Day 10- red frogs and my new job

I'll start the Day 10 entry off by saying that I'm writing this from a hostel hammock after a sun-filled day at the beach while some other travelers cook me a thai-style rice, veggies, seafood dish (I have to cop them a couple drinks at the hostel happy hour but I'm definitely a fan of this exchange). A siesta might follow this not too long of a post if the food isn't ready to be consumed yet.

So last night was awesome. Great pregame at the hostel, made friends with some cool people from Germany and Argentina, go to know the owners and bartenders well, and then headed out to what honestly might be the coolest night destination I've ever been to. Aqua Lounge sported a solid international crowd, incredible music, no cover, no dress code and great drink prices. What made it special though was the arrival method (its on a different island so water taxis) and they have swings that drop you in the ocean for a mid-party swim. No pics for obvious reasons, didn't want to get the cellular getting wet.

Went to Red Frog beach this morning. Beautiful beach (see the attached selfy), saw a red frog (darted away before I could click), and had some decent little waves for body surfing.

Got back around 4 and the hostel owner (picture a Seth Rogen) asked me if I wanted to be a promoter for the hostel bar the next couple days in exchange for free drinks all night at the bar- can you say dream job? And huge resume builder. I'm feeling alright about this one as the product I'm asked to promote is pretty marketable ($.50 bottled beers til 8, $1.00 shots, etc). I wasn't able to today because I had to buy my plane ticket to Panama City for Saturday morning, but that's most certainly the plan tomorrow afternoon. I'll let you guys know how it goes.

Also, does anyone notice anything cold-blooded about the pic of my hostel room?

Day 9- Snorkeling/ dolphin watching excursion

After my first night out in Bocas, I was woken up around 9 to get ready / go on an island-hopping day excursion that included snorkeling, beach time, and dolphin watching. I threw on a bathing suit, made some pancakes (free mix at hostel), ate them and got to the going.

I didn't realize how spread out the islands of Bocas del Toro were until I was cruising around in a water taxi in the pouring morning rain (that must proceed to Costa Rica by afternoon time). The whole boat was soaked (luckily I put my iPhone in a ziplock or else I would be in a lesser mood right now) by the time we reached the first island. Some people in the group wanted coffee and whatnot but I went the opposite route towards getting more energy and went for a power nap on the dock until it was go time.

Snorkeling was sweet. There were lots of pretty fish and colorful reefs. I didn't really know what to do or how to pass the time but I'd kind of just find a cool fish and follow it around until I found another cool fish. Then I borrowed the Chinese mom/daughter's underwater camera to get some pics. Not sure when / if I'll get those but if I do I'll be sure to post some gems.

Next stop was an isolated beach on a different island. The guide tells us we have 3 hrs at the beach. Keep in mind it's still cloudy. What the h e double hockey sticks are you supposed to at an isolated beach with no bar, waves or activities on a cloudy day? Not sure what the right solution is but I went for a walk then did the whole nap número 2 of the day thing. This one was trickier because there were a lot of flies and other bugs that seemed to want to befriend/ hang out with/ on me. Once adjusted, i was able to log an hour before heading to dolphin bay (off chance you might see a dolphin or two here).

And we did! And I have a pic to prove it. Also here's a snap of the pancakes I made this morning (mom are you proud?). They may lack the protein powder, chocolate chips and raspberry sauce I prefer back at home but they kept the stomach from complaining for a couple hours.

My hostel has a happy hour starting in 10 minutes- $0.50 domestics from 7-8. So yeah.. I'm going to go do that now. And apparently the go-to club tonight is on the water, with a clear floor (see the fishes beneath) and swings/jumps landing you in the ocean. Should be fun.

Tentative plan tomorrow is taking my pancake making skills to another level, adding bananas and the works, buying a plane ticket to Panama City for Friday evening or Sat morning, riding a wacky bike around the island and going to Red Frog beach, weather-permitting. We'll see though.

