Insider Secrets

Skip: Every December, I watch Costa Ricans gearing up for tamal season like it’s the culinary Super Bowl. I still don’t understand what triggers the frenzy. One minute everyone’s calm and living Pura Vida… the next minute they’re boiling pork at dawn and hoarding banana leaves like the apocalypse is coming. Teresita: Skip, you need to stop acting like tamales are some cute little snack. This is Christmas engineering. Making tamales is basically our version of NASA launch prep

Skip’s Viewpoint: So apparently I’m not as relaxed as I thought. Back in Florida, I always considered myself a professional-level relaxer. I had a backyard hammock from Home Depot, and I sat in it two whole times—which, in my book, practically qualified me for the “Zen Master Lifetime Achievement Award.” But then Costa Rica happened. I moved down thinking I’d slide effortlessly into the Pura Vida groove. I pictured myself drinking coffee, watching toucans, swinging in my hamm

Skip’s Viewpoint – The Expat From Florida Skip had lived in Florida long enough to know three things: Smiling at strangers makes them suspicious. Waving at strangers makes them more suspicious. Saying hello to strangers means you’re either running for office, crazy or selling something. So when Skip arrived in Costa Rica, he brought that same “don’t-make-eye-contact” philosophy with him. But it didn’t last long. One morning, he was wandering through a small mountain town, pr

Saying “YES” more often in Costa Rica is like discovering a hidden superpower. Skip's point of view For Skip, the proud expat adventurer from the USA, that magical little word has become his new favorite toy. Back home, the wildest thing he said “YES” to was ordering dessert on a weekday . But now he’s here in Costa Rica — where people say “YES” to last-minute beach trips, mystery foods, zip-lining through jungles, and dancing like nobody is watching (even though everyone mos

DISCLAIMER IMPORTANTE (But Make It Fun): ¡Atención, mis amores! Before Skip and I make you laugh about our driving adventures, let's be clear: This blog is 100% HUMOR and 0% driving advice! Costa Rica has way too many traffic accidents because some people think traffic laws are more like "traffic suggestions" or "traffic maybe-if-I-feel-like-it." We DO NOT endorse, approve, or recommend driving like a loco/loca! Please use your materia gris (gray matter) when behind the wheel