Choques Culturales

There are some definite choques culturales when visiting Costa Rica. One of the biggest things, for me, is the toilets. The plumbing here can’t handle paper, so most of the t.p. gets thrown into baskets next to the toilets. Additionally, no public place has toilet paper. People carry it around in their purses. Today I went to the grocery store (Mas x Menos) and I about died of shock when I saw toilet paper.


Another thing is the food. While I am loving the food, I don’t think that I’ve ever eaten so many beans in my life. Yesterday for breakfast we had gallo pinto, a typical dish of beans, rice, cilantro and something else. Every meal has rice too. Antonieta, my señora, is a great cook. Yesterday, she made something out of nothing but veggies and cheese and it was so good. There are also tons of types of bananas here, each with a different use. The fruit here is out of this world. I don’t think that I will ever be able to eat a pineapple in the USA again because it won’t measure up.


Cena rica de Antonieta


The last thing that has been a shock to me is the language. Yes, they speak Spanish here, but it is very different from the Spanish I’ve learned from my time in Spain. They always use the formal Ud. for “you,” even with babies and animals. Also, they don’t use commands. Instead, they use a more roundabout way of telling someone to do something. They also write accents in weird spots. I don’t know why. My familia tica has told me that they can tell that I studied in Spain. I don’t have the “lisp” of Spain, but I definitely have a ton of Spain in my pronunciation.

Notice how it says Ponete and not Ponte


Lastly, be prepared for rain here. Lots and lots of rain. Today on the way back from Mas x Menos, my pants got soaked and my sandal kept falling off because I was walking uphill in the rain!