Pura Vida

Judy. I have to be honest enough to tell you that coming to Costa Rica would not have ordinarily been in our game plan. I had been there many years ago with a travel agent acquaintance, and had spent four days in an all-inclusive resort, with occasional forays to the Volcano Arenal, casinos, and shops, and didn’t want to repeat that experience. I might as well have been in Florida. Costa Rica is definitely a tourist destination, and expensive in many ways. These are things many people enjoy, but not for Ted and me. 

 However, in spring of 2021, almost fully vaccinated, we were ready to hit the road again. There just weren’t that many countries willing to accept visitors. Costa Rica was one, so Ted began to research what we might enjoy doing there. He found that, while still not a cheap place to visit, April was the end of the tourist season, and if we were careful, we could find a place that matched our ideal spot: a small, but vibrant town, with opportunities to explore, and only enough tourists to make those opportunities available. And so here we are in Uvita. 

 It was not an auspicious beginning. Driving down we stopped in the surfing town of Dominical—very touristy. We got burned at a restaurant with overpriced, overcooked Mahi Mahi, and saw stands of rows of identical t-shirts and beach blankets, probably manufactured in some other country. Yikes! What had we done! 

 But then we got to Uvita, turned onto a country road and found Alegría Tropical, our home for three weeks. 

Alegría Tropical

 Our little house is just outside town, about four blocks from the Parque Nacional Marino Ballena beach. We have a pool, and across the road is a pasture filled with cattle, although new construction is all around us. This is an ideal surfing area. We’re a short driving distance to the supermarket and various restaurants and sodas (small family eating establishments—cheaper than restaurants). 

 

Dishwashing soap and jam 

Our first trip to the BM Supermercado (and the name enough was to give us pause) sent us into price shock until we realized that if it was imported, like peanut butter, the cost was extravagant, but if you learned to cook like a Tico (Costa Rican), you could eat fairly cheaply. That evening we scoured the Internet for recipes, and I made my first batch of Gallo Pinto (literally Speckled Rooster), a delicious combo of rice, black beans, red peppers, onion and garlic—and the ever-present Lizano sauce. We’ve eaten it at breakfast (traditional), as a side dish, as tacos. 

The good life

 I had scored some mangoes at the car rental agency in Liberia, and we bought pineapple, watermelon, and bananas from roadside stands. Yes, we’ve splurged on cookies, but mostly we’ve been able to keep life simple and tasty. 

 As in our other destinations, we don’t go exploring every day. We walk the neighborhood toward the beach and the troop of howler monkeys, enjoy the birds that visit the yard, walk up the road to catch a glimpse of the mama and baby sloth who live in the trees, and listen for the coatimundi who’s building a nest on our roof. We expect babies soon. Occasionally we drive to a beach for a long walk, or make plans to see a waterfall, but mostly we’ve just settled into life. The sights and sounds are a gift in themselves. 

Pura vida, mis amigos. Pura vida.