During summer, after completing my freshman year in 2010, my mother’s boss invited her and me to enjoy a week off in Costa Rica. My mother is from El Salvador, which we noticed that the climate and appearance was very similar to Costa Rica’s. We took two planes to get to Costa Rica. One plane from Los Angeles to Dallas, Texas took about 3 hours or so. We stayed in the night in a hotel and went from Dallas to Liberia, Costa Rica, which took 2 to 3 hours more. From Liberia we drove to San Jose; Costa Rica’s capital. We stayed in the famous and fancy hotel of San Jose, Costa Rica called Four Seasons. Four Seasons is known as an expensive hotel that receives more than half their costumers being white. This was a lifetime experience because my mother and I weren’t going to pay it and we thought it’d be fun to spend some time together by learning and visited other places. This really meant a lot because I come from a family that can’t afford a vacation like that, so we don’t really travel the world or go around places. Both of my parents didn’t complete high school and they don’t want me to make the same mistake, so my father told me that I should go on this trip. I didn’t want to but my father convinced me. He told me how they didn’t get this kind of chance and so I took it and I don’t ever regret taking it.
What I was really comfortable with was the temperature inside the hotels. I’m a huge fan of the cold, so the room was always nice and cold. I was more than satisfied with the breakfast buffet. Every morning we would eat eggs, beans, cream, bagels, waffles, pancakes, etc. I really enjoyed the beaches and pool. There were 2 beaches in the hotel and 1 pool. The hotel wasn’t just any inside hotel. The hotel was outdoors, which appeared very jungle and forest like. Rooms were built next to trees. Monkey’s climbed and roamed around the area. The views in the rooms were amazing and incredible.
What I wasn’t really pleased with was the weather. It would start raining, but the land would be hot and humid. I’m not the biggest fan of hot weather. I hate it and it just frustrates me and grosses me out. The other thing I didn’t like was that you had to take a shuttle or walk it to the lobby. The rooms were so far away from the lobby that it took about 10 to 15 minutes walking. Sometimes the room serves wasn’t the greatest but I can say I was okay with it. One last thing is that it was only my mother and I, so I missed all my friends.
What I learned about this trip is to take opportunities when they are there. If it wasn’t for this trip, I wouldn’t have had such a great experience. I wouldn’t have stories to tell. During this trip, I learned how to zip line and socialize with other people.
This trip got me to realize that I should appreciate more often. At first, I didn’t want to go on this trip, but I realized how much I would have missed out on. I had such a great time and for me not appreciating of this. My views on opportunities have changed. Whenever an opportunity is put out there, I take advantage of it and take it. For example, even with school work, whenever I’m given a chance to retake, I take that chance and retake.
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