Day 8- walking the line.. Costa Rica to Panama

Bummer- I wrote out my post this morning using iPhone notes and during the copy paste process it ended up cutting. Then went without Internet all day so let me try this again before happy hour hits.

Long story short, I had an amazing week in Costa Rica. The best part of it is that I feel like I better understand the country, having seen it from The crack of dawn to the early hours of the morning.

One thing I appreciate is the rise and grind mentality of the Costa Ricans, which has an effect on the travelers as well. Last Tuesday morning, at 530am, I was the 3rd person to get through customs and leave the airport. There were already 30+ cab drivers up and at it, eager for their first business of the day. On the drive to La Fortuna / Arenal, locals have shop set up by ~630am to try to make sales to the first tourists in motion. There is so much to do in Costa Rica, so tourists often follow this early morning pattern. The one morning I kind of slept in (until 10:15), I came out to the hostel common area to people that had already been surfing and had been awake for hours.

In terms of eating, I think I did an exceptional job at experiencing what Costa Rica has to offer as well- I had the traditional Costa Rican lunches, the cheap local fruit and smoothies for snacks, and I went to the towns beach bum joints for toasted Chipotle chicken bacon avocado Cuban subs and fish tacos.

Post-lunch it appeared common to lay low, relax for a bit while the afternoon thunderstorms were rehydrating the country.

I didn't come to Costa Rica during the low season for the fiesta. However, when people from the hostel for hanging out on the front porch area, drinking Imperial and Pilsen (the local beers), and going out to the cool half-indoor, half-outdoor beach bars, I wasn't going to not go. Last night, my plan was to lay really low but while I was using the hostel wifi to check messages I met people from Hawaii, Germany and the Netherlands that invited me to come check out this live band with them. It was packed for a Monday night and a very local feel to it- might have been a college night (pic attached of them playing the Party Rock Anthem). I would be exhausted by this point of my trip but the bumpy roads connecting my destinations have some kind of hypnotic effect on me.

When it was sunny I hiked volcanoes, explored rainforests, surfed the best waves of my life and walked around towns. When it was rainy, I relaxed, watched english movies dubbed in Spanish, blogged, and conversed with travelers from all over.

Sure it was relaxing in the CR, but the concept of Pura Vida is about living a good life, bein true to yourself, getting things done and takin advantage of what day offers you.

The journey to Panama today was some sort of experience- taking a public bus, walking across the border, meeting a nice Chinese mom/ daughter combo that new how to get to Bocas, taking an hour long taxi with them, hopping on a 20 minute water taxi with rural, indigenous Panama to both sides, and finally arriving at the what appears to be funky Mondo Taitu hostel.

I'm excited to see what else Panama has to offer!

Day 7- Adios Tamarindo, it's been real

Beautiful weather held overhead all afternoon so the indoor yoga I mentioned might happen did not. Instead, I went to the beach with some new friends. A solid hour siesta and walk/run on the beach later I returned to the hostel to grab my board and catch a few waves during the sunset.

I facetime'd my parents from the hostel wifi post-surf. It was the first time talking to them this trip and I think touching base back home once a week is a reasonable, comfortable amount.

After the call, you can probably guess where I went to dinner. I went with a group from the hostel and was worried I built the "tama style" fish tacos up too much and they'd be a little let down by the hype I gave them but there were thumbs up and empty plates all around.

Back at the hostel it was a night more chill than the past few which was fine because I was up and en route to surf by 8am.

The waves were big today. I probably bat around .500. Hit some home runs but definitely had an equal amount of strike/ wipe outs. Go big or go home right? Yeah I will in like 95 days.

I attached a few pictures to this post- me giving the thumbs up after my last surf sesh here, a pic w/ my instructor (note the killer 'stache), a traditional Costa Rican lunch w/ hot sauce on the side, and those tacos.

