RAINY DAYS AND RAINY NIGHTS

I have been in Costa Rica for nearly two weeks, and you haven’t until now heard a peep out of me.  Actually, I was just giving all the slow pokes a chance to catch up.  Only joking! 

Since being here in Costa Rica, with the exception of only a few partly sunny days, it has been raining. And I mean raining hard, like crazy hard, nearly non-stop.  If it had ever rained like this in California, it would have resulted in a hundred year flood!

La Fortuna in the Rare Time Between the Raindrops

I I I I had come to La Fortuna from the San Jose area, through Heredia and San Joquin Las Flores.  La Fortuna is a little town nestled beside the active volcano known as Arenal.  People come here to enjoy the protected wild areas around the volcano.  There is zip lining (sort of like zinging through the forest while your harnessed to a slippery line), hiking, white water rafting, and all types of other very adventurous activities.  I had hoped to do some bicycling and bird watching, but the heavy rain made those activities impossible.  I have seen some beautiful and unusual birds, though.   I figured there would be incredibly fertile black soil up here, and I wasn't disappointed!  After all, it is a lush, tropical rain forest, hence the rain.  The first three days were spent with some very funny and kind “Ticos”  (this is the term Costa Ricans use for themselves), Juan and Roger.  Juan is a business man and has a real estate development in the early stages that is slated to be a beautiful gated community with a river bordering the north and east perimeters.  They drove me out to this place and at first look, I was a goner.   There are two parcels together comprising almost an acre, all of it usable, flat,  fertile land, and the largest parcel follows the river’s curve.  Then, to seal the deal, there is an incredible view of the majestic Arenal volcano.  What was not to love?  Well, the price, for one thing.  I’m sure it is worth every penny, but it was unfortunately out of my ballpark.  And then, too, this is more of a residential development, when what I am really looking for is a rural tract, a small farm (or “Finca” as it is called in Spanish).

Even though I was not destined to own the property, through it all I did get to me these great people, including much of Juan’s and his wife Sade’s immediate and extended family.  Juan invited me to his son’s 3^rd birthday party, where I had a wonderful time, in spite of the language challenges.  Roger, Juan’s good friend, is a world traveler with fluent English.   Juan’s English, on the other hand, is about on par with my Spanish.  I know they were disappointed that I was not the buyer they were hoping for, but they were such good sports about it and I enjoyed their company tremendously.  We had some meals together, they helped me buy a cell phone (for local calls only…I’m using Skype for international calls), and they introduced me to a local Tico home builder.  Do you know that you can build a darling small home with one bathroom, all wood inside and out for about $35,000.00 U.S.?  An added plus: Ticos are known for their exquisite craftsmanship.  If anyone reading this is interested in owning a little piece of this paradise, Google:  Qintas Palo Alto, Costa Rica.  If the property/development does not come up, drop me a line and I’ll put you in touch with either Juan Jose Aria or Roger Mejias.  You’ll see that there are parcels of all different sizes and I think the terms are very generous.

If you are planning on visiting Costa Rica, or I’m told any country in Central America, one thing you have to be on guard about, is that the native merchants will almost always try to overcharge you.  I didn’t notice this quite so much at first, or if I did, I didn’t think too much about it , but after awhile it gets to be an annoyance.  It really started getting on my nerves after I had visited this one particular Tico  restaurant on a few different occasions with Juan and Roger.   While with them, I would think, “Wow, the prices here are great!”  But then, a couple times I went back by myself, and voila!  The prices jumped up on average about two dollars higher!  If you make a comment or try to draw attention to the discrepancy, they just ignore it or pretend they don’t understand you.  Now if my Spanish was better, I might be inclined to start a fight with the cashier!  But as it is, there is not much I can do except not frequent the establishment any longer.  Once you’re onto it, you’ll notice it happens all the time.  Often, businesses will not even have their prices listed anywhere.  So be forewarned, if you are a “gringo” and you go into a restaurant or shop where there are no menus or prices posted, you will be gouged!.

