My top ten travel tips for Costa Rica.

These Travel tips are invaluable for having a safe and fun trip in this wonderful country. Please don’t let this dissuade you from traveling to Costa Rica. If you follow these travel tips; you’ll have the time of your life.

(Travel Tips #1) Never leave your bags inside your vehicle unattended, particularly at tourist spots. I would say the number one occurrence of theft in Costa Rica is caused by tourist leaving bags and valuables in plain sight in their vehicles. You’re asking for trouble if you don’t follow this rule. While in Bagaces, I was fortunate enough to have a local tour guide show me around to all the tourist spots like the Bagaces waterfalls. Two days earlier, a group of tourist who had just landed, stopped there take a look at the falls. They returned to find their window broken and valuables stolen. Unfortunately, at secluded spots, there is no police presence and local thieves pray on these areas. Always use the trunk or drop your bags off at the hotel/hostel before heading out.

(Travel Tips #2) Be on guard when using the public bus system. Particularly to and from San Jose, groups of thieves look for tourists to pick-pocket while they’re loading or unloading their bags. Usually it’s a female who attempts to distract you and invade your personal space, while the accomplice attempting the pick-pocket. They’re professionals and will be very unassuming and quick; so be on guard. You can prevent this by being aware your personal space and watch out for friends. It’s a good idea to keep your passports, money, and credit cards in a travel belt around your waist, or under your shirt. I know there not stylish; but having one for going from spot to spot is smart. The Interbus (mini shuttle) is the safest and best way to travel in Costa Rica.

(Travel Tips  #3) Always keep a backup source of money. You should keep a bank card or credit card in a separate location, always keeping an alternative means of getting money. I always keep my valuables, money and passport in my travel belt. And I keep one bank card stashed away in my bag with a little petty cash. Traveler checks are always a good idea as well; and be sure to keep the receipts in a separate location from the checks.

(Travel Tips  #4) Get to know the flawed banking system in Costa Rica. In the major cities like Tamarindo and Jaco this won’t be a problem; but in the smaller tourist spots like Santa Theresa and Manuel Antonie, there is often only one ATM. Costa Rican ATMs are know to decline cards for no reason. So if you’re heading to a smaller city, always take out money before you leave. With today’s modern banking, Traveler Checks have become less popular; but I would’ve been screwed without them. Twice, I was trapped in towns where ATMs wouldn’t work for me and many others. In Santa Theresa, it wasn’t uncommon to see backpackers in liquor stores asking people if they could purchase their booze on credit card and get cash back from the purchase because they had no other means of getting money.

(Travel Tips  #5) When heading to the beach leave your valuables at place you’re staying. In addition, if you head into the water; put your sandals and beach stuff next to someone who will watch it. Ask someone who looks like they’re on the same type of trip as you. Everyone was happy to do this for me and I didn’t lose a thing  at the beach. If you surf, try hiding your stuff somewhere on the beach out of view. And don’t put down your camera or purse on tables or bars. A girl I met from Miami, got hammered and while fluttering around the bar kept leaving her purse and camera laying around. Twice I picked it up and gave it; but she ended up losing it anyways. Before she had time to cancel the credit cards; the thief was able to charge over 190$ at the local gas station. I witnessed a German lady get her pursed snatched from the back of her chair. The assailant made a quick snatch and run to the beach and got away. So be smart.

(Travel Tips  #6) Get to know the Ocean by asking questions about the right locations for swimming and surfing. The rip currents and hidden rocks can end your vacation in a hurry; so ask for information before you dive in. Its always a good idea to follow the crowd when in doubt: if you don’t see anybody in the water at a certain location; their is probably a reason for it.

(Travel Tips  #7) Be friendly to the locals. Treating the locals poorly or without respect is asking for trouble. And never get into a conflict with a local at the bar; they always stick together against the Gringos (which is you or any other traveler). If a situation does occur, my best advice is to say sorry and Pura Vida. Saying Pura Vida with compassion in your eyes may just save your life. Ultimately, the locals are very friendly and helpful people who are out for a good time as well. In my month stay in Costa Rica, I was out every night and only saw two fights. Both included ignorant travelers, bottles and victory going to the home team.

(Travel Tips  #8) Ask, ask, and ask; and always use your common sense. The people working at the hotels and restaurants are your best source of information. So ask what to do, what not to do, it will help your trip be a safe one.

(Travel Tips  #9) Avoid San Jose. San Jose is considered by the locals to be the shame of Costa Rica. You’ll hear about robberies there, not petty theft. Land at Liberia Airport, or get the hell out of San Jose as soon as you can. Port Limon is also a place you want to avoid. It’s the drug port which is controlled by fierce gangs who even intimidate the local authorities by threatening their families. Even the locals don’t go out at night in Port Limon and you shouldn’t either.