My stay at La Oveja Negra was incredible- I would recommend it to anyone wanting a fun Costa Rican vibe w/ a phenomenal location, friendly staff and guests, all for a very affordable price (abt $12 a night for a dorm room). Leaving Tamarindo on my journey to Bocas del Toro, Panama in about 30 min. This afternoon I'm shuttling to San Jose, staying the night in a hostel called Costa Rica Backpackers and getting picked up At 8am by another shuttle to get close to the border. Then, I get a public bus close to the border, walk across/ go through customs, catch a bus from inside Panama to a place close to Bocas del Toro, then a water taxi to the town / hostel. Or something like that. I don't know. I'll figure it out and let you guys know how it goes.

Day 6- Surfing up/in a Storm

Yup, went back to the fish taco joint. Same great tacos but the main difference was that I may or may not have ordered 2 orders instead of one. After dinner everyone convened on the hostels outdoor patio. You might have seen my tweet from my personal account @khais3 but there were about 20 people from the hostel getting ready to go out together on the Saturday night, 20 people from 11 countries- Argentina, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Switzerland, Sweden, Austria, Germany, Spain, Canada and your boy right here (and young ladies from San Fran and Chicago) representing the US. It's one of those moments when it hits you how cool/special hostels can be. There might have been times when I didn't understand languages, or even dialects of Spanish, but it's really something to have people from so many places getting along together as if they were friends in college, sharing travel stories and enjoying life.

Afternoon surfing yesterday was a pretty unique experience. Pretty in that the crew I went out w/ consisted of 3 argentine girls and unique in that it absolutely poured while out in the water! Even though it was dark and stormy, it was a beautiful scene from the water- blue ocean, sandy beach, lush hilly forest, and a quickly approaching dark sky all in one back drop. The rain came down hard and the waves became really choppy but still, not something you experience every day. I've never been wetter in my life.

Today is going to be more chill. Rest up a little bit, shorter surf session, maybe do a yoga, and probably go back for some more of those fish tacos. Off to grab a Smoothie and purchase some more sunscreen.

Day 5- bugs bite, wipeouts happen

Further leaving comfort zones every day.. Now I'm down to a smaller board, 7 foot 2 inches to be precise. Went to a new beach with some stronger waves than past days. It started out with some nice rides. Awesome moment alert- caught wave, rode it in.. Took a second to look down at the clear water and there was a huge school of decent sized fish scurrying around in front of me. They were probably scared I was about to fall and land on them. So that was cool. Then I got pretty exhausted in the middle with all the extensive paddling out, harder than you think. Ended with a beauty. Always good to do that so you want to go back in the AM.

Timing was epic yesterday. We caught the beautiful sunset as we were loading the beach van back up. The attached picture was right after it from a friend's phone. As you can see I've gotten really tan. The drive back was one of those classic- this is why i came here moments- (costa rica / Pura Vida / surf life). Beach van loaded up with surfboards, argentine surfers, bumping around poorly paved pothole filled roads post surf 30 min outside Tamarindo in a village, locals riding old bikes around, living their life, and playing 90s Spanish music (they were singing along).

Got back to hostel around 7 and did the chill, regroup, hang out thing until hunger hit. I went to a BBQ joint called Longboards for fish tacos that some fellow travelers recommended. Cool little place owned by an expat from Colorado, food prepared by the locals. The fish tacos were amazing, to the point where a return trip is in line before I leave this town for sure. We're talking- Smoked fish tacos with avocado, pineapple, and mango with a nice salsa and BBQ sauce on top.

Let me recap my chow yesterday- fresh fruit smoothie for breakfast, traditional home cooked Costa Rican lunch covered in hot sauce and those next level fish tacos I had for dinner. Oh yeah and the late night toasted chipotle chicken bacon avocado Cuban sub! Anyone that knows me knows every bit of the day's consumption were hitting the right spots in my stomach.

Today I woke up at 7 and headed out to the same spot I was yesterday afternoon. It was an early morning after a, well Friday night, but the excitement of surfing again made the transition from bed to board super easy. I'm getting better at reading waves and predicting where they will break, which is really helpful when catching waves. Caught some really nice waves this morning and had some even more impressive wipe-outs.

