the meaning of 'pura vida'

Pura vida is the unofficial motto of Costa Rica. The phrase literally means "pure life". You hear it all the time. You see it all the time, on everything from t-shirts to artwork to bodies to just about every tourist item you could think of.  It's said to have originated from Mexico through movies in the 50's. The poster below is from a recent Spanish movie named after the motto.

I noticed several gringos walking around with "pura vida" tattooed on their body. It's about as original as getting barbed wire around your bicep. One guy had it written in big block letters going down his whole arm. I bet he'll regret that once he gets back home.

Pura vida can be used to express many things. The popular Costa Rican handshake among young men is a hand slap in which you quickly pull back to do a fist bump.
You can then say pura vida for hello or goodbye. It's pronounced poo-rah vee-dah. Not "pure-ah".

Other meanings:
I'll worry about it later. ( Oh well now I'm totally broke, pura vida!)
Goodbye. (See you later, pura vida!)
Who cares? Pura vida!
Chill out....pura vida.
That was a great wave, pura vida!
This is great! Pura vida!
Don't worry about it.....(an example: I told my taxi driver sorry for having to wait so long and he responded "be quiet, pura vida")
Relax...pura vida. (this one used by a yoga teacher)
This ganja is amazing! (Pura vida!)
I'm late but time doesn't matter here. Pura vida!
No thanks, I don't want anything. Pura vida.

What is my definition of pura vida? I take it to mean accept life as it is and enjoy it, no matter what you have or don't have or how much money you make.
 Others think it reflects the Costa Rican society's habit of taking forever to do something or not worrying about important things like finances and business. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. We stress about small things way to much in our fast paced money and material obsessed society. After I got back I experienced brief culture shock getting reacquainted with the drama and stress we love to put ourselves through as Americans.

Here's a video of a popular local music artist filmed on the beach literally outside my apartment in Puerto Viejo on the southern Caribbean coast in Costa Rica, near Panama. It has a very distinct reggae and Rastafari culture.

coming to America

I decided to book a trip home rather than pay another month's rent and risk running out of money.
My job selling rooms for the hostel paid just enough for a few meals every week. I still hadn't found a restaurant or store that would be willing to hire an illegal(me). I would have worked on a banana plantation if that's what it took to stay but there weren't any nearby.
When I told the hostel owners I was leaving, which happened to be on the very last day I was there, they were like "Oh, well I was just about to tell you we need someone to sell tours." I wanted to cry.
They had mentioned it briefly before but it had been over a month so I figured they didn't need anyone.

The previous tour seller was being investigated for murder, an American, sadly, from South Carolina.  He allegedly killed his girlfriend and fled back to the United States after stealing a few thousands from another tour booth. There's a big long story about that but I'll save it for another entry.

The commission I would have received for selling tours would have paid better than some jobs here.  For example, booking a $500 fishing tour would get you 80 bucks. All you do is call the company that actually does the tour and book it for tourists. And as busy as Tamarindo had been in the few days after Christmas, I imagine I could have sold quite a few. Oh well. If I go back it will definitely be after Christmas. I went way early.

I skipped visiting San Jose for the 4th time and instead stayed in Alajuela. Sarah and I rode back on a shuttle and met another traveler, a surfer from Sweden named Richard. He had been there since November working for a hostel in exchange for food and shelter. It was his third time in Costa Rica. He told us about this nice little hostel in Alajuela he was staying at so I canceled my reservation for the hostel in San Jose took a cab with him to this other one. It worked out better because a shuttle or cab ride from San Jose is at least 20 dollars. From the hostel in Alajuela, the city where the San Jose International Airport actually is located, cab fare was just 3 bucks.

The hostel itself was actually really nice. Small and cozy with clean beds and hot water, which was desperately needed since even our cold water hadn't been working at the apartment for our last week there. Had I known there were hostels like this actually near the airport I would have stayed there instead of San Jose 3 times. The city of Alajuela, from the little I saw, seemed nicer than San Jose.

There was nothing interesting about our flights home so I won't bore you with a ton of details. We left at 7 am for Denver then had a 7 and half hour layover at Denver International. We arrived to DFW at 10:45 pm.
My bags were searched by both Costa Rican security and American. The Costa Rican officer took out a pair of scissors and a wine opener. The TSA agent made me put all the shampoo and cologne bottles and toothpaste into a zip lock bag. He then screened my acne body wash for explosives. Of course it tested positive and I was subjected to the infamous TSA pat down/groping.
Luckily he found nothing suspicious anywhere on my person, and believe me he definitely felt everywhere. The explosive acne body wash was returned and on we went.

Before that we had to walk past a dog named "Awes"(short for "Awesome") to smell our bags. The little beagle would bark the alarm if he sensed drugs or food. Our luggage passed the sniff test, though others were not so fortunate and had to give up their bananas, roast beef sandwiches, and cookies to the TSA agent. She placed the contraband in a bag around her waist.

