San Ramon Costa Rica Travel Blog

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Renato
2008-05-29 21:00:00
Most people visiting Costa Rica marvel at it's great surfing beaches, volcanos, rainforests, nature etc. Yet, there is another level of beauty. While many people in the USA, or "developed world," are not satisfied though they have SO much; many Ticos exhude a gratefulness for all they have, even those with limited resources. One feels it in the daily life on the streets of San Ramon. People just smile more in San Ramon and move slower through their lives.Renato is a great San Ramon character. He's an older guy who feels content with less than most people. He says easily, " if I have rice and beans, a pack of smokes, C1000/$2 in my pocket, a tin roof over my head and a water spigot ... I'm happy. " Life can be simpler to enjoy with less possessions to manage.Renato is scared of doctors and avoids visits if possible. While waiting in the San Ramon hospital in a 1st floor exam room for the doctor to come in, he climbed out the window before the exam claiming he felt much better. Th...

Bajo Caliente - San Juan de San Ramon - Recreation
2008-04-27 15:11:00
One of my favorite places to spend some leisure time in San Ramon is Bajo Caliente . Locals come for many different reasons and the variety of things to do, make it special.There is a nice swimming pool with a mesh roof for an indoor/outdoor feeling. Weekends and school vacations are busy times. I often go on weekday mornings and it feels like my own private club. There are swimming classes for children and hydro-spinning exercise classes. For people watching and socializing, the grassy hill outside the pool is filled with sexy beautiful people, catching some rays and checking each other out.Bajo Caliente also has a soccer field. Local teams and friends rent the field for weekly games. Their friends and family cheer them on and make a nice scene.The bar / restaurant is one of the largest in San Ramon. It is covered but open air with people of all ages. They serve bocas, small plates of food for about C1000/$2. Their wood fired roast chicken is one of the specialties along with cerv...
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ICE - Costa Rica Telephone and Electric Service
2008-04-18 01:35:00
In Costa Rica , the government has a monopoly for providing telephone and electric service. It has pros and cons and there is much debate on this changing in the future. On the pro end, it is very affordable for everyone to have the basic services. My monthly bills are about $6 a month each for telephone and electric in my home. In the USA, my minimum can be 10 times this amount. This is a great thing to have inexpensive access for all. Universal access can also be seen in health care and higher education which is clearly not the case in the USA The other side of government monopoly is it might take a month or even years to get phone service in some areas. The ongoing experience at an ICE office are long lines and not always the best customer service. High speed internet is rolling out very slowly in much of Costa Rica. Also, international calls are much more expensive from Costa Rica than from the USA. Thank God for Skype as a free or very cheap alternative for global communication....
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Our Second Coffee Harvest in El Empalme San Ramon
2008-03-28 17:11:00
As someone who has spent most of his life in cities and college towns, it remains an unexpected turn to own an organic coffee and fruit farm. These are THE crops of Costa Rica and before tourism and foreign investment became such a powerful part of the economy, coffee and bananas ruled.My farm in El Empalme has an amazing ocean view and the sunset in the Pacific is an inspiring experience. El Empalme is one of the highest altitudes in the area making it ideal for coffee farming. It is also part of Costa Rican history. During the revolution that formed the modern Costa Rican state, El Empalme was where the rebels gained their strategic advantage over the government troops below due to its long views both towards Puntarenas and the Central Valley. A former Costa Rican President and San Ramon ?s most famous citizen Jose Figueres had a weekend home in El Empalme. Figueres was an intellectual leader and one of the many architects of the modern Costa Rica who considered San Ramon their hom...
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Where the Streets Have No Name ....and the Houses Have No Numbers
2008-03-19 02:55:00
In San Ramon, and most of Costa Rica (except San Jose), the streets have no names and the houses have no numbers. It makes asking directions and finding places comical and a true adventure. Every location is identified as a certain number of meters from a known landmark. In the era of Big Brother, the Costa Rican address system feels protective of your privacy and anonymity but also slow, impractical and difficult.As an answer to my question for directions, a person will come outside and say something like ? go to the big tree and then go 180 meters, make a left and when you see an old man in a chair on his porch go 50 meters and you are there. Also, people use references of store names that have changed years ago and impossible for the novice to know. But of course everyone is really helpful, smiling and friendly.My partners Pablo and Mary were the first and for many years the only Tourist Information spot in San Ramon. They have saved many a lost foreigner and Costa Rican. Our off...
