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Costa Rica – Hippie and Laid-Back Sámara

Sámara is a small town with a main street and a couple of somewhat busy side streets. This is not the Caribbean coast with clear calm water and white sand but the crescent-shaped strip of pale-gray sand is lovely.

This is the kind of place where backpackers gather to celebrate the anniversary of Bob Marley’s birth—no, really, it was apparently yesterday’s excuse to have a reggae night on the beach—, where hostels are long-term accommodation choices, where sleeping in a hammock is an alternative to paying for a dorm bed, where dreadlocks are the preferred hairstyle, where no one really has money, a job or a plan for the following day.

In Sámara, you can take surf lessons, enjoy a Thai massage, buy handmade jewellery and save baby turtles or whatever volunteer project you chose to participate in.

In a way, the vibe in Sámara reminds me of Panajachel in Guatemala, Surfers Paradise in Australia, Tulum in Mexico or Ko Phi Phi in Thailand.

It can get on your nerves after a while. I mean, it’s laid-back and relaxed but it’s a bit… well, gringo-ish. And frankly, I feel too old to claim I want to quit my job to start dealing marijuana on the beach because you know, fuck the system.

The beach was nice though.

I woke up very early (sleeping in a dorm isn’t great for… well, sleeping) and headed to the beach before 8 a.m. I walked from one end to another, collected seashells and read an entire book. I swam, walked some more and just relaxed. I can’t even remember the last time I got absorbed in such pointless activities.

Sámara was a great place to stop. Time to move on…

Sámara
Sámara
Church in Sámara
Church in Sámara
Costa Rica Flag
Costa Rica Flag
Local "Pet"
Local “Pet”
Just a Horse on the Road...
Just a Horse on the Road…
Graffiti by the Beach
Graffiti by the Beach
Paid Toilets
Paid Toilets
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sámara Beach
Sunset
Sunset
Sunset
Sunset
Sunset
Sunset
Sunset
Sunset
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Zhu

French woman in English Canada.

Exploring the world with my camera since 1999, translating sentences for a living, writing stories that may or may not get attention.

Firm believer that nobody is normal... and it’s better this way.

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