Pura vida means forgetting your time clock and surrendering to the pace of nature. Pura vida means letting go of an expectation to always have what you want, when you want it. Pura vida means choosing the path of happiness, regardless of your circumstances.

You can say pura vida on a sunny day as appropriately as you can in a storm. You can say pura vida when you’re falling in love and when you’re heartbroken. You can say pura vida in every single situation that life delivers you.

Few experiences teach you the meaning of Costa Rica’s national motto, “pura vida,” like traveling to one of its more remote destinations.

Sure enough, that’s precisely how my time in the small surf town of Pavones began. Covered in sweat, eating papaya with my bare hands, sitting on a dusty tire in the back of a bus.

Pura vida.

My best friend Marissa and I heard rumors of the epic surf, world class yoga, and sleepy vibe in Pavones from other travelers on the Central America backpacking trail. We also heard it’s one of the most difficult places to access by public transport. That didn’t faze us. 

Our journey began in Panama’s popular Caribbean archipelago Bocas del Toro early that morning. We threw our packs into the back of the small, open motorboat, strapped on our life vests, and snuggled up to the other patrons on the wooden benches.

A bumpy boat ride and two buses later, and we arrived at the border around noon. We received our exit stamps from Panama and walked with our backpacks along the road to the Costa Rican border patrol. When I reached the front of the line, I handed the officer my passport and my proof of onward travel, required to enter the country. 

Every other time I’d entered Costa Rica I automatically received a 90-day visa upon entry. This time I was given just 5 days. I looked at my flight itinerary and realized it had me leaving in 5 days, even though my trip was open ended. I explained to the officer that I had changed my plans, but he explained that he couldn’t change my visa. I guess I only had five more days in the country.

Pura vida.

We waited for the bus at a nearby restaurant and ate Costa Rican rice and beans, called gallo pinto, for lunch. What looked like an old, dusty school bus picked us up, and we took the rough dirt road until it dropped us off in front of a convenience store. We sat on the side of the road and chatted with a group of Costa Rican children until our next bus came. When it did, all of the seats were full, so Marissa and I went to stand in the back. A couple of dirty spare tires were stacked beside a pile of backpacks and a cooler full of freshly caught fish. I threw down my bag and took a seat.

It was late afternoon when we arrived to the sleepy town of Pavones. From the bus stop we walked down the gravel road lined with local restaurants and boho surf hostels. We didn’t have a reservation, but managed to get a room for just $10 each. The sun began to set and we walked across the road from our hostel to the beach.

Waves crashed dramatically against massive rock formations and spread white foam across the black sand shore. Light reflected in coral pools and hot pink spread across the horizon. We stripped off our clothes and ran out into the ocean.

Pura vida.

To read more about Camille’s travels in Costa Rica and the rest of the world, check out her blog This American Girl and get a copy of her Ultimate Guide to Costa Rica.

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This post was written by Camille Willemain