Our Costa Rican Christmas (photo album)

Posted on December 26, 2013 by katez

It’s been a whirlwind few days here in Costa Rica! So here is a whole shwack of photo’s for you to enjoy!

Back to our regularly scheduled programs tomorrow!!

learning that “rompope” or costa rican egg nog, comes pre-spiked

Christmas even tuna steaks bought fresh that day.

Christmas even dinner!

Post Christmas morning run dip

Christmas morning massages with a coconut chaser!

Opening Christmas cards on the beach

Carving our little Christmas ham

Christmas Dinner

I hope that everyone had a fabulous holiday!!

much love!

Pura Vida

Kate

Merry Christmas from Hostels and Hot Rollers

Posted on December 25, 2013 by katez

It’s surreal that this day has actually arrived. I can’t wait to give everyone the full run down of what has happened…but until then

Merry Christmas, Pura Vida,

Kate

Christmas is coming to Hostels and Hot Rollers

Posted on December 24, 2013 by katez

Twas the night before the 23rd of December,and both Shaun and Kate

Were so excited that they’d finally arrived at this date.

Their laundry was done, not a stink in the air

In hopes that their friends and family would soon be there

They’d baked many cookies, and eaten some too

okay lets be honest they’d eaten quite a few

They’d cut out their snowflakes, and hung them on thread (or the phone cords they found in a closet)

And then nestled together in their gigantic king sized bed.

They dreamt of their crew, all travelling in time

sleeping in airports should be a crime

They slept barely a wink, as they tossed and they turned

I just hope the planes don’t miss a turn

Kate could be heard mumbling with a yawn

On Smitty, on Cathy, On Natalia, On Sean

On Whitney On Bradley, On Uni, you’ll be here at dawn.

To the airports in Houston, to the final boarding call

Fly in, Fly in , Fly in you all!

Mi Familia has arrived!!!!

Pura Vida!

Kate

Wave Trotter Surf Hostel, Santa Teresa, Costa Rica

Posted on December 22, 2013 by katez

There has been lots of questions about where we’ve been staying here in Santa Teresa, so here we go!

The sign from the road

The apartments in the back..Ours is the bottom on the far right.

For the past 9 days we’ve been staying at the Wave Trotter surf hostel in Santa Teresa. Gone are the cushy days of air conditioning, and pool time. We’re in real hostel country now. That being said, Shaun, and I haven’t gone so far as to get a dorm in any of the places we’ve booked so far. Many hostels offer rooms with a double bed, and an ensuite bathroom for $40-60 dollars a night. This is the set up we have here at Wave Trotter.

Our room is simple, with minimal amenities. We don’t need much, as we tend to spend most of our time in the main house. These private rooms belonged to another property prior to being added to Wave Trotter, so they are older then the dorms in the main house.

Walking up to the main house from our room in the backyard

The reception, kitchen, and dorms are located in the house. An awesome open concept, loft style building about 200m from the main road in Santa Teresa, and very close to the Santa Teresa Surf break. The hostel is owned by an adorable family from Italy. Giovanni, Julietta, and their beautiful baby Cecilia, who is just a little over a year old. They run Wave Trotter in high season, and then shut it down, and head back to Italy for low season. Both the family, and the staff spent so much time and energy making sure the main house and communal areas are clean, and that everyone is taken cared of.

Reception in the main house, and LeeLo the dog with the very tough life.

Wave Trotter has a real family feel to it, and has a tendency to bring people back year over year. Lots of the people we met were repeat visitors which made me feel like we were part of a really neat community. Every day the family can be found puttering around the house cooing to the baby in Italian. It was just such a great atmosphere.

Looking into the house from the backyard…there is Shaun!

Wave Trotter is a really surf centered hostel. They rent boards, do ding repairs, and can arrange for lessons. If you are looking to surf the Santa Teresa break, it is one of the closer hostels to the area. As we walked through the town, and saw all the other hostels we had looked at online, we felt pretty fortunate that we had chosen one that was so close.

The fireman’s pole!

The interior of the main house is really unique, and is truly the selling feature of the entire experience. The interior is loft style, with all the dorms above the communal living space. There is even a fireman’s pole to get down (if you feel so inclined).

