expat in costa rica – Teaching Abroad- American Teacher Overseas

Hiking Turrialba Volcano- Information, Suggestions, and more…

Have you ever hiked an Active Volcano?

Costa Rica has 6 active volcanoes and 61 that are dormant. After seeing the Poas Volcano, I knew I wanted to see as many as I could. Turrialba is another active volcano in Costa Rica and not too far from Turrialba is Irazu volcano. I had ambitiously planned to see them both on the same day, and yes it can be done, but no, I was unable to do it. (If planned properly it can be done, read how here)

Logistics

Turrialba is over 10,000 feet high. It is the second highest volcano in Costa Rica. It is located about a 2.5 hour drive from San José, in the Cartago province, inside the Turrialba Volcano National Park. Due to eruptions in 2014-2017, the park was closed. In 2020, it reopened to visitors. To hike this volcano, you are required to have a guide, wear a helmet and sign a waiver.

At this time there is only one authorized guided tour. Here is the link: https://icetur.com/volc%C3%A1n-turrialba They have tours every hour on the hour from 5am – 11am. You can reserve your spot and pay in advance or pay at the base camp: Cortijo Quetzal Lodge. The rate is 22500 CRC for foreigners, which is about $40 and then you have to pay to enter the park, once you’re there which is $12 usd. The hike will take no less than 4 hours.

Getting there

As I mentioned, it takes about 2.5 hours to get to Turrialba. The first hour of driving is highway, then windy roads. If you get car sick, prepare. As you get closer to the base camp, the road is no longer paved. It is rocky and steep. A 4×4 is highly recommended for these back roads. For this reasons, I chose to drive during daylight. If you are not familiar with the roads in Costa Rica and curvy, steep roads make you feel uneasy, I recommend a tour at 9am or later.

The Hike and the Summit

The elevation mixed with the rocky paths made this hike particularly difficult for me. I was pretty slow going up. It also rained which made the hike slippery and muddy. It took almost 3 hours to reach the summit. If you want to know just how out of shape you are, hike Turrialba.

At the top, Unfortunately, the clouds and fog would not let up and we were met with disappointment. We could not see the craters. We waited for awhile to see if the clouds would depart but they never did. It is also cold and windy up there.

Made it to the top but can’t see anything

Protective Bunker in case of surprise eruption

Although we didn’t get to see inside the tummy of the beast, it was an enjoyable hike. I admired the scenery along the way. The ash settled upon the leaves of plants are memories left behind from previous eruptions. Eventually we began our descent. Descending is always easier for me which is the opposite for others. We made some stops along the way to take in the views and watched as the sky began to clear. I wondered if it would be possible to see inside the crater now but I was not willing to climb back up to find out. The total experience lasted 4 hours 47 minutes and was so worth it.

If it didn’t get recorded, it didn’t happen. Thank God for my Garmin

More Suggestions

This hike is not an easy one, doable, but not easy, take that into consideration. Bring a walking stick but walking sticks are available at base camp to use for free. Dress appropriately, comfortable but in layers. You’ll be cold from the weather, then hot from the walk, then cold at the top, then hot during the descent. I wore work out tights, sports bra, tank top. But I also took a puffer jacket that can be easily folded and packed and a rain jacket. I used everything. Wear hiking boots or sneakers. My Merrils have been my saving grace. Carry a lightweight, hiking backpack. Bring snacks, water, hot tea (if you don’t mind carrying it in a canteen) and a portable charger. Bring some money too, because you can purchase snacks and coffee at base camp.

There are bathrooms at base camp and halfway up the volcano, where you pay for the park admission.

When driving away from Turrialba, take your time and enjoy the views but be mindful that it is a farming town. You may be met by a roadblock.

Roadblock of Cows, after a few beep beeps they moved

Would you hike Turrialba? Let me know in the comments.

There is a Monster Under My Bed- Surviving my First Earthquake in Costa Rica

It was about 9 pm when I started falling asleep Friday night. It was early but I had a long week and after one glass of Seville and tonic, I was done. I told my hubby, whom I’d been video-chatting with, I love you and called it a night. I’m a light sleeper and any light or sounds awaken me, so I put in one ear plug and covered my eyes with my blinders.

About 4 hours later, something scared me half to death. I was awakened to my bed being shaken. I felt it once and thought I was dreaming until, it happened again. This time I jumped up because I thought a monster was under my bed. Half asleep, I looked over at my vanity to see if anything had fallen over. Perhaps it was an earthquake, but I couldn’t see anything. The dogs outside were barking and then suddenly stopped. I checked under my bed, no demons there. I called Darryl and left him a message. Of course he didn’t answer, he was asleep. It was 1am here which meant 3am there. My heart was beating out of my chest and it took me 2 full hours, and 2 episodes of Making the Cut, to finally fall back to sleep.

