Costa Rica is home to the most fascinating and charismatic wildlife I’ve ever had the privilege to encounter. One of the most memorable wildlife sightings of my life happened in La Selva, where I got about two feet away from a three toed sloth and her baby. I walked by her completely by chance, and got to watch up close as she slowly (although not quite as slow as I expected!) climbed by me, calmly looking at me while I got closer to examine her. Iguanas also have a surprising amount of charisma. Also in La Selva, I saw Iguanas the size of a log basking in trees or even just sitting out in front of my cabin. They always let me get close to take a picture, and seemed just as curious regarding me as I did them.
In Manuel Antonio, some of the best moments of my trip happened when I got the chance to feed bananas to squirrel monkeys with a local restaurant owner. He was nice enough to give us leftover bananas and let us feed the monkeys that lived nearby the restaurant. As I held out a banana slice, some of the monkeys would jump all the way up above my head to grab a piece and then retreat to snack on it. Seeing and interacting with all different kinds of animals for the first time has by far been the most exciting part of my abroad experience.