like Visiting a Friend With a Really Cool House.” There are pictures of local children’s soccer teams too and hand painted gifts of thanks from school groups. This is all … [Read more…]
One week. After one year, five months and four days of living abroad in Costa Rica, one week is all I have left of my life in the rainforest. Beyond that week lies a future filled with unknowns. The pending end of this chapter of my life is a natural time to reflect – well … [Read more…]
Standing atop a damp crag of a rock, peaking over the edge of Montezuma Falls as a stream of water swiftly plummets downward, violently kicking off the jagged cliff side and bucketing into the deep pool below, I felt something I hadn’t felt to expect in this moment — paralyzing fear. All through the past 14-months … [Read more…]
With only one day to spend in Santa Teresa and miles of beaches to explore, my Tico travel buddy Diego and I knew we needed a way to cover a lot of ground fast. With a set of wheels in the form of an ATV rental in Santa Teresa we had exactly what we needed … [Read more…]
Bright pink hues of the rising sun filter through the verdant treetops and softly land at the base of my bed, before melting into a bright yellow. It is dawn in Montezuma, Costa Rica and from my vantage point in the vista cabina at Luz en el Cielo Eco B&B I can just make out … [Read more…]
Today I’m headed back to the United States to spend Christmas with my family in Maryland and ring in the New Year with a few of my travel buddies from Madrid in Washington D.C. I can’t wait to spend time with my family, eat way too much of my mom’s cooking, and relax and reset … [Read more…]
If there’s one defining symbol of Costa Rican culture, it has to be the oxcart (ok, apart from football jerseys, coffee and cerveza Imperial, that is). The importance of the oxcart, or carreta, dates back to the mid-nineteenth century. The elaborate, hand-painted carts were first used as a means to transport coffee beans. While coffee is now … [Read more…]
Traveling less and living more has allowed me to learn how to experience Costa Rica like a local. 
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