Why Costa Rica Should Be Your Next Trip

Hi readers and welcome to another great Travel Tuesday! I’m Christine and I blog over at A Keane Sense of Adventure (http://www.akeanesenseofadventure.com/). I was born and raised in Texas and I blog about travel, photography with some lifestyle mixed in, so hop on over and say hi!  

Today, I’m going to talk about “Pura Vida” and the country that perfected it. Costa Rica is located in Central America and is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. While I have never been to the Caribbean side, I can say that central and western Costa Rica is pretty awesome. So here are five reasons why you should book a plane ticket to this beautiful country.

1. Beautiful Beaches

The Caribbean and Pacific coasts of Costa Rica are very different from each other. The Caribbean beaches are exactly what you would think of when you think “Caribbean”. The sand is white and the water is a perfect combination of blue and turquoise. The Pacific coast has rugged and beautiful shorelines as well as beaches right next to lush rainforests. It’s also home to some awesome surfing and activities like horseback riding, fishing, golfing and everything in between.

2. Great Food

Fresh and local. Gallo pinto is a national dish that consists of chicken and rice and trust me, it’s on point. I would have a picture of it but my time at Costa Rica precedes Instagram and taking picture of food. You can walk around town and along the beaches and pick up some great street food as well. Best part, it’s cheap!

3. Gorgeous Resorts

Resorts in Costa Rica are the perfect spot to just relax. You can find exotic plant life, crazy looking animals and swimming pools for days while walking around the beautiful grounds. There are a lot of resort options and a little something for everybody.

4. Affordable Everything

A great thing about Costa Rica is that everything is very affordable. From lodging, shopping and food, your dollar/euro/pound will go a long way. While I was there, I “splurged” and got an hour massage on the beach for $20.00! That’s right, only $20… I took advantage of that steal and got a massage almost every day I was there.

5. Amazing Sunsets

No explanation needed. Amazing, right?

Who’s ready to hit the beach now? I’m hoping to go back one day since the last time I was there, Jimmy had to work. “Pura Vida” (which translates to “Pure Life”) is not only a Costa Rican saying but it’s also a way of life. And as you can see, they definitely know how to live life to the fullest.

Hi readers and welcome to Travel Tuesday! I’m Christine and I blog over at A Keane Sense of Adventure. You can also find me on Twitter and Instagram! I was born and raised in Texas and I blog about
photography, travel and some lifestyle mixed in.

Today, I’m going to share with y’all (I had to throw one in) the time I freaked out at the top of the Eiffel
Anyone that knows me can tell you that I’m deathly afraid of heights. Maybe it’s because I’m only 5’1″ and
have been close to the ground all my life? Whatever it is, it’s no fun. So let’s back up for a bit, the first time
my parents took me to Paris, I was around 12 years old. We were there for almost a week and pretty
much did it all including going up the Eiffel Tower… not all the way to the very top though, just to the 2nd
floor. While it was still terrifying, I survived. Fast forward to the last time I was in Paris, it was my
husband’s first time in the City of Lights so he wanted to pack as much in as possible. I told him that we
could go up the Eiffel Tower thinking it’s no biggie, I’ve done it before and without hesitation, he said
“Let’s do it… all the way to the top!”

We woke up super early one morning to head over to the Eiffel Tower. I wanted to buy our tickets online
but of course, all of the lifts were down except for one so they ceased online sales. It wasn’t too bad; we
were staying in the 7th arrondissement so it was a quick walk over. We got there before opening time and
there was a line around starting to wrap around… I guess everyone was in the same boat. As we waited, I
looked up to the top and thought maybe there’s still time for me to back out. Jimmy wasn’t having it
though and before you know it, he had two tickets to the top in hand.

We got into the lift and up we went… packed in like sardines going up over 900 feet. I can’t believe I
agreed to this, that was the thought going through my mind. Once we got to the very top, everyone made
their way off the lift. I started walking around and there it was, I swear (to this day) I felt the tower move. I
immediately grabbed the nearest thing to me which unfortunately for me was a random lady’s arm. Yup
that’s right, a total stranger. She did not look happy and tried to pull herself away from me but at that
moment in time, I didn’t care… the Eiffel Tower was moving!

Jimmy looked at me like I was psycho. I told him there’s no way I can walk around and just sat down on
one of the benches. He didn’t argue and took the camera to take some pictures since all I had a view of
was a metal wall. After he had his fun, we made our way down to the 2nd Floor, the floor I know I can
survive. I walked around and took pictures of some killer Paris views.

