Great People

Here are some of the fantastic travelers I met in Costa Rica. Tessa on the right is one of the funniest people in the entire world. I met her and Krista (left) in the waves on one of my first days in Mal Pais. They are both from Washington State. We were all planning on staying in Mal Pais for a few days, Krista stayed two weeks, Tessa stayed three months and I stayed four months. Mal Pais is the kind of place where no one wants to leave. The guy in the middle is one of their friends, Paul. He drove down from Cali with his dog, a black lab named Chopper. Chopper had his own passport and it was stamped at every border on the way down.




Here's Chopper, Paul would even take him out to the bars.



This is Brett on the left from Jersey and Ben from Colorado. Taken at Tabu, the beach bar where I occasionally worked as bartender or DJ.



Some of the people staying at Tranquilo, the hostel in Mal Pais where I stayed for about two weeks. From left to right the nationalities represented are USA (me) Germany, UK, Canada, France, USA, Israel and the kneeling girl is from Holland.



In Mal Pais you have the tourists (those that stay for about two weeks or less) then you have the long term tourists (like me, those that stay for a few months) then you have the foreign residents (like Ben and Brett, they have jobs or own property and stay indefinatley or come back every year) then you have the actual locals, the Ticos. In this picture there is a mix. The two girls to the left of me are Yeleelay and Hazel, the Ticas I became closest to in my time there. They are both adorable and helped me speak spanish much better, mostly because they wouldn't let me speak English to them although they understand english just fine.


The people who make great travelers are those that can adapt, be uncomfortable, enjoy the simple things and have a great desire to see other modes of life. I have been fortunate enough to meet many on my travels and I look forward to meeting more the next time I venture to another country.

Great Memories...The time really flew by

I have been back for almost two weeks. I have loved seeing friends and family again and getting back to work but I don't really feel that I'm here yet. My mind is still back in Costa half the time. Here are some more pics...

Above: This is my favorite sunset picture, Ben took it so I can't take credit for being a great photographer. It is taken from the soccer field next to his house.

Second: The fishing boat "Rosita" I caught a mahi-mahi and a yellowfin Ahi, so much fun.

This is my car "Azul" on safari. There is this really gnarly road called the road to Cabuya. It's four wheel drive only, it was one of my favorite roads, beautiful rainforest scenery and fun four-bying.

This is the hostel "Tranquilo Backpackers." I found my way here the first day in Mal Pais and it became my home for two weeks before I moved into Ocean Travelers. I met some great people that I'm still in contact with.