Since I moved to South America, it’s been difficult to plan family vacations. We have opposite work schedules and live on opposite hemispheres, so time together means pricey plane tickets to limited locations, either here or there. For my mom’s big 5-0 birthday, though, we all wanted to celebrate together in a special place none of us had been. We decided to go “somewhere in the middle” and found ourselves in the paradise of Costa Rica where the season is always summer.

My mom’s boyfriend, William, and brother’s girlfriend, Christina, joined us for the trip. Thanks to my lousy now-ex-boyfriend, I rocked it solo.

 

A snapshot of Guanacaste, Costa Rica:  Pura vida, pure life. The phrase overwhelms the local language as often as the ubiquitous Texan “ya’ll,” Jamaican “ya mon” or Chilean “sipo.” But here it’s not merely a motto. Pura vida: It’s in their clear Spanish, seas and skies. Until the welcome mid-afternoon rain pours down to quench the thirst of the tropical heat. Then it’s in the pure green trees where monkeys howl, swinging from branch to branch, and where the love birds perch in pairs, singing melodies. Pura vida: It’s in the coconut water sold on every corner, and in the sweet pineapple. It’s in the streaks of orange reflecting in the ocean’s ripples at sunset. It’s in the friendly eyes of a fisherman showing off his catch. Pura vida. 

When traveling through the Amazon Rainforest in Ecuador earlier this year, spotting wildlife involved hours of searching, a lot of patience and a bit of luck. I expected Costa Rica to be much of the same, especially since we were staying at a beachfront resort and not in a jungle cabin.

However, we didn’t have to do anything to see animals in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. Flocks of birds perched in trees, iguanas crawled across the sidewalks and monkeys howled from the treetops right outside our hotel rooms. Being a desert rat, it was quite exciting to see such diverse and beautiful wildlife so close up.

We even did a bit of monkey-ing around ourselves and soared through the canopy by zipline. Although I’ve ziplined through waterfalls in Mexico and sped down slippery ropes during a downpour in Ecuador’s cloud forest, the ocean view of this cable course was unmatched!

Like many things in life, you can’t  just experience the ocean for the view, you have to dive right in. Luckily, the gulf water was the perfect temperature — warm, while still refreshing from the equatorial heat. After growing up visiting the cold Pacific waters at California beaches, I am always so excited when I can actually SWIM in the sea without fearing hypothermia.

Since I’m from a family of beach bums to the core, we spent many of our days lazing in the sun at this beautiful beach just steps from our rooms. We watched local fishermen work for their daily catch in an unusual way. First they caught little fish, then used them as live bait at the end of a long spool of wire. They threw out their line by hand and hoped for a bite. I’ve seen fishermen with different techniques in many countries, but this was by far the most fascinating.

Wanting to explore more of the surroundings, my family rented a car and dared the notoriously dangerous Costa Rican roads. During the day, and armed with good directions, I didn’t think the streets were as bad as all the hype. However, I am used to traveling in South America, which also is pothole paradise and lacks appropriate signage for tourist destinations.

We enjoyed the scenic drive to Llanos de Cortez, a beautiful waterfall tucked in Guanacaste’s full foliage and spent the day swimming in the cool fresh water.

On another day, we took a tour to the Tenorio River where we cruised down Class 3 & 4 rapids. I’m happy to report that I managed not to get thrown from the raft the entire day! It was quite the thrill ride and a great adventure for my first time white water rafting.

 

Traveling wouldn’t be complete without tasting the local specialties. Costa Rica, thankfully, doesn’t serve any popular delicacies like the guinea pig and alpaca of Peru, goat of Argentina or mayonnaise covered hotdog of Chile … so I was spared of my personal commitment to “try everything once.” It was all black beans and rice with fresh fish, shrimp ceviche with fried plantain cakes, and micheladas. Yum!

At each new place I’ve visited over the past year or so, I always comment on which parts my mom or brother would have loved since it was with them I caught my travel bug many years ago. It was such a treat to share the experience of visiting a new country with my whole family.

Although I won’t be able to spend my mom’s actual birthday with her in November, I’m grateful for the special adventure we had to celebrate 50 years of one very special lady!

—JDF