Travelling Solo

Well, my first ten days travelling alone have been exciting, contemplative and at times strange. Going through a foreign country with nobody to rely on but myself has been exhilerating and frightening. I would be lying if I said that there were not a few times when I myself questioned this entire idea. But the positive experiences quickly overcame any hesitation I had. Everything, from wandering through prisine cloud forest with only birds and animals for company to meeting fascinating people from around the world, quickly put my doubts to rest and reminded of the reason why I wanted to do this on the first place.

It has only been ten days but already I feel like I have seen more things and met more people than I would in a year at home.

My first true time alone began in the surf town of Jaco. Before that I was staying with some friends from my semester in Chile who were studying in Puntarenas. Carnavale was going on in the city while I was there and I got a good glimpse of true Costarican life. The city itself is infernally hot year round and has zero tourist attractions thus the people there are not quite as used to tourists as some other parts of Costa Rica. The vibe felt more authentic, and the food alot cheaper. After spending a few nights there, I was off to Jaco. Truly on my own for the first time.

After a sweltering bus ride down to Jaco, I walked the sun-drenched main strip a couple of times until I found a quiet secure hostel a minute's walk from the beach. I was given a bed in a small cabin meant for three, but since noone else was there I was on my own. After getting settled and walking out with the intent of grabbing lunch, I met a large, tattooed, surprisingly friendly middle aged surfer who had been in Jaco for about a month and came there almost every year since he was fifteen. It was very talking to this guy, somebody I would probably never talk to back in the states.

As for Jaco itself, it wasn't much more than beach, restaurants and bars. The waves were midsized and great for learning. I went out and felt myself getting much better. It was a lot of fun but very tiring.

After that it was off to Monteverde and then Puerto Viejo where I am right now., but I'll leave the details for another post. Typing this much on an iPhone is hard.