Soy Tico - YouTube

How fabulous is *this!* The ARCR forum has a thread on Costa Rican music, and Paul (thanks!) provided a YouTube link to my absolute *favorite* song - since our first visit!

Soy Tico, by Carlos Guzman

You can see my previous post on this song, and an attempt to translate it, here.

January 14, 2008 – Growing up Tico

Sometimes when you get together with other gringos in Costa Rica, you exchange war stories; these are usually about how someone got ripped off, taken advantage of, or just felt *way* out of place. But when we thought about it, we decided that the number of ¨bad¨ experiences was far outweighed by the good ones. Even those that, on the surface, seem sorta bad, then maybe not quite good end up leaving me with a ¨familiar¨ feeling.

The other day, a bunch of neighborhood kids were playing soccer in the courtyard of our apartment building. We were home all day, and enjoyed hearing the sounds of fun. Later that evening, I headed out for groceries, and found a note in our door. Well, it was not a nice note – it was one of those things that bored kids play around with, letting their imaginations run wild. It was obviously written by a kid. So, Rick took it over to our neighbor (they had previously said to let them know if they could help in any way). Rick showed him the note, explained how we thought it was a kid, and asked the neighbor if he would mention to the kids in the street that, while it was a joke, it was not a nice thing. The man nodded, and we figured that would be the end of it. Not so! About a half hour later, knock, knock… There is a kid (about 7) at our door, looking pretty embarrassed, and behind him is his father (as it turned out, it was the neighbor we had talked to) – arms crossed, looking stern. The father prompted his son – well? Then the boy said that he was sorry. The father said ¨speak up¨ and tell him why you´re sorry.¨ (Wow! Major flashbacks…) The son spelled it out, and then Rick said (very formally) that he accepted his apology. And they shook hands.

So, while this could have left a bad taste in our mouths, it ended up making us feel like the Ticos grow up a lot like we do – we make mistakes, and good parents make us own up to them…

November 27, 2007 - Expedition

CRASH! What a way to wake up! Yesterday we got a mirror, and used it for all of half a day - this morning, a high wind sprang up and blew it right off the wall. Since *we* didn't break it, I am maintaining that we *don't* get 7 years of bad luck...

We had planned to meet friends for coffee, go on to Volcán Poás, then have lunch at Chubasco's - a highly-recommended restaurant. Even with the high winds, we decided that you can never tell whether you can see anything until you get there.

Well, we walk to the restaurant, and hear the now-familiar refrain "no hay luz" - central Alajuela has no electricity :(. So we go to another soda, have breakfast, and call our friends - no problem, they meet us at the new place for coffee!

And we're off! We hit the mountain road - BAM! The water hose jumps off the radiator and steam pours out of the hood! We all get out, check the damage, and a taxi driver offers help. We re-connect the hose, fill the radiator, limp to his house, and he adds more water. It becomes obvious that the water pump is not working, so he fiddles some more, pours more water... Ultimately, he fixes the water problem AND a problem with the horn - then smiles and waves as we thank him and drive off :). (no more problems - with the car...)

At the final turn-off for Poás, it becomes obvious that we will see nothing but clouds at the top. So, we blow off the mountain, and turn towards La Paz gardens to see butterflies. We are thinking that we would spend perhaps half an hour or a bit more there, but when we get there, we find that the main trail takes 2 1/2 hours (too long) and they don't have a partial-tour price. So we would be spending a *lot* for our little stroll ($29 for non-residents and $15 for residents). Guess what we did - yep, went to the gift shop instead :).

On the way back, we stopped at Chubasco's - they are *closed*!!! (not shut down, but *closed*!) We head back to another restaurant we passed, and had a *great* buffet lunch instead.

Then we decide to see if the Christmas tree farm will sell us a living tree (dug up, not cut down). No luck.

So by now, we're asking ourselves "was this a completely failed trip?" Believe it or not, the answer is NO. We had a very nice visit through it all, we drove through gorgeous countryside, had an unexpectedly nice lunch, and met even more wonderful Ticos!

(Again, *we* *didn't* break the mirror!)

