I have made my first solo excursion in Costa Rica. I spent a weekend in North Western Costa Rica, on the Nicoya Peninsula at Brasilita & Playa Conchal which, according to my lonely planet (as well as the family I am staying with) is the loveliest beach in Costa Rica).

It took about 5 hours to get there (& strangely, 6 hours to get back) but it was indeed lovely. YOu walk 1km along Playa Brasitia which is a nice enough beach itself but is totally ignored by everyone as Playa Conchal is just round the corner & is prettier. It has a white sand beach made up of crushed conch shells & it really did have turquoise waters just like my book said.

I tried the ceviche in a restaurant looking out onto the beach. It was called 'Outback Joes' which I know is not terribly Costa Rican but the recommended place was deserted & it was the busiest place. With hindsight though it possibly wasn't the best choice. I've never had ceviche before & I've been dying to try it. It's some sort of white fish marinated in lime juice & the acid in the lime juice cooks the fish. Add to that loads of chillies, onions, corriander, red pepper, avocado, etc & there you have it (I'll stick a picture in the photo section). Unfortunately I spent Friday night in my room with a headache & throwing up. I was very glad I got a room with a private bathroom.

Felt fine again the next day & spent Saturday & Sunday morning reading, relaxing & sun bathing till I got the bus back to San Jose. After 4 years of having my own place I'm not used to having to be around loads of people all the time so I was glad for a bit of time to myself to recharge.