Feeling At Home In Costa Rica
At lunch yesterday, I dined on sweet slime and in the afternoon, I snacked on juicy fur. And that’s normal for me. Sometimes I take a look at the contents of my kitchen, and I wonder what dimension I’ve stumbled into. None of the telltale items of Erin’s shelves seem to exist anymore: I can’t find any chips, there’s no chocolate within a 10 meter radius, and tofu doesn’t even grace the shelves of the refrigerator. But it’s not really what’s missing that queues the theme to the Twilight Zone, rather it’s the things that my eyes behold that make me think someone’s secretly dropped some acid into my fresa en agua.
The fruits of Costa Rica are gargantuan by US standards and are the epitome of mouth-watering goodness. Lunch’s slime, otherwise known as granadilla (passion fruit), has an ambrosial taste that is almost enough to make you believe in miracles. The fur is actually named guaba (not guava, and there is no translation) and comes in a large seed pod which I get to crack open, Amazon-style, and hack apart. I’m contemplating the future purchase of a machete and loin cloth to properly complete the visual.
A trip to the Zapote feria (Farmers’ Market) is better than any trip to Epcot. I’m surrounded by an unknown world of exotic fruits, strange vegetables, and a plethora of scents and tastes to explore. Guineos (guineas) may look like small plantains, but they’ll stain your hands black if you’re not careful. Guanabana (soursop), better than pineapple and my favorite gustatory discovery of Costa Rica, can be so large that you fear you won’t be able to wrap your arms around it. Manzanas de agua (water apples) neither taste like apples, nor are they watery, but when in-season, grace the fruit baskets of many tico homes. Yuca (yucca), an ugly brown root-like object, looks wholly unappealing, but when boiled and buttered, you’ll find yourself next to bliss. Pejibayes (peach palm) look strange and smell even stranger, but are cooked and purchased already-prepared at every neighborhood grocery.
Food has been one of the daily reminders that I’m no longer living in the States. Each morning that I eat a granadilla and every time I salt my sour cream, I remember how lucky I am to be experiencing these little differences. Living abroad opens your eyes to new worlds. Details are what you notice and food — the substance that breathes life into us on a daily basis — is a constant reminder of what we take for granted.
Culture surrounds us and, like our own accent, we are usually unaware that we have it. We don’t understand that our hand gestures, facial expressions, and even our manners are neon signs that indicate where we come from. At least, not until we’ve left the comfort of our home culture. As much as I’d like to blend in, I am a gringa here in Costa Rica. I can dress in tico clothing, shop at tico stores, and eat tico food, but I am the outsider. For now, that’s okay. It’s only been four months. But four years down the road, it won’t be such an easy pill to swallow. I don’t enjoy sticking out like a sore thumb, I don’t want to be handed English menus at the restaurants, and I don’t like people to see me as a walking advertisement for capitalism. I want to blend.
To be honest, in the saddest sense, I’ve already started the acclamation process. I don’t carry my camera everywhere anymore, intent on capturing each precious moment. I don’t stop dead in the street to stare in awe at mountain vistas of the Central Valley. I don’t insist on smelling each orchid I pass. Some of the novelty of Costa Rica is starting to wear off. Which, while making me a bit sad, makes me happy. I’m not a tourist. This city is becoming my home, not just a extended vacation destination. And while I hope to never stop appreciating this beautiful country, I sometimes wonder if it is possible to feel normal and at home in a place that you don’t take for granted. Because when we’re home, we’re comfortable and secure. We fit in. We don’t see every cultural difference around us because it’s not different: it’s normal.
I guess I just have to look forward to the day when I take a trip to the States and marvel at how warm the sink water is, wonder at how casually-dressed the people are, and feel uncomfortable with how much personal space I’m given. Then I’ll know that I’ve truly gone tica.
Nice to see you posting again Erin.
I personally could not give up chocolate. I have a huge sweet tooth for sure.
Be sure to get some pictures of that machete and loin cloth so we can also take part in the visual
You’ve succeeded in making my mouth water.
After Europe (already planned in September), Costa Rica will be my next destination!
Hun, you are becoming a tica at heart (where it matters most) at a speedier pace than you realize.
I just finished eating dinner, but you’ve successfully made me hungry again. I’m going to have to go to Costa Rica just to try all that food.
Mmmm…guanabana. I’m glad you’re having such a great time in Costa Rica - it’s nice to see my Irmatica really happy.
However, you are wrong about something…
…Epcot totally pwns the Zapote feria.
I don’t think the food in CR is that great to be honest. I’ve lived with a family and I’ve travelled the country extensively … unless I’m in a western-oriented restaurant the chances of having rice, beans and some sort of meat are … very high. Three times a day.
PS. Your flickr photos on the side are going horizontally in Opera instead of dropping down under each other.
