COSTA RICA – A Country on the Move

Boulder to SanJose – Five hours and twenty five minutes in travel time but a world apart in lifestyle. For starters I am fairly sure Boulder taxi drivers’ modus operandi is to get you to your destination safely. In Costa Rica it seems that getting you there is enough. We arrived on a late night flight into San Jose’s Juan Santamaria International Airport and found a taxi. Our driver introduced himself as Alex. The twenty kilometres to downtown San Jose were an eyeopener. In hindsight closed eyes for the journey may have been a better bet. I made the fundamental error of sitting up front with the driver. I have driven in Morocco, Croatia and yes, even Italy. But this was the ride of rides. For forty minutes we wove in and out of traffic, cutting from lane to lane if any car or truck in front dared to slow a fraction. When I say lane to lane I mean even if there was a vehicle alongside us. Incumbent on them to make room. I soon learnt not to ask questions in Spanish or otherwise as this prompted Alex to turn and look at me while answering. While he was looking at me he wasn’t looking at the road. At one moment we hurtled at 60kmph towards the side of an SUV that had dared to nose halfway out into the inside lane. I had decided that this was really it as Alex showed no sign of stopping. At the very last moment he swerved left and we passed between the SUV and the car on our outside. I am pretty sure we grazed both vehicles. All this in a manual Toyota of indeterminate age. We arrived at the hotel in a lather. The road etiquette appears to be “organised chaos”. And as long as everyone respects this it all seems to work.

Juan Santamaria after whom the airport is named is a Costa Rican national hero. He was a drummer boy who died in 1856 defending his country against private American forces trying it on in an unauthorised war. Naming the national airport after a heroic lad rather than some pouting ex-president sort of sums up this country. They are immensely proud of their reputation as an eco and agricultural based country of polite, obliging and simple people. It is also significant that Costa Rica has no army and hasn’t since 1949. Their friendship with both USA and China allows them some form of protection and neutrality.

Coffee bushes are everywhere along with beans

Our hotel, Urban Green was functional and semi-modern with the real advantage of being in the centre of downtown San Jose. Breakfast set a pattern – rice and beans are the staples of most meals in Costa Rica. A protein is added – either chicken, pork or fish – with sides of cassava ( a starchy potato like tuber) usually boiled and mashed then fried and plantain (a cousin of the banana) which is roasted or fried and is delicious. Add scrambled eggs and locally made cheese and this was breakfast lunch and dinner. Tamarind and orange juice are common drinks. But coffee is Costa Rica. Arabica is the only variety allowed to be grown. The commercialisation of coffee growing in the 1980’s was a bit of a game changer and Costa Rica is now the world’s fourth largest coffee provider with one percent of the worlds coffee.

San Jose images

San Jose

Costa Ricans or at least those in San Jose seem to live on the street on the weekends. The scene is busy with street vendors operating alongside modern shops of international brands and restaurants. McDonalds and KFC have penetrated San Jose society but the classic modern metal decor is more Costa Rican jumble. The city “Mercado Central” is a bustling souk of coffee shops, fruit and vegetable shops, butchers, fish merchants alongside the usual tourist outlets pushing t-shirts, shoes, memorabilia and all means of clothing. Fried chicken is everywhere. The cafes are small holes in the wall places that serve “cafe traditionel” – a kind of drip coffee with a sock like filter placed over the cup. Some places roast there own beans and the smell of roasting coffee is spectacular. Traditional and western style cafes and bars abound (your lattes and cappuccinos are safe here) and the craft beer brewing industry is well established. But everywhere there are families walking and noise. Street music competes with vendors of lottery tickets, cigars and food calling, calling, calling attention to their wares. It is both intoxicating and off-putting.

Rice and beans, fried cassava balls and roasted plantain alongside chicken stew, fried cheese and tacos. The different sights of San Jose living.

Tomorrow we leave for Santa Rosa de Pocosol and the village of Juanalima. It has a very interesting story.