Category: Our Blogs

Oct 30- Depart YYZ at 4:10 pm.

Wait, I’ve already skipped ahead. Lets back it up to the “how do we pack for one month??”

What you do is you read lots of other people’s blogs, watch YouTube videos, and creep the trip advisor forums…as well as ask your friends who have travelled extensively to get a grip on what to take. Still not easy. Especially when it is your first time going away for so long and we have absolutely ZERO essentials that we need.

There is a packing list for certain times of year,  certain areas, length of stay…….and the fact that everyone said BUG SPRAY and RAIN COATS  has me wondering why we are going. We still think it is better than Snow, so sure. Lets risk some Zika or Dengue Fever ‘cause, shit….better than frickin snow amarite?!

Again, first timers here for stepping outside of the comfort zone of “all-inclusives”, so if you are one of those people who have done something similar to this trip then I tip my hat to you. I’m sure you remember your first time planning for a big trip and all the preparations. I have to stop thinking that it isn’t a travel expense but an investment in future trips.  OOo Wait, I lied. I did go off the beaten path for a few weeks thru Mexico and Belize, but it wasn’t as long as this and not as many destinations. Oh and I left Jay at home…lol

Not only are there several destinations in Costa Rica that we want to visit, but they all have their own climate, which equals a packing nightmare…not really but just some extra things to keep in mind.

NERD FACT #1: Because of Costa Rica’s proximity to the equator (less than 1000 miles), it has 12 different climates and sometimes micro-climates.

You got the Pacific Ocean on one side and the Caribbean side on the other and you’re right on top of the equator and theres beaches and mountains and rainforest and ALL OF THE THINGS. It’s like the Walmart of Countries, but with Sloths.

So if you want to visit all of those areas, you need some Summer clothes and a few warmer items for the mountain regions. But pack lightly…..but bring extra stuff….not too heavy…..but bring extra shirts ‘cause you gonna be a sweaty bitch and wear 2 shirts a day.  BUG SPRAY. Half of the weight of my bag is BUG SPRAY. It is expensive down here so bring lots….but not too much…..you get it

Thank goodness for Amazon Prime, as we bought most of the items we needed from there, and just hit up Winners/Walmart for the rest. We tried to pack enough for a week as we will have laundry available in most stops.

Things we had to buy for this trip (and future ones)

• Backpacking backpacks- 70L
• Day Bag/Carry on luggage
• BUG SPRAY
• Light raincoats
• Knockoff GoPro and accessories
• Ipad Bluetooth Keyboard
• Laptop
• Costa Rica Travel Guide
• Organizers
• Waterproof hiking sandals
• Moisture wicking clothing
• 100% waterproof bag
• Money belt/fanny packs
• More BUG SPRAY
• Immodium
• After-bite
• Micro Fibre Towel

Now add in a weeks worth of clothing, a bathing suit that doesn’t fit right, too many toilet trees (ha) and shove it in the bag or get your friend to do it for you….thanks Jilly!

Ok onto the airport….lets get outta here

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks for joining us on our first adventure!! We are spending one whole MONTH in Costa Rica….aiiiiii

This isn’t a formal blog, because I don’t know how to blog or use this WordPress site, but friends and family want to know what we are up to. I also bought a goPro camera that I don’t know how to use, so we are off to a pretty decent start. I’m going to give it to you straight up with extra salt, because thats how I roll. I am one salty beach.

Helloooooo Costa Rica!

Gimme monkeys, jungle, ocean, heat….the complete opposite of cold, fluffy white bullshit we were about to experience at home. Most likely it will hold off until we get back; we should have planned this trip for Jan/Feb, but we didn’t want to wait that long.

November is the end of rainy season here, so the weather can be hit or miss with the amount of rain that will fall, but that also means that accommodations/tours are at their cheapest. High season starts in Dec-April; we liked the idea of less crowds/cheaper prices. We were game for possible scorching rainfall, it beats cold/wet Onterrible Canada.

We got our flights from Toronto to San Jose for $348cad return each. SCORE #1

Apparently accommodations aren’t as cheap as we thought they would be, the tourism in the last 10 years has increased in CR so the prices have also gone up. Challenge accepted

I think I did pretty good between expedia and airbnb, we aren’t fancy so we were completely fine with a private room in a hostel OMG THESE DOGS NEED TO SHUT THE EFF UP (neighbours guard dogs) I want to hear the birds and geckos right now ffs. Anyways, the priciest accommodations were the airport hotels in San Jose, we needed late/free shuttles to/from the hotel to the airport. We didn’t want to get stabbed by a cabbie or something…kidding? I think including our flights and accommodations for 30 days it came to just under 3000CAD for the 2 of us. SCORE #2

I will post our accommodations/means of getting there as we go along. We are deciding to not rent a car for this, as there are buses/shuttles to the destinations we have chosen. Not all roads are shit, but the roads are at their worst at the end of rainy season. We figured it was best to leave the driving to the professionals who are used to the conditions, and avoid the stress of renting a car and arguing over directions and who’s driving and holy hell it would end our marriage I’m sure.

FANCY MAP:

One Month Itinierary (based on Trip Advisor suggestions)

Oct 30th 2018-Nov 30th 2018
DAY 1 Get the eff out of Toronto, fly to San Jose
DAy 2-6 Puerto Viejo de Talamanca (Caribbean side)
Day 6-9 La Fortuna/Arenal (Volcano)
Day 9-12 Monteverde (Cloud Forest)
Day 12-16 Tamarindo (North Specific side)
Day 16-19 Santa Teresa/Mal Pais (Headed South)
Day 19-26 Quepos/Manuel Antonio (more jungle)
Day 26-Day 29 Sabanillas de Acosta (in the mountains on the way back to San Jose
Day 30 Head back home:(

Keep reading for daily updates…or 2 day updates….depends on the wifi and if I am elbow deep in a maragarita somewhere