HI Erin… Your new webpage design is great!! the colors and the way you change your stuffs make a difference… The new “gringuitica style”
Con respecto a la variadad de comidas, es cierto que CR no tiene muchas combinaciones, como escribio Ben, pero una verdad absoluta es que la variedad de frutas y verduras y la facilidad para conseguirlas en CR es sorprendente tal vez el muchacho tuvo mala suerte en convivir con personas que no supieron explotar ese mundo de sabores que es Costa Rica.
Como decimos en CR. SALADO je je je
I can read, but I can’t write in english sorry
@Sean: I’ll be sure to do that.
@estarla: I feel like a broken record, always extolling the virtues of Costa Rica, but it really is the most beautiful, wonderful place I’ve ever been!
@Oscar: Well, thanks.
But being a tica at heart and being accepted by the average tico are two different things, unfortunately.
@Josh: You know you’re welcome!!
@Troy: When you come here, I’ll take you to the feria, and we’ll see how you feel about that!
@Ben: True, Costa Rica doesn’t have a lot of typical foods and most ticos don’t use tons of spices, but the fruit & veggie selection (as Fabian R says) is incredible. Being a mostly-vegetarian, that’s amazing for me!
@Fabi: Thanks, baby! I’m glad you like it.
@Fabian R: Sí, estoy completamente de acuerdo: a partir de gallo pinto y unos platos más, no hay mucha comida tipica. Pero me encanta la variedad de frutas y verduras y, sobre todo, conocer a nuevos! (p.d. Me encanta tu avatar!)
La carreta típica je je
Hey, I’m enjoying reading your posts… and I’m so happy you’re so happy! Can you please e-mail me back sometime? We really need to catch up about 6/16, and I’m kind of wondering where you’ve gone to!
hey lady bird. i miss guaba so much, but i miss you more. your website looks awesome. i knew i was used to CR when i walked up a hill and saw a man cutting grass with a machete and i said buenos dias and didn’t blink.
Frankly, that picture of that food lokos like a GIANT bug to me, and therefore grosses me out. I’m sure it tastes lovely though…..
@Sarah: I will email you as soon as I get my computer back, promise!
@lisa: I miss you, too! And I’ll eat some guaba, granadilla, guanabana, and all the other goodness for you. Gallo pinto, too. Come back soon!
@Linda: Haha, hush up, it really is good. And un-buglike. You know me… my mouth wouldn’t get anywhere close to something that even slightly resembled a bug!
Hola desde TIQUICIA!!! Si todavía tienes planes de venir a nuestro país, te ofrezco mi ayuda. Hace unos días atrás vi un FORUM donde pedías que te brindaran más información acerca del vocabulario que utilizamos los TICOS para comunicarnos, por lo que hoy te escribo. NO sé si estás interesada en volver a COSTA RICA, sin embrago te extiendo mi mano amiga y te deseo todo lo mejor para tu vida.
My name is Kathie. I`ve lived in Moin a pueblo 4 miles north of Limon for 8 years.I have a 2 bedroom house on the beach which I purchased for $18,000. I`m sure you`ve been warned about coming to Limon, drug capital, crime capital, blah, blah…on and on. If you really want to feel as though you are in a foreign country, come to Limon. All that talk is racism..pure and simple. It`s because we have the Highest concentration of blacks, their ancestors brought here as slaves hundreds of years ago from Africa or the Islands, jamaica, Haiti, etc..; highest concentration of Chinese, brought here centuries ago to work on building the railroads, and, of course, the highest concentration of indigenous people, descendents of the 3% of Indios that weren`t killed by the Spanish when they invaded the country. Columbus discovered Costa Rica in LIMON! If you want to discover the real history of Costa Rica, you must come to Limon. My phone number is 795-3815. Call me. We can talk more about the real roots of CR. East coast,laid back, Caribbean, purely tropical, multi cultural, with better food. It`s a a wonder to behold. Me gusta Costa Rica, pero me amo Limon. Con mucho gusto, Kathie .
It does have loads of drugs and crime. I don’t know if it’s the capital or not but it’s got a well-deserved reputation for it. It’s very indiscriminating though - the drug addicts and other assorted scum come in every colour, gender, shape and size. I never got the feeling the crack addicts and thieves were primarily black.
I lived in Limon for a month, much to the horror of my Tica family. Generally the people there are nice. I’ve gotten drunk and karaoked with the locals at a dive called Casa Blanca (near Mas x Menos) a dozen or more times and had loads of fun. They even had some Australian music which I butchered quite well. But at the end of the night I’d catch a taxi the two blocks to my hotel.
Limon is a very small town though, with more than it’s share of bad people, all of whom have nothing better to do than wait around outside your hotel, or the restaurant your eating at, or the bar you’re drinking at, or the supermarket, or whatever else, to ask or rob you for money.