While I guess I’m glad I can say I’ve been to the top of the Eiffel Tower. I will probably never do that
again. We want to take our son to Paris one day, and while Aiden totally looks like me, he has his dad’s
personality which means “Have fun boys, I’ll be at the bottom drinking champagne!”

Next week we go into full swing with letting the new Travel Tuesday Co-Hosts take over A Compass Rose.  Today I want to introduce you to Christine and Sara.  Make sure to check out their blogs and find out more about these lovely ladies and what inspires them about travel!

Christine from A Keane Sense of Adventure

http://www.akeanesenseofadventure.com/

Sara from Sara Sees!

http://www.sara-sees.com

Are you a Girl Gone International?  Do you or have you lived and or/traveled abroad?  Do you seek out adventures outside your hometown?  I am looking for people who love to take photographs, use instagram, and want to share their travel, expat, and adventures from around the globe.  Want to take over the Girl Gone International instagram account?  Send me an email at GGIBONNIE(AT)GMAIL(DOT)COM.

Today our current co-hosts reveal more about themselves and travel as well as announcing who has been nominated by the current girls for the next three months!  Make sure to share your past or current travel/expat adventures with us in the link up below. Above all have fun and meet some great travel minded people!

5 Travel Facts about me:

1. I once spent the night in the ticket counter area of LaGuardia airport in the dead of winter. It was not the most pleasant experience.
2. I suffer from terrible immigration control inspired terror every time I re-enter the UK even though my visa is perfectly valid.
3. My accent mystifies people. I’ve had people guess that I’m from pretty much any English speaking country in the world. (My favourite guess was Somerset, England)
4. My favourite trip abroad was a week in Turkey.
5. Italy is top of my travel bucket list!

Instagram – http://www.instagram.com/rhymeandribbons
Twitter- http://www.twitter.com/rhymeandribbons
Bloglovin- https://www.bloglovin.com/blogs/rhyme-ribbons-4937833

http://www.twitter.com/cmo319
http://www.instagram.com/cmo319
http://www.facebook.com/wheretheheartblog

Hi there! My name is Marcella and my blog is WhatAWonderfulWorld, where I
blog about my current and previous travels. My favourite things in life are travel,
photography, yoga and vegetarian food. I am currently living and working in
wonderful London, the city where I grew up and the city that I grew to love more
and more each year. In three months time, I am moving across the world to
Chile, a country that I lived in four years ago and a country that stole my heart
(literally!) so I am currently getting ready for my new adventure.

Five Travel Facts:

1.  I’m lucky enough to have visited 36 countries.
2.  I believe in holiday romances; I met my fiancé while travelling, resulting in me
moving over 7000 miles to Chile.
3. When in India and Nepal, people laughed whenever I introduced myself as
they thought my name was the same as the Indian spice ‘masalla.’
4. The earliest party I went to was a carnival street party in Rio at 7am.
5. Mountains are my favourite type of scenery.

Blog: https://clemandmarcella.wordpress.com/
Bloglovin: https://www.bloglovin.com/blogs/whatawonderfulworld-11591345
Instagram: https://instagram.com/marcella_ella_ella_/

And now to announce the lovely bloggers who have been nominated for the next three months.  If you see your name, get in contact with me and look out for my email coming this week.

Christine from A Keane Sense of Adventure  http://www.akeanesenseofadventure.com/
Sara from Sara Sees! http://www.sara-sees.com
Lauren from Lauren on Location http://laurenonlocation.com/

Check out these lovely blogs and send them some congrats in their comments today!

Plus you can link up and hop along below!

Best thing about living the expat life in England—castles! Castles are not on short supply here in the UK and my family is enjoying getting to see different ones. The castle that has been able to really come to life the most in this modern day is Warwick castle. Located in Warwick, this castle is near Shakespeare’s Stratford on Avon. We recommend taking enough time to see both places, so making a weekend out of it is highly suggested.

My boys are both fans of Horrible Histories and they made the interaction aspect of Warwrick Castle a fantastic experience for my sons. They were given special badges and activity packs when we entered and there were many different locations through out the inside and outside of the Castle for them to get a Horrible History twist on things. The people who were working through out Warwick Castle were phenomenal and really brought the place to life.

I could definitely see returning Warwick Castle as we did not get to see all the shows and theres bound to be things we did not see the first time. Even with so many people there, the crowds were not a problem. There were great food options available and you could even bring in your own and have a picnic on the lawn. Here are a few more favourite photographs of mine from our adventures at Warwick Castle.

Don’t forget to link up! x