The main house at Wave Trotter

The staff, and owners at Wave Trotter really make the experience special. I would highly recommend the dorm set up, as that’s where the action is. The apartments in the back are nice, but fairly rustic, as you are located pretty much in the middle of the jungle. Despite the occasional creepy crawlers, I loved waking up to the sound of howler monkeys in the morning!

Have you ever stayed in a hostel dorm? How was it?

Pura Vida!

Kate

Follow me on Twitter: @caketress

Our Favourite Places in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica

Posted on December 21, 2013 by katez

During our travels here in Santa Teresa, we’ve come across from pretty cool places.

Today’s post is all about some of our favourites!

A Health Food Store! I think I’m in love!

Green World Store: Oh yes my friends, Santa Teresa has a health food store. Although I’m not sure that Shaun every actually went inside, I think I was there about every other day. In Canada I can spend so much time cruising up and down the aisles of health food stores, looking at all the goodies. Turns out, I can spend even more time cruising them when everything is written in Spanish!

Can you see the hidden Mickey’s??

Cafe Zaza: Air conditioning and coffee..What more could a girl ask for??This cute little cafe is closer to Santa Teresa side of the strip, and is in the same complex as a couple little shops. It’s a pretty hostel central area, and while we were there, there was a lot of talk about things being stolen. Just keep you wits about you as you sip your latte!

Check this place out!

Bajo del Mar: We ended up here for dinner on their opening night. We had planned on going somewhere else for dinner, but after a couple glasses of boxed wine in plastic cups, our fellow hostel mates convinced us to join them here. It turned out that the owner used to work at our hostel, so they were all heading there to support him. We were keeping an open mind, as we knew it was their opening night, and we were a pretty big group, but the meal was amazing! We had a Margarita pizza. Shaun, and I order these all the time, so we are pretty critical of them, but I gotta say, this one was amazing! The crust was so crispy, and the ingredients so fresh. A must visit if you’re in the area!

my view on many days here in Santa Teresa

Zwart Art Cafe: So this place wins the prize. I spent soo many afternoons at Zwart, sketching, and drinking coffee. This place is a coffee shop/ bookstore/diner/art studio. A one stop shop! The owner even offered to have me come use her paints (unfortunately, I ran out of time). If you are looking for a place to relax, eat great food, and feel inspired, I would highly recommend Zwart.

Many days were spent like this!

Banana Beach: This is one of few bars that is right on the beach, but let me tell you, it’s a winner. Hammocks, beds, lounge chairs, tables. However you want to relax, they have it. Shaun and I spent many afternoons buying the occasional cervasa and coke light, just so we could use their beach chairs.We spent most of our time here during the day, and at sunset, but they have something different going on every night, plus some great (but pricey) food.

Such a great atmosphere

So those are just a couple of the many great places we’ve encountered while we were here, and most are pretty close to our hostel. Like I mentioned before, the Mal Pais/Santa Teresa road is 10km long, so there are lots of places we didn’t spend much time at. We will be staying in Mal Pais in the new year, so I’m sure we will have all sorts of new places from this area to share!

What has the been the best place local business you’ve every found while travelling?

Pura Vida!

Kate

Follow me on Twitter: @caketress

Cardio Fit at Casa Zen- Workouts Week 3

Posted on December 20, 2013 by katez

Travel Fitness, how I love thee…

This week I was able to track down another awesome group fitness class here in Costa Rica.

After spending the first several days running my little heart out, I was ready for a little bit of a break in my exercise routine. I thought about doing a Yoga class, especially since there is a yoga studio on every corner. I ended up seeking out something that would get my heart rate up. So you can imagine my excitement when I stumbled across a Cardio Fit class at Casa Zen Guesthouse.

This pretty much sums up the mood of Casa Zen

First off, this is a beautiful hostel with, funny enough, a very “zen” like vibe.It’s set back from the street, on a busy beach access road, but it feels private as its nestled in its own little jungle.

There are awesome hand painted signs scattered about their communal living spaces. Sayings like “there is no rush”, and “call your mom”, set the tone of the hostel.

Reception/Kitchen at Casa Zen

I checked in at reception, paid my 5 dollars (score!), and waited patiently for Tico time to roll around. Sure enough, at 8:35 the instructor, and her students all rolled in.

The classroom

We headed upstairs to the classroom. There is one main outdoor classroom used for all the classes offered at Casa Zen. It’s gorgeous. Everything is brightly coloured, and there are stained glass tiles that the sun shines through. It was such a great space.

The class started, and I was instantly caught up in the fabulous energy. The group was all Costa Rican women, who laughed the whole way through. The instructor walked us through several circuits. We did everything from kickboxing, and weights to old school aerobics. It certainly kept me on my toes! I went to two classes in the week and left each one feeling pumped, and full of energy. They were just what I needed to shake up my super chill week of reading, and relaxing.

The instructor only spoke Spanish, but it wasn’t a problem at all. Shaun always watches the sports in Spanish here. He says he can still understand what’s going on because he is so familiar with the content. Well apparently the same goes for me when it comes to group fitness instruction. I learnt so many new words just from listening to the class, but often found myself a beat behind everyone as I worked out the translation in my head.

Have you every tried to watch or listen to something you are really familiar with, but in a different language?

Pura Vida!

Kate

Follow me on Twitter:@caketress

Exploring Santa Teresa, Costa Rica

Posted on December 19, 2013 by katez

We’ve been spent the past 10 days exploring all the Santa Teresa has to offer.

Beautiful sunset, with no one else around.

After coming from Tamarindo, it has been quite the culture shock. No more being bombarded on the beach with people trying to sell you things. Or having to dodge all the Tourista’s taking sunset photos. It is way mellower here.

The layout of Santa Teresa has been challenging for us. The main strip is a road that is about 200m back from the beach, and it is 10km long. This road covers both Santa Teresa, and Mal Pais (where we will be staying in the New Year).

Coming from Tamarindo where everything is easily within walking distance, this has been an adjustment. There are many places you can rent bikes or ATV’s, and if you want to make the most of your time here, I would highly suggest investing in one or the other. Unfortunately for us, it’s 10 dollars a day for a bike and 50 dollars for an ATV. Just a little to far outside our budget. Besides, we are walkers, so we’ve been using our feet to get around.

As a result of this, I’ve been spending a lot time in the hostel, and the few businesses that surround us. Early in the morning, or early in the evening the road and beach are great for running. There are also tons and tons of places to do Yoga. The chill vibe has been been nice. I’ve read some great books, taken some great classes, started drawing again, and met some fabulous people in the hostel.

The main surf break in Santa Teresa is about a 7 min walk from our hostel, which is really lucky for Shaun. He heads out there during the day at some point, but says that it is very crowded. The waves are better then when we were in Tamarindo, so the result is a lot more surfers out at all hours of the day. The result is often a surfer traffic jam.

One of the many tidal pools I’ve explored

The beach is amazing. It’s a combination of sandy beach, and amazing rocky tidal pools. I could, and have, spend hours wandering the rocks, peering into each pool to see what’s inside. It reminds me of Botanical Beach back on Vancouver Island.

Some of the pools are so big and deep, that they become like a hot tub during the day. Lots of people spend their time lounging in them.

Santa Teresa was not what we expected, but it’s been an awesome week of relaxation. Probably for the best, since next week everyone arrives for Christmas. I get this feeling that our days of relaxation and quiet will be replaced with celebration and cervasas!!

Have you ever gone somewhere, and have it be completely different then what you expected?

Pura Vida!

Kate

Follow me on Twitter: @caketress

Christmas in Costa Rica

Posted on December 18, 2013 by katez

Finding ways to feel festive while travelling can be challenging. Especially if you are a Christmas fiend like myself.

Enjoying a Christmas Tree in Tamarindo

I did manage to track down a little string of plastic Christmas balls in Tamarindo, and you better believe I was excited about it. The other ways I’ve been focusing on being festive is taking a moment to stop and appreciate any, and all Christmas decorations that I see throughout our travels.

Our trip to Santa Teresa was especially exciting, as we passed through so many towns, and every single house, no matter how small, had something festive outside. One of the coolest things, is that the majority of the houses display their Christmas trees outside on their porch. It certainly made it easy to be a Christmas Creeper!

I LOVE this crafty pop bottle poinsettia that I found in a little town we stopped in en route to Santa Teresa.

As for actual Christmas, I am fortunate that we have a bunch of family and friends joining us in Tamarindo over the holidays. We are staying in a condo with an OVEN! A rarity here in Costa Rica. I have a huge Western/Costa Rican meal planned. Turkey, Stuffing, Gravy, Plantains, Rice and Beans, Pico de Gallo, and maybe Ceviche if I can get my hands on some delicious fish.

I guess what I’ve learnt is to not only create ways to feel festive, but also open your eyes to appreciate the ways the country around you is celebrating.

Christmas I have found throughout our travels!

How do you stay festive while travelling over the holidays?

Pura Vida!

Kate

Follow me on Twitter: @caketress

Travelling to Santa Teresa, Costa Rica

Posted on December 16, 2013 by katez

Before I start off today, I want to welcome the influx of new followers I’ve had over the past few days! Hi there!! I’m so excited to share my adventures with you all! I also post lots more content on my Facebook page. If you are looking for more Hostels and Hot Rollers excitement, come check it out!

Although our stay at Villas Macondo was lovely, Shaun and I were ready to leave the hustle and bustle of Tamarindo, and head to the more relaxed beach side community of Santa Teresa.

Our bags are packed, and we’re ready to go!

So, we said out goodbyes to Bearly Bear,packed the last of our belonging and headed off to meet our shuttle for the 5 hours trek down the coast.

Now, for those of you who haven’t had the joy of experiencing the roads in Costa Rica, let me try, and paint a picture for you. Have you ever been to Disneyland? Obviously I have a zillion times, and I love it all, everything except the Matterhorn. The Matterhorn is a rickety old roller coaster, disguised as a majestic mountain. As you ride it, your knees bang together, and against the side, you’re violently thrown left, right, up, and down. You never know what’s coming, and so bracing yourself is nearly impossible. Riding in a big van along the coast of Costa Rica, is essentially Disneyland’s Matterhorn.

It was immediately apparent that neither Shaun or I would be enjoying the good ole vehicle power nap we were hoping for.

After making a couple stops along the way (including one to help pull a gigantic semi full of water pipes off the side of a cliff), we made it to Santa Teresa. Battered, Bruised, but in one piece

When it came to unpacking, I had my priorities.

We checked into our hostel, and let me tell you, we’re real “hostellers” now! The days of a/c, and laying poolside with Bearly Bear are over! That being said, we aren’t in the traditional dorm set up We are in a one room cabina in the middle of the jungle. As we swung the huge iron barred door shut the first night, and looked out the bars on our window Shaun said “this must be what prison feels like”. I tended to agree.

Down the path to the beach

After throwing our stuff into our room, we went off to explore the area. First things first, the beach!

It of course, did not disappoint. I cruised around while Shaun checked out the surf. It was just gorgeous! After lounging beach side for a while we decided it was time for a happy hour. Unlike Tamarindo, most businesses in Santa Teresa are not beach front. We did manage to stumble across one of the few little beach front bars and enjoyed a cervasa while waiting for the sunset.

Our first sunset in Santa Teresa

If there is one thing that Costa Rica knows how to do, it’s make a gorgeous sunset!

We could have stayed there all night but ultimately decided it was best to head back. Limited beach front views mean big beach front prices in those establishments lucky enough to have them

We continued to learn this lesson later in the evening when we popped into the other prominent beach front restaurant near our hostel for dinner. We ended up sharing a main because the prices were to rich for our blood! It was well worth it though. Nothing beats being able to watch the waves and have the hermit crabs tickle your toes as you eat. Plus the food was delish! A quick stop at another little bar down the road, and we were back to the “prison” for the night.

Despite our new found lack of a/c, we both slept very soundly. A long day of travel and a couple cervasas will do that to ya!

That’s it for now, but I have lots more to write about this new phase of our adventure!

What is your best “roughing” it experience?

Pura Vida!

Kate

Follow me on Twitter: @caketress

Healthy Hostel Meals Part 3

Posted on December 15, 2013 by katez

Food photo round up time!

Two and a half weeks in, and we are rocking the hostel meals.

I thought I would take you on a photo tour of some of our recent meals. We are working on getting some variety…if you have any suggestions, leave a comment below!