Costa Rica 2014: Reflections of Costa Rica: Day one, arrival in San Jose

Ahhhhh, Well I have been back in the US for 5 days. I have been resting (a lot), doing laundry, and the usual things a man does after 2 weeks out of the country. I had the option to do my blog as I went along the trip, but I thought I could do a more meaningful piece if I had some time to reflect, absorb the events I was included in and not do a quick list of what I did that day. I am a thinker, I sometimes talk too much when I find someone I share interests with. So I wanted some time to ponder on what I really experienced while in Costa Rica.

San Jose in daytime

Street Vendors

We arrived in San Jose on the 21st of July, 2014. It was evening and I learned later from a native of Cahuita that "everything ugly comes out in San Jose after dark". While I had the feeling of angst when we arrived, I couldn't quite put my finger on what I was feeling. There is a lot of desperate people in San Jose. Homeless and dirty, unshaven with leathery skin and the look of a man who's been drinking way too much for way too long. It's a city, tall buildings and concrete and brick streets, crowds of people on the streets doing what, I am not sure. Trash piles that have been there for some time and people sleeping in boxes or just in the open in close proximity to the trash piles. We stayed in a hostel in downtown San Jose that locked the entrance at some point in the evening. One of our guides who is native to a small Caribbean town named Cahuita, close to the border of Nicaragua explained when I asked about the apparent poverty. He said" many men come from Nicaragua looking for work and there is none". It was apparent that much humanitarian work could be done in the city. I am not versed enough in the politics of Costa Rica to be able to provide a reasonable explanation for the desperation I saw there. I just know when I arrived, I clutched my wallet tight, didn't make any eye contact with anyone other than our guide and tried my best to get where we were supposed to be as quickly as possible. I don't speak Spanish well at all, I don't know what was being said to me as I passed with pale skin and a large bag looking as American as a guy can look. I was deaf for 14 years from an allergic reaction to a medication and a sixth sense came to me during that time. That sixth sense was on point like a dogs hair standing on the back of the neck. I had to do this trip without the processor I had surgically implanted in my skull to correct my hearing loss as the humidity would have caused great damage to the expensive hearing aid. The US government classifies this type of hearing aid as a prosthetic ear. I was without my "bionic ear" as I jokingly call it and I was feeling vulnerable. Could have been the loss of senses, could have been the big city I am not used to, could have been the language barrier, could have been a combination of all of these factors. I was told most of the crime in San Jose is crimes of opportunity. I was very aware the people of this town knew how to make an opportunity happen and I would have been none the wiser. I could sense the street smarts of the people and I was not included in that group.
Please don't get me wrong, I am not judging these people. I wish I had the opportunity to hear some of their stories so I could understand what I did not understand. I am not a wealthy man myself, and I am certainly not in a position to judge others. I am merely trying to convey what I saw and how I felt during the first few hours in San Jose. I don't think afraid is the right term. No one approached me for anything other than to offer a taxi. No one reached for my wallet, no one bumped me or approached me in a threatening manner. I could see the opportunity for that to occur though, and I kept my head down and followed the group. It was new to me, the crowds, the ruckus of Spanish voices trying to be heard over the guy next to them. To secure a cab fare, or carry my bags for me. I tried in a polite and assertive manner to decline and made it to our group taxi fine. I will say this, I would have to spend some time there before I went willingly into the city at night again. The next time I saw San Jose was in the day time on our return to the airport. The sense of angst was still there but at least in the daylight I could assess any threats or attempts to manipulate me much better. I still held my wallet tight and was polite and assertive. As the sun set on the last day of the trip, I saw again that my friend from Cahuita was spot on, as the sun went down, I felt again more and more vulnerable. I was certainly glad to get out of the city the next day and see some of what I had seen in some photos of Costa Rica, the lush green hues and the vibrant reds and oranges that are frequent in the area outside of San Jose. I felt more naïve in the time I spent in San Jose than any other time on the trip.
I don't want to be an "Americano" that comes to another country and disrespects their culture. I am admittedly uninformed as to how or why the city looked the way it did to me. I have been in some of the slums in the US and I recognized the look of the people, there was no hope in their eyes. At least none I could recognize. I wish I could have a clearer understanding as to the social challenges that the people are facing there. I simple did not have the time to ask or to understand fully what was before my eyes.
I am glad that this blog entry is done, it was not one I wanted to address. But in all fairness, it needed to be said to stay true to my attempt to share what I saw and felt. I am pleased to say that no one got hurt or even approached and all ended well. We stayed the night in San Jose and left the following morning for Cahuita where we met an amazing young man who is native to that area and his attitude and the never ending smile he shared with us was a stark contrast to what I saw in the city. So, it is done, and I can get on with the best parts of the trip and stick to a more positive theme.
I will post one blog entry a day for the next two weeks to cover the days activities. Then my rant will be complete. I hope you follow along to see the more appealing parts of Costa Rica in the coming weeks. I have a lot of wonderful photos and history to share. For now, it's a wrap. See you tomorrow.

Locals called "Ticos" for male "Tacas" for female