How does a 56 year old Clinical Social Worker, working for the public school system in the United States, in a low-income, high needs elementary school, find herself as the owner and operator of a lovely, boutique hotel in Costa Rica? That seems to be the question on everyone’s minds (well, maybe not everyone, but it sounds better that way)! It’s an interesting tale and I would like to tell you about the journey here.
It’s hard to be certain about when the idea started to seep into my system, but the starting line I will use for this journey will be May 2021. My husband and I were experiencing that post-pandemic, “must travel immediately” feeling and heard the wonders of Costa Rica calling our names. I planned a whirlwind, two-week trip that took us on an exploration of the country by car. I wanted to see as much of the country, with its varying landscapes and climates as possible in a short amount of time. We were amazed at how, in such a small country, that you could experience so much beauty and variety. I knew I had to see more. It was just a matter of when. Fast forward to December 2023. I planned a trip back that would take us to places we did not experience on our first trip (and some that we just had to see again). On Tuesday, December 26th, 2023, we arrived at The Beach Bungalows Tamarindo B&B. I recently looked back on my review of our stay. The thing that stands out to me now is my comment that “we felt at home.” Little did I know when I made that comment that the Bungalows would indeed become my second home!
During our stay, we had the opportunity to chat with Nico, the owner at that time. We shared some of our hopes and dreams with him and my husband (the more practical of us two) asked about the ins and outs of owning a business in Costa Rica. Nico shared his journey and how he came from France to Costa Rica looking for an investment. Then, much to our surprise, he said that he was planning on putting the property up for sale in the new year. And our response, to him and to one another, was “really?”
Fast forward (again) to May 31, 2024. We signed the deal to purchase the bungalows and on June 1st, I hopped a plane to Liberia, rented a car and drove myself to Tamarindo, with my little dog, Nesta, in tow.
My plan is to use this space to fill in details about how I got here and what has happened since I did. There has been a lot of curiosity around this big change in our lives and many people have asked, “how can I do this too?”