Recently, I was hiking in the mountains along Costa Rica’s Southern Pacific Coast. The trail went from gravel road, to horse track, to narrow jungle path… until I realized I was temporarily lost.
The squawk of loras (parrots) pierced the morning air, and somewhere in the distance I heard rushing water. Retracing my steps, I eventually found my way out. Almost getting lost in the jungle was a first for me, but it made me wonder—was this something other people here had experienced too?
That thought led me to reflect on the many “only in Costa Rica” moments—some I’ve lived through, some I’ve just heard about. I decided to turn them into a kind of life in Costa Rica checklist.
Give yourself one point for every item you’ve experienced:
The Costa Rica Experience Checklist
While living in Costa Rica, have you ever…
- Gotten lost while hiking
- Been caught in a rainstorm while outdoors (hiking, biking, golfing, etc.)
- Been caught in a rip current in the ocean
- Had your travel plans interrupted by strikers blocking the roads
- … by landslides
- … by floods
- … by volcanic eruptions
- … by earthquakes
- Been on a bus that broke down
- Been in a car that broke down
- Had a mechanic come to your broken-down car and fix it on the spot
- Felt an earthquake strong enough to break glassware in your house
- Felt an earthquake that shook the building you were in
- Felt an earthquake that made you run for cover
- Been injured while doing physical activity
- Been hospitalized
- Had surgery in a private hospital
- Had surgery in a public hospital
- Been robbed
- Had sex with a Tico/a
- Paid for sex with a Tico/a
- Bought drugs on the street
- Bought drugs in a pharmacy
- Gotten an injection in the back room of a pharmacy
- Paid off a Transito to avoid a ticket
- Paid off a building inspector
- Paid off a government official
- Been arrested
- Spent time in a Costa Rican jail
- Gone to your country’s embassy
- Gone to your embassy broke and asked for help with a flight home
- Bought a house
- Built a house
- Sold a house
- Abandoned a house
- Eaten at a soda while seated on homemade wooden stools
- Watched an entire soccer game
- Watched an entire soccer game and understood everything that happened
- Ridden a ferry
- Flown in-country
- Married a Tico/a
- Had children born here
- Raised children here (who were born elsewhere)
- Been to a Tico wedding
- Been to a Tico funeral
- Gotten into an argument in Spanish
Scoring Your Costa Rica Life
My own score was 33.
- If you scored higher than that, chances are you’ve been here for quite a while and know the country well.
- A lower score likely means you’re newer to Costa Rica—or maybe you just don’t venture out of your gated community very often.
- And if you somehow said “Yes” to all 46? Well, you’re either lying… or a true degenerate.
Pura Vida!
