Tagabonds: Costa Rica

Arenal Volcano | Costa Rica

Our first trip together was a vacation with eight of our friends to Costa Rica a few months after I popped the question. This was a good testing ground for the future, as the 9-day trip was the longest we've spent together up until that point (!). For those not in the know, until we were married we didn't even live in the same state!

The first area we hit up was by the Arenal volcano. We stayed at a B&B with volcano views - and, I mean, from bed we could see hot lava stones scurrying down the slopes at night! The B&B was surrounded by a beautiful garden and humming birds were buzzing all around us. What made the B&B even more special was that the owner was from Boston - we ate breakfast under the Boston skyline (she had a picture hanging in the dining room).

We were excited to hike and explore the overgrown jungle surrounding Arenal. Amanda would prefer to forget the many creatures we discovered, but we both fondly remember hiking to a gorgeous waterfall. There's nothing quite like hiking through a rain forest during a rain storm!

-Taras

Getting Around | Costa Rica

The views along our treks in Costa Rica were absolutely gorgeous. From the green rolling hills, to monkey-rich jungle forests, there was plenty for us to eye from the car windows. Of course, the driver had the privilege of not gazing at the beautiful surroundings but, rather, navigating the tricky roads. Some bridges had only a single lane where cars from both sides took turns crossing one by one.

Since our visit was in the middle of the rain season, we quickly became familiar with the universal sign for "No Pase" - a white plastic bag tied to a stick in the middle of the road. And as you can surely tell by the size of some gaps in the roads, "No Pase" must be taken seriously.

On the first day of the trip, one of our cars bottomed out on a giant rock in the road and cracked the oil pan - we're pretty sure that's gotta be a record for breaking a rental car. Luckily, the company sent a replacement the next day. And, of course, there were plenty of moments where we just had to pull over, get out, and scratch our heads ("Oh crap, I think we're lost again...").

-Taras

Oil pan cracked here:

It's always fun to discovered new things in foreign countries, or sometimes rediscover something you haven't seen in years. You may think I am puffing on a cigar in this next shot, but it's actually a dried banana. These are popular in Russia and my nostalgia prompted me to buy everyone a dried banana for a taste. No one else really enjoyed them, so I ended up eating the whole bag...

On the last day of the trip, we encountered a multi-hour traffic jam on the way to San Jose and almost missed our flight home. This was the only time I've had the pleasure of playing Rummy while "driving."

Hot Springs | Costa Rica

Our vacation style is usually very active, on the go. But a little R&R can go a long way, so we scouted out a natural hot springs resort. Our inn-keeper recommended a spot the locals frequent, not the über-touristy ones we had seen while driving around, and, boy, was she right. The grounds had tropical flowers and paths overgrown with jungle greens, plus lounge areas, and a dozen or so interconnected pools with water temperatures ranging from lobster-boiling hot to bone-chilling ice cold.

These springs subscribe to an "on your honor" drink system, letting you order up tropical drinks at the bar, then telling them on your way out how many you've had. That's a drink system we can get behind! Another bonus to our relaxation experience was the delicious family-style feast we enjoyed afterward, prepared by the staff and served up on an outdoor patio.

-Taras

Zipline | Costa Rica

Not counting the adventure that is driving a 4-cylinder, stick-shift Hyundai Tucson with 5 passengers and luggage on the narrow, often unpaved roads of Costa Rica, while dodging local moped riders with a death wish, the most adrenalin packed thing we did in Costa was a canopy zip line tour. A first for both of us. The views were amazing - the Arenal volcano, a beautiful lake, a lush forest - and almost picturesque enough to shake off the nerves from jumping off each platform. Almost.

-Amanda

A little video that our tour guide shot:

Malpais Beach House | Costa Rica

Our second destination in Costa Rica was the beach town of Malpais. After a few hours of driving and a memorable ride on the ferry across the Gulf of Nicoya (check out the story here), we arrived to our beachfront house. We've definitely been leaning toward house rentals for our recent group travels - it's such a different experience from hotel rooms, and this one was not an exception. The house comfortably (if you can call 2 bunk-bed rooms, a legit bedroom, and a couch-style nook in the livingroom comfortable) slept all 10 of us, but there were certain aspects that definitely screamed "bare-bone beach life."

There were certain things that made our beach living experience extra special: not having glass in the windows, making runs to the beach with a bucket to fill the toilet tank with salt water, checking beds and shoes for scorpions, and an occasional crab crawling into the kitchen. Even more surprising than the lack of running water was learning of our bodyguard, Luma, who showed up every evening with his dog and a rifle, and stayed the night on the back porch. We made sure to feed him. We also learned that beachfront is a term that is open to interpretation. In our case, the term meant awesome tide pools but no sand for lounging.

On the upside, the backyard, in addition to having pretty phenomenal sunset views, provided for sweet hammock lounging. We really took to beach life. Waking up early for surfing, exploring tide pools during the day, then chilling on the back porch every night after sun-down, making it barely through one beer before retiring to bed to wake and do it all over again the next day.

-Taras

Meet Luma, the bodyguard:

Wanna bet that I can get to the top of this palm tree barefoot?.. What's that? How do I plan to get back down? I bet Scott will help me - he's just lounging in the hammock, doing nothing.