August 09, 2007 - Where Am I? 101

Where Am I? 101
Or, finding your way around a Costa Rican town.

First, REMAIN CALM! All will be well – don’t panic. Every time I panic, I get lost.
I finally feel confident stepping off the bus in a new town. OK, proud. Cocky even. I don’t expect to find everything on the first trip, and I know I will find plenty of interesting places that I didn’t plan on. Here’s what I do.

Do some planning ahead, but don’t get anal – this (the latter) was the difficult part for me, but I’m getting better. If the town is fair-sized, look it up in a guide book. If you are staying in a hotel, see if they have a hand-drawn map. If not, make your own. Get some grid paper (or just any paper), and lay out a basic pattern, with a central park and cathedral in the center. These are usually a full block each, and within a couple of blocks of the center of town. If the guide book has a map (this is important), COPY it onto your paper – guide books usually show no more than 10 square blocks. Add some of the landmarks, like banks and perhaps a hotel. Mark the bus stop (coming and going) if this information is available. Mark a couple of avenidas and calles, and mark the compass directions. If you have any specific destinations, mark them on the map. Of course, if you are starting from scratch, your map will start out with nothing but a street grid and a central park & cathedral. That’s OK, because you will add to it as you go! Also, if you start with another map, keep in mind that parts of it could be wrong (or changed since it was published). This is also OK, since you will be marking it up.

Bring your map, a pen/pencil, and a compass (not always needed, but nice to have). Leave the guide book at home. The guide book is conspicuous and distracting – you are exploring! If you don’t know “enough” Spanish (“enough” is individually defined), bring a small dictionary or phrase book – if it makes you feel like a newbie, guess what? You are! You’ve never been here before! Most important, bring a smile and a “buenas.”

Which brings us to a very important aspect of this excursion – Attitude! Be flexible. Don’t expect to find everything you look for. Treat this as an adventure. When in doubt, know that a taxi is always near; relax and enjoy yourself. Accept that you and your travel companion will have moments of stress and get snippy – let it go. Best of all, go with Rick – he’ll let it slide unless you go off the deep end, *and* he’ll let you apologize gracefully (I know, that *could* be sarcasm, but it’s not).

As your bus is coming into the town, look for landmarks – Tribunales, parks, churches, banks, taxi stands, etc. Have your compass out, and try to fix North in your head (if you can’t, that’s OK – it will come). The bus ride is where I still get anxious. I often end up getting off WAAAY too early (click on “bus” in the tag cloud, and you will see what I mean). Wait till you can see the central park and/or central market, then ring to stop. Many bus terminals are within a couple of blocks of the central park (bigger towns have multiple terminals, and many small towns don’t have terminals). Sometimes it is difficult to tell if you are even in the right town. I find that bus passengers are very friendly, and love to tell you that your town is still ahead (and they aren’t pulling you leg).

Stop, look, and listen. When you get off the bus, your first instinct is to walk - anywhere. Don’t! Find a place to sit, or stand out of the press of people. Pull out your map and compass. Be discreet but not paranoid. Notice which direction most of the people are going. Notice which compass direction is uphill (most towns have at least a slight incline), and mark it on your map. Look around for the park, market, church, or other landmark. Look for the bus stop sign – it usually has some (but not always all) interesting information, like where it continues, schedule, and whether the return is from the same place. Keeping up/down and North firmly in mind, put away your compass and map, and start walking. You are looking for the park. Turn a few corners. Look for trees and spires.

Stop and smell the orchids. When you find the park, have a seat! This is a good time to update your map. Mark the bus stop and any landmarks you noticed on the way. I like to do this several times in a visit, and add stores, restaurants, schools, whatever. Mostly I just like parks . Don’t worry if you can’t remember exactly how many blocks or turns. Just mark what you think is right, and check it on the return. I once added an entire block to Grecia’s downtown – it stayed that way for nearly a week (no one seemed to notice the longer walk).