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My Vacation in the Snow
2008-03-05 00:46:00
It was time to take a short break out of Costa Rica. We landed at JFK in NYC at 2AM just as a major snowstorm was materializing. We were one of the last flights that landed. Wow! After leaving the 70's and sunny San Ramon. Contrast.There was 9 inches of snow in the NYC area as we drove a rental car to Ithaca at 3AM. The good news was there were few cars on the road; the bad news was that we couldn't see much of the road as the snow was piling up. It all ended well as we arrived in Ithaca after our 9 hour drive that normally takes 5 hours.It's been fun being in Ithaca and we're heading for a few days in NYC. Back to Costa Rica on Friday after 2 weeks vacationing in NYS. I loved reading the NY Times, eating Chinese, Thai and Pizza and seeing friends and family. pero/but it's been very cold and snowy. People are mostly in their houses or cars ... not much street life.We are flying back on Taca (www.taca.com) which feels better than flying with the majors. On our flight here, the...
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Puerto Viejo - The Other Side of Costa Rica
2008-02-22 01:29:00
Here in San Ramon, people live by the wisdom of living in the mild weather of the Central Valley and vacationing at the beach. Most locals and tourists visit the Pacific beaches such as Samara, Jaco, Tamarindo or Manuel Antonio but the Caribbean beaches are a whole other experience ? and worth the trip.The Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica is not Latin, but rather settled by Black and Indigenous peoples. Much of the Caribbean feels like a different country with a culture and vibe in contrast to the typical Tico lifestyle in the rest of Costa Rica. Even the language is different with many locals speaking a Creole version of English, rather than Spanish. At the mid-point between the large port city of Limon and the Panama border to the south is Puerto Viejo, a laid-back beach town that lacks the megabuck development of the Guanacaste Pacific Coast. The lack of large-scale development, does not necessarily mean inexpensive (for Costa Rica), but the scale remains small and personal.To make ...
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Costa Rica Real Estate... San Ramon Style
2008-02-01 20:37:00
While the economy has become more global in nature, real estate tends to reflect more local factors. The news from the U.S. is dominated by foreclosures, the subprime mortgage mess and home values plunging in many areas. Costa Rica on the other hand has a booming real estate market with strong demand as the world discovers this special country. Until recently most of the boom was at the beach, especially the Guanacaste region on the Pacific Ocean and suburbs of San Jose like Escazu. The prices there started to look more like those in the developed world with little local culture to speak of. English and dollars became predominant and the international scene seemed like it could have been in any number of continents or countries. This is my 7th year living in San Ramon and when I got here, I could count the number of English speakers around town on one hand. Having experienced every part of Costa Rica and every country in Central America, this Central Valley town clearly won my heart...
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Watching the NFL Playoffs and Super Bowl in Costa Rica
2008-01-22 17:48:00
In Costa Rica there is only one sport ? soccer/futbol. So, watching the NFL is an exotic mysterious thing for Ticos. For me, and a very small group of friends, it is a pleasure when it is time for the NFL playoffs and Super Bowl . Here?s an idea of what it?s like?Last Saturday, after a hard day of working, I went home to watch the Patriots and Jaguars game but things don?t always turn out as planned. When I arrived home and popped a beer, I discovered that my cable was not working and there was zero reception. I assumed it was out only in my house or neighborhood so we raced into town to watch the game at Club d?Amigos only to learn when I arrived that cable was out in the entire city of San Ramon? Bummer!! My friend Fito and the other old men at the bar convinced us that the only thing to do was have a few drinks, relax and enjoy the night. At halftime, the cable suddenly returned and it ended up being a very cool night. We watched the second half at the Club, explaining the rules ...
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My Old Fashioned Barber Shop
2008-01-08 23:15:00
In the USA, I often hear people lamenting the closing of small personal businesses as corporations make it hard to compete. Once a way of life has passed, it will probably never return.As a boy in Brooklyn, NY, I remember going to the barbershop on Nostrand Ave. with my father, a classic bonding experience. The old barbers, Augie, Noah and Mooney would ply their trade and men and boys shared the ritual. This is before unisex shops, $100 haircuts and hip stylists. Here in San Ramon unisex shops and high style are easy to find. I prefer the old fashioned barbershop ?? where masters Pibo and Paco have cut hair for decades. The estrogen free zone has big leather barber chairs and wood floors. The atmosphere is right out of the 50?s or early 60?s with no hint of modern life. They use long straight razors for shaves with nice warm lather. They use their scissors with confidence. There is no music playing and no hint of the world outside. When they put you all the way back in the chair, it...
