Pura Vida: Traveling Alone to Costa Rica

“Do one thing every day that scares you.” — Eleanor Roosevelt

I don’t know whether I can say I am too timid and squeamish any longer.

I can say that I followed Eleanor Roosevelt’s advice during my solo trip to Costa Rica, except that on some of the days I did two or three things that scared me!

I will be posting more about my adventures soon, but for now I want to share a few of the things that took me way out of my comfort zone:

• Whitewater river rafting on the Rio Balsa (Class IV rapids)
• Rappelling down waterfalls
• Zip lining, including a kilometer-long Superman line
• Salsa dancing in front of a group, with the directions all in Spanish
• The whole experience of traveling alone, and joining a group with G Adventures

Pura Vida

These adventures were scary and crazy fun, but they also helped me to realize something. I am a different person than I was when I started blogging, when I found it so difficult to go  somewhere on my own or try something new (About page).

Starting this blog and tackling my 101 things list have been a huge part of this change, so I want to thank the readers who have been encouraging me. I also want to thank my family who supported me in taking this trip and have been putting up with all of the silly things on my list.

And I want to say “Pura Vida,” a Costa Rican expression that means “this is living” or “awesome.” I heard it throughout Costa Rica, a beautiful country of friendly, laid-back people, and it perfectly sums up my feelings about this amazing experience.

#30 (101 things in 1001 days): Travel alone at least overnight.