In my first post on December 14, 2010 I wrote: “…assuming enough people get involved to make it worth continuing with this blog, I will chose 6 of the participants to come to Costa Rica as my guests.  We’ll continue the conversation in person.  I’ll pay all expenses including economy airfare…” Click here to read  the entire [...]

When we left Patty she had just taken off into the sunset on her flight from New York to Costa Rica… We’re here!  Scrambling off the plane, I hook up with 2 fellow Trip of a Lifetime travelers and we head toward baggage comparing notes on how excited, nervous and completely unprepared we feel for what [...]

Now that Patty has made it to Costa Rica, how will she like rafting? Here we are, listening to the white water rafting “safety talk.” I am dry-mouthed and lightheaded, and not because of jet lag. I hate rivers. When Michael S. Kaye, Costa Rica Expeditions president and veteran white water rafting guide, told us [...]

When we last left her Patty a had just gotten in the raft.  Since she wrote the post below, obviously she survived.  Read on to find out how…. There are times, when a picture is worth a thousand words. “What does one wear rafting (apart from a terror-stricken expression on one’s face)?”   I asked Michael S. Kaye, [...]

Survival while Whitewater rafting is not the only type of survival that Patty encounters on her trip.  Read on… By Patty Chang Anker [...]

Follow Patty as she leaves the beach and ventures into the Tropical Rain Forest: By Patty Chang Anker We’re off on a boat tour of the rainforest, and Michael S. Kaye, president of Costa Rica Expeditions, is trying to set realistic expectations.  “People come expecting to see wildlife as close up as they do in a guidebook, [...]

Curious about how Patty managed to have an identity crisis during her Trip of a Lifetime.  Read on… Patty Chang Anker. I am having an identity crisis.  I haven’t had to tell anyone what to do for days.  I haven’t had to assess allergy free (ie, wheat/dairy/corn/soy/tomato/pea-free) meal and snack options for anyone.  I haven’t had to clean anyone else’s [...]

By Patty Chang Anker Meet Felipe.  Felipe is the only man I know who can say “And then I took out my machete,” and have it be entirely convincing.  Felipe grew up in the rainforests of Corcovado, and is one of the best trackers and spotters there is. [...]

If you are thinking of visiting Tortuga Lodge before you read Patty’s post, I want to make it clear that we do not guarantee Crocodiles in the garden. Patty Chang Anker Baby Boa [...]

Here you can read about Patty’s unique take on helping local kid’s learn English. By Patty Chang Anker. “Speak up,” Sheyla says.  She is addressing the children, but it makes me want to stand straighter and enunciate more clearly.  We are participating in the Words Adventure, a program Michael S. Kaye developed in Tortuguero, Costa Rica to teach [...]

By Patty Chang Anker And then, as abruptly as it began, it is time to leave the rainforest. Packing, I come across my blackberry, which has been off for the week.  Ever since I read in the book “How Not to Act Old” that only old people wear watches, I stopped wearing a watch.  For a week, [...]

(and I mean characters) By Patty Chang Anker Did you miss the show?  The Trip of a Lifetime starts here:  http://upside-down-patty.blogspot.com/2010/11/ticket-to-ride.html [...]

Actually this is the first of Patty’s posts that really caught my attention.  Patty had told me how anxious she was about her kids reaction to her abandoning them for a whole week. I in turn was anxious to hear how it went. I was also anxious about how the trip was going to go.  I [...]