Bruised up knees and ribs, rashed leg and stomach from the waxed board, bug bitten ankles, cut up left hand and sore shoulders/traps/neck explains the worst of my physical condition right now but you will hear no complaints from me as its a part of this great experience, the taxes that need to be paid to live this way- no evading.

Alright time to rehydrate and go back for round 2 today. And yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm going back to that BBQ fish taco joint tonight.

Day 4- Sun is Up

Yesterday was awesome.  In surf camp (which turned out to basically be a private with some of the instructor´s friends from Argentina.. low season score for me), I improved my technique and got more comfortable taking on bigger waves outside of my prior comfort zone.  With that being said, I caught the best waves of my life yesterday.  I think one of my instructor´s amigos was taking pictures so we can see if these waves were as big and bad ass as I thought they were... I took it easy last night, went to a ¨reggae night¨ at a local bar with a few people from the hostel.  It was pretty low-key but there was this one local dude that was completely feeling the music in front of our table.  Girl in my crew coined it the ¨Reggae Dougie.¨  I don´t really know how to explain what he was doing but I´ll leave that up to your imagination.

The best part about this 3-day camp is that it´s roughly a 3-day camp. It´s super chill and flexible.  For example, the tide was kind of low this morning so we´re just going this afternoon, logging a full day tomorrow and since I´m staying around a couple extra days, he said I can just keep surfing with him and his crew.  So it´s kind of an open-ended 3-day camp which is very fitting for the go-with-the-flow, no worries mentality around here.

The original plan was to head to another beach town called Jaco for a few days after this camp but honestly I´m pretty content with the daily routine I´m in here and I have a sweet set up.  After talking to some other travelers and surfers, I decided to stay here for the remainder of my time in Costa Rica.  I came here to surf and am very able to do so.  In fact, it´ll save me $40-50 bucks in terms of travel and frees up another day to surf when I would have otherwise been bussin´ slash (can´t find the slash key on this keyboard) shuttlin´ around.

Today- woke up at 9am and there wasn´t a cloud in the sky (huge win given low season). I proceeded to grab a fresh blueberry, strawberry, blackberry, mango, honey smoothie for breakfast and headed to the beach to chill for a couple hours with some friends made at the hostel before the home-cooked Costa Rican lunch I get with camp.  Yesterday was a traditional beans, rice, potatoes, meat dish (that I covered in local hot sauce.. no Cholula but not bad). Today was similar but chicken was the protein on plate.  Afternoon surf session is about 20 minutes from happening and I may try to partake in an evening yoga class, depending on how long we´re out there... might settle for a siesta.  We´ll see how it plays out.

Most stressful thing today was probably untangling my headphones but for those worried, I got through that.  Let the music play on.

Day 3- Start of Surf Camp

Got into Tamarindo safely yesterday using the Interbus shuttle service. I was originally planning on using the public bus system but when I was informed it turned a 4 hour direct shot into an 8-10 hr journey with 4 different transfers I made the decision to fork over an extra $25 and take shotgun in the smaller shuttle. If I had more time in Costa Rica I would acquaint myself more with the public transportation but the purpose of this trip isn't to live completely on a backpackers budge but to enjoy what the world offers before reporting to duty Oct. 1 for IBM. The shuttle worked out very nicely. I had the opportunity to practice my Spanish w/ the driver and grab a few morning siestas in the reclining front seat.

The shuttle arrived me at my hostel in Tamarindo around 1 in the afternoon (instead of 5-7 in the evening) which allowed me the opportunity to settle into my hostel, watch some Spanish television during the rainy part of the afternoon and grab an evening/sunset surf sesh to remove rust from my system before the start of my surf camp.

Out of every hostel I've ever stayed in (around 30) I think La Oveja Negra Hostel I'm staying in now holds the most character. The place is ran by a few guys from Spain, Argentina and Costa Rica that love to surf. Guests range from dreadlocked dudes to surfers to backpackers from Switzerland and Canada. Attached is a picture of the "Internet corner" to give a taste of the place. Oh and they hooked me up with a private room because they aren't at capacity (low season).

