JILL'S COSTA RICA ADVENTURE: SAN JOSÉ VIA IPHONE

As I shared before, earlier this year I took the trip of a lifetime to Costa Rica (you can read about the beginning of my trip, Manuel Antonio, and La Fortuna). I've been trying to hold on to my trip down memory lane, and am finally sharing the last part of my trip - my time in San José. I love exploring big cities I've never been to, and being able to sit back and watch how every day life takes place. We got to stay almost two days in San José, where we did some shopping, sightseeing, and mostly eating.

I wanted to savor every last moment of my time in this beautiful country, so I ditched my big camera  and explored the city not through a lense. One of the best things about traveling internationally is being able to unplug, and I surprisingly didn't miss 24/7 internet access.

But of course, I had to take a few snaps with my phone...

Beautiful Costa Rica.

Shopping.

City streets.

City Streets.

Love the artwork on the buildings.

We HAD to take this photo for our dog!

City streets.

On the bus.

Love the architecture.

Waiting for the bus.

Costa Rica #ootd.

My favorite building.

Sunny day.

A little piece of Barbie heaven.

The best food I've ever had!

My last shot in Costa Rica.

Words can't describe how much amazing my trip was, and being able to share parts of the trip with my family, best friends, and fiancé made it that much better. I can't wait to go back!

x Jill

JILL'S COSTA RICA ADVENTURE: LA FORTUNA

If you haven't been on your Jess & Jill game (what ARE you doing?!) you can check out the first part and second part of my Costa Rica trip!

After our amazing time in Manuel Antonio, my family, fiancé, and I took a road trip to La Fortuna, where we stayed for two days. We arrived at our hotel, the Montana de Fuego resort, and we were in awe of the volcano. It lit-er-al-ly took my breathe away!

View from our balcony.

Gorgeous view.

After settling in, we headed for a night swim at the Baldi Hot Springs. The place is like a theme park heated by a volcano - it's amazing! There are 30 pools complete with bars, waterfalls, and the most insane slides I've ever seen. We felt like kids going down them (they were a little dangerous, especially after drinks.) 

One of the many waterfalls.

You could easily get lost there.

The end of the slides.

Yes, that's my fiancé.

After the hot springs we went back to the hotel to prepare ourselves for the following morning, where we did one of the funnest things we've ever done - white water rafting. When my brother made the plans, they had asked if we wanted the easy or harder course, in which he chose the harder one. Of course, he told us that after.

We made our plans through Wave Expeditions, and that morning they sent a bus to pick us up. After we got into our rafts and received our "safety talk", we practiced with our guide for about 10 minutes. He taught us his commands for peddling forward, backward, ducking when things got crazy, taking shelter when things got really crazy, what to do if the raft flipped (what, that happens?), and what to do if you fall out (my worst nightmare!). Luckily the only "floater" was my fiancé, who quickly got back on.

Just getting started.

Definitely an "oh, s!*+" moment!

How scary big are those rocks?

Finally, a calmer moment.

But not for long.

Best experience ever!

It was intense and scary at times, but SO. MUCH. FUN. I was so happy they had a photographer, who sent us about 50 pictures from the few hours we rafted. About halfway through we stopped for some fruit and to relax while taking in the scenery. As if we didn't have enough excitement for the day, we also jumped off a huge cliff into the river, which gives me butterflies just thinking about it. When in Costa Rica, right?

After our river adventure, we were taken to lunch where we enjoyed a beer and delicious food. I can't even begin to describe how good all of the food in Costa Rica was!

View from lunch. Via iPhone.

Our setup. Via iPhone.

Lunch. Via iPhone.

My new friend! Via iPhone.

We headed back to our resort, had a very quick meal, and then were back on road to the last part of our trip, San Jose, which I'll be sharing soon!

Saying goodbye to this view.

That jump off the cliff totally ruined my sunblock!

x Jill

JILL'S COSTA RICA ADVENTURE: MANUEL ANTONIO

Writing about the second part of my Costa Rica trip is definitely less painful than writing about the first part, now that's it's feeling more like summer in Chicago. Still, if I could click my heels twice to be back there, I'd start clicking in a heartbeat (I also may have already tried this). 

After staying at the Tulemar Resort, the wedding party and immediate family headed over to stay at Punto de Vista. Punto de Vista is a 5-floor, 10-bedroom villa that sits on 2 1/2 acres with a 24 hour concierge, infinity pool, rooftop jacuzzi, chef, views to die for, and gorgeous decor. This was also where the wedding took place.

My favorite part of the house was monkey highway, a line that went around the house for the monkeys to walk on. Every morning we would hear the howler monkeys howling, which totally freaked us out the first night. Not used to those kind of sounds in Chicago!

Top of the house.

The living room leading to the pool.

It's all in the details... like how they differentiate between the men and women downstairs bathroom!

Loved eating our meals in the dining room!

View from our room.

Bridal suite view.

Loving life.

The only way to start the day, right?

Photos via Punto de Vista.

While in Manuel Antonio, we went on a hiking tour of the national park with a tour guide. We learned so much about Manuel Antonio and saw some pretty crazy creatures. The best part? THE SLOTHS.

Gorgeous.

Sloths sleeping!

Monkey.

Looking to steal tourist's food.

One of those weird creatures I was talking about.

Fiancé and I.

Stopping for a quick photo.

The perfect day for a hike.

I loved all of Costa Rica, but I have to say that Manuel Antonio was my favorite area. Still, I loved the other parts that I got to visit, which I'll be sharing soon.

*begins clicking heels again*

x Jill