TRAVEL TUESDAYS: INTERVIEW WITH SAMANTHA AND YEISON OF MYTANFEET

This week we would like to introduce Samantha and Yeison of Mytanfeet. Meet Samantha, she’s one half of the pair behind the blog Mytanfeet. Her boyfriend Yeison and her live at the beach in Costa Rica and after 2 years of international long distance dating, they decided to be together and follow their dreams to travel the world. The run their blog to inspire people to travel in Costa Rica and also to show what it’s really like to travel and live in the country. One day they hope to travel the world!

1. What inspires you to travel, and how would you define the word ‘traveler’?

I started traveling mainly because I had never really done it before. I’d always dreamed of going to far off countries but it wasn’t always in the itinerary when I was finishing up college. Then I met Yeison and we had to travel to see each other since we lived in different countries. We found that we love to travel and experience new things together.

I guess I would define the word traveler as someone who sees and experiences new things – you don’t have to travel far or go to numerous countries to be a traveler. You can travel in your own country or state and still be surprised at how much there is to do that you never knew about.

2. How do you afford your travels? 

We have both always worked full time when we were apart and still do work full time to support ourselves doing various things. We are not long term travelers, we have a homebase in Costa Rica and we take trips when we can. Unfortunately, our days don’t always consist of coconut drinks on the beach or jumping off beautiful waterfalls which would be really awesome but we do work and all that normal stuff. We’d love to be on the road full time but that’s just not the plan right now.

3. Where was your first international trip and how old were you? 

The first international trip I took was when I was very young and moved back to Taiwan for a little bit. But I was so young I didn’t remember. The first international trip I took that I do remember was to Canada (I guess that counts as international) from the States when I was 8. We visited Vancouver and Victoria and I remember the tulip festivals and these beautiful gardens, I had a great time.

4. Where has been your favorite destination? 

I have a couple.. I love Taiwan but I am biased since that is where my family is from. I also loved San Blas in Panama and Arenal in Costa Rica.

5. Where has been your least favorite?

I liked everywhere that I’ve gone for the most part but if I had to choose one, I’d have to say Winlock WA. They’re known for having the biggest egg but it was my first time in a small country town and I was so bored for two days!

6. Have you ever had high hopes for a destination, tour, etc., only to be disappointed in the end? Or any travel mishaps?

A couple times. I was really looking forward to Panama City and although we had a good time there, I was a bit disappointed. Certain parts of the city is nice and other parts, not so much. It was dirty, some streets were sketchy and although I wasn’t too worried about safety since I was with Yeison, there were times at night when I would be keeping a watch at all times. And it was really hard to find a healthy breakfast that didn’t consist of fried food or coca cola!

7. What’s the funniest or weirdest cultural idiosyncrasy you’ve either witnessed or experienced?

Probably back in Panama again, they are known for not exactly having the nicest customer service. I’m used to Costa Rican culture which is really nice, really welcoming but Panamanians are not quite so. We would ask a local in the city where the bus stop was or where a good place to eat was and they would just look at us and flat out say “No” or just walk away. It was really weird to run into people who weren’t that interested in helping tourists. Maybe we just had some bad luck and asked the wrong ones but it happened to us a few times!

8. What keepsake do you have to get at all your destinations? 

I love keeping maps of the cities I stayed. It’s fun to look back and be like, “Oh we went there” “Oh we missed that!” and recognize places and things.

9. How about the one thing you cannot travel without?

I guess I’ll have to go cliché and say my phone. If it has to be any electronic, it would be my phone. It’s on its last year of life right now so I need to look for a new one, but without my smartphone I would have been lost many times!

10. Why did you begin blogging? And how did you come up with your blog name?

We began blogging primarily to just document our new life in Costa Rica and it was so easy to show friends and family back home what I was up to or what Costa Rica is like. We came up with the name Mytanfeet one day as were coming back from the beach. We realized that our feet had really intense tan lines and decided that would be a great name for a blog about a couple living at the beach in Costa Rica.

11. Do you plan on settling down in Costa Rica forever? Or is there somewhere else you’d like to someday call ‘home’?

Right now, Costa Rica is home. We’re not sure where we want to settle because we have to deal with many visa issues if we want to live in the States or even get married. Yeison has not been able to get a tourist visa to the States which is why I moved down to Costa Rica. I would love to travel and live in different countries until we settle and pick the final place though!

12. What’s next for 2014? 

For 2014 we are going to stay in Costa Rica and travel around the country more. There are so many places we want to see and visit! Then towards the end of the year, we are planning on heading to Asia since we both have family in Taiwan and Korea. We can’t wait to eat kimchi and dumplings!

Traveler Toss-ups

Backpack or suitcase? Backpack

Window or aisle? Window

Solo or group? Group

Tapas or sushi? Sushi

Beach or mountains? Love both!

Be sure to follow in the travels of Samantha and Yeison:

Visit Samantha and Yeison’s site: MytanFeet
Follow Samantha and Yeison on Twitter: @mytanfeet
“Like” Samantha and Yeison on Facebook: MytanFeet