Costa Rica

Costa Rica is one of the most beautiful countries that I’ve ever been to. The combo of the almost year round weather perfection, combined with more activities that you can fit in to a 2 week long vacation, make it possible the perfect honeymoon destination. @Mollstar and I literally had the time of our lives with plenty of relaxation but enough adventure to never get bored.

We stuck pretty strictly to a one day in and one day out schedule. As fun as it may sound, we both knew that too many days just lounging around the resort drinking Pina Colada’s would get old for both of us pretty quick. Here are some of the highlights…

Crazy Ass Pizote Families

Horseback Riding/Rafting/Zip Line/ Volcanic Mud Bath

No horse back or rafting pics. Sorry.

An Awesome Trip to Volcano Arenal and The Springs Resort

A Day trip on Thanksgiving to Nicaragua

And Some Amazing Animals!

I came upon this video from @reecepacheco, a fellow surfer stuck with no waves (he’s in NYC). I grew up watching Rob Machado surf and even saw him in a contest once at Oceanside Pier. He’s amazing and his career has really been an interesting one. He was once very close to top being the top surfer in the world, then stopped competing and did a lot of videos and travel. I don’t know Rob at all, but it seems that this video is a very personal one, showing off the “struggles” of being a professional surfer. Obviously it’s got to be the best lives ever but coming from someone who get’s sick when I don’t feel like I’m accomplishing something, I can sympathize with how just surfing everyday would be a struggle sometimes.

This trailer also got me very excited because next month I’m getting married, and Moll and I are going on a long honeymoon down to Costa Rica. It might be the best vacation ever… I’ll have the 3 of the most important things in the world with me; my new wife, great weather, and the ocean. I’m so pumped.

As Reece points out in his post of this video, surfing movies don’t necessarily do very well in the box office but I’ll definitely be checking this one out.

Photo was taken flying over Alaska on the way back from China.

Use Dopplr to Document Travel

I’ve been using Dopplr for a couple of years to document and share my travel itineraries. It’s nice to be able to see who will be where and when, and how our trips align. You can see my travel schedule in the widget on this blog and I do my best to keep that up to date.

Another feature of Dopplr that I love is the 6 month and year end reports of my travel. I got this chart (above) in my email last week showing me what I’ve done and where I’ve gone this year. Not a bad start to 2009, and it’s not done yet!

My Travel in 2009

In February this year I had the opportunity to travel for work to China and stay there for a month. I spent the first 5 days in Hong Kong which I found to be amazing. Hong Kong was a perfect mix of western and eastern culture, and the city is young enough that I would probably live there for a while if the opportunity presented itself.

The second half of my Asia trip was spend in downtown Shanghai. Here are some of my reactions to weird China stuff.

Posts from China:

• In Route to China
• Crazy China Stuff
• Tongli, Suzhou
• More Crazy China Stuff
• Shanhai World Financial Center
• My last day in China
• China pics on Flickr

Then, more recently, again for work, I had the opportunity to go to Sweden for a week. I was based in Uppsala during the week (about an hour outside of Stockholm) but stayed in the city during the weekend to take advantage of the perfect weather and epic nightlife.

Sweden blew me away due to the beauty of the cities layout with so many rivers & islands, and the people. A walk through certain areas of Stockholm is honestly like walking through a catalog (people are so preppy!), not to mention the fact that it was light for 20 hrs per day in the summer. I was out until 2am and it felt like happy hour the entire time because the lighting was like dusk all night.

Posts from Sweden:

• My First Day In Sweden
• How To Take A Vacation: A Lesson (Learned) From Europeans
• Investing Yourself and The Value of Strong Relationships
• Sweden pics on Flickr (update coming)

As most of you know I’m getting married in November (wedding site: RyanGotMolly.com) and I’m headed to Costa Rica for my honeymoon. I posted pictures of the hotel on my personal blog.

• Honeymoon hotel in Costa Rica

One thing I’d really like to start doing more often is exploring the ol’ US of A. So much travel is focused on getting outside of the US, but there are some phenomenal sites right in our own backyard. For my birthday I started getting camping gear. I’m preparing for trips (with my wife-to-be) to go around the US to check out National Parks, monuments, and other natural treasures.

I’ve been reading Backpacker magazine and there is an overwhelming amount of amazing hikes and camp sites to check out. Probably not far from you! In September, for my bachelor party, I’m headed to Boulder, CO to camp, white water raft, hike, and yes, probably drink a bit as we’re headed to the brewery tours in Ft. Collins. I’m excited to start checking out some great travel/get away opportunities right here in the US.

Blog posts to come!

Finding Opportunities to Travel Outside of Vacation

Not every job is going to provide opportunities to travel, I understand that. But, many do, and I highly advise you never miss the opportunity to travel for work. Not only is there huge value to getting out of the office to meet people face to face, there is no cheaper way to travel on your personal pocket book. If you’re traveling with work, bust your ass Monday to Friday and use the weekend to explore. Maximize your personal time so it feels like a mini vacation! You may be tired when you get back home but it’s absolutely worth it. Believe it or not, red-eyes are your friend.

Another way to get away is to volunteer. Last year a good friend of mine headed to Tanzania, Africa for 2 weeks on a solo trip with plans to volunteer. He ended up meeting people that that will be friends of his for years to come. You don’t always have to do the “it’s all about me” trek through Europe. Select a random destination and find a way to help people and I guarantee you’ll have a blast and make some lasting memories.

Learning About Yourself During Travel

Through my travels this year I’ve found that one of the best ways to learn about yourself is to travel solo. I’ll be the first to admit that I really don’t love being alone for a long time. I enjoy having someone there to share sights and experiences with. This has been one of the greatest things about getting engaged. My fiance and I love to travel together and it makes trips so much more fun! However, when you set out solo, you are in complete control of your itinerary and you learn what’s important to you. When I’m solo, I never go to museums or sight seeing, I find spots where locals hang and try my damnedest to get into conversations with them. It’s only through the people that you can truly learn about a city. Get out and go solo.

The other strategy I’ve employed to learn more about myself during travel is to go with the flow. I rarely have a plan and I’ve really never regretted it. I sort out my day about 2-3 hours in advance. If I miss an opportunity (which I have) then I guess it wasn’t meant to be. This way if I meet people I can turn on a dime and jump in another direction if needed. This no plan strategy can really piss some people off but I’ve found it’s the best way to relieve stress of commitment and enjoy my travels most.

Summary

The gist is that I feel incredibly lucky to have had as much opportunity to travel as I have. Travel is one of my favorite things in the world and this year, my job has allowed me to see quite a lot. As I write this blog post I’m sitting overlooking the ocean at home in San Diego. I realize that as much as I absolutely love travel, what’s really important is who you are with. So, take sometime to get away from work and see the world but keep the right priorities and focus on the people who you love.

I’m not a fan at all of this “staycation” trend. There are plenty of options for cheap travel out there, you just have to seek them out. Find a trip, even if it’s close to home where you’ll see something brand new. Look for experiences that will challenge you and do them. The money spent will be worth it! Best of luck in the second half of 2009 to find great places to travel.