Author: vivitronv

Open-Ended Experience Trumps All-Inclusive

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This post was originally published in January 2014 in a local publication in Verona, WI.  It follows the experiences and adventures of Costa Rica Frika founder, Dustin, in Costa Rica.  Enjoy!

A little more than a week ago, I married the girl of my dreams. Now, I find myself in Panama City, lounging next to her at the pool, sipping mojitos, and working on my tan. I can smell the sirloin steak coming from the kitchen; it will be my dinner in a few hours time. After that, perhaps I’ll go down to the casino or ask the concierge for a good nightclub to go to. There is no doubt in my mind that it will be a classy night. After all, Donald Trump also has a building named after him in this city.

Newlyweds
¡Newlyweds!

Three days later, back in my home in neighboring Costa Rica, I counted all the luxury hotels, five course meals, room services, and ten dollar drinks and wondered if I had made a mistake. No, Mom, don’t panic… I definitely married the girl of my dreams, but our honeymoon was totally out of character.

It was the height of luxury, but we didn’t learn anything about the culture or the country. We never ate the regional food. We didn’t wander off into residential neighborhoods. Besides my wife’s innocent chatter with the taxi driver about why people don’t swim in the ocean (it’s contaminated), we hardly spoke to the locals. We just spent a lot of time in shopping malls and nice restaurants and without a friend to show us the ropes, we felt fairly restricted to the superficial tourist area. In effect, we treated ourselves to the all-inclusive package, yet it was probably the most exclusive thing either of us had ever done.

Fortunately, my honeymoon reminded me of why I chose to live in Costa Rica: so I could continue to re-live and share the experience of authentic travel that swept me off my feet so many years ago. Most of us know the joy of experiencing a baby’s firsts: first words, first steps, first tooth, etc. Well, what if I told you that I get to live that euphoria of firsts every single day with people of all ages? I have seen a fifty-year old’s first words in Spanish, a twelve-year old’s first gallo pinto breakfast, and countless others first realization that the world of Latin America is not half as scary as people point it out to be – people are quick on the smile, generous with laughs, and eager to help – and REAL travel has nothing to do with nightclubs and luxury hotels.

Every once in awhile, this constant, privileged euphoria slowly gets lost in the day to day routine until a special group comes along and gives me another injection. This January, in fact, I came dangerously close to an overdose. First, a group of University of Minnesota students came down for two weeks during their winter break. I didn’t really begin to understand the real depth and impact of their experience until the final night when their professor proceeded to give a 15 minute bilingual (he is not bilingual) speech in a pizza parlor where he reflected on his experience and expressed his gratitude to all of the Costa Ricans. A few days later, I received an email from the professor with a link to his THIRTY-EIGHT page journal that he had been keeping since he arrived. It was complete with pictures, diagrams, and reactions – practically ready for publishing. It wasn’t just about good food and comfortable beds, a cultural immersion in Costa Rica had inspired him in many new ways. It reminded me of why I am here.

And if that wasn’t enough, my extended family flew down for an exciting week of adventure that culminated in my wedding day. Every day was filled with an amazing energy to share and to embrace different cultures. Every effort was made so that the events took place in both languages and when communication broke down, people got creative. (Well, not so creative, we just uncorked more wine!) I got to watch my family’s first attempts at dancing salsa and cumbia, first cracks at Spanish pronunciation, and unfortunately, firsts exposures to EXTREME sun. People were eager to organize, record, and document every aspect of their newfound Latin American family and our Costa Rican counterparts were delighted to share and learn as well. Many notebooks were filled with memories, countless photos were taken, and everyone agreed that whatever just happened was a blurry, amazing, heartfelt, unforgettable experience.

It’s sometimes hard for me to fathom how what I consider to be my daily life now is the experience of a lifetime for others.  I do remember that feeling some 8 years ago though and it still comes back to me on occasion: the insatiable curiosity, the sense of adventure, the relaxed pace of life, the tropical climate is different and intoxicating when you come from a fast-paced, extreme-driven society.  Even though that seems so long ago for me, it is good to have that reminder of where I started.

In the end my trip to Panama ended up being a very refreshening experience for me as it reminded me of what I’ve got and at this point I don’t see myself trading in the open ended for the all inclusive anytime soon.

All that revolves around the park…

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CR Dustin
At the park

This post originally appeared in a local publication in May 2014 in Verona, WI.  It highlights the experiences and adventures of Costa Rica Frika founder Dustin, now living in Costa Rica.

