Costa Rica |ˈriːkə|a republic in Central America on the Isthmus of Panama; pop. 4,253,900 (est. 2009); official language, Spanish; capital, San José.
Field turned 36 this year, and we couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate than with a little getaway to the beautiful country of Costa Rica with a few of our closest friends! I have always loved Central America for a quick vacay location because you can surf, relax, and fish (all of Field’s favorite things) without having to travel too far!
After landing in Liberia, we took a 2.5 hour drive through the beautiful rainforests of Central America to get to our final destination of Nosara. Nosara is a beautiful ocean-side village of about 5,800 people known for surfing and tourism. It felt like a very different (and wonderful) kind of vacation for us because the town was so quaint and quiet. It was such a lovely, much needed change of pace!
Our stay at the Harmony Hotel was absolutely magical. We were walking distance from the beach for our early morning surfing lessons (prime time was 8am-noon) We surfed everyday with surf instructors connected to the hotel. We would eat complimentary breakfast at Harmony with fresh fruit, pastries and the best of Central American coffee!
I loved this hotel because it had everything we needed within walking distance. We surfed every single morning. It was such a great workout for your whole body! We also had incredibly relaxing massages, tanned by the pool, ate at local restaurants, and frequented the delicious fresh juice bar (several times a day!). There was so much to do, yet it felt so calm and relaxing the whole time.
Some of the guys went fishing with Field one day while the rest of us went on a wildlife hike that led to a beautiful waterfall with Experience Nosara Adventure Company. We actually left our cameras and phones at the bottom of the waterfall because I was afraid we would drop them. The rocks were so slippery and it was hard to keep your balance. But the view from the top was absolutely incredible! We jumped from the top into a little cavern–it was seriously so scary, but so worth it!
That night, we got to eat the 20 lbs. of tuna the guys caught on their fishing trip. It was delicious–I was so proud of Field! We had such good seafood and local dishes on this trip. My favorite places to eat in Nosara were: Pacifico, KayaSol, Cafe de Paris and La Luna (my most favorite!). I also enjoyed the street-side coconut vendors, where you could buy a fresh coconut for $1!
The weather was beautiful, but extremely humid–so we wanted to stay in the water as much as possible. However, the day we rented ATV’s and golf carts to drive ourselves into the town, it started pouring down rain on us. Our four wheeler broke, and we were all completely soaked and laughing so hard. We couldn’t figure out why we were the only people on the road that day. Now I know why!
We had purchased international phone plans to keep up with our family back home, but most of the time, cell service was very limited. I was shocked to learn that an international plan only cost 10 dollars a day! We did have great internet at the hotel to FaceTime our kids throughout the day, but it was actually really nice to disconnect from the world for a little while to really enjoy nature and the beautiful beach! I had a lot of devotional time everywhere I went. I couldn’t help but feel grateful to God for the abundant blessings His creation has to offer. There were moments where I felt completely breathless because I was so blown away by God’s beauty! There were no TV’s in our rooms, only a library you could check books out from. I thought this was such a great way to unplug from all the technology we are surrounded with these days!
Every night of our trip, we got together at dinner and talked about our favorite and least favorite time of the day. We laughed as we all reminisced about everyone’s personal adventures throughout the day. The last night of the trip, everyone said something they loved about Field. That was my favorite part of the whole trip. I love watching other people celebrate my best friend and my favorite man in the whole world! Thank you to all of our friends for making this trip so special for Field! And, a special thanks to my dear friend, Kristen Smith with The Clad Life for putting outfits together for some Costa Rican inspired upcoming fashion posts! I cannot wait to show you all–coming soon!
It’s raining in Dallas today as I write this post, so I hope while reading it you gain some sunshine for your dreary day! Take a listen to the beachside Spotify playlist we made to escape a little further!
Pura Vida!
XO-
Sabrina