So I settle in and get to the beach to test out the Costa Rican surfing everyone speaks highly of. From te second I step foot in the water, I fall in love with it... Because the water is so warm (83-86 degrees I'd say). The waves are consistent and the hour out there went by quickly. I caught some nice waves and before I knew it, the sun was setting and it was getting dark. I'm not sure what it is about me doing things once dark and loving them (hot springs slide Tuesday, surfing yesterday) but it was really cool surfing in the near dark! It forces you to trust yourself and your abilities because you can't see the board amongst other things.

So that was cool. Went out last night.. Yada yada.. And now I'm about To head out for some more surfing (day 1 of the 3-day surf camp). Huge shout out to my friend / hockey linemate Matt Gellatly for buying my bed back at school and uncle Dave and aunt Renee for the generous gift of $ upon graduation that made this surf camp possible.

All is good in Costa Rica, living that Pura Vida. Hope all is well with everyone reading this, wherever you are in the world!

Day 2- off to Tamarindo

Unfortunately I have no pictures from the excursion I went on yesterday because it was pouring all afternoon leading up to it (stopped right before we started) and I didn't want to risk my iPhone's life. If I did have camera clicking capabilities there would be a picture of the volcano and rain forest we hiked around with a ring of fog lingering. I think fog on the right scene is a straight up underrated natural beauty. The guide was very informative. Although there were no monkey or toucan sightings, we did see a snake, some Costa Rica frogs and this really cool plant where, when you touch the leaves, it retreats as a defense mechanism.

Next stop was at the hot sprigs resort (23 different pools at different temperatures) which was great for relaxing in and hopping around. However, what took the cake as the coolest, most fun activity of the day was the hot springs slides at night time. Going down quick, closed-in water slides at night when you have absolutely no idea where you are not how long it'll go until you reach water is a completely different experience. Can't tell you I've been on a slide in years but it was a great throwback activity. The fact the water was warm was an added bonus because that initial cold water shock is removed from the equation.

It was a pretty chill night at the hostel and I was exhausted from being up (minus a few cat naps) since 5am so I headed to bed before midnight so I could grab a little rest before the beach / surf towns happen. Off to Tamarindo.

Day 1- Doing volcano things

Didn't sleep as well as I would have liked on the overnight flight but I did make it here safely and slid through customs so let's go..

I mainly came to Costa Rica to surf and live the "Pura Vida" but it's an extremely beautiful place, covered by green, lush "selvas" and mountains, filled with plenty of outdoor activity, such as zip lining, hiking, etc. so I decided my 1st stop would be at the (still active) Arenal Volcano.. I'm staying at the Arenal Backpacker Resort in La Fortuna for $15/night so I could get a taste. Definitely a touristy vibe in this place but might as well partake in the hike a volcano, chill in hot springs, all-you-can-eat dinner package the hostel offers Before heading to the beach..


On a different note, some were curious as to what my itinerary is looking like these next ~100 days so here it is..

May 22nd- May 29th Costa Rica
May 29th- June 3rd Panama
June 3rd- June 4th NYC
June 4th- June 15th Israel
June 15th- June 18th Switzerland
June 18th Belgium
June 18th- June 26th Croatia
June 26th- July 6th Spain
July 6th- July 16th Italy
July 16th- Aug 16th London (Olympics)
Aug 16th- Aug 30th. Greece
Sept 1st- Sept 4th. NYC
Sept 4th. Home to Colorado

Alright I'm going to grab a nap before this hiking volcano business begins

Leaving the Rado

I graduated from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 8 days ago. Since then, I've said good-bye to great friends, drove my car back to Colorado, and enjoyed the beauty my home state offers.

My red-eye flight down to Costa Rica takes off in 40 minutes, which marks the beginning of my roughly 100 days traveling abroad. I'm going to do the best I can to blog the next few months of my life but we'll see how it goes.

That's it for now, its time to board the plane, take a melatonin and snag a few hours of shut-eye before I wake up in a new country.