10 Things I Have Learned While Living in Costa Rica

10 Things I have learned while living in Costa Rica

1.      The trucks driving around with ICE on the side of them are not selling ice.  They are the electric and internet company trucks.  And it is not pronounced ice like we say it.  It is “ee say”.   And ice is yellow.  Not the color, that is how they pronounce ice in Spanish.  But the color yellow is amarillo, and I’m not talking about a city in Texas.  Amarillo is pronounced “amareeo”.    So please don’t get ice and yellow and a city in Texas mixed up.

2.     Molasses is not only for baking here.  It is to pour on the roads to keep the dust down on gravel roads.  The horses love the roads during the dry season. Not because they are easier to walk on but because the taste delicious.

3.     Here in a lot of areas it is like the wild, wild West, with horses and cattle roaming free.  And it is perfectly ok to see them forging through the river all by themselves.  I’m sure they still shoot horse thieves here or at least use a machete to punish the offender.  Having to hold up traffic for a herd of cattle being herded down the road, by riders on horses and motorcycles, is what we affectionately call a “traffic jam”.  Jacob and I encountered one on the quad the other day.  It was fun but a little intimidating sitting on an ATV with cows with big horns walking past you on all sides.  But the cows are very docile and very, very adoreable so if this ever happens to you, you will actually love it.

4.     When you hear someone outside your house yelling something like “whoopi” they are not necessarily happy.  It is a traditional way to let someone know they are at your house and want you to come out and talk to them and they are actually saying something like “ooopi”.  They may or may not actually be excited to see you and/or want to make whoopi with you.

5.     IF a shower has hot water and if said hot water is heated by what is affectionately known as a “suicide shower”, do not turn the water on full blast.  Turn it on all the way, then turn it back down.  If you do not, you will never believe the hotel, family, friend, etc that it actually has hot water.  It will stay cold.  A suicide shower has an on demand electrical heater, which hopefully is connected properly to the shower head. At any new shower, it is best to let your friend or family member test it out first, preferably not a good friend or the worst family member in attendance.  If they survive, you’re good to go!

6.     Do not be surprised to see entire families riding on a motorcycle.  I don’t mean Dad, Mom and Grandma.  I mean, Dad, Mom, big sister, little brother and baby.  Merrily scooting down the road.  My son even reported seeing a toddler passed between two motorcycles driving down the road.  I have no idea what the accident and injury statistics are but Gisele Bundchen has nothing on the Ticos.  To be fair, they are experienced riders and for many families this is the only mode of transportation to go a substantial distance.  It just kind of freaks me out to see.

7.     People are not the only ones to enjoy the beaches and the ocean.  There are gangs of beach dogs.  They are not vicious, in fact they are shy of humans.  There are also pigs who come down to enjoy the beaches.  Let me clarify further.  These animals do not come to the beach with their human owners.  Most of the beach dogs don’t have owners. I have no idea if the pigs do.  However, I have seen groups of dogs on several occasions run down to the beach, play in the water awhile and then head off up the road again.  All without accompanying people.  I have on one occasion seen a pig and 6 of her little piglets, come down to the beach, play in the water awhile and head back out to the bushes.  All without accompanying people. 

8.     They don’t call it Tico Time for nothing!  Tico Time is similar to Island Time but a bit slower I think.  Do not expect to get anything done quickly.  For example: At the hardware store, you wait and wait for someone behind the counter to notice you (not unlike a car parts store in the US).  Most of their stuff is kept in the back and not readily available for you to pick up and walk up to the cashier with it.  You tell them what you want, in Spanish if you know it, in a combination of badly translated and badly spoken Spanish and sign language, if you don’t.  It is a fun and challenging game of charades.  Once the hardware guy guesses correctly, he shows you your prize.  No, you don’t get your prize yet.  He will print out a sheet of paper showing what your prize is and what the cost is.  Wait, you mean after all that, I didn’t just WIN this.  You take your piece of paper to the cashier window area, where you stand in line again to pay.  Once you pay, you get your receipt.  You then go stand in line again until someone behind the counter notices you, looks at your receipt and then goes and gets your prize and finally gives it to you.  It is a fun game to play when you are not in a hurry, which should be all the time if you want to survive here.

9.     Lest you think that all of this points to why would anyone want to live here.  The next two things I have learned help trump any other things on the list that people might look at in a negative light.  I happen to think all the above are pretty much positives. Absolutely positive point:  the people are friendly and helpful.  It is very community oriented and supportive here, both with the expats and the Ticos.  My sons have broken down on their motorcycle a few times and Ticos have always stopped to help them out.  Whether it is to let them use a phone or pack the whole darn moto into a back of a truck and take them to the mechanic.  One of the tuk-tuk drivers has also picked them up several times and given them a ride for no charge.  This man makes his money charging for rides but has seen them in a hard spot and taken them for free.  My experience has been they are shy, but friendly and very willing to help you.  Yes, yes, there is crime here too and there are always going to be bad people around. And yes, there are a few that have looked at me with a look I am pretty sure is saying “Died gringo, die.”   Overall though, Ticos are wonderful people and are friendly and open to us gringos.  Can we say the same about how US welcomes others, especially from Arab or Mexican descent?  It is very interesting and humbling indeed to be the one on the other side of the coin that can barely speak the language and does not know their systems.  I wonder how many of them are thinking, “If you’re going to live here, learn the language!”  And as a matter of fact, I am trying.  I imagine the Mexicans are trying to learn English.  It is very uncomfortable to be living in a country where you don’t know the language.  Please be patient with those who are learning English.  Be patient, understanding and helpful.  They are trying!!!

10.  The food here is amazing!!!   While you don’t have the variety that you have in the US, the food here is fresh and full of flavor.  I had forgotten what great tomatoes taste like.  Those back in the US who grown their own, know what I am talking about.  For most people though, you buy tomatoes at the store.  Even the organic ones in the stores in the US cannot compare with the tomatoes here.  It is because they are not picked green and shipped all over.  They are grown locally and picked at the peak of ripeness.  They are also not propogated with size, color and shipping in mind.  The tomatoes here can be downright ugly at times, green areas on them and misshaped but I will give that up for flavor and nutritional content anytime.  The same goes for avocados, pineapples, mangos, bananas, peppers, strawberries and all sorts of fruits and vegetables.  Oh and did I mention, one can pick a lot of these things off of trees just growing along the road or neighbors saying, “Yes, pick all the mangos you want.”  One teeny weeny downside to this is when you buy them, be ready to make them that day or the next.  They do not last when lounging around on your counter or fridge.  Yes, we are constantly running to the store but now I understand why there are little supers (see previous post, these are small grocery stores) all over the place.  We have three within ½ mile from us.  No big grocery store lines either.  I remember coming back to the US and going into a King Soopers (Kroger, Safeway etc) and being dumbfounded and impressed by the variety and size of the store.  Then as I tried to find nice produce I was reminded of how we have this variety, picked green somewhere far away and shipped for miles.  Then I stood in line to make my purchases.  I guess it all balances out, huh?  Longer lines and waits at banks and hardware stores, less lines and wait times in grocery stores and gas stations.  It’s all good.  Pura Vida!