Ask and ask again. I have rarely had trouble finding the park within a few blocks, but in larger towns, you may want to step into a shop and ask. Also, if you have any destination in mind, like a bookstore or a Chinese restaurant, but you don’t have an “address,” just ask around. I have had conversations in parks that turned towards recommendations for restaurants and stores, and I have asked bookstore owners for directions to a close Chinese restaurant. I’ve asked bank guards and bus drivers about which street we were on. Sometimes you get an answer that is wrong, because (as my Spanish teacher says) Ticos don’t like to say they don’t know something, but most of the time you get the right direction. If you don’t find what you are looking for, ask again (and remember, stay flexible).

Helpful information:

· Este (East) and Oeste (West) are the directions that start with vowels. Avenues (with a vowel) go East and West. Towns are a rough grid, with street numbers (rarely names). Calles are even (2,4,6) West of the center and odd East of the center. Avenidas are even South of the center and odd North of the center. The saw to use is “North-Easterners are Odd.” What do I know about Odd – I’m from California.

· You can usually see the tree-tops of the park and the spires of the church many blocks away.

· The central market is usually within a couple of blocks of the central park.

· Streets hardly ever have signs. Sometimes even bank-guards do not know which street their bank is on.

· Usually the wait between buses is half an hour or less.

· Banks usually have bathrooms available.

· Most of this will also work in San José, but there is so much more to deal with. I start with an actual city map here.

I’ll post some of my maps soon – you can see how messed up things can get :(

July 12, 2007 - Practicing Our Manners

Today we drove across the bridge - a toll bridge - in California. We used to have FasTrak (that electronic gizmo that lets you just slow down a bit, and get charged the toll automatically) - no human interaction needed. But we got rid of them when we got rid of a bunch of other stuff before our last extended trip to Costa Rica.

So this toll bridge - Four dollars! I felt my irritation rising - just like the good ol' days, when I drove to work every single day, humping through traffic and tolls. BUT! A funny thing happened when I rolled down my window and passed a fiver to the attendant - my mouth opened, and out came "Good Morning!" and then it closed again, and a *smile* formed (!!!). I got my dollar change, and said "thanks, and have a good day" - OMG!

Even before I had FasTrak, I used to play a sort of game - I would slow just enough to pass the toll; the objective was to see how fast I could get past the booth (I even remember missing once - Que embarrassment! The toll booth attendant had to leave her booth to get the dough. She was *not* happy.)

So today, as I was calmly leaving the toll area, still smiling, I said to Rick (by way of explanation) "just practicing my Tico manners." But I kept thinking about that - it's really not true. I think I have actually *gained* Tico manners. So even if there were no other reason, I say "Thank you, Costa Rica!"

June 18, 2007 - "Soy Tico"

When we were in Sámara last year, the last day of Spanish class was spent on the culture of Costa Rica. We heard “Soy Tico,” and it has stuck with me as a beautiful description of “home” by someone who clearly loves Costa Rica. I found the lyrics, and took a stab at translating them – I'm sure it is not the best, but it was fun to do.

Titulo: Soy Tico
Letra y Música: Carlos Guzman

Soy Tico, porque llevo a Costa Rica en las entrañas, porque lloro cuando escucho una guitarra, cuando trema una marimba y con la puesta del sol.
I am Tico, because I carry Costa Rica in the core of my being, because I cry when I hear a guitar, when the marimba plays, and with the sunset.

Soy Tico y si me asomo a la ventana me cautiva la montaña y se me alegra el corazón.
I am Tico and if I look out the window, the mountain captures me, and my heart is joyful.

Soy Tico, porque siento las canciones de mi tierra; porque vivo con la "Luna Liberiana", "El Huellón de la Carreta", "La Patriótica", y "Pasión."
I am Tico, because I feel the songs of my land; because I live with the ¨Liberian Moon,¨ ¨The Cart Track,¨ ¨The Patriot,¨ and ¨Passion.¨

Soy Tico, y cuando miro la alborada, el lamento del yigüirro me acelera la emoción.
I am Tico, and when the I see the dawn, the call of the yigüirro (the national bird), makes my pulse race.

