I'm moving back to St. Maarten!

So, all this talk about the Caribbean on my blog has made me miss the Caribbean. In light of that fact, I have decided to move back to the Caribbean. The Caribbean is home to me, like Texas, and I miss it so much. So starting December 1, this blog, my podcast, One Girl, Her Backpack and a Passion for Travel, and my Travel Consultant business, Via Via Travel, are all moving back to St. Martin. Yay! I'm looking forward to having a tan again!

One Girl in Costa Rica

Finally, I'm going to Costa Rica! I'm leaving on Oct 30 and coming back November 11. Well, I've had these frequent flyer miles that I need to use forever before they expire and I have decided to redeem them for a flight to Costa Rica on American Airlines. My flight in total is going to be $30! Then I'm taking the bus from San Jose to the Nicoya Penisula where I'll be staying at Casa Zen. The goals for this trip are: getting better at my surfing, yoga, and travel research! How exciting!

I found Casa Zen after reading aBudget Travel Magazine article about secret hotels in Costa Rica and thought that this place sounds just like me!

My criteria for finding a place to stay in Costa Rica were:

• Surfing is a priority
• Yoga is a priority
• Casual, fun atmosphere important; party scene OK, but not like Ft. Lauderdale Spring Break
• Hammocks are preferred
• Safety is the utmost importance
• The hotel doesn’t have to be on the beach but I must be able to walk there in about 2 minutes!
• Cheap! (and here’s where I ran into my problem-it’s hard to find a place with all the above requirements that is affordable. When I say affordable I mean hostel prices!)

I'll be covering my pre-departure in my podcast and then when I get back look forward to more information about Costa Rica and the backpacking scene!