If there is one thing that resists the times of change, it has to be a park.  Grandparents can watch their grandchildren play just as their grandparents watched them play as children.  For me, it is a capsule that brings time to a halt as the world races around it and nowhere is this phenomenon better observed than in San Ramon.

In Costa Rica, to be considered a “town”, an area must have the following: a park, a church, a school, a soccer field and a bar. The best designed towns use their park as the main gathering space and the rest of these amenities make an orbit around it, like the sun at the center of the solar system. Only at the center, no one is running around trying to complete their own world orbit.  Here, you can find couples eating ice cream, the elderly playing chess, and families watching their kids play. In other words, everybody sits comfortably on their axis. This is where people go to get their entertainment: meeting up with friends, watching community performances, or just people watching. The park is where the laid back “pura vida” lifestyle really shines through.

San Ramon Park
San Ramon Park

Any day of the week you can go to the main park in downtown San Ramon and see people hanging out. My wife goes to the park just about everyday. It doesn’t matter if she has to run errands or not because it’s really her way of getting refreshed and socializing with whoever she might bump into.

I force myself to make it to the park a few times a week now I could never believe the amount of people I would find there. What are they all doing? Are they waiting for a bus?  Is there going to be mass soon?  Are they waiting for their kid to get done with school?  Don’t they have anything better to be doing?  Usually right after I get done asking myself those questions, I bump into somebody I know and we start to chat and before I know it we have been talking for 20 minutes.  Didn’t they have to be somewhere? Weren’t they wondering if I had to be somewhere? What is so special about this park?

Finally, I concluded that being from the “land of opportunity” drives me away from the park everyday and into the office. I am a workaholic.  It now makes sense to me why I rarely saw people at the park in Verona growing up and even less if the park didn’t have a playground or a soccer field (San Ramon’s park does not).  Many of us are workaholics who are taught to continuously strive to improve our situation. Still more of us are just trying to get by.  The majority of Costa Ricans fall into the latter category, they are trying to find make ends meet with the limited employment opportunities that their country offers.

A wise Costa Rican friend of mine once told me that there are rich people and poor people lying sick in  hospital beds. What difference does it make should they both die? They both go to the next life as equals. It doesn’t matter how hard you’ve worked when you can’t take any of that with you.  He did mention the importance of having a good lifestyle, but quality of life takes precedence. (And while he has a good quality of life, he agreed that he wouldn’t mind having a little more lifestyle as well). That’s the choice I find myself having to make on a daily basis. Is a smart phone considered a lifestyle or life quality choice?  Watch enough TV commercials and I’m sure you’ll be thoroughly convinced otherwise.  Maybe that is what I miss when I stand there, perplexed,  looking at the 60 year old man chatting with his buddies at 10am on a Tuesday at the park.  He doesn’t have an iphone or a 60¨ flat screen, but he is emanating life quality in HD.

The park in San Ramon not only serves a purpose for the day crowd but it also provides a haven for nightlife.  I used to joke with my friends that the only thing to do in San Ramon was to go the park, but this isn’t far from the reality.  The highlight of a teenager’s weekend might be to go with their friends on a Saturday night to the park and watch everyone drive their cars around the park. After a long week of work, people like to display themselves and one way of doing that is to take a few laps around the park. If you can do it in a nice car, even better.

This is a scene that is repeated all over Costa Rica. Consumerism is alive and well throughout the country, but locals are willing to do it at their own pace. Even those with employment reason that if they work less now and have to wait a few more months for the gratification of having the latest gadget, then they’ll gladly take their time and do things at their own pace so as not sacrifice “park time” or “life quality.”

About a year ago, the city gave the park a face lift.  It put in new sidewalks, re-landscaped and installed cool LED lights that allow the color of the park to change every few minutes.  All this effort affirmed the great pride that the town takes in displaying its prime attraction.  You see, without a park, a town looses its center of the universe.  With nothing to orbit there is no base, no starting point, no common ground or identity to the town.  All you have are cold concrete buildings, open for business.

Returning home for a fresh burst of Costa Rica

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***This article was originally published in a local newspaper in January 2013***

It was like sticking my head in the freezer on a hot summer afternoon.

