For spring break this year, we traveled to Costa Rica where we learned the term "Pura Vida." Simply translated, it means “simple life” or “pure life”, and Costa Ricans use this term to say hello, to say goodbye and not surprisingly, it has been named one of the happiest countries in the world.
We spent most of the week relaxing poolside basking in the sun and swimming. We did manage to pry ourselves away from the pool for a day and traveled to Guanacaste for ADVENTURES! It was there that we rode horses to and then hiked to a beautiful waterfall. After wards, we visited a natural hot springs and then covered ourselves in volcanic mud and baked in the sun. We took a ride on Costa Rica's longest water slide (which was super fun)! And lastly, we went zip lining in the Rain Forest.
Before we went on our big adventure, I asked the girls which one they would like to choose and out of all of them, they chose the "Original Mega Combo." I was surprised they picked this one. It was the grandest adventure of them all that included 5 adventures (zip lining, riding horses, hot water springs, tubing and hiking) and a 12 hour day. I will was feeling pretty confident as a mother that they could handle all of these. They had taken horseback riding lessons so I knew they wouldn't be scared to ride a horse. I had taken them to Great Wolf Lodge where we went tubing together, so I knew they wouldn't be scared of large slides. We go hiking all the time. The only thing I hadn't prepared for was zip lining. They had NEVER zip lined through a rain forest way up in the sky over trees filled with monkeys. There were 7 zip lines and we started off really good! Both girls were cruising high in the sky. The third line in, Isabella was crying and wanted to go back home. The thing is.....once your in, your in. You can't walk back home because its so high, you have to zip line home. Once Isabella started crying, Giselle didn't want to zip line by herself anymore either. After lots of deep breaths and wiping the tears away, a guide finished the rest of the zip lines with the girls. I am super proud of both of them for being brave enough to try something new, even if it may have been scary. I am also proud of Bob for being afraid of heights and trying out zip lining for the first time as well.
We enjoyed relaxing, spending time with each other and I especially enjoyed a break from not cooking for an entire week!
The food was excellent, the people were friendly, the company was even better and we would definitely go back!! Costa Rica is truly an unspoiled destination! Until our next vacation "adventure."
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| Zip Lining (Giselle is in front, Isabella is hidden behind the guide) |
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| Fun in the Pool, Costa Rica |
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| Lots of mammals in Costa Rica |
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| Bella relaxing after the zip line! |
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| A picture is worth a thousand words! |
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| Tubing |
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| A hike to the waterfall |
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| Gigi is ALWAYS ready to ride! |
