Surfing, sightseeing, and salsa in Santa Teresa
Throughout the semester, we are offered the opportunity to participate in several voluntary excursions, where we get the chance to see more of Costa Rica. There is so much beauty to see, and it truly enables one to make the most out of the time spent here.
This text is translated using AI.
View the original article here.One has to pay for these trips oneself, unless it's an academic excursion, but I would really recommend participating in all that one has the opportunity to!
The first trip we were offered to join was a weekend trip to Santa Teresa, a place known for beautiful beaches, surfing, and yoga retreats.
This was less than a week after we arrived in Costa Rica, so it was a great opportunity to get to know everyone in the class.
The entire class traveled to Santa Teresa, where we spent the whole weekend. After classes, Thursday was spent on bus and ferry rides, and with a bit of jetlag, a tired group checked into the hostel La Posada on Thursday evening. The hostel was close to the beach and included breakfast, a pool, billiards, and even a python snake in the wall...
On Friday morning, most of the class went on a surfing course, while others spent the day diving or sunbathing on the beach.
The surfing course was educational and a lot of fun, and with a bit of overexcitement, many of us stayed out in the water for several hours after the course ended. Kristine, who went diving, got to see among other things a devil ray, whitetip reef shark, scalloped hammerhead, and a dolphin!
After spending a few too many hours in the waves with beautiful weather and strong sun, a sunburnt group went to eat pizza buffet at the hostel.
Of course, we admired the sunset on the beach before we later in the evening went to a bar that offered free salsa lessons, and we danced and enjoyed ourselves for the rest of the night. There are also salsa lessons in Manuel Antonio, so it's highly recommended if you have the chance!
We woke up Saturday morning and unfortunately realized that we should stay out of the sun for a couple of days... (remember sunscreen!).
So even though we really wanted to, there wasn't much more surfing this weekend, which is actually fine considering we usually live just 5 minutes from the beach in Manuel Antonio.
After a pancake breakfast on Saturday, some of us decided to rent ATVs to explore the rest of Santa Teresa, while others checked out nice cafes and shops in the nearby area.
We started the ATV tour on forest roads through the jungle, went to beautiful white beaches and on to Montezuma Waterfalls, large waterfalls that are located a 10-minute walk from the road.
We stayed there for a while to swim, climb and jump into the waterfall, before we drove on. A bit away from the tourist area, we stumbled upon a festival where there was to be a rodeo in the evening.
We didn't get to experience the rodeo, but we enjoyed some great food and checked out the various stalls they had there. All in all, very pleased that we took the opportunity to explore so much more of Santa Teresa.
On the last evening, we had dinner together at a restaurant, where some of us finally got to try ceviche. It's a dish that's sold everywhere here, and I highly recommend trying it if you like seafood!
The evening ended with a bit of excitement when the cat that lives at the hostel found a large python snake in the wall of the outdoor area, and the fire department had to come to get it out...
We were all very satisfied with the weekend anyway, and Sunday was spent traveling back to Manuel Antonio, with great memories, sunburned skin, and excited for more surfing!
