Ken asked if I might write a piece about living in Costa Rica (CR).  Although I’ve been taking holidays in this country for the past six plus years, I’ve been calling Costa Rica home for only the past 6 months.  That certainly doesn’t qualify me to be writing a very thorough description of life here but I’d be happy to share with you my experience to date.

Costa Rica is a relatively small Central American country slightly smaller than the state of West Virginia. It is situated between Nicaragua to the North and Panama to the South.    It’s possible to drive from one end of the country to the other in under a day, not that you’d ever care to especially considering the lousy road conditions in large parts of the country.

We’ll start with the people.  The overwhelming majorities that I’ve encountered are very friendly towards foreigners.  CR is a Spanish speaking country but in most of the tourist areas, finding bilinguals that speak English is not hard especially at the places that cater to foreign travelers.  Their population has a literacy rate on par with that of the United States.  Traveling out of the tourist areas without at least survival Spanish, which is my level, can be a challenge, however. Tourism plays an increasingly large role in the country’s economy and finding ways for you to spend your vacation dollars is not a problem.

Important to many of you will be easily accessible and good tasting beer. You can put that aside as a worry.  Natural beauty is the main draw here with incredible forests and beautiful beach resorts toping the list.  Costa Rica is not known for being a culinary hot spot but good food is abundant at all the major resorts and cities of any size such as the capitol, San Jose.  Flora and fauna are treasures recognized here by a government that has taken great measures to protect and develop to attract Eco-tourism.

In 1948 the president of the country abolished their military.  Kind of a gutsy move back then that has proved to be a good investment in their collective future enabling them to invest in their education and environment.  Somehow or other infrastructure got shortchanged, however.  I don’t know what qualifies a country to be called third world but I wouldn’t put CR in that category.  I haven’t had to share a bus with any chickens yet.  It has a very stable government composed of a legislature with one house, a judicial and an executive branch where the president has a 6-year term limit. Too many political factions here translate to nothing substantive getting done.  

The country’s main exports are coffee, pineapple and sugar but technology along with tourism are playing an increasingly larger role in its economy.  San Jose has a burgeoning and affluent middle class drawing large and high-end retailers.  Pricey German and Japanese cars are not uncommon on the roads.  Living here is not cheap but you can live quite well without spending a lot of money.  My wife, Jannelle, and I live in a modest home by US standards but fairly luxurious by Costa Rican standards.   Basic costs of living such as utilities and taxes are very reasonable.  Groceries are also reasonable unless you go for a lot of imported items. Don’t look for any Whole Foods to open down here any time soon but in the areas that attract tourists, there are some really nice grocery stores that offer much of what your accustomed to seeing in the US.  Did I mention that they have good beer here?  Domestic help is also a bargain.  Property has gotten expensive if you’re looking in popular resort communities.  Cars are expensive if you’re buying here and also expensive if you’re bringing one in from outside the country.  Gas is about $4.00 a gallon with diesel a little cheaper. 

One of the things that are most appealing to me is the pace of life.  Very laid back; something that they call tranquilo.  If you’re living in San Jose, that’s a little harder to experience but I don’t know why you’d want to live there. Very little architecture worth seeking out, crazy traffic and high crime rate.  The old expression mañana fits well here and one thing I’ve learned about using that word if you’re trying to get something done is that it doesn’t necessarily mean tomorrow but simply not today.  Getting anything done by utility companies such as the Phone Company for instance can test your patients.  While I’m on the subject, high speed Internet is available here in most communities of any size.  We’re still on a dial up service but will have high speed any day now, probably mañana.  Some of this might be in for a change, which is good, as a result of CAFTA allowing more competition. 

It’s easy to find pockets of US Expats in many communities here to hang with if blending in with the locals is not your cup of Joe especially if you don’t speak a lot of Español.  But why leave the US if you don’t want to experience the culture of whatever country you may find yourself in?  Tico’s, what Costa Rican’s refer to themselves as (not a pejorative) are generally happy, engaging and nice to be around. 

