My 2022 Costa Rica experience was a pivotal moment in my young adulthood. After 18 months of working thankless service jobs, I saved enough to book my first-ever group tour. As a solo traveler, I didn’t know any of the other 34 travelers, some of whom came with people they knew. It was a big risk, but it turned out to be one of the best trips I could’ve asked for. I bathed in the hot springs in Arenal, went on a catamaran tour in Tamarindo, zip-lined above the trees in Monteverde, and found companionship in Jaco.

One of the greatest gifts this trip gave me was a shift in mindset. It was scary being suspended high in the air zipping 20mph, with nothing but a single rope keeping you from a fatal fall. It was scary being dropped three stories into a shallow pool of water. It was even scary singing karaoke for the first time ever, and in front of a large group. But I did them because I wanted to be bold. I wanted to be adventurous. By telling myself I already was, I did things that only a bold and adventurous person does and therefore I became so.