I just can’t get over the graciousness of Costa Rican culture. These people are truly salt of the earth. I love them so much!
Today I took the bus in to Grecia to see if I could find another perezoso-in-Santa-hat-in-Christmas-tree cloth for Lisa.
I was standing at the bus stop waiting for the bus to arrive when one of my neighbors arrived to take it to town, too. He doesn’t speak English and is pretty shy, so we just exchanged “buenos dias” with each other.
But then Luz and Noelia arrived on Calle Esteban Salas where it intersects with Calle Los Angeles (about 50 feet from where the bus stop is). The gentleman tapped me to let me know they were there so I could wave at them. They waved back and smiled.
Common courtesy, a Costa Rican ethos
When I got to Grecia, I returned to the store to see if they had another sloth cloth like the one they sold me yesterday. They looked thoroughly, and then took a picture of the one I had. They asked me to wait while they made a call.
One of the men in the store exchanged pleasantries with me (we used Spanglish to get by) while I waited. He was a real sweetheart. We talked about Jim Carrey, Sean Hayes and Jerry Lewis, three comedians who exhibited similar comic personas because he told me Jim Carrey was a favorite of his. I also told him I love Costa Rica and have applied for pensionado status.
The lady who had called another affiliated store in Grecia let us know they had the sloth cloth I wanted. So, the gentleman I had been chatting with left me to walk over to the other store pick it up for me while I waited a little bit longer.
I was astonished that — instead of pointing me in the right direction to buy it — he took the time to go over and get it for me! I tried to offer him a tip for doing that upon his return, but he refused it.
It’s just what they do here. They were raised to care!
When I got back, I was pulling my cart down Calle Esteban Salas when Homer called out to me from his abode. I thought he was just greeting me, so I stopped briefly, waved and said, “Hola, Homer! Buenos dias!” and then started to go, but he called me back and gave me a sack of about a dozen small oranges picked from his orange tree.
I was soooo touched! I grinned with appreciation and gave him a hug. He lives in a very low income dwelling (a shack, really) so I tried to pay him something for them, but he refused to take anything. He wanted to give them as a neighborly gift, a blessing.
Not that I’d wish the U.S. on these lovely people, but if they ever wanted to move to the United States, they should be welcomed with open arms. They could only improve the place.
Latin America culture is civil, compassionate, and utterly sublime.
In Other News:
Here are Cat’s Christmas Doggies:
