Pura Vida from Costa Rica- Can We Mentally Stay on Vacation Forever?

Pura vida. Pure life. That’s the saying here in Costa Rica and one which is taken into consideration. Costa Rica is an exodus from reality.. Or should I say, it’s what reality truly is; without the skyscrapers, advertisements, high rises and superficiality that distract us from what is real. 

I write to you admist palm trees and tiki huts, between nustling bushes and mangrove reefs, beneath chirping birds and hanging coconuts, above racing ants and still iguanas. Bienviendo from Nosara Beach, a place you go not to escape from life, but to start living. 

A haven for yogis, Nosara is believed to have strong spiritual potency, which has made it an epicenter for healing, meditation and relaxation. The small beach town is only accessible by a flight to a small airport in Liberia followed by a 2.5 hour drive down dusty dirt roads (not for the faint of heart.) As Robert Frost roads, “I took the road less traveled.” If that line describes your attitude, you belong to Nosara. 

This majestic place is not meant for someone who believes that journey is not worth the destination.
It’s for those who want to escape the harshness of society, the subsoncious air of consumerism, the omnipresent existence of commerciality and at times, Wifi.

Those whom enjoy sweating in a naturally heated yoga studio, where your walls are the trees framing the floor. 

Those who are lullabied by the lizards chirp, the mosquitos buzz and the night frogs creek.

If the former lines address you, Nosara welcomes you.

My home for the week is the Harmony Hotel, whose names describes its atmosphere perfectly. The eco-sustainable hotel boasts its own organic farm, growing the kale you enjoy for lunch. Choose between banana-coconut date smoothies and carrot-papaya-ginger juices after a sweaty yoga session in the outdoor Healing Center, where the humidity nonchallantly warms the air without the yoga teacher’s purposeful adjustment or the heater's dry air.

Cool breezes brush against your skin as you push back into downward dog, rather than your neighbors sweat. You experience limberness in your body that you’ve never felt before, as you surprise yourself with your enhanced agility. Excursions include waterfall hikes, surf lessons, beachside horseback riding, white water rafting, zip-lining and kayaking beneath the mangroves' canopy. 

No televisions or judgement have space in this blissful, remote location that’s far removed from the wired lives we’re accustomed to. Freshies, stay tuned on my experiences conquering my fear of surfing, eating only the food that grows around me, reflecting on my need for material possessions, opening my chakra and widening my third eye.

While it’s easy to feel in total bliss when you’re on vacation, what most of us struggle with is keeping that relaxation and bringing it into our everyday lives. 

I pose the following questions to all of you: 

• Is it possible to feel such detachment from consumerism while living in the midst of it?
• How can we live a “normal” life, connected with our acquaintances, while decreasing our use and dependence on technology? Is Facebook making usinsecure or helping us find others with our interests and keep in touch with those we would have forgotten?
• What can we do to live (more) sustainably in a culture and country where waste is normal and acceptable? For example, I don’t want to finish the enormous portions at a restaurant, but I don’t want to see the perfectly good food be thrown in the trash when there are millions of hungry people (nor do I want to eat it later.) How can we decrease our waste without adding to our waists?
• How can we continue to eat locally when we live in cold climates and no farmers markets are readily available?
• How can we clear our minds in times of stress when our brains are crowded with to-do lists, thoughts and worries?
• Essentially, how can we all mentally remain in warm Nosara, even when we’re physically in (insert your city here). My flight next week will be heading back to Boston but I don’t want my mind to. (And staying forever is unfortunately not an option.)

Namaste y adios!