(Travel Tips # 10) Make a local friend. They people of Costa Rica are a beautiful. They consider themselves to be one of the friendliest and happiest people in the world. I believe this to be true. All the locals that I met were very kind. I heard more stories of locals helping travelers here then any other third world country. From being lost to having a flat tire, the locals want to help you and show the beauty of their country.

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Note:
These are precautionary tips and guidelines to follow in Costa Rica, or any country in Central America. Please don’t let this discourage you from heading to Costa Rica. Thousands of tourist and travelers head there every year and have a safe and amazing trip.

Pura Vida and safe travels…

More Travel Tips Coming Soon….

Travel tips for Costa Rica

So E.Y.D has changed with the fall season to a new look and feel for the moment. 

 You will find enlightened quotes, meditations, and philosophies from the great teachers of past and present. Along with Pop culture Zen from StumbleUpon, You tube, and other Social Media sites.

I hope you will enjoy my photo blog series:

Heart warming Winter quotes and photos

Enchanting Autumn incantations of sublime seasonal change

In the Lumbini grove, under the shade of a flowering Sal tree, The Buddha, founder of the philosophy of Buddhism was born. He was known as Siddhattha. (Siddhartha = one whose purpose has been achieved). This is my continuing series of Buddhist quotes from the Dhammapada.

The Dhammapada – the essential teachings of the Buddha

The Wisdom of the Buddha

Buddhist verses from Siddhartha – The enlightened one

“The reason why we are here, I call “The Personal Legend”. All my characters, somehow they have a reason to be here, and they have to struggle to find their place under the sun. Which they do…
…and of course they have to pay a high price.”  Paulo Coelho

Top Ten Paulo Coelho Videos on Youtube

My mantra is: To Strive for Love, To seek knowledge, To Find happiness, and Yield not to fear.  Inspired by my favorite poem Ulysses by Lord Alfred Tennyson.  “To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.”

A philosophy in 25 words of less: inspired by Pete Carroll’s Win forever

Inspiring FNL Speech

A Zen Art Blog

I heard Jaco was unsafe, dangerous, and a non-stop party; translation: my kind of place.  Although, I seek all the beautiful enlightened things in life; it’s when I am scared shit-less that I feel most alive.  Some people find character on Mountain tops and Ocean floors, others in the dark recesses of the night; very few find it in both.  To quote Andre Gide “Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore”                                                                 

The moment I got off the Tico bus, I looked up and saw a huge 420 sign; I guess you can find omens anywhere you look.  For the first time in Costa Rica, I actually had a reservation; one laundry room stay was enough for my trip.    The main strip was more commercialized then I expected, it had everything you need to feel close to North America, from KFC to Pizza hut, the choices were endless.  Referencing my Lonely Planet guide, I booked a room at La Cometa, primarily because the description said it was located in the heart of the city and was one of the original hostels in Jaco; in addition it was owned by a friendly French Canadian.                                                                                                              

My first night out never ended, I met crazy Louis at the Jungle room, he asked me what I did, “Internet stuff mostly”, and you I replied, “I am the black sheep of the family, I consider myself an entrepreneur of sorts”.  Louis had an entourage of party fiends that followed him around like the second coming; he was a great local tour guide and host who made sure everyone found their vibe.  From place to place we roamed like kings of the city; no cover, no hassles, no worries.  He was jovial and intense at the same time; we shared some common themes when it came to living the Pura Vida life.  I pulled the chute when the sun came up, but made plans for another adventure tomorrow.   My first night in Jaco was everything I thought it would be: shady, dangerous, and loads of fun. 

Jaco is the Costa Rica surf Mecca and dangerous 24 hour party place

The Water-taxi that turned Death into Zen.  I love all means of transport, it sounded like a brilliant idea at the time; avoid a 4 hour shuttle bus to Jaco by taking a 1 hour water-taxi from Montezuma.  Walking to the beach, I was filled with anticipation and excitement.  The first thing our captain said was “it’s going to be a rough ride, any rougher and I wouldn’t dare even try; prepare to get a little wet.”  No problem, I thought to myself as they began to hand out heavy duty garbage bags to wrap up our bags.   

Standing on the warm sandy beach, the sun warmed my early morning spirit; the Ocean seemed to be inviting us with open arms.  The initial ride out was pleasant, I was enjoying every moment on the sea and under the sun.  We crossed a threshold, the cross wind immediately picked up, the beach was almost out of sight, and the realization we were on the open sea soon came spraying over the side of the boat.  Little by little the waves grew in size; my imagination was wandering in some distant dream until it was sucked back into the now by a huge crash as the Skipper cut the engine.  I looked to my side and saw nothing but the deep blue Ocean.  My pulse quickened as the engine began to roar into gear once more.  The immense waves completely engulfed our little vessel, so big the horizon line was disappearing with each rise up and down, the Ocean slapping us in the face with salt water, as our little boat was tossed left and right.  Nobody was enjoying the ride any longer, a quick scan revealed not a life-jacket in sight; the Captain never taking his eyes off the Ocean in front of him.  Pleasure soon turned to fear as it often does, gripping the rail at my side with tight white knuckles; I took a recount of my life thus far and couldn’t remember the last time I felt the fear of death. 

