Santa Teresa, Costa Rica : What To Do

good morning sunshine

Santa Teresa, one of my favorite places on planet Earth. Last September, after a long trip in Mamma India, I decided to move to Santa Teresa, I came back to Israel, changed my backpack to a suitcase full of swimsuits and took a flight alone to Costa Rica. The last time Iv been to Costa was 10 years ago, I traveled for one year around South America and Center America, last place (and where I decided to buy the flight ticket for return) was Santa Teresa.

So here I am, after 10 years of a lot of amazing experiences and living in Italy, study how to be an architect. I am coming back to this special place. Why it is special, cause it is remote, there are no cars or a road, people from all over the world (especially Israelians, but you can find people from the US, Canada, Holland, Italy) decided to change their life and move there. The waves are perfect everyday almost all day, the sunsets are spectaculars and there is something there that makes you feel alive and connect to the beauty of nature.

In the end, I didn't move to live there and I am still looking for my Home, but I stayed there for 3 months, taught yoga classes on the beach, drank Coco (which they call there Pipa) all day, ate a lot of Papaya and fresh Mahi Mahi fish and met a lot of great people. So here some tips for your stay:

Favorite breakfast: definitely Horizon (I don't understand the craziness about the Bakery, expansive so loudly and mm ok I don't like sweets so much..)

Israel breakfast in The Bakery

Horizon cafe

Coffe: Earth Cafe was the best one.. and I really like the vibe in Zwart Art Cafe (the owner painting is so beautiful).

Sunset watching every day at Zeneidas surf garden (they do many times bonfires).

Habenero for Sunday sunset party

Yoga practice at Pranamar, Horizon, and Florblanca.

Pranamar villas- happy after yoga class 

my class in the beach

Horizon Hotel , the yoga shala 

Gym in front of Zwart Cafe. say hello to Matias from me... you gonna sweat so much (but it is good for you ;)), he can also train you for free.

travel day to Montezuma for a hike to the waterfalls it is a great option if you do not want to spend another day of an amazing surf.

montezuma waterfalls

Local food: ceviche and Casados in La Lora!!

The best way to move around is with an ATV and put a bandana on your face (so much dust) add your surfboard and feel the PURA VIDA vibes.

picture took during my mornig run

PURVA VIDA

Bocas Del Toro

playa estrella

Bocas del Toro archipelago dots the beautiful turquoise waters off the Caribbean coast of Panama. These waters and the coral reef surrounding it with an amazing array of sea life make the islands and its main hub of activity, Bocas Town, a favorite destination for scuba diving and snorkeling.

Currency: The American dollar (USD) is used as currency.

Credit Cards and Banks: Bring as much cash as you can and don’t forget your debit card. Don’t expect to use a credit card for everyday purchases. It’s a small, simple island life here!

There is only one bank/ATM located on Isla Colón.

Climate: Bocas del Toro features a tropical rainforest climate with consistently warm temperatures and rain all year long.

Rainy season: Bocas receives large amounts of rain all year long. Pack an Umbrella!!

Dry season: There is no predictable dry season, but the driest months are October, January and March. 

?how to get to Bocas

U can have a flight from Panama city or a bus (10 hours drive).

Then you can come also from San Jose, Costa Rica with a shuttle or different buses. I took the caribe shuttle and it was really comfortable and easy, they come to pick me from my hotel and they have wifi. The brought me directly to Colon, the main Island where I stayed for the last 2 months. If you want to stay in one of the other islands like Isla Bastimentos, Isla Carneros, or Isla Solarte,

?What to do in Bocas

Scuba diving and Snorkeling

visit Starfish beach- it is a nice beach where you can swim and maybe watch some sweet starfish when all the people and music will go :) clean water.. something it is really hard to find around the main area of the island. some local restaurant with fish and lobster.

bicycle drive forms the main city of Colon to Bluff Beach. you can rent a bicycle anywhere.

