Home away from Home

It's been nine months since I took a risk and booked a trip to Costa Rica with 12 total strangers. A moment I shall never forget and always be so incredibly thankful for. Costa Rica stole my heart that first night I landed in January and I've had a love for the country, the people, the food, and just the Pura Vida life. This is now my third time visiting and I have no shame in it. I came back to Manuel Antonio which is on the pacific side and my favorite part of Costa Rica - I made quite a few friends here in January & April so I figured I'd visit them.

I rented out a place for the month of July and part of August in Quepos, which is a small town right next to MA. This is an area that I know quite well, it’s the only place in Costa Rica that I’ve visited and stayed at every time I’ve come here. The reason why is it has the perfect combination of locals and tourists. The Manuel Antonio National Park is here, as well as the most beautiful beaches and the rainforest with plenty of hiking trails. The bus system here is also amazing which makes it very easy to get around. It has the sense of something is always going on where you can stop by the Selina Hostel here for an event, party or just to meet other travelers. Or go to the restaurants and bars in Quepos to meet some locals.

During my entire month here I had a lot of time to myself to write, journal and self-reflect. I made plenty of friends during my adventures in MA but I really took the time to do some inner work.

Right now in Costa Rica, they are in the rainy season (green season), which means it rains for about half or less of the day (depending upon where you are). The house I had rented was a little up in the hills so getting back was quite an adventure sometimes (floods were chaotic). MA will always have a special place in my heart. Not too many big moments happened here, besides getting attacked by chigger[s] bites, losing my rain jacket & AirPods case, my laptop dying and an ATM machine eating my debit card.