Posted by Rick Civelli | 01.28.2009 | Adult Surf Camps

Costa Rica Day 1 – Travel Day

After a crazy busy day at work I was finally all packed up by 10:30 pm. This is good for me because usually I am not done packing for a trip until midnight. My first flight from Wilmington was on time and I slept. From Atlanta I jumped onto a flight straight to Liberia, Costa Rica. Luckily, everything was smooth and on time. I landed, got my luggage, and as I walked out of the airport I saw my name on a sign and my driver took me straight to my accommodations. For my “pre trip days” I was staying in Playa Grande.

As soon as I checked into my room I put on my trunks, waxed my board, and walked to the ocean. Wow…80 degree water felt really amazing! The surf was super fun and I stayed in the water until the sun set. Part of the magic of surf travel is meeting new people and realizing how small the world is. On my last trip to Costa Rica I met a really cool videographer named Jonathan and saw him in the water when I paddled out. We caught up on the past year and just traded waves. So cool and it makes you understand how small a world it really is.  I surfed untill it was dark, I could not get out of the water.  After surfing, I walked back to the hotel, put down my board, and cracked an icy cold Imperial and sat in the pool. My skin was so shriveled from being wet for so long my fingers looked like they were 90 years old

My friend, who now runs the hotel I was staying at, gave me the grand tour and we sat down and got caught up on the past year. He hired a chef who prepared an AMAZING 6 course dinner that was off the hook! We had a table of 10 and sat there for hours as the wine flowed and stories were told. I met two great couples from Holland. One was a Marine Biologist and the other a Coastal Ecologist, so it was really cool to talk shop. 10:00 pm came and I was shot from the day and had plans to wake up at 5:00 am and get in the surf. Goodnight 

– Rick