Instead of a party or a car for my quinceañera, I chose to go to my dream destination: Costa Rica. The day that we got there we landed in the capital, San Jose. I was pleasantly surprised by San Jose because, originally, we only landed there to wait for the rest of my family to fly in from New York. However, in the hours we had waited, my cousins and I explored this large city. Everything from the ethnic food to the beautiful sights was breathtaking. In Costa Rica, they have restaurants, but they also have “Sodas.” These lunch rooms feel incredibly nostalgic, as if your mom or grandma cooked for you. The sweet aroma and homemade foods in these open-air open restaurants was a perfect way to end my first night here. Everything from flavor to presentation was top notch. I went to sleep that night expecting my other 10 family members to arrive in San Jose from New York

That morning, I awoke to unexpected news. After hours in the airport and multiple canceled flights, the rest of my family was not going to be able to make it to my trip. The next flight out was for the following week and by that time we would have already been heading home. After many long calls with airlines, we ultimately decided the trip had to go on without them. The next day we set out on our road trip to La Fortuna… our adventure was about to begin.

Upon arrival, we made it to one of the most stunning hotels I have ever been to named Baldi Hot Spring. This unique hotel is known for all its natural hot springs that are made from the water that runs down from the volcanos. Costa Rica is known for its many natural landforms and most significantly, volcanoes. The opportunity to be near such natural wonders was itself a wonderful opportunity. From the hotel, we went out hiking and saw plenty of wildlife such as monkeys, snakes, and even wild Macaws. The impressive sights of waterfalls and mountains left us stunned. The next day we had another day filled with excursions. We started off with the highest and longest zip line in Costa Rica called the Monteverde Zip Line Canopy Tour. I was so consumed with adrenaline I can only remember the vast green forests that zipped through my vision as I zip lined 2,525 feet in 456 feet of altitude. It was so lengthy, I had to ride with an instructor almost every time because my weight could not get me across the whole zipline. After this, we went straight into water rafting. It was one of the excursions I was most excited about, as I absolutely love the water. During that time on the raft, we were able to see plenty more different native animals like monkeys, exotic frogs, and even sloths. 

We went back on the road for our second destination: Guanacaste. We stayed in a beachfront all inclusive hotel. The beaches were breathtaking and completely unlike any other beaches I’ve gone to. The main difference being that from this beach you could see volcanoes. It was a surreal experience since living in Florida, there is no possibility of seeing mountains let alone massive volcanoes. My favorite part of the stay at this beach were the sunsets. The orange and pink sunsets that filled the sky every night had me mesmerized. I never got tired of sitting down and watching the sun set down peacefully while taking out my phone to take a picture of the art being painted in front of me. Additionally, going to the authentic Costa Rican restaurants with my cousins and eating hundreds of servings of ice cream because it was “free” was another core memory.

 We had to make our way back to San Jose to catch our flight the next day back home. My mom booked a huge airbnb for us to stay in, but the images she had seen were only in the daytime. We arrived on a pitch black night and the house seemed almost haunted. There were what seemed like hundreds of rooms and dark hallways. Although these setbacks weren’t expected, I genuinely couldn’t have asked for a better quince trip. I love this beautiful country and all the stories it has gifted me with which I hope to share in the future.