The People Here

We came to this beautiful country, with few language skills, for medical treatment. We did so two years ago as well.

Let me tell you something -- the people of Costa Rica have made all the difference in the world. I'm not talking about the people in the tourist areas - the ones who are paid to be nice to you. I'm talking about the people you see every day.

Like the men who drove us around.

Sergio -- a man probably in his 50's who knows, maybe in his 60's. His English is very broken and after saying hello he let us know that he can speak some English but doesn't really understand it when someone speaks it to him. I get it totally -- I can speak more Spanish than I can understand. I think it's the speed that native speakers use. It's just too much too fast. He's charming, I think he was a heartbreaker when he was young. Heck, I bet he could still break a few hearts.

Ramon -- Mr. Pura Vida himself. His English is better than others and he tries to answer Doug's questions - questions that would be better suited to people being well versed in the same language. "Pura Vida", Ramon uses it a lot - and for a lot of things. Here is a link to the "definition". http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=pura+vida (I tried to insert a link, maybe it'll show up when I publish this, but if not - just copy and paste)

Anyway, Ramon took us for a drive on Wednesday afternoon. Up into the area where he lives. Talk about stunning and beautiful -- coffee plants line some of the roads -- seriously, caffeine at your fingertips -- absolute heaven. Lush, green vistas with parrots calling overhead. Traffic on winding roads enough to scare the living tar out of you. A village with a church built in the early 1800's. So big you can see it from downtown San Jose. Up close the church needs help and my fingers itched to get to the stained glass windows and repair and restore them. Broken panes, cracked panes, panes replaced with clear glass painted to be similar to the stained glass. Leading needs replacement and polishing. But Oh My -- How beautiful this church is - even in its current state. Ramon is the one who took me to the cork tree (seriously, I want a cork tree in my yard).

Carlos -- geez, what can you say about Carlos -- he reminds me of your goofy little brother -- the one that always wants to hang around with you. He is a very nice man but I think the Americano's just kind of confuse him.

Jacob, you have to love Jacob -- shaves his head and smiles a lot. His English is pretty good and he seems to genuinely like everyone.

Oh sure, there was the one taxi driver who tried to drive us around in circles to get to Mas x Menes to pad the tab, but I think my "oh no he isn't" comment to Doug made him realize he should just get there.

Apartotel Staff:

Theresa -- she mans the breakfast buffet. She is one woman I would love to have the chance to chat with. Terminally (in a good way) cheerful -- she expressed surprise that we clean up after ourselves and helped her when she came out with yet another steaming tray of scrambled eggs. After a few days we exchanged names and she laughs at my sorry little attempts at Spanish, but laughs in that "aren't you sweet for trying" rather than that "you are so stupid" laugh. She asks about my espouso when he's not by my side. She's a lovely woman, inside and out and I deeply regret not knowing enough of the language to truly speak with her.

Roberta -- beautiful young woman at the front desk -- she's done a few currency exchanges for me, called a thousand taxi's for us and answered questions. Actually, everyone at the front desk has been wonderful and kind. They make sure they explain, each time we do a currency exchange, what they pay versus what the bank pays. They want to make sure we don't think we're being taken advantage of -- what a nice, refreshing change.

The housekeepers. We're pretty neat and pretty private - which means we put out the "No Moleste" sign and leave it there. Most days the women stop one us and ask if they can clean (at least, that's what we think they're saying) and we usually answer "no, gracias - manana". The other day Doug was sitting in the chair by the open door (cross ventilation, you understand) while I was at the stove. One of the women asked the daily question, Doug looked up and answered in English -- she asked something in Spanish - he answered in English. I piped up with "Gracias, esta bien" Poof - her head pops in around the door with a beautiful smile and a spate of Spanish that sent my head spinning. I smiled back and said "Lo Siento, mi Espanol is mal pero, esta bien y manana?" She smiled back, laughed a bit and left. I guess I didn't offend her and made her understand. I think I know how frustrating it is for little children just learning to communicate feel. It's frustrating.

I could go on for hours about the people here - the people at the Soda (diner) who were so kind, the policia with no english at all who tried to help, the shop keepers. All regular people, not the ones paid to deal with tourists. The people of Costa Rica are amazing - it would be nice if we could all be a bit more like them.
Except for the construction guy across from the dentist's office who was peeing on the side of the building - that was just gross.