@Danny: Haha, isn’t 13 an unlucky number?

@Chris: Aww shoot, and here I was planning our wedding.

@Sally: There’s almost too much to say, but if these are the kinds of books that Ryan likes, I have plenty of suggestions for you. Also, have you ever tried BookCrossing? It’s a great way to exchange books around the world for free. My neighbor does it, and she gets probably 5-10 books per month. Also, perhaps you’d like to exchange books with her, as she has a huge library and loves to swap. Lastly, have you checked out Goodlight Books in Alajuela? They have a great selection and will even order books for you.

So I just ordered the first three books in a boxed set: Ender’s Game, Ender’s Shadow, Shadow of the Hegemon. Unfortunately, it’s hard to know which books come next in a series like this since they aren’t numbered… will you tell me which are the next ones? These three will keep Ryan occupied for exactly three days. I’m going to order the Solitaire Mystery and Hitchhiker’s guide as well… he’s read the others.

I will take any and all book recommendations for my 14 year old teen boy!

Hope all is well with you. I will call you one day and we can meet up - see you. Thrilled to have these book recommendations!!!

You have quite the discussion going on here =)

Congrats!

To begin: if you read the question, Cas asked about where I would take her in the country. Golfito is hardly a tourist destination, with most of its visitors coming to take advantage of its tax-free status. If a friend came to visit, I’d take her to Manuel Antonio, the Nicoya Peninsula (¢2430), Poás (¢1145), or Cahuita (which, at ¢3060, does cost slightly more than $5).

With further regard to the un-touristy CR trip, I do not think that a McDonalds meal falls into that realm. I was, indeed, referring to “typical” foods at “typical” restaurants. There are plenty of sodas and small restaurants all over town that offer huge meals at the prices I quoted. If you’d like some advice on where to find them, I’d be more than willing to relay that information to you. Also, I can’t and won’t claim to know very much about the prices of meat, as I eat mostly vegetarian products with the occasional foray into fish and chicken. I’ll take your word that those prices are going up.

Regarding San José’s safety, there are certainly problems here. But I stand by my belief that many of these problems are the same as you’ll find in any city. Yes, there are drugs. Yes, there is corruption. Yes, there is inadequate law enforcement. Just like in my “hometown” of Philadelphia. However, San José lacks the violent crime that many other cities boast: you may get robbed, but you probably won’t have a gun pointed at you during the process.

Lastly, I can’t understand your problem with the term “locals” (if that is why you enclosed it in quotation marks). Dictionary.com defines it as “a local person or resident,” which is exactly as I intended it. And the people to whom I referred — whether you call them locals, ticos, residents, or some other term — are my friends, loved ones, and family, as well. And my discussions with my tico friends, as well as readings by several tico and non-tico authors on the subject, has highlighted to me that there is a difference between what is acceptable in the U.S. and what is acceptable here in Tiquicia. Racism exists in every corner of the world, and unless we are someday all of one color, I believe it will always exist. What changes is how and if we express it. In my experience in the U.S., people are more apt to cover their mouths and edit their thoughts. Here, not as often. That doesn’t mean the ticos are more racist (you could even argue the opposite), just that the culture is different. If you disagree with that, then I’d certainly be interested in hearing your thoughts on the matter.

San Jose to Quepos is one of the medium length bus trips. Golfito to San Jose is c4,972, (I know this is fact as the truck ate a piston Friday night near Rio Clara and we had to return via bus from Golfito).

Regarding food prices, a Big Mac, fries and a Coke is around $5.00. Casados can be cheaper at a soda, but generally speaking the cost of food here is relatively high and going higher every month, (a common complaint around the kitchen table last night). And the cost of some other things, (such as pork, chicken and beef), will soon go up, as Ticos import corn for feed from the U.S. and corn prices have gone up substantually due to the increased use of corn as a fuel. Gas and diesel prices are also high, higher than in the U.S. and the highest in Latin America.

The comparative danger in San Jose is somewhat different than in the U.S. for several reasons not the least of which is the lack of adequate law enforcement, a drug epidemic and gang violence, (ie organized crime). But also an endemic problem related to an barely controlled illegal alien immigration problem and corruption. There are many cities that are more dangerous than San Jose, Ciudad Guatemaula comes to mind, but San Jose ranks up there with some of the most dangerous.

If you wish to discuss homosexuality or morality in Latin America and your, (in my opinion), lack of understanding of the tolerence displayed here, please email me. I will try to give what insight I can.

I apologize for being so long winded. One other point I wish to make, the “locals” you refer to, some of them are my family. Some by blood, some by marriage.

Furthermore, I don’t live in Limón, but in the capital, so I won’t claim to be an expert about that region. I’m not sure if you live here or have just visited, but San José is just like any other city: exercise caution and common sense, and you probably won’t encounter problems. Yes, it’s possible that you may, but it’s the same as any city in any part of the world.

If you would like to leave another response, please feel free, but I will remind you that this is my blog and I do not allow personal attacks. State your point, but refrain from calling names or being condescending, as that is not the type of interaction that is welcome here.

@Cas: If I had to, I’d rip apart the bindings and rebind them all myself, into a qualifying version!

@Josue: Glad to hear it.

@Troy: You’re right! I should definitely take a guest to the farmers’ market.

@Arthus: About 6 or 7 years ago, I absolutely refused to buy into the Potter hype. Everyone told me to read them, but I refused because I thought they were kiddy books and I wasn’t interested. I eventually broke down, and now I love them.

@Lisa: Love you too

@Ben: Wow! Ok, here we go:

1) Well, I have 2 cats. Ender, the larger fluffy one is 5 years old and weighs about 14 pounds, or 6.35 kilos. Coco, the little one, is 4 months old and I don’t know how much he weighs. I’d guess around 4 pounds (1.8 kilos), but he’s going to be a *big* boy.

2) I chose Costa Rica because I studied here when I was younger and fell in love with the country. It’s safe and beautiful and had everything I wanted. Also, I had friends here, which made my transition easier.

3) There isn’t really food that I miss, because I like that all the cookies and candies that made me fat at home aren’t available here. Not an answer you’ll probably enjoy, :D, because this is a girl thing, but just about every North American female that I know misses OB tampons. Ticas don’t really use tampons (it’s a cultural thing) and they’re excruciatingly expensive here, as well as awful for the environment (because they produce so much waste). So that’s what I miss!

4) Costa Rica is more and less than I thought it would be. Certain things bother me that I didn’t expect, but at the same time, so many things are more than I could have imagined. And yes, I see myself staying forever.

5) I know this is going to come out wrong, but Costa Rican culture is much less politically correct than US culture and I don’t think people try to cover up their racism. I have to remind myself not to be shocked when I hear negro or chino spat at someone, especially when the “chino” is actually Korean, Japanese, or of some other ethnicity. I have trouble with the overwhelming anti-American sentiment. I can’t count the number of times I hear playo (gay) shouted at a fútbol game. All these things are *completely* unacceptable at home, but the standard here.