Upon arriving in Denver, something strange happened to my body.  The change in humidity, going from dense wet ocean air for 3 months to dry mountain weather, caused my skin to feel extremely dry and itchy. I could not stop rubbing my nose. My scalp was covered in snowflakes yet it had not been snowing in Denver. I felt these symptoms for about a week upon returning but the first night was the worst.
It's interesting how the body adjusts to the environment. When I first went down to the Caribbean jungle in October, I was constantly sweaty and oily for the first week. My skin was always wet and feeling dirty even after a shower. I felt hot all the time even though it was only in the low 80's and cool at night. Gradually my body adjusted, toned down it's sweat and oil production, and before long I was dry and comfortable even with no a/c.


The west coast was not as humid but the temperatures can climb higher and it doesn't get nearly as cool at night so many places do have a/c. It's also just a wealthier and more developed area.

Returning does not spell the end for this blog though. I have many more stories, experiences, and pictures I have yet to share like going to the animal rescue center in Puerto Viejo.

clearing up some common misconceptions about Costa Rica

I'm dedicating this entry to clearing up some common misconceptions many people have about Costa Rica. Everything you see on here is from a question I've been asked at one point or another, all from Americans.

It's somewhat understandable. We are hardly taught much about the rest of the world and its history in school. Mainly we learn about our own history and about or own states and government. A few times we may have to do a report on one country outside North America, but it's usually relatively large like China or Australia.

• Costa Rica is very small. Put New Hampshire and Vermont together and youll have Costa Rica, or about the size of West Virginia. 
• Costa Rica is NOT an island! I've gotten asked this many times. It's connected to Nicaragua up north and Panama down south, with the Pacific on the west coast and Caribbean on the east. It does have a large peninsula, the Nicoya Peninsula, on it's Northwestern side. I lived there in Tamarindo. 
• Costa Rica is nothing like Mexico! The culture is very different. The government is different. The people look different since their ethnic backgrounds are different. The same language is spoken, but in a much different dialect. Easier to understand if you ask me. Less rolling of the r's, much clearer and slower than Mexican Spanish. Based on my conversations, Ticos did not generally have a favorable opinion of Mexico. 
• Costa Ricans do not celebrate "dia de los muertos" or "day of the dead" like Mexico. They do celebrate Halloween. 
• The food is not spicy and again, nothing like Mexican food. You will have a very hard time finding anything spicy or heavily seasoned. Cheese is rarely included with any meals. Grilled chicken, beef, and sausage with white rice and black beans are common cuisine served with salad featuring only lettuce  and fried plantain(like banana). 
• Costa Ricans do not drink margaritas or drink tequila. Another Mexican thing. Rum and beer are much more popular. Cacique or "guaro" is a native Costa Rican liquor that's also quite popular. Tastes and looks like vodka except made with sugar cane so much sweeter and less alcohol content. There is only one legal brand that's manufactured by the government to cut down on bootleg distilleries. 

• There are many beautiful women in Costa Rica. That is true. 
• Costa Rica has nothing to do with Puerto Rico! The two countries are commonly confused. People ask me about going to Puerto Rico, I guess because the names are a little similar. 
• The United States does not own Costa Rica. Yes, I have been asked this. 
• Every country has violence and bad parts in big cities, but Costa Rica is not dangerous, especially compared with other Central American countries that have more poverty and civil unrest. I felt very safe everywhere in my travels through the country. There are more parts of Fort Worth and Dallas I would feel unsafe in at night then the entire country of Costa Rica. 
• In almost 3 months of being in Costa Rica, I never once saw people physically fighting. Sure I saw people yell back and forth or insult one another, but fist fights and shootings are MUCH more common here in America. I had only been back for just three days before I saw two people drunk people fighting here in Fort Worth. 
• They do drive dangerously in Costa Rica. Vehicles will pass dangerously close to one another on winding roads. "Alto" does not always means "stop". Stop signs often serve no purpose. The speed limits are slower than ours however. Riders on scooters and motorcycles drive wherever they please, down the middle of the lane, on the shoulder, wherever they can fit by. Drivers will only honk at you to get out of their way and most likely not put on their brakes, unlike in America, where the the pedestrian always has the right of way. 
• Costa Rica is NOT a third world country. While there is poverty in some parts, CR is like a gold mine compared to neighboring countries due to tourism. Most citizens have cell phones and some even run on a recently added 3G network. All cellular towers are owned by the government agency "ICE". Wireless internet is widely available in any developed town. Electronic stores are common. Cell phones are very expensive compared to here. There are no "two year contract price" or free phones with a contract. You pay the full price for the phone. Cable TV and satellite television are also very common.
• CR has a literacy rate of 96% and is ranked is ranked 62 out of 169 in the United Nations Development Programme’s Human Development Index.
• Costa Rica is a democracy, one of the world's 22 oldest, and runs on capitalism. The country has a female president. 
• Christopher Columbus was the first European to discover CR and did so in September 18, 1502. He named it Costa Rica or "Rich Coast". 

