I think my thoughts on Costa Rica might be somewhat skewed because of the fact that on my first full day there, my little day bag got stolen. There were minor things in there but what still upsets me is the irreplaceable stuff that was taken. Things like my camera and the SD card that had all my pictures from Chapada and the San Blas islands, my postcard collection and momentos I’d collected up until this point, my travel journal and the emerald earrings I’d treated myself to in Cartagena – all gone. When I realised my bag had gone, I called my Mum bawling. Less about the bag and the stuff but more about having to deal with the fallout alone. I remember saying how I just desperately wanted a hug and there was no one to hug me, which is solo travel in a nutshell. When I arrived in La Fortuna, I had to go to the tourist police to get a police report. On the way back, I bumped into a girl I’d met at the hostel in San Jose, (imagine, she and I went to the same uni, at the same time, lived on the same road in 2nd year but actually met 6 years later in Costa Rica?!). I told her what happened and she was like, ‘omg, you have to treat yourself to a fun excursion. I’m off to book this trip, it’s expensive but do you want to book it with me?’. I said, ‘I have one brain cell and bank card left. Fuck it, let’s do it’.

The following morning, I was picked up from my hostel and we drove out to La Fortuna waterfall. We climbed down the 500-odd steps and heard the roar of the water crashing into the pool below us. We promptly stripped off and went for a dip. I couldn’t deny that sitting on a rock, at the base of a waterfall in Costa Rica was an incredible experience and outweighed the irritation, aggravation and frustration that I’d felt the day before. Our day long tour continued with a volcano hike around the Arenal Volcano where we saw a viper, curled up on a leaf. It was very cute considering one bite would do you some serious damage, and by damage I mean almost certain death. We also saw a poisonous dart frog. Again super cute, super deadly. Our next frolic in nature was on the hanging bridges which were incredible, even for me who doesn’t like heights, and our day ended with a dip in the hot springs.

My second stop was Monteverde, specifically to go to the cloud forest, which is basically a piece of forest that’s constantly covered by cloud. I chose to go to the Santa Elena one that has various trails which are well marked and easy to follow. It was actually so peaceful just wondering around in nature by myself and I’m pretty certain I saw a quetzal bird! There was one trail which told you to pick up a ‘support rock’ and take it on the journey with you. Throughout the trail there were various prompts like ‘find a tree and introduce yourself to it’ or ‘use all your senses to think about how the forest feels’: it’s mad whimsy, but I really enjoyed it as a way to properly take in what I was seeing. I rounded off my trip with a dinner at a ‘soda’, which are just small, local restaurants which are usually cheaper and that was my time in Costa Rica done.

So here are my general thoughts about Costa Rica and we’ll get the negatives out of the way. Firstly, people said Costa Rica was expensive so I was prepared for it. The thing that I was confused by was the ‘why’ – the disparity between the price of things and the general living standards weren’t matching up, (yes, I know how that sounds but it’s just an observation). Secondly, for somewhere that is so expensive, there were hella places that were cash only or if you wanted to pay card, you could do so but with an extortionate card handling fee. Thirdly, considering Costa Rica’s image as this very clean, chill, ‘Switzerland-esque’ country, its capital, San Jose, has an almost eerie feel to it. It feels as if something bad had happened/was imminently about to happen. The way I felt in San Jose is how I think people expect to feel walking around cities in Brazil or Colombia. Finally, and I do think this is a universal experience and not just ‘ptsd’ from my bad experience on the public bus, but I think getting around Costa Rica is difficult. I ended up using this hostel’s service for my shuttles around in the end as they were very good for last minute moves but I’ve heard that Bookaway is great if you’ve more time to plan. Generally, not being able to make use of public transport does make things more expensive which is very jarring in an already expensive environment.

Onto the positives, the country itself is beautiful. I think Costa Rica a great example of how an ingrained mindset, (‘Pura Vida’), can impact how people value and cherish the environment. The wildlife that comes with it is also insane and I do wish I had gone on a nightwalk to see more, (I despo. wanted to see a Kinkajou!). Whilst I don’t think Costa Rica is a great stop for a budget backpacking trip, I think it would be a stunning desto for a 10 day holiday or something.

After having my bag stolen, I had a bad taste in my mouth from the start so after 5 days I’d had enough if I’m honest. It was time to head to country number 5 of the trip…