Y cuando caen los fuertes aguaceros es como si yo fuera la semilla me huele a tierra fértil el sendero llenando de ilusión mi alma sencilla.
And when the strong storms fall, I am like the seed outside, savoring the fertile field, filling my simple soul with dreams.

Soy Tico, porque cada vez que encuentro a un amigo forastero, le demuestro mi calor
I am Tico, because each time I meet a foreign friend, I demonstrate my warmth.

Soy Tico, porque vivo enamorado y orgullosos de la tierra que ha inspirado mi canción.
I am Tico, because I live infatuated and proud of the land that has inspired my song.

Y cuando caen los fuertes aguaceros es como si yo fuera la semilla me huele a tierra fértil el sendero llenando de ilusión mi alma sencilla.
And when the strong storms fall, I am like the seed outside, savoring the fertile field, filling my simple soul with dreams.

Soy Tico, porque una guaria morada me engalana la mirada y me impresiona de verdad
I am Tico, because a guaria morada (the national flower) enhances my view, and truly overwhelms me.

Soy Tico, y si eso no te dice nada yo te mostraré mi Patria.
¡dame la oportunidad!
I am Tico, and if this doesn´t convince you, I will show you my homeland. Just give me the opportunity!

April 04, 2007 - Spanish school in Orosi

On Saturday, we called Montaña Linda and arranged for a taxi to the school on Sunday. We were going to go with others, but I think we had too much luggage (enough for 3 months, afterall). So, on Sunday, Luis picked us up - a bit late, but he called to say so. Since it was Sunday, we weren´t able to easily find a restaurant open, so we settled for snack bars and figured we would stop along the way for a late lunch. It took us about an hour and a half to get to Orosi - it didn´t make sense to stop when we were so very close.

When we got to the school, they took our cédula numbers and gave us books. The book has general information about Orosi and the school in the front. We were able to find out right away that there are two internet cafés ($1 per hour), a bank, and several markets in town. We have the bus schedule - buses leave Orosi nearly every half hour. We also found out that we can pay for school and the homestay on Monday (cash only).

We were assigned a family to stay with - we had requested a homestay when we signed up for the school earlier via the internet. So Luis took us to Teresita´s house, and we unloaded our many bags. When we saw that our room had bunk beds, and when Teresita saw that we were a somewhat older married couple, she moved us to her son´s room - muy tranquilo - no problem. Teresita has a large family, with 3 adult-teenage children living at home, and several grandchildren who visit daily. Her husband works for ICE (the state-owned electric and telephone company) in Turrialba, about an hour drive away. Two of her sons work in San José, about a 2 hour drive. I guess commuting is a problem wherever you live.

So far, this homestay is a bit different than our last one. Our last family had signs up, and were clear on the house rules - when dinner was, what days were for laundry, etc. Teresita is a bit more relaxed, but of course we don´t know if we are causing her any problems...

We have class from 3 till 6, on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday this week - it is a special schedule because of Semana Santa. Our family here has been very busy getting ready for the long weekend. Monday, they were slow-cooking maize over a wood-buring stove outside, then on Tuesday, they ran it through a grinder (remember using the hand-cranked grinder?) to get a rough paste. This morning, we had a wonderful sort of bread-cake (sweet and moist) made from the corn paste, coconut, cheese, and sour cream.

Rick expects to be done with the ¨beginner¨ book and start on the second (intermediate-advanced) book before we are done with our 3 weeks here. I think I will still have quite a bit of the first book left. We are learning some things in a different order here than in the last school (Intercultura), so some things are a quick review, and others are brand new. We both have our own teacher - we have one-on-one sessions for 3 hours each, so the pace is set specifically for us. I am letting my teacher (Margarita) decide what I need, and Rick indicated to his teacher (Margot) exactly what he wanted to focus on. He is doing more outside of class, and I am taking it a bit slower. As my teacher says, poco a poco is how I will learn Spanish.

Orosi is a nice little town - the days are a bit cooler than in Alajuela, and the pace is definitely slower. There is no concern about getting run down by cars - many people walk in the streets (there are still sidewalks tho). We will probably at least check into staying here for most of the rest of our trip - the school has contacts for houses that are available for short-term rents. It will be nice to have a place of our own, and interesting to see how we get things done without living with a Tico family.

