At high tide on the morning of 12/29, we departed El Salvador for a 260-mile, 50-hour run, sailing offshore along the Honduras and Nicaragua coastlines, arriving to Marina Papagayo in Costa Rica at noon on New Year's Eve.
Arriving to Costa Rica required another paper shuffling session with customs and immigration. Since neither of these offices was within walking distance of our marina, and given that we were up against the January 1 holiday, we hired Jose as an agent to assist the process. Jose said he would meet us at our boat slip sometime after noon on 12/31. At 2:30, a very friendly and enthusiastic Jose walked up to Traveler, introduced himself and said, "Welcome to Costa Rica!"
As we walked to Jose's car, he strolled up to a Ferrari and said, "This is my car." We collectively raised our eyebrows and he added, "Just kidding. My car is a Daihatsu, but it's a nice one!"
We drove about 20 minutes before pulling into the parking lot of a plaza that appeared desolate. It seemed like an unlikely location for an immigration office, but Jose said there was a coffee shop in the plaza where we could get our first cup of delicious Costa Rican coffee. We pulled on the coffee shop door, it was locked. The coffee shop was closed. In fact, every store in the plaza was closed. We had the parking lot to ourselves until another car pulled in; a small maroon-colored, early model sports car with dark tinted windows and gold rims. It parked next to us. The driver's window descended to reveal a man wearing sunglasses and dressed as an immigration officer. He spoke in Spanish to Jose.
Promptly, the hood of Jose's Daihatsu became the immigration office desk and papers were spread across its surface. Throughout the process, we were asked to present passports, COVID vaccination cards, boat registration, the engine serial number, proof of boat insurance, a crew list, a temporary import permit and our zarpe departure clearance from El Salvador. Ned has become very proficient at locating each of these documents quickly. The papers circled the parking lot carousel from Ned to Jose, to the inside of the sports car where they were checked, stamped or signed, then back to Jose who returned them to Ned.
With the immigration check-in complete, we climbed back into Jose's car where he cheerfully said, "Ok, now we will drive to the Liberia airport to complete the customs paperwork." More of the same occurred at the airport, but inside a building this time. As frustrating as this entire process can be, Jose's attitude throughout the afternoon almost tricked us into believing we were having fun.
We would come to realize that Jose's outlook and personality seemed to reflect that of Costa Rica in general. "Pura Vida" is an adopted Costa Rican expression that adorns tee shirts, signs, shop names and artwork. The English translation of Pura Vida is "pure life" or "simple life." Costa Ricans (Ticos) may use this expression to say hello, to say goodbye or to say that everything is great. Generally, Ticos have a very relaxed, simple way of looking at life. No worries, no fuss, no stress—pura vida to them means being thankful for what they have and not dwelling on the negative.
Even politically, Costa Rica presents differently from most other countries. On October 11, 1949, Costa Rica became the first country in the world to abolish an existing military. According to UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization), "The decision to abolish the army gave institutional strength to the regime of civility of Costa Rica’s political life. At the international level, the abolition of the army marked a new experience for diplomacy, giving pacifist will and credibility before the world, and showing it is possible for a country to live without an army, without armed forces, and investing these resources in greater and better social development."
It appears that Costa Rica did in fact invest in its unique human and natural resources. Education became a priority and Costa Rica now boasts of a literacy rate of over 97%. Environmentally, Costa Rica has invested in clean energy, utilizing wind and hydro as primary means of energy production. Recycling is encouraged via convenience at the marinas and parks we've visited. Costa Rica has also protected approximately 28% of its land in national parks, reserves, and wildlife refuges. And this park land seems to be paying off through tourism. Costa Rica is the most visited country in Central America with over 3 million visitors annually.
We are falling in step. So far, we have had the opportunity to visit three national parks - Rincon de la Vieja, Monteverde, and Manuel Antonio. Soon we will also be visiting Corcovado, which will offer our final Costa Rican adventure before heading south to Panama.
The parks, along with the plants and wildlife that thrive within them, are amazing. Sightings of Scarlet Macaws and monkeys are both fascinating and surprisingly common. The next few posts will feature photos to present a glimpse of the beauty of Costa Rica and her parks.
Meanwhile, we would like to acknowledge an appreciation for two of our returning crew members. John joined us again in Puerto Vallarta on 11/27 and sailed for 39 days and over 1,500 miles to Papagayo. While John was eager to see his family, he seemed less enthusiastic about returning to the Teton Valley's sub-zero temperatures and a car-burying amount of snow. With a nice two-day overlap, Lisa also rejoined us in Papagayo and plans to jump in as crew once again as we continue south. We like to think that John and Lisa have come to consider Traveler a second home.
Did you ever get the coffee!?
So glad you will have Lisa for the Panama Canal ❤️