Off The Grid: Where Locals From Exotic Spots Escape

Jimmy Buffett once sang that “Changes in latitudes, changes attitudes.” I mostly agree, although I’d include longitudes in that lyric if it rhymed. Here’s why.

Last month while rafting through the Costa Rican jungle on the beautiful Pacuare River, my group rested halfway at this extraordinary lodge. On arrival, I beelined to the first hammock I saw overlooking the area. While swaying to and fro, I watched and heard the top-rated river do its thing. Enveloped in greenery, I spotted a hanging bridge off in the distance.

I’m rafting in the freaking jungle, I said to myself, not believing my luck. Moments later, my guide approached and commented on the impressive view as she had probably done a hundred times before. She asked where I was from. Utah, I replied, which excited her. “I just returned from Arches and Canyonlands National Park two weeks ago!” she added. “I can’t wait to return to Zion and Bryce on the opposite corner of your state.”

Oh, the irony, I thought. The grass is always greener. Or in the case of my Costa Rican guide, the red rock desert is sometimes more appealing than the lush, green and mountainous rainforest I was enjoying at that very moment.

This exchange gave me pause. Although I wouldn’t necessarily consider my home state an exotic place—although it certainly makes the short list of most scenic states—it is exotic to her and many others. Coming from what most foreigners would regard as an exotic country, it’s where she decided to vacation for the foreseeable future.