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Christmas = Summer in San Ramon, Costa Rica
2007-12-18 02:45:00
While there?s something charming about a white Christmas , it?s way overrated. I barely escaped a week of snow and ice storms in Upstate NY to return to the mild weather and festive Latino scene here in San Ramon . Our partners Pablo and Mary welcomed us back as family and our neighbors and friends shout their greetings as we walk the streets of San Ramon. After 6+ years here, I feel accepted as a Ramonenese (San Ramon person) and more like a visitor in my home of origin. This year all the trees in the central park are decorated with lights as local businesses each adopted and outfitted a tree to decorate and make a beautiful nighttime glow in the center of town.Last week, cultural festivities kicked off with a performance in the big Church of Handel?s Messiah by The Costa Rica National Symphony and National Chorus. Although this isn?t my kind of music, the acoustics were awesome and a good time was had by all. Like many cultural events here, it was free and open to all supported by t...
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Reverse Blog ... Ithaca, NY ... Winter Wonderland!
2007-12-07 22:00:00
I will be heading back to summertime in San Ramon, Costa Rica in a few days. My tradition for the last 8 years has been to spend Thanksgiving with friends and family in Ithaca and NYC and then leave as winter begins. Each place has much to offer, but the cold, darkness and snow are better to be enjoyed from a distance. My house in Ithaca is ready for winter. My tenants, Cristian and Josh, allow me to feel mostly burden free when I am gone. I live in the City of Ithaca in the Fall Creek neighborhood, just 2 blocks from Ithaca Falls, a monstrous natural wonder. Winter is funny as ice formations shine while the water flows loudly.Downtown Ithaca had a festival this week with huge ice sculptures on display. Activities like this get people to come out of their houses and forget how cold it really is. I love my friends and neighbors here but from my perspective, it seems crazy to spend 4 months isolated, freezing etc. when summer is beginning in San Ramon.I am returning to summer in San R...
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Our (Quasi) Secret Hot Springs
2007-11-14 18:04:00
My friend Jimmy, Janet and I all realize we have to keep some things a bit of a secret. While my recent blog shared Playa Samara as our favorite beach and 2-3 day excursion from San Ramon ... the hot springs is our most popular day trip and even better overnight stay. We talk about our favorite hot springs and while we enjoy sharing it with newcomers, we also don't want it to get over commercialized and overrun.Just an 1 1/2 hour drive from San Ramon, near Ciudad Quesada, is this magical and relaxing place. I have visited about 15-20 times in the last 6+ years. After checking in, you hike about 10 minutes down through the jungle on a stone path and on handmade bridges until you hit the pools. The setting, the hike and the water immediately slow down your mind and relax your body. Within minutes, aches and pains are gone and you feel fresh and clean. The hot springs consist of 5-6 different areas each one successively hotter than the last. The pools are in a natural setting of fores...
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My Personal Funny Globalization Anecdote
2007-10-24 23:34:00
I don?t consider myself a funny person but when I met my first and best friend here in San Ramon, Pablo Hidalgo ? making him laugh was a joyful part of our time together. Now, many years later, our friendship has deepened and the laughs are a regular part of our day. Here in San Ramon, making people smile and laugh is held in higher regard than showing how smart or knowledgeable you are.The other day my Chinese friend Kenneth asked us to take a look at a property he owns and try to help him sell it. Kenneth speaks no English (although he plays excellent English music at his bar Sol Naciente) and I speak no Chinese. Our mini global group got in the car and Kenneth and I did the talking ? him speaking Spanish with a Chinese accent while I spoke Spanish with my North American one. Pablo, the quintessential Ramonense couldn?t stop laughing at the 2 of us. He said listening to the 2 of us speaking our non ? native Spanish, was hilarious and surreal.He said he had never heard a Spanish c...
