Thursday, 21 August, 2008
I´m limping around but I am starting to feel better. I managed a walk in Parques Espana and Morazon early this morning. It wasn´t yet seven and already there were tonnes of people on their way to work. I understand that in Costa Rica they have a 48 hour work week, and people generally begin work at seven in the morning and finish at around five. It makes a lot of us here in Canada look pretty soft, doesn´t it? I walked past three guys seated on a bench, and they tried to start a conversation with me. Having been warned that this is how thefts and assaults are often initiated against tourists in San Jose, and being highly visible as a white guy I wasn´t going to take chances so I replied, ¨No tengo la hora¨, or I don´t have time and limped away as fast as I could. This is something that I don´t like having to do, because my natural instinct is to be friendly and not wary towards strangers, and for all I know they might have had the most innocent of intentions. Well, sadly, this I am never going find out. Then on the street a very serene looking Tica matron was looking up admiringly at the parakeets in one of the trees and we agreed that they are very lovely. The mornings here always start out as sunny and hot, and the clouds and rain usually come in the afternoon. Following breakfast I ventured out to buy a newspaper and find a cafe to read it in. Then, when I was halfway there, I realized that I had forgotten to put my valuables into the security box in the hotel, so here I was wandering in downtown San Jose carrying with me my wallet, my bank card, my passport, my traveller´s cheques and my cash, all $3,000 that I still have with me. Talk about feeling vulnerable. I nearly returned to the hotel to secure everything, but I decided then and there that I am not going to live in a state of seige while I am here, and I am in a relatively safe area of downtown. So, I decided to not worry about it, enjoyed the newspaper and the Spanish practice, enjoyed the coffee and I enjoyed the cafe. When I left the cafe I noticed a crowd forming around something. I looked more carefully and there was a young street guy with a cop pinned to the pavement, and another cop trying to pull him off. He succeeded and was putting handcuffs on the street guy who was screaming his head off . There is quite a strong police presence downtown. I have noticed that a lot of the cops don´t appear Costa Rican, having darker skin, and looking more like they could be from Nicaragua or Honduras. The Ticos have long bragged about being the whitest people in Central America, and I´m like, who cares anyway. Research has since popped that little myth, and it turns out that most of them are 40 to 60 per cent indigenous. In fact, the living conditions of indigenous Costa Ricans, it turns out, is one of this country´s many dirty little secrets, though as a white Canadian I really have nothing to crow about here. Like our own First Nations people those of Costa Rica live in abysmal poverty. After this I stopped at the local supermarket, returned to the hotel and there put everything, not including the groceries, into my security box. I was in one of the nicer cafes, which, like many dining establishments in San Jose, has a smoking section. It wasn´t that traumatic, but I wish they´d get their act together on this one. On the other hand it is very easy to judge any new place that we are visiting by the standards that we are used to at home. It´s okay to be annoyed, and I don´t have to approve of what I see, but it also helps to keep a sense of proportion, and a sense of humour, eh?
Now that I am past the halfway point of my stay in this country, this seems like a good time to evaluate my visit so far. As I was determined to I have gotten to know somewhat the city of San Jose and surrounding area. It has been in some ways a rude awakening but I came here expecting this. So far I seem to be fulfilling my purpose in being here. I have concluded that I could never live here, nor that it would be necessary, so the spell that this country has had over me is broken. I have also tracked down the local Anglican church, and I have visited outlying areas of interest. I have also come across some pleasant hidden surprises in this city. Also, given the rudimentary living conditions of the hotel I am in, the noise, the shared facilities and the culture shock and language difficulties I think I´ve held up very well under the pressures so far, though I still have nearly two weeks left ahead of me to crack, and there is still no telling what kinds of reactions I could experience once I have returned home. This has been invaluable for getting me out of the comfortable rut I have established for myself in Vancouver, and to see what I can bring back home with me that can positively enhance the way I live, and the way I influence those with whom I am in contact. I also think that I will return to Vancouver with a fresh appreciation of what I have in this city. I just hope that my Spanish will have improved.
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