Tico Drivers - the Experts

We were out walking, and saw a truck hit a car (or vice versa, who knows?). The law here is that if you get into an accident, you don’t move your cars (at all – not even 2 feet to make room for other cars to get around you) until the police *and* the insurance guy get there. If you move, the accident is automatically your fault. So – we walked up to it (it was on our way, we weren’t rubbernecking – honest!) – rainwater overflowing the sidewalks in places (this is why the gutters are 2 feet deep!), and stopped at a restaurant on the corner to watch the show (well, our feet were tired anyway – we weren’t rubbernecking, honest!). This is the kind of situation that shows the Tico drivers at their best – people were driving cars and good-sized delivery trucks around this accident, with a truck on one side, and a 2-foot-deep gutter on the other. While we were there, only 2 people got tires stuck in the gutter, and only one driver dinged his mirror :) :(. When the tires got stuck in the gutter, about 5 guys lifted the front of the car while the driver backed up – bam! Out of the gutter. No hay problema! We waited out another 5-minute cat-and-dog drop, had some cold coffee drinks and dessert, then walked the rest of the way ‘home.’

UCR angel

May 30, 2006 (from the past)

We decided to take the express bus to UCR today. This is in what used to be the town of San Pedro, but has since been absorbed into San Jose.

We were waiting at the bus stop with two others, when we saw “our” bus move on without stopping ;(. Well, one of the others waiting for the bus asked us (in Spanish) if we knew the other route for San Pedro. She said that the next bus from this stop would be an hour and a half! We said we didn’t and she took us under her wing – for the rest of the trip! We followed her to the San Jose bus terminal (the one we had taken before), got on the bus, and left right away. She was wearing heels, and walked in the street. This is apparently how the locals navigate (or not) the cracked sidewalks without falling down (now we know!). When we got to the stop in San Jose, she told us when to get off, then said it was a long walk, so we would take a taxi. We piled into a taxi and drove off. She is chatting away with the driver, and we’re just trusting that we will get where we need to go. When the taxi stopped, she didn’t even look at us to pay our share – she just paid the driver and hopped out, beckoning us to follow. We got out at another bus stop, followed her onto the bus, and as we were trying to figure out what to pay, she again beckoned us to follow. She explained that we were continuing, and so don’t pay again. She just told the bus driver that, and all was ok – no pass, no voucher, no nuthin! We still weren’t sure if she was going to UCR, or just somewhere in San Pedro. So, when the bus stopped and she got off, we floundered – she said “come on” and so we did. It was just an ordinary corner – no university in sight. But we followed, and lo and behold – UCR! Campus! Students! And a whole row of bus stops that look like expresses to/from everywhere! Yay! We thanked her, and then I asked if she knew which bus stop was the one for the return bus to Alajuela. I thought she would simply point and go on her way. But no! She walked us down about a block and a half out of her way and showed us the right bus stop sign. And then she asked where we wanted to go on campus! We saw some signs for music and arts, and thought “why not?” She then walked us down the path (more out of her way). We thought “yikes! We can’t take advantage of her any more!” and thanked her (very profusely). She was so nice through the whole trip – truly our San Pedro angel.

We walked around campus for a while, and ate lunch in one of the cafeterias there. The restrooms don’t have toilet paper (bring your own), or soap (bring your own), or towels (byo). There were a lot of people brushing their teeth – we have heard that Costa Ricans are very careful of their teeth, and this seemed to prove the point.

We walked around the area immediately surrounding the campus, looking for live music venues, and checking out the scene. We stopped at a campus information office, and got a map (free!). The campus is pretty big!

We got back to the bus stop and waited for our bus to show. It came ~15 minutes early, and they let us on (usually you can’t get on a long-distance bus that early), and we waited. But the bus filled up before the posted “leaving” time, and so… It left! Early! Something to remember…

This was the express, so we came straight to Alajuela. And its route went right by the old hospital, so we got off close to home! Good thing, because it was raining.