Newcomers to Costa Rica have to adjust to certain cultural and lifestyle habits here. A short list might include rice and beans being a breakfast staple, one-lane bridges on busy two-lane roads, milk sold at room temperature, pedestrians walking three abreast with their backs to traffic, and the difference most mentioned by first-time visitors: used toilet paper goes in the waste can and not the toilet bowl.
This is not as gross as it sounds. As long as the waste can has a lid, the odor seepage is minimal. And besides, nobody going into a bathroom to empty their bowels is worried about smells. Spray all the deodorizer you want, the stench of bodily waste never goes away completely. I once bought cinnamon-scented air freshener. I sprayed it after taking a dump. Cinnamon-scented shit is just that. The smell of fresh cinnamon will never be quite the same for me.
There is one other thing to know that is even more important than correct TP disposal, especially if you will be using any type of taxi service: No tire la puerta! Don’t slam the door!
Nothing will get you on the wrong side of cabbies faster than flinging the door shut. That slamming sound is like a hail of gunfire to their ears. Forget what you do where you come from. And if you come from the States, you likely give little thought to how hard you should close a car door.
That is one of my first observations when I visit stateside: car doors are slammed shut with gusto. Hang around a Walmart parking lot for an hour and listen, and you will hear a metal percussion symphony, a series of thumps as eager shoppers step from their cars and close them up with authority. In truth, you don’t have to hang around a Walmart parking lot to hear it, and who would want to hang around a Walmart parking lot for an hour to begin with? Sorry I suggested it.
In Costa Rica, we close the car door gently, respectfully, honoring the labor of the craftsmen who forged the mechanism that latches shut securely the car door. My Tica wife’s family are muy delicado when it comes to properly closing the car door. I was calmly called out on a few occasions for doing the gringo slam before I perfected the smooth close, soft but firm.
The trick is to maintain fingertip contact with the door and give it just a slight push as it makes contact with the door frame. When the door clicks shut without a thump, you know you have arrived.
I was once called out by a taxista for the way I shut the door. I had spent two hours in immigration and jumped in the first taxi in line. I pulled the door closed in what I thought was an acceptable manner, only to hear the magic words, “No tire la puerta.”
I was not in a good mood, and my response was to exit the taxi and really slam the door.
“Asi es como se tira la puerta!” I yelled.
I made my way to the next taxi in line, while the first driver shouted a stream of insults that included pendejo, my personal favorite put-down word in Español.
In retrospect, the driver was right. I acted like a pendejo.
So when using a taxi, don’t be a pendejo like Don Mateo was in that instance. Take heed of the No Tire La Puerta sign. Enjoy Costa Rica and be careful how you close that car door!
Read more of Don Mateo’s writing from his newly published ebook.