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Bargain Airfares to Costa Rica
2007-10-06 14:42:00
While most of my blogs are about the people and places of San Ramon and Costa Rica , the first step to discovering Costa Rica is getting there. I just got an email from American Airlines with some of the best fares I have ever seen. As of yesterday, there were still seats available for travel between October 1st and December 6th from many U.S. destinations at these crazy prices, not including taxes:Newark to San Jose, Costa Rica at $188.00 Orlando To San Jose, Costa Rica at $148.00Washington, D.C. to San Jose, Costa Rica at $209.00Follow this link to the American Airlines website for more information on the Costa Rican air fares sale: www.aa.comAnd when you land in Costa Rica, come visit us in San Ramon.... Follow this link for directions:www.costaricapm.comPura Vida and hopefully I'll see you soon in San Ramon, Costa Rica.
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Samara Beach.....Playa Samara
2007-09-06 16:34:00
While many foreigners are buying up land and houses at the beach, my San Ramon friends always share their wisdom of living in San Ramon (the mountains) and vacationing at the beach. There is some special connection between Samar a and San Ramon for many Ramonense (San Ramon folks). Many families from San Ramon also have houses at Samara and the standard joke is during Christmas or Semana Santa you can find more of your friends in Samara than at home in San Ramon. After experiencing over 50 Costa Rican beaches, Samara is still my favorite one to spend a few days.While there's much more of a scene in Tamarindo and Jaco, I prefer vacationing in Samara.The opening a few years back of a new bridge has shortened the ride and in 3-3.5 hours, I'm in a different world...a beautiful one. While development has overwhelmed many of the Pacific beaches, Samara retains much of it's magic even though you can see the development emerging on all the hillsides.Luckily, we've made friends with local...
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My Favorite and Only 99 Year Old Friend
2007-08-04 04:11:00
Wow! Great Great Grandma Inez just celebrated her 99th birthday. She has 5 generations all around her and stands about 4ft. 9 inches of beauty. In this era of botox and plastic surgery, her wrinkles are her loveliness and her mind is 100% clear. She enjoys Janet and my visits and when she hugs us, she holds on and doesn?t let go. While seniors in the USA live in retirement communities, assisted living and nursing homes, Inez lives in the same neighborhood where she grew up in downtown San Ramon. Women are the glue in Costa Rican culture with Mommies the stars, Inez is a matriarch for the ages. She told me she has 6 children, 22 grandchildren, 45 great grandchildren and 2 great great grandkids. The childless 52-year old man that I am stands amazed ? I guess the 2 of us balance out populating the planet in some wild way. As we hung out on her porch, lots of family walked by composing many generations shouting their affection. Both of my dead grandmothers were born in 1900 and lived un...
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My 7th Winter (6 years) in San Ramon, Costa Rica
2007-07-13 18:57:00
Winter is clearly a relative global concept. Here in San Ramon, winter means temperatures in the 70?s ?. fresco. After 25 years of New York State winters ? snow, freezing temps, days without sunlight ? I?ll take this anytime.Without freezing temperatures and extreme swings of light and darkness, there are 2 seasons in San Ramon with little variance of hot and cold. There is basically 12 hours a day of both daylight and darkness year-round. The winter is characterized by a few hours a day of rain most afternoons?.while summer has months at a time of sunny days with no rain. My Ithaca, NY life has darkness at 4:30PM in December and 9PM in July which puts a real strain on my body and emotions. I feel healthy and balanced here. My summer visits to Ithaca, NY are now totally exhausting by 8PM and I try to avoid winter visits for obvious reasons.Many Ticos prefer the winter season here as everything is lush and intensely green with plants and other species boldly alive. For travelers, it?...
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Guide to San Ramon
2007-06-20 15:45:00
Check out my new Guid e to San Ramon 's hotels, restaurants, shops and things to do and see. Here is the link:www.sanramon-costarica.com

The World is Flat
2007-05-17 18:05:00
Living here in Costa Rica in Spanish allows me to be right in the Tico culture. It also tires me out by the end of the day. Like many ex-pats, having some great reads in English is a nice relaxing treat. As a New York Times devotee for most of my life, I easily devoured The World is Flat by Times writer Thomas Friedman. I recommend The World is Flat as a must read for anybody wanting a big life that sees the possibility to utilize the whole world no matter where you are geographically. People no longer have to be in the same location to share information and collaborate. You no longer have to be a huge corporation to have an impact on people all over the world. An individual person's creativity allows growth, not just the amount of money one throws at a situation. This book basically describes our International life and the life of a blogger (as well as many other situations).What a different world. I guess I'm old as I can remember living in a world without the internet and cell ...

