It took about 8 hours to drive from Puerto Jimenez to Norsa, Costa Rica. As we arrived, the town of Nosara was everything I expected it to be, though a little more booshie than I had in mind. It was definitely another tourist destination with many expats, nomads or retirees who purchase property and come and go as they please. A lot of surfing, yoga, and health/wellness vibes. Definitely more posh with the types of hotels and houses around there than anywhere else I’ve seen in Costa Rica. I found a random trail near the hostel/beach with many trees and a creek so I took the trail and ran into these beautiful well-kept villas, and it took me all the way up to this cliff with a view of the other side of the mountain outlooking the other beach. The perfect running trail always includes a bit of hiking :). I was also still recovering from my second degree burn on my calve (happened a couple days before leaving the Osa Peninsula and arriving in Nosara) so unfortunately I couldn't surf for about a month (was really bummed about that so just took a picture with a surf board because it was International Surf Day and I had just learned how to surf for 3 months).
I also wanted to check out this yoga resort I had been hearing about and that my hometown yoga studio would go to once a year called Bodhi Tree Resort. It was exactly what I was expecting and very pricey but glad I was able to check it out as a newly certified yoga teacher. Definitely a resort I can now recommend that I've visited in person.
The town had many different types of local nature-based restaurants and shops - the whole area seemed to be growing with more expensive prices than it might have been 5-10 years ago. Well, that's what I've been told from many older people I've met along the way - that the prices have drastically increased over the past 5 years in Costa Rica in general. Mostly due to the "Pura Vida" lifestyle, but also probably the global environment awareness via social media, word-of-mouth and just the biodiversity of the entire country, which aims to be the first plastic/carbon free country by 2021. This I admire more than anything! The sunsets were magical as seen on the northern Pacific coast of Costa Rica (you can't see the sunset on the southern coast, Osa Peninsula) where I had been for 3 months, so it was nice to finally get a glimpse of the sun setting again.