Well I hoped this helped for some people. If not, oh well, pura vida! 

movies, newspapers, and periodicals

I've gotten a few questions asking about movies and newspapers in Costa Rica.

Yes there are movie theaters. I haven't been to one but there is one right down the street from my apartment. It's small and only has like one showing a night, but it does have a popcorn machine. I'm not sure if he plays the movies in English or Spanish. He plays the movies on his laptop which is connected to a projector.

From what I've heard his laptop has hundreds of movie downloads and he accepts requests.

There are several nationally distributed newspapers.

The Tico Times is their English language newspaper.

La Nacion is their big Spanish newspaper. 

There are also many local newspapers in various cities.
In Tamarindo, there are two monthly periodicals, The Howler and The Pothole.

The Howler is just for fun though it does have ads and tide info. All its new articles are fake.
For example, one was Jack Kevorkian winning the Nobel Peace Prize.
Another was about a surfer who became so cool his ego became so large it outgrew his body and became a floating cloud.
The articles are written seriously as if the story was fact.
The Pothole features local news articles and has a section of pictures from different events in the city. I'm not sure but I think there may be more editions in other cities.

The nationally tabloid alDia is a favorite read among taxi drivers. It usually features a thong clad woman on the front page. From what I could tell most of the articles were about sports and entertainment.

SoHo is like Colombia's version of Playboy. I see these wrapped in plastic near the checkout line at the grocery store. Costa Rica has their own editions. It allegedly has a warning that says "Prohibido para mujeres" - prohibited to women.

Recently, Costa Rica and Nicaragua were having a border dispute. Nicaragua didn't like Costa Rica's small passenger airplanes or boats going into the disputed territory. Diplomacy is the only option here since Costa Rica abolished its military in the 60's.  The Nicaraguan government did however send some soldiers to the disputed land.  I believe the case is going to be heard before a world court.

Merry Christmas!

A very hot and humid Christmas it was today here in Tamarindo! Probably the hottest day since I've been here.
According to accuweather.com, the high was 84 degrees Fahrenheit, but the heat index was 94 degrees.
The normal is around 82-86 but the lack of wind today and humidity around 88% made it feel much hotter.

I usually sit in the sun on purpose when outside at a restaurant, to tan, but today I had to move out of my seat because I was so hot. Sarah and I looked far and wide for an open restaurant. I really did not want to have another ham and cheese sandwich, especially on Christmas. I've had enough of those.
 Spaghetti with ground beef, scrambled eggs with cheese, and ham and cheese sandwiches have pretty much been my diet lately. I really need to expand on my cooking. It would help having a grill though. The stove in our apartment takes about 20 minutes to get hot enough to cook on even turned all the way up. It's frustratingly slow even when hot.
So everything I make ends up tasting nice juicy and tender due to being "slow-cooked" but if you know me, and know my appetite, I would much rather have the food cooked fast and sacrifice some taste.

We finally found an open restaurant on the beach, a seafood place. The prices for the main dishes were expensive but I asked if they had cheeseburgers and to my surprise the waiter showed me the very back of the menu.  I've only had about 5 burgers since I've been in CR so I felt like Christmas would be ok to reward myself for eating healthy.
I chose the "especial" burger. Get ready for this:
2 beef patties
2 slices of cheese
2 slices of thick bacon
2 squares of ham


and of course the buns and dressing. I know what you're thinking, "that sounds disgusting", but it was absolutely delicious plus I "split" it with Sarah. It was very nice to feel like a full, fat and happy American again. I don't get that "I'm stuffed" feeling too much anymore. Couldn't be happier with our Christmas meal.

For dinner I made scrambled eggs with cheese(again), but threw in a curveball this time, and toasted bread in the frying pan to make scrambled egg sandwiches. yum.

Nothing too Christmasy going on here, every now and then we hear fireworks going off, but that's about it, no parades or Christmas carols unfortunately.

I hope everyone back home had a nice and cold Christmas. Enjoy the food and family.

Update on the rodeo festival last week: Two Canadians staying at Blue Trailz where I work went the day after Sarah, the Canadian couple, and I went. Unlike us though they decided to get in the ring with the bulls after a few beers. They got daring and decided to go up and slap the bull on the rear end a few times.

They got away with it but a few moments later the bull charged them and gored one of the guys in the stomach, flinging him up 6 feet in the air like a ragdoll. The horn didn't puncture but he woke up with a huge swelling bulge in his stomach, signs of internal bleeding. He had to be flown back to Canada to have emergency surgery. Why fly all the way back to Canada when the medical care is good here I wondered?
Because Canadian's govt funded health care only applies in Canada.

Last I heard he's doing fine and expected to make a full recovery.

Hope every has a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

Downtown San Jose earlier this month.