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#CatTravels: Costa Rica, here we come!

By Catherine Toth Fox • August 15, 2012 • #CatTravels

20120815-071114.jpg

“Watch out for the 6-inch cockroaches.”

That’s what my brother e-mails me when I tell him I’m going to Costa Rica.

It didn’t help.

I’m scrambling to finish some freelance stories, cleaning the house, taking the dogs to the kennel, running errands, (still) writing thank-you cards from our wedding.

Now I have to worry about ridiculously large roaches.

Truth be told, I’m a little stressed about this trip, a spontaneous buy on LivingSocial last year. The only thing I know about the country is what I’ve read in guide books and online forums.

And talking with people about it has turned out to be even more confusing.

Every person who’s been to Costa Rica has a different story to tell. Some have waxed poetic about the surf — one of the main reasons I booked the hotel — and some have complained about the droves of Americans who have made Costa Rica their second home.

Then there are the ones who want to help but freak you out instead.

They talk about the lacking cuisine — “You’ll eat iguana!” — or the awful road conditions. They warn about wild jaguars and crocodiles and poisonous snakes. And they tell you that despite the crime, the poverty, the active volcano, “you’ll have a great time.”

Ack!

So here’s the deal: we’re leaving today for Costa Rica, staying at a resort in Mal Pais called Vista De Olas on the Pacific Ocean. The plan is to surf, hike, read and not much else. Then we’ll drive across the country for about six hours to (the active) Arenal Volcano and stay the Tree Houses Hotel, which is managed by a former colleague of mine at The Advertiser.

It should be interesting.

I’m not sure what kind of Internet access I’ll have. But whenever I find WiFi I’ll be sure to post updates.

If not, let’s hope I’m not overrun by giant cockroaches.

Follow my #CatChat adventures on Twitter @thedailydish and Instagram @catherinetoth.

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Catherine Toth Fox

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19 Comments

  • Reply matt August 15, 2012 at 8:34 am

    have fun

    • Reply Catherine Toth August 15, 2012 at 12:27 pm

      THANKS!!!

  • Reply Annoddah Dave August 15, 2012 at 8:53 am

    CAT: I heard that CR has a macadamia nut industry that has cheaper nutz than us. You may want to try their choco covered ones to check out the quality.

    • Reply Catherine Toth August 15, 2012 at 12:27 pm

      OMG, and I’m bringing chocolate-covered mac nuts! Faux pas?

  • Reply J August 15, 2012 at 9:12 am

    My friends who have traveled to Costa Rica come back with the same response, “You gotta go!”

    • Reply Catherine Toth August 15, 2012 at 12:26 pm

      Yeah, that’s what I’ve heard to. I’m sure it’ll be fun, no matter what we end up doing! Only 10 days… wish it could be longer!

  • Reply jaydee August 15, 2012 at 9:32 am

    Have a great time you two! Yes there are snakes (135 species, 17 of the venomous which includes the fearful Bushmaster) but I’m sure a run-in with any one of them will be rare. A friend of mine just returned from there and had an awesome time. So enjoy!

    • Reply Catherine Toth August 15, 2012 at 12:26 pm

      THANKS! And thanks for the 411 on the snake population there. Oh, boy. I just hope I have my iPhone or camera handy when my first encounter happens!

  • Reply kalei August 15, 2012 at 10:23 am

    My husband went on business to Costa Rica. Even though he was there to work, I did not feel sorry for him. Obviously it depends on where you are but he said it reminded him a bit of Molokai. Have a great time!

    • Reply Catherine Toth August 15, 2012 at 12:25 pm

      If it’s like Molokai, I’m sure I’ll love it. Better bring more books!

  • Reply EdW August 15, 2012 at 11:02 am

    Enjoy I have a few friends who winter there, and some who’ve moved down. Have lots of fun. Check out spunkysurfs.com Spunky just got back from one of his anual trips, he has some good photos of the waves.

    • Reply Catherine Toth August 15, 2012 at 12:25 pm

      Spunkysurfs.com? Will do! Thanks for the tip!

  • Reply M August 15, 2012 at 11:32 am

    Hello Cat!

    Have a GREAT time! I’ll be waiting for your post!

    • Reply Catherine Toth August 15, 2012 at 12:25 pm

      Thanks! Hopefully I can find WiFi!

  • Reply David Jackson August 15, 2012 at 2:07 pm

    Costa Rica is a great place, ignore all the warnings as they are just silly. Suspicion is that the Tree House will be the most fun of all of it.

    • Reply Catherine Toth August 15, 2012 at 3:29 pm

      I suspect that, too!

  • Reply WildeOscar August 16, 2012 at 4:27 am

    On a trip to Costa Rica, I stayed at a very nice hotel in San Jose for 11 days. I couldn’t figure out from the card on the room desk (either the English or the Spanish version, and I’m fluent in both) how to buy the in-room WiFi, but I could tell that the charge was about $20 per day. Pish Tosh! I’m way too cheap to pay that much for internet access, no matter what it cost to get there and stay there.

    For a total of under $10, I bought a month of WiFi access from a local service provider while sitting in a coffee shop. It worked out fine and it was fun trekking and exploring to find other hot spots. Most places with that service had small signs on the front doors or windows. I don’t remember the name of the provider, but the arrangement worked for me.

  • Reply Grant August 21, 2012 at 7:47 am

    Playa Santa Theresa perchance?

  • Reply Grant August 21, 2012 at 8:07 am

    watch for the howler monkeys. Totally neat, way up in the trees. When it’s so quite in the mornings, it’s really a spooky sound. First day I was walking to my cabin and heard a scratching sound above my head and a 3′ iguana came down the palm tree about 6 feet away and walked across the yard. The sand crabs are red and black. Beautiful
    If you are very still they will come out of their holes and be dozens of them all around. Move and they are gone.
    Street (singular) in Santa Theresa was a slippery place to walk in the rain. There was a car-eating puddle right in the middle of town.
    Yeah, I could go on, and on-have a great time and catch one for me.
    By the way, if you are in Santa Theresa, there is a surf shop, or was, run by a guy named Froilan. Loved his paka lolo, but super nice guy and had boards to rent. Shop was called Chill and Surf. If you go in there, tell him you know me and see if he remembers. He always had the tides on a blackboard in front. They like high tide there, might have something to do with the beach break.

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About Me

About Me
Born and raised on O‘ahu, Hawaiʻi, Catherine Toth Fox has been chronicling her adventures in her blog, The Cat Dish, for more than a decade. She worked as a newspaper reporter in Hawai‘i for 10 years and continues to freelance—in between teaching journalism, hitting the surf and eating everything in sight—for national and local print and online publications. She’s currently the editor of HAWAIʻI Magazine.

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