November 16, 2007 - Can´t Live Without a Car

Yesterday we spent the day with our friend Joe!
He said the one thing that he adjusted his budget for was his car - he can´t live without it :)
He took a friend into San José and back to Grecia for a doctor´s appointment, then drove back to Alajuela, picked us up, and drove us *all* over - the man loves to drive! We went to San José, then Santa Ana for Margaritas (and they were good!), then through Belén back to Alajuela. We hit a *lot* of traffic - an unusual amount according to Joe. But it *was* 6:00 - very much like the stop-and-go of Bay Area Rush Hours.

We´re still going to try going car-less. It is certainly a very different perspective tho. When you have a car, you have a much wider range, but you have to worry about parking, traffic, which direction the roads go, gas, repairs, marchamo (and other fees). You tend to shop in the bigger stores (HyperMas, PriceSmart). You see more neighborhoods in the cities. But when you don´t have a car, you take the buses and taxis. Your neighborhood becomes your ¨town¨ and you rarely go to the big malls and shopping centers. You find it difficult to give directions to people who drive (oops - you can´t turn left here...). We like the amount and type of interactions we get with people on the buses and on the streets. You find a lot of friendly types, and your blood pressure is a bit steadier :)

But Never say Never...