Two weeks from today I arrive in Costa Rica for my next big adventure, and my first excursion to Central America.
I am planning on blogging daily, or at least most days as long as WiFi is available. But I’m thinking of trying something new, or at least something I haven’t done in a long time. Read on for more about that.
My Itinerary
I previously posted my itinerary, but here it is more fully fleshed out.
| Saturday, December 15 | Flight to LAX, then overnight flight to SJO | |
| Sunday, December 16 | Arrive SJO, transfer to Arenal | Hotel La Pradera del Arenal |
| Monday, December 17 | Free day | |
| Tuesday, December 18 | 3 in 1 Hanging Bridges, Fortuna Waterfall and Volcano Hike | |
| Wednesday, December 19 | Celeste River and Tenorio Volcano National Park Hike | |
| Thursday, December 20 | Transfer via taxi and boat and another taxi to Monteverde | Cala Lodge |
| Friday, December 21 | Morning: Guided Tour Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve Afternoon: Coffee Tour |
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| Saturday, December 22 | Free day; possible hikes at Santuario Ecológico | |
| Sunday, December 23 | Transfer to Dominical | Staying with my friend Linda |
| Monday, December 24 | Dominical Manuel Antonio and Quepos Nauyaca Falls |
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| Tuesday, December 25 | Christmas celebration | |
| Wednesday, December 26 | Travel to Drake Bay | Casa el Tortugo |
| Thursday, December 27 Friday, December 28 |
Corcovado National Park Isla del Caño snorkeling excursion |
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| Saturday, December 29 | Flight from Drake Bay to SJO, 12-hour layover, possible tour of San Jose | |
| Sunday, December 30 | Overnight flight home via Houston |
An experiment
I’m currently reading a fabulous book by Seth Kugel, former writer of the Frugal Traveler column for the New York Times. One of the things he talks about is how social media have changed the way we travel because we are constantly sharing everything in real time.
I think that’s probably a good thing in a lot of ways, but Seth points out some of the ways that can take us out of the experience we are in. Instead of immersing ourselves in what we are seeing and doing, we are busy packaging it for publication on Facebook and Instagram. And instead of escaping our lives back home, we are fully in touch with everyone and everything that’s happening.
So for this trip I am going to try doing something different. I am going to take a two-week break from social media. Instead, I will try to write my blog as a travel journal. I previously kept travel journals, and when I started blogging, my original plan was to use the blog as a way to share my journals. So I want to get back to that. I may even keep a hand-written travel journal and transcribe it here.
So look out for my blog entries while I’m gone. If you’re not already a subscriber on the blog, sign up now so you will get an email each time I add a post.
When I’m back I’ll publish all my photos, but I’m going to try to rely more on the written word to share my experiences.
I hope you will share your thoughts about this in the comments below and also on the posts I write while I’m in Costa Rica.
Thanks!
Sheila
I think that’s great, Lane. I’ve encountered a similar idea regarding photographs — that instead of constantly snapping photos, just look, drink it in — the colors, smells, feeling of the place. I imagine one could do both. Bon Voyage! Sheila
Lane
Thanks Sheila, I appreciate the yes vote!
I do take a lot of pictures when I travel, and I do love having them to help me remember things, but I am trying to have the experiences for myself before I record them with my camera.