You know the feeling – when you’re looking for that refreshing burst of air to take your mind off the excessive heat. You know you’re in for a climate change when you open that door, and even though your sweat glands pucker right back up the second you close the freezer, that moment in time feels forever etched in your mind.

Or, like in my case, it’s frostbitten to your forehead.  That moment in time, that’s exactly how I feel whenever I touch down in Costa Rica.

I returned to Costa Rica in late December after a Wisconsin winter holiday and from the moment I arrived I unconsciously began to savor every moment, just like if it had been my first time.

Stepping out of the terminal I welcome the warm burst of tropical air.   I sense the full moon as it illuminates the surrounding mountain ranges of the central valley.  Traveling home my ears are tuned to the salsa and bachata beats coming from the radio, as well as the incessant chatter from the taxi driver about how his team should have won the national soccer championship.

That night I fall asleep, paralyzed with glee knowing that I’d left the wind and grind, ice and snow, and sub zero temperatures behind.

The next morning I spend what feels like an hour just sitting in the yard basking in the sun.  Everything feels refreshingly new to me. Taking in the aroma of the orchid plants, drowning out my thoughts with the chatter from the parrots in the nearby trees, and blinding the neighbors with the glare of the sun off my ghostly pale vitamin D deprived skin.

Had my dog, Ruffo, not awakened me I’m sure I could have been harvested as a tomato that same afternoon.

P1000727
Taking a shot with Abuela (grandma)

Ruffo seemed to be telling me that it is time to go visit my 86-year old adopted Costa Rica grandmother who lives tucked away in a sleepy, countryside home.  I set out by bus to pay her a surprise visit. We take a shot of tequila (her customary greeting for any visitor) and I tell her the news and adventures of everyone in my extended family. She follows along intently, despite knowing very few of them personally, as if they were her own children.

I sit down with her for a typical lunch of rice and beans and instantly long for a slice of pizza, a hamburger, or even pasteurized milk. It’s going to be awhile before I can savor those tastes again.

Fortunately, there are plenty of other delights to keep my taste buds happy: starfruit juice, freshly harvested coffee, fried plantains, and of course salsa Lizano.

Now on the move, I am filled with the inexplicable desire to explore Costa Rica all over again, as if I were seeing it for the first time. I go to a traditional “tope,” or horse parade. The next day, I take a hike in the largest private rainforest reserve in Costa Rica, the Children’s Eternal Rainforest and finally, I spend an afternoon picking coffee for 50 cents an hour at one of my friend’s plantations.  To top it all off I even managed to bring in the New Year in a swimsuit (a first for me) by viewing a fireworks show on the beach.

I have always loved visiting Costa Rica, since my initial volunteer abroad experience, in 2006.  I always feel the spark of curiosity and adventure when I arrive here.  There is always something new to see and experience.

Whether its a short or long stay, volunteering or touring, alone or in a group, I still feel as giddy as the first time (and even more so especially if coming from winter in Wisconsin.)

So now I have since stopped visiting Costa Rica and have made it my primary residence.  With each stay here, I’ve become immersed in the culture, made more friends, and developed stronger relationships.

The love and affection shown by Costa Ricans is second to none and thanks to my adopted grandma I’ve been introduced to my girlfriend, which has allowed for even more cultural immersion.

Now I am dedicate to duplicating this experience for other visitors to Costa Rica.  I love being at the airport to greet them.  To see their initial reactions and then watching as they develop and change over the course of their stay is really gratifying to me.  When they go from the “this is strange” expression to the “I could get used to this” expression then I know I’m doing my job.

With January being the start of the tourist season, I couldn’t think of a better way to have prepared for this than by returning to Costa Rica myself.

I encourage everyone to open that freezer door.  The initial shock might leave your senses tingling and put you on edge, however once the vapor clears you’ll find yourself adjusting and comfortable again.  Whether that door is open for only a week or as long as six months you’re certainly headed for climate change both literally and figuratively.

No doubt, it will leave you awake, refreshed and renewed.

Harvesting coffee in Costa Rica

Video | | vivitronv

Ever wonder what it’s like to pick coffee? I decided to go one day for the experience and… if your good at repetitive tasks, can work fast, and can withstand bugs, plants and getting lost, then you would be good at this. Plus great for hearing the outdoors, and guys this might be the closest experience to being pregnant that you could have.

Picking coffee is kind of a lost art, what was once a lucrative job is now relegated to immigrants and older Costa Ricans who grew up with it.