As I sit here at Gate 9 of Orlando International Airport, after a two hour drive from my home town of Sarasota, and an hour and fifteen minute wait in the airport security line (which was more like a giant herd of human cattle), I can finally relax and breathe. I made it to the starting point of my journey. Nerves, excitement, butterflies, fear, happiness, anxiety, and a million other emotions are rushing through me at once. The song “leaving on a jet plane” is humming in my head, because I truly don’t know when I’ll be back again. With a one way ticket to Costa Rica, and a one way ticket to Panama 90 days later, the end of my journey is no where in sight.
After visiting Costa Rica for 9 days in June of 2015, and staying in an unbelievable hostel (I use the term “hostel” loosely, as this is more of a mini resort for a hostel budget), I realized that there is nowhere I would rather be than back in Costa Rica. The second I got home, I emailed the owner of the hostel and applied for a work-to-stay volunteer position there. By pure coincidence, she emailed me back on my 25th birthday while I was on vacation with my family in the Cayman Islands, and said she had a position for me. The overwhelming feeling of excitement that rushed through me was something I had never felt until then. I knew I was doing something that would make me happy and terrified all at once, and I absolutely could not wait.
So here I sit, waiting to board the plane to my future. I have no idea where I will end up, who I will meet, the places I will see, the foods I will eat, the music I will hear, the waves I will (attempt to) ride, the languages I will learn (I guess I should have payed more attention in high school Spanish) – all I know is for the next three months, it’s all Pura Vida.