A morning or sunset run with the sunrise from Colon to paki point

surf- the best spots are in Carenero, you can reach the waves with a boat wherever you are. a lot of people like to surf in Bluff but I think it is quite dangerous. check it anyway. from December to march there r the best waves in the area here.

sailing and fishing or just eat dinner on a sailing boat watching the stars. my favorite.

dancing with the locals in the street or their pubs. The people here are so nice and happy, They all say hello all the time, I miss it so much in other parts of the world. And they love to dance and usually just putting music very loud in there house and dancing and you can join them. Over Christmas, it is a huge party and you can pass through the houses and they invite you to dance Salsa.

?Where to stay in Bocas Town

difficult question. it really depends what you are looking for. but most of the people doing the same mistake and going to sleep in Selina. and I think it is a terrible place. too noisy too many kids that party and getting drunk. there are so many cute places. I am renting a house and I am really happy to give me money to the real locals of the .town

.

Diver Paradise Boutique Hotel seems a nice place to stay in or in Mamallena for the younger people. Thet both in a really good location where you can sleep cause the

.music will not be so loud but still, you will be a walk distance from the center

?Where to eat

Forget about fresh fish, It is really hard to get here. I still try to figure out the real reason I can't believe it is because the locals are too lazy to go fishing.

Italian food, wine, and coffee.. as someone that considers herself kind of Italian and usually I can eat Italian food outside of Italy cause it will not be good enough. Chez Ugo, you can find good Italian wine and really good coffee (Kimbo!!!

You can have here also amazing breakfast and tell Ugo I sent you and you are not .going to be disappointed

BocasART another good option in Isla Colon. The chef is a Spanish guy the food is interesting and so good. He has a mix between sushi and Spanish menu. I loved it.

Leaf Eaters Cafe in Carenero (take a boat from Colon and tell him to take you there) .nice place with nice music and a lot of things to buy :) but also good food and healthy with a lot of options for vegetarians

. I love their Hummus too.

Paki Point (close to Bluff Beach) the place is really nice and fun to hang out. amazing food and you can pick some coconut from the tree. Sometimes there are good waves in front of the place. Try the ceviche.

Beside Chez Ugo, there is a healthy supermarket where you can find healthy things which the supermarkets (they all own by Chinese and u have it every corner with the same things). for fruits and vegetables, you can buy in the local places, Banana, Papaya, Pineapple, Mango and all the rest. For my Basic Coconut water. I am picking from the tree or buying if someone sell in the street (sometimes you can coconut also in the supermarket). It is full with coconut tree all over here and it is so healthy full of magnesium and potassium which you need cause it is hot and humid over here.

Yoga

I am doing private classes of Vinyasa and Ashtanga for now.
There are really not good options on the island. One of the places I tried is the purple house, call YOGA BOCAS but I didn't like the vibe, she talking a lot about herself and it is not my kind of yoga, skip it. If you are not in one of the yoga retreats you should ask for a private class or you can ask in Genesis (space who have the Shala in the picture below) if they have classes at the moment.

I found Bocas a special place, that's why I am still here more than a month. A lot of people find themselves getting stuck or coming back a lot. Some really like the nightlife, I am not one of them. I am not going out. But there is clean air, good atmosphere, the locals are happy and smiley, all the time reggeaton music around you and salsa and not too many people even in the hight season. I am happy that something brought me here and got me to know a new country. Still, I have a lot to
.see in Panama, but it is a good start

, Hasta Luego

Primavera

Are you looking for a yoga class in Lanzarote? and if you never been there, you should

Lanzarote

If you are in Lanzarote, close to Famara beach and look for a yoga class after your surf session. I really recommended this class. It is not difficult one, quite long but relaxing. and in the end, the teacher usually plays the piano!!! amazing experience and a beautiful view of the ocean. cost 10 euro.

the class is in English.

Studio +++++

Teacher +++++

View +++++

http://famarayoga.com/