Costa Rica

Costa Rica, the land of rice and beans, capuchin monkeys and where everyone says pura vida.

We fell in love with the Tico way of life after travelling and house sitting in Costa Rica. From the misty volcanoes of Poas and the deep jungle of Manuel Antonio, to the beach vibes of Puerto Viejo and the thousands of turtles nesting on Ostional, Costa Rica is a land of natural wonder.

 

Tourism Disrupts Turtle Nesting in Ostional, Costa Rica

A year ago, Luke and I had an incredible experience witnessing the turtle arribada in the small Costa Rican beach town of Ostional. During an arribada, thousands of turtles come onto the beach to lay their eggs in the sand.

We were surprised not only by how breathtaking it is to see these creatures come out from the sea, but also how deserted the small town of Ostional was when we were there. One year later, I was horrified to read that swathes of tourists had prevented the turtles from nesting on the coast.

5 mins read

What is House Sitting in Costa Rica Really Like?

We travelled Central America for one year and a large portion of that time was spent in Costa Rica. Why? Not just because Costa Rica is beautiful, but because there’s a lot of house sitting work out there.

Though it’s true that we house sat in Panama, Nicaragua and Guatemala too, finding assignments house sitting in Costa Rica were by far the most common. When we accepted our first house sit in the small mountain town of Puriscal, we had no idea how many opportunities for house sitting Costa Rica there would be. We house sat for the same family in Puriscal multiple times and house sat once in Quepos. Though both of the locations where we house sat in Costa Rica were completely different experiences, they were both awesome. While every house and home owners are different, there are a few realities of house sitting in Costa Rica that you should know about.

6 mins read

5 Small Towns You Shouldn’t Miss in Costa Rica

I had the small town blues last week. Since Luke’s leg injury, we’ve been shacking up in small towns across Panama and Costa Rica. I was lusting for adventure – and all these small towns were making me feel blue.

I’d had my fill of sweet suburban houses, local farmer’s markets and small sodas – but hang on, what was I complaining about exactly? Life can’t always be big city lights and volcano boarding adventures, and quite frankly I wouldn’t want it to be either. Come to think of it, the small towns in Costa Rica have been some of the best places I’ve visited. Here are five of those awesome little places which you just can’t miss.

4 mins read

Why Being Vegetarian in Costa Rica is Easier Than You Think

Think eating vegetarian in Costa Rica means endless days of “rice and beans – hold the chicken?” Think again.

Friends of ours who travelled in Costa Rica said that we’d be sick of rice and beans in no time. Though we’ve certainly eaten more rice and beans than is probably healthy while on the road, Costa Rica has proven to be an excellent destination for vegetarian travel. Being able to order vegetarian food in local sodas (cheap eateries) is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to vegetarian travel in Costa Rica.

5 mins read

2014 in Photos

Back in January, who knew that our 2014 would look like this…

When we came home from Taiwan at the end of 2013, Luke told me that 2014 was my year. By that, he meant it was up to me to choose what we would do. Moving to Taiwan was his idea and though I chose to follow, it wasn’t an easy decision for me. Although I loved our year away in Taiwan, I felt homesick often and that feeling was always exacerbated by the stresses of teaching.

I loved the travel, I loved weekend road trips, I loved the independence and having our own home, and I loved Luke. But I wasn’t happy as a teacher and I didn’t want to be crawling through the week, desperate for the weekend. I wanted to make changes to our lifestyle. By the end of 2013, we were both ready to leave Taiwan.

Though I don’t think about it as 2013 being Luke’s year and 2014 as being my year, there’s no doubt that this year I was the one who put forward the idea of an alternative travel lifestyle as freelancers and house sitters. Thanks to Luke’s trust, our combined determination and perseverance, and the incredible generosity of strangers, 2014 has been the happiest year of my life.

3 mins read

Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica – Travel Guide

Colourful Creole houses, laid-back Caribbean vibes and coconut rice and beans make Puerto Viejo in Costa Rica right where I want to be.

One of the small handful of towns on Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast, Puerto Viejo is overflowing with vegan cafes, young rasta guys on bicycles trying to sell you weed and lazy stretches of yellow sand beaches. After almost three weeks of lazing around – I mean, travelling – eating and sleeping in the Puerto Viejo area, I’ve definitely got some favourites.

9 mins read

How Not to Get Robbed in Central America

Want to know our secret to not getting robbed while travelling in Central America and the rest of the world?

Everyone told us that as tourists, we would be obvious targets in Central America. People who had never even been to that part of the world all had horror stories and travel advice to share. From our safe, friendly and crime-free experiences in Asia, we knew to take their advice with a pinch of salt. But when we landed in San Jose, which is a jungle of razor wire and iron bars, it looked like they might be right…

7 mins read

An Abudance of Wildlife: The Importance of Eco-Design

Sloths climbing tree trunks, howler monkeys foraging in the branches, agoutis running under the cabins, toucans flying overhead, red-eyed tree frogs laying their eggs by the pond at night, and an olingo passing silently through the darkness.

We’ve been travelling in Costa Rica for six months now and we have never stayed in a place so alive with wildlife as La Kukula Lodge. As we witnessed yet another troop of howler monkeys scouring the trees above our balcony, we realised the important role eco-design played in allowing the lodge to exist in harmony with the jungle.

4 mins read

Vegan Caribbean Cooking Class in Costa Rica (+ Recipe)

I had heard rumours that Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast had the best cooking in the whole of Costa Rica. As it turns out, the rumours were true.

On our very first night in Puerto Viejo, we fell into an empty soda where a local Afro-Caribbean woman cooked us a traditional meal like nothing else we’d tasted in Costa Rica. Rice and beans stewed in coconut milk, fried plantain fritters, and a flavourful veggie sauce warmed our bellies. We were hooked, I had to learn how to cook like that.

5 mins read

A Thousand Turtles Nesting: An Arribada in Ostional, Costa Rica

A woman was running wildly down the beach beating a big plastic bottle with a driftwood stick. We stared at her in dismay.

The fierce yet slender woman swung the stick around her head like a lasso, and in a frenzy, the large black vultures that had been skipping along the sands scattered. She saw us staring and came over. “They’re trying to get the baby turtles,” she said breathlessly. “You’re staying with us, right? At the turtle lodge? I’m Luis’ wife.”

6 mins read