Drinking The First Organic Coffee From Our Farm
2007-04-29 16:59:00
It still seems way outside probability that I would ever own an organic coffee farm in Costa Rica. From my roots in Brooklyn and Ithaca NY, this has been a long journey in many ways. This year, we have over 50 lbs. of coffee to enjoy and share with friends and family. We've been told a few hundred pounds of coffee is just a few harvests away.We turned the farm organic this year, lessening our yield while we learned about the plants and trees on our hillside acre. The banana, plantano, limon, orange, mango and other trees are trimmed and next year we should have a larger coffee yield and make better use of the fruit which shades the coffee.The good news...the quality of our coffee is excellent. We brought our picked coffee to my friend Martin Rodriquez who is both an organic coffee farmer and also has a small roasting operation. Whereas with the San Ramon Coop, which mixes coffee beans from many local farms, Martin could keep all our beans separate and it is always fun hanging with ...
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Riteve : Costa Rica Car Inspection
2007-04-14 05:00:00
Costa Rica has a national system of annual car inspection called Riteve. Having a current Riteve sticker allows you to drive confidently and legally. It is a common experience which makes me feel like I really live here. Both of our 2 experiences at Riteve were weird and notable.While many people think moving to Costa Rica is about living in a country with no army, ecotourism, seeing lava at Volcano Arenal, surfing at Malpais/Santa Teresa or doing the canopy tour at Monteverde ..... getting your car inspected is more indicative of day to day Costa Rica life.The process starts out impressively smooth and logical as you make your Riteve appointment on the internet choosing place, date and time. We did our first inspection in Alajuela. They said our emissions didn't pass the test, but that was the least of our issues. By the time we had worked our way through the inspectors' paces, one of the technicians destroyed our brakes. We had to drive home using the handbrake to stop. Last wee...
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House Construction and Renovation in San Ramon, Costa Rica
2007-03-23 19:27:00
Building or renovating a house in Costa Rica is a wild adventure, a very different process than a non-native might expect. Janet and I are pleased and proud to be nearing the completion of the renovations to our house in El Empalme, just outside San Ramon. The community of El Empalme, with possibly the best ocean views in the San Ramon area and it?s friendly people, has been a fabulous discovery that has been the source of many joys and an equal amount of lessons.When we found this house, we knew this was a special site. The near total renovation put us through many highs and lows. After one year and some false starts with more than one contractor, we found our crew: Christopher, Guillermo, Jose Angel, and Victor. From that point on, things rocked on all fronts. Our crew did great work and together we created a fun work environment with trust and respect in all directions. The house is looking and feeling great. Check out our listings page at www.costaricapm.com for more pics and in...
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Back in San Ramon
2007-03-17 01:20:00
It?s a relief and pleasure to be back in San Ramon after 3 weeks in snowy, freezing New York State. My body was stiff, cold and never really relaxed in the cold winter weather. But more than that, the vibe is so different in my 2 hometowns. Life in the USA feels under pressure 24/7 in some way that you can?t quantify but certainly affects everyone there. My first day back in San Ramon it felt like someone took the pressure out of many aspects of life. My daily walks to town keep me balanced and living life at the proper pace. It is easy and normal to return to Pura Vida ?The daily 80-degree weather overwhelmingly affects my mental and physical well being. My neighbors and friends are not rushing around and their greetings and smiles are real and infectious. The nearly 4000 ft. altitude, daily sunshine and moderate temperatures make life easy to embrace.Eating fresh shrimp, mussels and fish in my favorite restaurants for under $2 a plate nourishes me. For under $5, I returned from th...
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Taking a Break from San Ramon
2007-03-02 01:51:00
It is time to take a break from San Ramon and experience New York City and Ithaca for a few weeks. There's lots of snow on the ground and it's cold, dark and a little scary. I had fun with my 8 year old nephew Daniel in Brooklyn who seems to enjoy hanging with his uncle. I managed to eat Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Mexican, falafel, pizza, bagels and lox and every other ethnic food favorite that defines the New York culinary scene. Walking the streets of NYC and looking at the people is a fun contrast to San Ramon and Costa Rica. Topping the days off with reading the NY Times and living in English was nice for awhile. Did I mention how cold, snowy and expensive it was here?Manana, I return to San Ramon. We left our crew to work while we were away. There are 4 contractors renovating a house, a Nicaraguan family improving the farm and Rosario and Ivania cleaning and watching our property. And then there's Oscar who drives by the farm on his tractor many times a day and makes me laugh ...