Later that day, Darryl checked google for any record of Earthquakes in Costa Rica and there it was. At 12:53am, a 5.0 Magnitude Earthquake occurred in the North Pacific Ocean, 44 km South of San Isidro, Costa Rica. That was the monster that shook my bed side to side, woke me from my slumber and scared the shit out of me. The website www.volcanodiscovery.com provides alot of information on Earthquakes around the world. Check out this reporting from that website on earthquake occurrences in Costa Rica:

Past 24 hours	8 quakes \| 5 quakes M2+ \| 3 quakes M3+
Past 7 days	87 quakes \| 43 quakes M2+ \| 35 quakes M3+ \| 4 quakes M4+ \| 1 quake M5+
Past 30 days	316 quakes \| 157 quakes M2+ \| 132 quakes M3+ \| 18 quakes M4+ \| 1 quake M5+
Past 90 days	781 quakes \| 340 quakes M2+ \| 379 quakes M3+ \| 50 quakes M4+ \| 1 quake M5+
Past 365 days	2,944 quakes \| 1,148 quakes M2+ \| 1,519 quakes M3+ \| 226 quakes M4+ \| 14 quakes M5+ \| 3 quakes M6+

https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquakes/costarica.html

The ironic thing is, we had an earthquake drill at my school just this week and my Director and I were just discussing our experiences with earthquakes on Friday morning. The only other earthquake I had ever experienced was in Philadelphia 11 years ago. I remember that earthquake clearly because I was in training at the first school I ever worked at. It was a 5.8 Mag earthquake that struck in Virginia and was felt pretty far up the East Coast.

I guess now is as good a time as ever to prepare an emergency bag. I had one prepared in Qatar when the Embargo occurred against Qatar by Saudi Arabia and talks of war were everywhere. No matter where you are in the world, it is always better to be prepared. Thankfully, I am ok and this was just an interesting, surprise experience in my new country. I just love my life!

Buying a Car in Costa Rica

Meet Skittles, my new road dog.

I’m so excited that I am now mobile in Costa Rica. It didn’t take long for me to realize that having a car here would be very helpful. The area around Santa Ana, where I live, is walkable however, in the rainy season, walking is not the best option. Also I really want to explore the country.

Skittles is the brightest colored car I have ever owned and it all started one day when I arrived at work. In the parking lot, I saw the cutest, small, lime green car and it instantly brought a smile to my face. It was at that moment that I decided I wanted a car that made me smile too. I wanted a car with personality, a bright colored car that would stand out.

Buying a car in a new country can seem daunting so here’s my experience and I hope it helps someone. The most common ways of finding a car here include: Facebook Marketplace, traveling to Grecia (an area filled with lots of car dealerships, reminds me of Passyunk avenue in Philadelphia, or a car mall), visiting local auto dealers and 2 popular websites: encuentra24 and crautos . Two of my coworkers went to Grecia and said they were overwhelmed. I had success using crautos.com.

Checking out a few cars and then taking a mechanic along with you when you find a car that you are very interested in, seems like the best choice. Thankfully, my schools H.R. department has connections and hooked me up with a mechanic. Skittles came from a private owner. The couple were/is super nice and bought the car to my condo for me to view and test drive. The mechanic also met at my condo. He charges a fee of 50,000₡ ($80) each time. Thankfully, I only needed to use him once. He completed a diagnostic check right there, took the car for a spin and then gave me his approval. I told the couple I wanted the car, negotiated a little and gave my verbal agreement of purchase. That was on Saturday. By Tuesday, my H.R. rep had arranged for our school lawyer to meet at the school, with the couple and myself to sign over the papers. The lawyer’s fee was 400,000₡ ($633). This seems expensive but it included everything needed for me to drive my new car home that same day.

So for the purchase of my used, 4×4, Hyundai Tucson Limited, mechanic check, change over and all paperwork, I spent approx $15,400. This does not include the car insurance, that I was not required to purchase straight away. I have been quoted 303,000₡ ($480) for the year, for full car insurance. This is insanely inexpensive compared to the U.S. I thought car insurance was cheap in Qatar, at approx $1100/year, but this is amazing. Full car insurance in Philadelphia is about $250/mth.

