Pura Vida

I am leaving for Costa Rica, the Rich Coast, sandwiched between Nicaragua and Panama, on the 16th of January. Some say Costa Rica is the Switzerland of Central America. I am going to visit my brother, who has recently moved there, and his girlfriend Lorna. The population of Costa Rica is 4.8 million and the official language is Spanish. I have absolutely no Spanish under my belt.

I am expecting great coffee, the country's major export, along with bananas, and small green frogs with red eyes, a.k.a the red-eyed tree frog. I would like to join Lorna, who is also a trail runner, on a few trail runs while I am over there.

From Joburg to Cape Town to New York to Housten and then arriving in San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica, on the 17th January. 

The republic of Costa Rica is in central America. The country has been a pioneer of ecotourism and has progressive environmental policies. Over 25% of Costa Rica's national territory is protected by SINAC (the National System of Conservation Areas), which oversees all of the country's  protected areas. The Corcovado National Park and Tortuguero National Park are two national parks that I would love to visit. In the first park I want to see a Geoffroy's spider monkey, a squirrel monkey and most of all a Tapir. In the second park, I would like to see the world's fastest running lizzard, the spiny-tailed Iguana, the Green turtle, which nests in the park annually, the Giant leatherback turtle, the Hawksbill and the Loggerhead turtles.

Costa Rica is an egalitarian society, a society advocating equal rights for all and there is no opressed indigenous group. Most of the natives of Costa Rica inter-married with the Spanish speaking colonials. I hope to meet a native from either the Indigenous Bribri and Boruca tribe, which still exist in the mountains of the Cordillera de Talamanca, south of Costa Rica.

The highest point in the country is Cerro Chirripó, at 3,819 metres (12,530 ft) and the highest volcano in the country is the Irazú Volcano (3,431 m or 11,257 ft).The largest lake is Lake Arenal. Costa Rica has a tropical climate. It's dry season runs through from December to April and wet season from May through to November.

It has 800 miles of coastline on the Caribbean coastline and 631 miles of Pacific coastline. It also comprises several islands. Cocos Island  is 24 square kilometres or 9.3 square miles, and it is 480 km from Puntarenas.  Calero Island is the largest island of the country (151.6 square kilometres or 58.5 square miles). 

I would like to find out about climbing, mountainbiking and surfing spots. I am not sure how expensive Costa Rica is for a South African but hopefully I won't get too much of a shock. I am not sure if there are any parts of the country which are relatively unexplored. I hope the locals will take us to places which we just can't miss. I want to feel the Pura Vida, pure life or good life, of the country and it's people. I would love to learn a bit of Salsa, taste local delicacies, which will most probably include beans! I can't wait to absorb this new cultural experience into my skin.

Flights 

Accommodation

budget

transport within Costa Rica

Vaccinations

Best time of year to visit

Must bring….