Aero: Sarah Warner – Costa Rica 2016 – Travel

Creative Commons Image via The LEAF Project

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Choosing to go on this trip is probably one of the best decisions that I made during my college career.  I knew that it would be fun but I did not understand how much I would actually be learning and it ended up being an experience of a lifetime.  I have traveled without my family, even outside the country so I was not too nervous about that part. However, I have never signed up to travel outside the country without anyone that I know! I have a very close-knit family and very close relationships with my best friends and boyfriend so it was pretty hard leaving all of them behind and doing something on my own.  That being said, I think it was for the best and it really taught me that sometimes it is okay to go off on your own and get new experiences. 

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Sarah Warner

As far as the flights went, they all ran pretty smoothly. On the way there, I sat next to a couple that had traveled to Costa Rica many times and they told me about all their wonderful adventures and assured me that I would not be disappointed. I think the money part is what confused me the most.  I was constantly asking others about how the exchange worked or doing the math on my phone for “how much is this in US dollars?” I am sure it was probably comical for the locals to observe our big group of “gringos” walking around trying to act normal.  Nevertheless, we managed to make it through the trip without any accidents or anyone getting lost or losing large amounts of money. 

During our travels while in the country, we mainly rode around in a big tourist van, which was great for convenience but made many of us feel ill.  The roads were not so smooth and long rides got to us after a while.  However, all of our van drivers along with the tour guides were very nice and learning from them was awesome.  One day, those of us who were staying at Maria Marta’s decided to take a taxi back home.  Even though he was a crazy driver and I was scared for my life he was a nice guy, and the taxi ride cost us each less than one US dollar.  Finally, I am still in awe from this trip and I am sad how fast the time went by. It felt like we were there and back in a couple of days! Pretty cool how we were able to visit two countries and many cities in just the course of two weeks. 

Sarah Warner
LEAF Contributor
ML@FLCC: Costa Rica 2016

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