The most difficult part of the entire process was two-fold. 1) Finding a car, 2) Finding a way to pay for it, when the majority of my money is not here. My job was super helpful with the whole process and made it easier. So far, I am pretty happy with my choice. Let the adventures begin…

The Big Move to Costa Rica

July 9 was move day. With all the negative experiences people have been sharing about the airlines lately, it was a big concern. My flight had been changed prior from a PHL departure and short layover in Miami to a layover in Boston, then a longer layover in Miami with a next day arrival. This was not acceptable so I cancelled that flight on Jet Blue and rebooked another on United, non-stop to SJO from Newark Airport. There were some discrepancies on the weight and size limits of the baggage that I could take but in the end I used the information given to me over the phone by a representative. We were allowed a max of 2 checked bags, that we had to pay for, and 1 carry-on and personal item for free. At the advice of some other expats in a FB group I joined, I purchased some totes for odd shaped items. In total, I packed 2-62.4 dimensional containers, purchased from Lowes, 2 large suitcases, 2 medium suitcases, 2 small suitcases for carry-on and 2 backpacks as personal items. Darryl and I left with 10 total pieces of luggage, 8 which were mine. I paid $440 in total but I didn’t mind because I would be reimbursed by my job for relocation costs. A very nice United Airlines attendant helped us at the airport with rearranging our seats so that we were sitting together and in spacious seats. (Advice: wait to get to the airport and ask for seat changes rather than paying for them online)

We had to present proof of return flight, within 90 days, since we were going on a visit visa, which we would obtain on arrival. This is a Costa Rican rule. I cannot obtain my work visa until my FBI apostille comes back from Washington. The only two documents I was required to get authenticated for work in Costa Rica was my birth certificate and FBI background check. The Birth Certificate authentication is completed at the state office building, Harrisburg in my case. That was a simple task of simply driving up there, walking in and paying a small cash fee of $15.00. The FBI authentication is completed through the national office in D.C. and walk-ins are not accepted. I used the third party company ProEx again; the same one I used to get my documents authenticated for Qatar. Their services cost me $150 and takes approximately 4 weeks. I still plan on flying back home for the October break rather I have the document within 90 days or not.

Our flight departed only a few minutes late and was rather pleasant. Five hours is a whole lot less than the 12.5 hour flight I was used to taking to get to Qatar. Getting through immigration was easy. They simply asked where we were staying, stamped our passport and whisked us through. There are nice gentlemen in green shirts at baggage retrieval that can help you with your bags for $20. Containers like totes come out of the area marked with the number 1 all other baggage comes out of different baggage carousels. Minus 1 missing tote handle, all of our things arrived safely. Thankfully Darryl had the bright idea to zip tie the totes as extra security. The lines for customs was disheartening, however they moved quickly and we were out of the airport in under 30 minutes.

My new VP picked us up from the airport and she had a vehicle big enough for all of our stuff. She drove us to the Aloft hotel, where we would be staying until we found housing. In our room was a small gift bag with coffee, cookies and snacks from Costa Rica, cash of ¢150,000 ($215 approx.) and a prepaid phone with ¢30,000 ($43 approx.) credit for our use for the first few days.

After dropping off our baggage, Mrs. VP and family took us around the neighborhood and then to get something to eat. The restaurant is where I learned my first lesson about Costa Rica: I need to learn Spanish and fast…

10 Facts About my Next Home

Quick Read…

Written before the move…

Within a few days, I will be off to my new adventure. This summer was super short. I literally had 3 weeks off. I spent most of this time preparing for the move. In between, I did get in a 5 day trip to Panama (more on that coming up in a future post), some quality time with family and a little down time to do some research. So, here are 10 facts about my soon to be new host country.

A lot of people think Costa Rica is an island but actually it is not. It is a part of Central America and borders Nicaragua on the north and Panama on the south. However, it does have several uninhabited islands. Can’t wait to explore them. (costarica.org)

Costa Rica does not have a military. The Military was abolished in 1948, and money was reinvested in education, social security and health care. The standard of living has been steadily on the rise since then, the country’s literacy rate is 98%, and the infant mortality rate is the second lowest in the region. (ticotravel.com)

It is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, with 5% of the world’s biodiversity and 500,000 species of wildlife. (trafalgar.com)

Costa Rica has a high life expectancy and is home to one of the 5 blue zones in the world, Nicoya. (asuaire.com)

You can see the sunrise on the Caribbean side and sunset on the Pacific side in the same day (visitcostarica.com). It is possible to drive across the entire country and catch them both.

There are about 750,000 species of insects that live here, including 20,000 different spiders, and 10% of the worlds butterflies. (bahiaaventuras.com) I almost declined the offer to move here because of this fact .

There are more than 121 volcanic formations and seven active volcanoes. Most of the volcanoes are in the northern part of the country. (bahiaaventuras.com) Costa Rica’s soil is rich in minerals due to many eruptions over the past millennia.