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Lunch in the Parque Central
2007-02-20 17:40:00
It's cool to just hang out in the Parque Central , the heart of the city. I'm always amazed at how many people are just sitting, talking to their friends and taking in life. There's not many places in the world where the weather rarely gets hot or cold and people don't consider work or rushing around as the defining aspect of their life.February is the beginning of the school year so today the park was filled with hordes of uniformed school kids bursting with energy. Each group seems to have their bench or location and it's quite a lively scene throughout the day.Janet and I also ran into our friend David who works at our building supply store Gema taking his lunch hour hanging in the park with his co-workers.Anybody can pass their life away as a workaholic grabbing a few brass rings along the way. My friends and neighbors in San Ramon make an art form of enjoying life. I've learned a lot from them and enjoyed my afternoon walking to town, choosing a bench and enjoying the scen...
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Coffee Harvest
2007-02-15 15:03:00
Owning an organic coffee and fruit farm in El Empalme, San Ramon, Costa Rica is just about the last thing I ever would have imagined. This week was our first coffee harvest. The reality of the opportunity and responsibility that comes with owning a coffee farm blew our minds. We have the privilege to nurture the farm and help the community.Don Alejandro and his family appeared out of nowhere and asked if they could pick our coffee and work on the farm. They are a poor Nicaraguan family looking for an opportunity. It?s just the beginning but using the resources of the farm to help our neighbors should be quite a trip. We have a few hundred pounds of coffee beans that we brought to my friend Martin Rodriguez to dry, process and roast. In about 2 months OUR first organic coffee harvest will be ready to drink. The day following coffee harvest, Don Alejandro said for the health of our 6 lemon trees, he wanted to bring in the limons. I was shocked and pleased to see 600 limons in a half a...
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My New Machete
2007-02-11 19:53:00
I just celebrated a birthday and usually avoid gifts, etc. This year there was one thing I wanted. Janet bought me an 18-inch machete with lovely leather case. Now that I own a small farm filled with fruit, coffee and lush tropical plants, I wanted a machete to carve out my place. It was a blast holding them and trying to figure out size shape etc. It was kinda like a baseball player picking out a bat. My only past machete experience was walking the nightime streets of Managua, Nicaragua a few years back My local host said that after someone stole the chocolate cake he was eating, he always armed himself at night. I wielded it on our walk home. Luckily, we arrived without incident. It would have been hard to explain why a peaceful guy from New York was walking the dangerous Managua streets brandishing a huge machete.I'm hoping for a lifetime of mellow peaceful experiences with my new birthday present, cutting down fruit and carving paths through my lush farm in El Empalme outside o...
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My Dinner With Juan
2007-02-09 00:47:00
I met Juan a number of years ago when he was the head teller at Banco Popular. At 25 years old, he was half the age of many of those working under his supervision. Juan would help me in English in order to practice. Over time, he would be anticipating my bank stops, saving up lists of words and idioms for translation. Now he works for Proctor and Gamble in San Jose, a prestigious job in Costa Rica, and during our dinner we both spoke about the challenges of living in two cultures. There are huge and numerous differences that we both see from our outsider vantage point of a foreigner living in another culture.When he calls Cincinnati, and asks his suppliers how they are, they often respond with, ?Not too bad.? There are only two answers for most Ticos to ?How are you?? ? Todo Bien or Pura Vida. For a Costa Rican to even have the word bad in your answer is socially unacceptable, Juan was trained at P & G to give great service to ?go the extra mile.? This is a new concept for him. In ...
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Mi Destino/My Destiny in San Ramon, Costa Rica
2007-02-09 00:40:00
This will be my 6th Christmas season living in San Ramon, Costa Rica . Wow...I have grown, changed, been at emotional highs and lows ... and truly spent my years 45-51 experiencing things that I never imagined for myself. I'm thankful to the Ramonense (San Ramon natives) for taking me in and making me comfortable in this special town and country. While the differences began as English/Spanish, snow/sun, expensive/inexpensive. I now feel the subtler differences... the ones that take awhile to get. Living in the present is a spiritual pursuit in the 1st World, while here it is intrinsically a part of life. A comical and sometimes difficult reality is that it's hard to make plans with people for days or even hours in the future. Punctuality and efficiently productive days are not a big part of the culture. When I walk down the street I shake hands with all my men friends and kiss all the ladies. This takes priority over rushing to accomplish and puts a smile on my face. Another way o...
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