As long as we’re on the subject of money, here’s something else.  Most of you who know me at all know I am a comparison shopper, big time!   And just because I currently reside in Central America, that hasn’t changed!  I do confess, I am horrible at currency conversion computations.  Where the average person needs a couple of days to get the hang of it, I need a couple of weeks.  That being said, I have noticed that what all of the “Expat” sites have told me and you about everything being dirt cheap here IS A LIE!  I’m here to tell you the truth.  I am still inexperienced in a number of areas, but here is what I have found so far:  

Clothing is generally less expensive, but after looking in many of the local shops, I can see that much of the merchandise is at the lower end.  If there is higher end clothing, it is difficult to tell, because everything tends to be mixed together.  It is probably different in the malls, but I suspect that there prices will be comparable to the U.S.  

Imported items like Welch’s Grape Juice is a good 30% or more higher here than in the U.S. grocery stores.  You won’t find rotisserie chickens in most grocery stores, but the little “Soda” restaurants (this restaurant is a kind of neighborhood luncheonette specializing in quick and traditional foods) do sell them…for $12.00 in La Fortuna!   Surprisingly, vegetables in Costa Rica are not a bargain either, but I’m hoping I’ll find some good stores with reasonable prices just as I did in California, where vegetables have been going up in price steadily. 

Beef is reasonable, and grass fed!  The lush pasture lands in Costa Rica are just amazing to see.  Grass fed beef is selling at  a premium in the U.S., where health conscious people are shunning corn fed beef (due to the fact that most of the corn cows are fed is now GMO, thanks to Monsanto).  Mercola.com has been sounding the alarm about this for the last couple of years, and he claims that cattle on a grass diet are the best choice for beef.   It is leaner and the Omega 3's are much higher.   Americans here complain that the Costa Rican beef  is tougher, which it is, but I just had some tonight at a Columbian Restaurant, and it was delicious!

Farm Hand on the Arias Farm in La Fortuna, Costa Rica

Labor is downright cheap, with most Costa Ricans earning extremely low wages.  It makes me wonder how they do it!  Luckily for them water, electricity, public transportation, cell phones….all of these seem to be very reasonable.  Most Ticos do not use air conditioning, which is a big savings.   Gasoline is about the same price or a little higher than it is in the U.S.  I am currently seeing it posted around town for about $3.80. regular.

One of the big questions in my mind during my planning stages was, what should I take and what should I leave?  Mostly the advice I read was to replace everything once you got here.  So far, I would say that advice is wrong.  Although I can’t quite figure out the pricing yet on furniture, (on every price tag there are several ways to buy…different financing options and it is hard to decipher the cash price), I have a feeling furniture and other household goods may be on the pricey side.    John Pennisi, a New Jersey expat who owns the restaurant “New York” in La Fortuna, agrees.   He told me that taxes on appliances and other big ticket items are pretty hefty.  By the way, during the week I spent in La Fortuna, I hardly missed a day without a meal at New York Grill and Pizza!  Not only were John & Priscilla “hosts with the most”, the food was outstanding!  Read my review in Trip Adviser under the name Alejandra, which is what Amy (John and Priscilla’s  5 year old daughter) re-named me.  I like that name!   


http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g309226-d2363962-Reviews-New_York_Grill_n_Pizza-La_Fortuna_de_San_Carlos_Arenal_Volcano_National_Park_Province_of_Alajuela.html

John is also a remarkable guy and one of the best conversationalists I’ve ever met.  He is brilliant on electricity and is also a builder, welder, and project designer.   He and Priscilla have even done some farming.  I want to hear more on what he has to say about Tesla, and everything else, for that matter!  I have seen some of his work aroung town, and I am so impressed.  Priscilla is a native Costa Rican, but her English is absolutely flawless and without any discernable accent.  Although I haven’t yet had the chance to talk with her at length, I hope to know her better, too.

When all is said and done, what is really making this trip the exciting adventure it is, is meeting and having the chance to hang out with these beautiful people along the way!  Till next time, Adios, Amigos