Places to go to in Costa Rica & Weekend break in Tamarindo

Wow I can’t believe that already four weeks have passed and I have only three more weeks to go here, ¡que pena! But as long as I still can, I will try to make the most of my time that’s left. As I have Spanish lessons on weekdays all that’s left for travelling are the weekends, so I developed a little plan of the things I want to see before I leave Costa Rica and want to share them with you:Places to see:-Rio Celeste has developed into one of Costa Rica's most popular sights and is definitely worth a visit not only for the fluorescent turquoise color of the river but also for the hot springs and waterfall surrounding it. The bright blue color (or in Spanish "celeste") of its water is caused by a chemical reaction resulting from calcium carbonate and sulfur. The river is located in the Tenor Volcano National Park and one can either enjoy a hike through the jungle and to the waterfall but also there are a variety of other activities to chose from such as tubing or horseback riding.-Montezuma is located on the pacific coast of Costa Rica in Puntarenas and through it's yoga and rastafarian culture sends some hippy vibes along your way. The alternative name Montefuma, how its also known by by locals, owes its name to the laid back lifestyle and "green culture" (when you know what I mean ;)). Definitely a place to chill and enjoy some relaxing days on the beach. Also, when you have time (which I unfortunately don't have), make sure to check out Isla de Tortuga, which is a popular island not too far from Montezuma.-Santa Teresa, around an hour away from Montezuma, is a little cute village on the peninsula which has a similar relaxing lifestyle like Montezuma while being one of the top surfer hotspots. Also other waterspouts are popular here and one says that the sunsets here are breathtaking. Further, Santa Teresa also offers a nice variety of cute little hipster coffee shops which particularly draw my attention, as I’m a big coffee lover.-El arenal and La Fortuna are both located towards the center in Costa Rica, namely in the province of Alajuela. Not only is la Fortuna a great starting point to visit the famous Arenal Volcano national park, which is one of the most famous volcanos in Costa Rica which last broke out end of the 60s, but surrounding la Fortuna are various natural hot springs heated by geothermal energy which invite you to take a dip. As the park is greatly visited by tourists, it has a lot of different activities on offer as well.-Manuel Antonio is apparently one of Costa Rica’s most visited national parks even though it's the smallest in size. It famous for its high biodiversity and even though it’s a tourist magnet, it comes with a Costa Rican all-in-one package: beautiful beaches, stunning nature and adventure all in one. It’s highly advisable to get a guide as people have been telling me that without a guide they would have never been capable of spotting the animals they did: iguanas, monkeys (but especially) sloths (!!!) can be observed here. I have told myself I wouldn’t leave before I saw a sloth, so even if this means that I have to leave school one week early, even when paid for already, I’m willing to take that sacrifice! I'm definitely not skipping Manuel Antonio. Click here for more information on Manuel Antonio. Now that I’ve told you my plans and might have inspired you as well with some popular things to cross of your list while staying in Costa Rica I will tell you a bit more about how my week went.Weekdays look all more or less the same, which isn’t a bad thing at all, but therefore go by very fast: Spanish course, laying on the beach and occasionally participating in the after-school activities such as yoga, Zumba or Artensania (which is making wristbands). So therefore we wanted to use the weekend wisely for another weekend escape and of our initially rather big group, the five of us that were left, decided to rent a car for two days and so we headed off Saturday morning to Tamarindo.Tamarindo is another village located on the beach and quite popular with surfers. Even though it’s also supposed to be good for surf beginners, the waves were very high and I wouldn’t recommend them to a starter (like myself). Anyway, I still had my threads in my hand from my prior surfing accident (when you want to know more about that click here). So I was on detention which only felt half as bad after I’ve seen the big waves which I wouldn't have been able to surf anyways. Tamarindo is much more touristy than Samara and also has way more restaurants, bars, clubs and shops on offer. Therefore, it’s rather busy compared to Samara. I personally liked the fact that there was some more choice of places to go to and that there were actually some shopping opportunities available too (in Samara the only things you can encounter are street shops that are selling souvenirs). Not that I would have been particularly interested in going shopping, but still it's nice to know that you would have at least the possibility to shop if you'd want to.The beach in Tamarindo I have to say is not as nice as the one in Samara and given by the fact that the beach is not bordered by palm trees makes it hard to find a spot in the shadow (unless you hire a sunbed and umbrella). Still, for the more accustomed surfers its definitely more recommendable than Samara were the waves look like baby waves compared to the the ones you would encounter in Tamarindo.On Saturday evening we decided to go out. I have to admit I was a little shocked by the fact how much younger all the party-goers were, which made me feel a little out of place. You had to pay around 2000 colones to enter (which is about 4 Dollars) but ladies could basically drink for free. Be aware that the free drinks are very distasteful and I would advise you to rather spend some extra money in order to get some decent drinks that won't leave you with a terrible headache the morning after. I can see the attraction the place imposes on younger generations and I have to admit, 16 year old me might have been fairly amused by the place as well. To all ladies out there: be aware that the later it gets the more intrusive the guys get, but I think that’s the case everywhere.The next Sunday, before heading back to Samara, we decided to visit another close by beach: Playa Avellana. I was getting excited about the place because I’ve been told that occasionally wild pigs find their way to the beach and in my head there was already playing a scene looking like Costa Rican Bahamas. Unfortunately though, we didn’t have any piggy encounters, all we saw was the one held by the restaurant (I felt a little unsettled by the fact a restaurant held a big in their yard, would they have it just as a pet or would they make "tamales de cerdo” (popular Costa Rican dish) from it sooner or later?). Still, the beach was much nicer as the one in Tamarindo, the sand was whiter and the beach cleaner, but the road leading there was rather rough and bumpy. Also we grasped sight of vultures eating a dog (!!) (lets just hope the poor dog was already dead and not just sunbathing) on the side of the road (I’m traumatized forever).So if you’re around Tamarindo you might want to give Playa Avellana a try but if you don’t have time it won’t be the end of the world either as Costa Rica has even more beautiful beaches to offer.Then, the following school week I finally was allowed to give surfing another try as I had my threads removed. I have to say I was excited but anxious at the same time, as I know knew that even small waves can develop a force that is sometimes hard to control. So I asked for a big beginner’s board and went into the water without any expectations and with a lot of attention and after all I managed fine. I was able to stand up a few times and most of all my initial fears were settled and I now feel rather confident again. Too bad that in Samara you can only surf at high-tide, as Samara beach is a bay and only has the right surfing conditions during high-tide. Still, with the beach right next to your nose every day I have no right to complain.As the days and weeks pass by, I realized that I have only less than half of my time left here and still so much I want to see. Therefore, I rather spontaneously decided to take part on the weekend school trip to Rio Celeste (which I mentioned on my list in the beginning), even though it cost me a little fortune. Still, I'm very keen on seeing the blue waters of Rio Celeste (and finally a real waterfall!) that I didn’t want to miss out on the experience. I hope it’s worth it and the weather conditions are good enough for the river to showcase its full glory, but I will tell you more about that trip in my next blog post.I’m trying to add in more useful tipps in my blogpost instead of only telling you about my life and my experiences here so I hope they're useful to you any time sooner or later :)Until then, have a good one!Pura vidaThe_escapedstudent