Death drops the grains of sand in the hourglass ever so slowly.  Finally, after almost 2 hours of deep blue, we passed through the eye of the beast and motored into calm water.  Relieved, I sat back a felt a heightened sense of being and wonder in my soul; it was a triumphant feeling.  I could see the land again, it was a beautiful sight, but the taxi made a sharp left turn and seemed to be heading towards the open sea once more.  The words “what the fuck” passed through my mind.  The captain pointed out and uttered his first word since the beach “Dolfino”. 

It was our reward for bravery in the face of death: a huge swarm of dolphins racing along, jumping high in the sky with magnificent twirls, seeking only the pleasurable.  Together with the dolphins at our side, we enjoyed a true Zen filled moment of wonder; we loved their beautiful presence, and they seemed to love ours.  Although that will probably be my last water-taxi ride; when Death turns to Zen, it can only be described as: SPECTACULAR.

The Water-taxi that turned Death into Zen

I am a true backpacker in every sense; I try to make the most of every experience.  In regards to accommodations, as long as my backpack is safe, it doesn’t really matter.  To be honest, I am going to pass out anyways, as long as it’s not on a street corner or in an alley; I’ll be fine.  

In comparison to some of the true ghettos I have crashed in, my Costa Rican laundry room was an Oasis.  In Nice, it was a cockroach invested cubicle with a dirty mattress on the floor, no air conditioning, and mysterious grease stays everywhere.  We had only one rule, never turn on the lights at night, because the sight of that many cockroaches was like the horror movie Arachnophobia redone to be even more grotesque.  The true dump in Northern Spain, had what I thought looked like gang graffiti on the wall.  Let’s not even talk about what the communal bathroom looked like in Rome; it’s a memory to painful to relive. 

I thought we might have to sleep on the beach our second night in Santa Theresa.  We begged the owners of Playa Carmen to find us a room for another night.  “Well, we have a laundry room”, is all she said.  “O.K. fine, we’ll take it.”  Not sure what to expect, we went out for a day at the beach.  When we returned, we were delighted to find two nice beds, a clean and spacious room, two fans, towels, and private bathroom; the only notable difference was two laundry machines in the corner.  It was actually quite nice, it exceeded all of our expectations; they went out of their way to transform a laundry room into a little Oasis for two desperate travelers.  We probably could have found another place to stay after New Years, but after we both got laid in the laundry room by two cute Tico girls, the Laundry Cabin became a funny joke and home sweet home.  Looking back it was probably the weirdest, yet coolest place I have ever stayed.  The journey in life is always what you make of it.  To Quote Kahlil Gibran once again: “”Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens.”

Finding comfort in my Costa Rican Laundry room

  The hot permeating red sky soaks the sea with a sailor’s beauty of never-ending horizons and soft present dreams; illuminating a lust for more, for more, for more…                                                                                                                                                                    

  The crimson darkening purple sky inviting onlookers to sit peacefully and marvel as the scent of the free Ocean fills the soul; soothing the heart…                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       The cascading dream of the lovers’ peace falling ever so gently in time as the past and future fade to the unreachable eternity….                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      The soul of the universe beaming forth the ending light of day; challenging the limited to believe in something only the few have ever witnessed; the miracle of being…                                                                                                                                             Soft soothing and present colors fading into eternity as the lonely feel loved by a greater force exuding beauty beyond thoughts or feelings; being beautiful for no reason at all…                                                                                                                                       The fading distant sun scraping thought from the mind as the lonely soul tastes the wind and hears the soft cry of the sand….                                                                                                                                                       Time standing still on the free art mural seeking to be noticed for the unmistakable beauty of free expression inscribed in present moment time…                                                                                                                                                            The road most traveled still enlightening a glimpse of hope to the longing traveler; weary of the present day ending before his eyes; dreaming to cross over into the now…                                                                            Widened eyes of beauty expressing pure love and openness to the world: the clean slate of the mind never having learned anger or hate; Pura Vida born free within…                                                                                       

  The Red fading orange sunset inspiring the running child’s mind with present moment joy; seeking only to be free and happy before the beauty of the universe…                                                                                     

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10 beautiful pictures of Costa Rica with Poetic Enlightened Descriptions