Some negatives: Central America has one of the highest murder rates in the world according to a Tico Times article that I just read but Costa Rica’s average being the lowest in Central America.  There are 11 murders for every 100,000 people. No numbers on muggings and the like but most of this stuff goes on in San Jose where there is gang activity and drug related bad stuff.  Probably not any different than many parts of Milwaukee or Chicago.  Like any of these places, you just stay away from them.  I’ve heard lots of stories about people getting ripped off in high volume tourist areas when belongings are left in plain sight inside of a car. A little common sense can go a long way in keeping you out of trouble.

For every bad story I’m guessing that there are many more good stories to outweigh the downside.  I for example once left a carry-on suitcase in an airport security area and when I returned it was gone.  I had lots of valuables inside it including my laptop and camera.  It had been loaded on with someone else’s luggage accidentally, driven to some hotel and when discovered by the group it went with, was returned by a taxi driver to the airport and eventually back up to me by another taxi driver with everything still inside.  Lucky?; maybe but fear of getting ripped off or mugged would be the last reason for not coming here to live or visit.

Medical care is of good quality in San Jose.  Many Americans go there for specific and general health care.  The same goes for regular dental.  I had a dental crown replaced for $300.00 that was going to cost me $1,200.00 in Denver.  Medical tourism flourishes here just as it does in other parts of the world where people, mostly uninsured US citizens I suspect, are looking for quality medical care without having to go bankrupt.  I live in the mountain community of Monteverde, which has a population of about 5,000.  We have a clinic here but high tech emergency care is not available without traveling a ways, which might not be an option.  My choice.   Banking is difficult but doable.  You’ll roll your eyes when you find out how much paper work you need to go through to open an account.

I like living here but ask me again in another six months or so. I’m here because my wife found meaningful work in Monteverde working for a non-profit, plus we already had a house here.   Not being able to speak the language well is a problem for me and I don’t expect to become fluent anytime soon. After all, I’m just barely fluent in English.  Trying to communicate will go a long way in endearing yourself to the locals.  Even being able to offer the usual pleasantries is greatly appreciated which will go a long way in helping you to get what you want or need.

Hope you enjoyed my little spiel here about life in CR.  I’m sure I probably missed something important.  Write if you think of something.  Rick1035@live.com.  If you’re ever visiting CR and include Monteverde in your travels, get in touch.  We can exchange the secret handshake.

The Happiest People

By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF

Published: January 6, 2010

SAN JOSÉ, Costa Rica

Fred R. Conrad/The New York Times

Nicholas D. Kristof

On the Ground

Nicholas Kristof addresses reader feedback and posts short takes from his travels.

Hmmm. You think it?s a coincidence? Costa Rica is one of the very few countries to have abolished its army, and it?s also arguably the happiest nation on earth.

There are several ways of measuring happiness in countries, all inexact, but this pearl of Central America does stunningly well by whatever system is used. For example, the World Database of Happiness, compiled by a Dutch sociologist on the basis of answers to surveys by Gallup and others, lists Costa Rica in the top spot out of 148 nations.

That?s because Costa Ricans, asked to rate their own happiness on a 10-point scale, average 8.5. Denmark is next at 8.3, the United States ranks 20th at 7.4 and Togo and Tanzania bring up the caboose at 2.6.

Scholars also calculate happiness by determining ?happy life years.? This figure results from merging average self-reported happiness, as above, with life expectancy. Using this system, Costa Rica again easily tops the list. The United States is 19th, and Zimbabwe comes in last.

A third approach is the ?happy planet index,? devised by the New Economics Foundation, a liberal think tank. This combines happiness and longevity but adjusts for environmental impact ? such as the carbon that countries spew.

Here again, Costa Rica wins the day, for achieving contentment and longevity in an environmentally sustainable way. The Dominican Republic ranks second, the United States 114th (because of its huge ecological footprint) and Zimbabwe is last.

Maybe Costa Rican contentment has something to do with the chance to explore dazzling beaches on both sides of the country, when one isn?t admiring the sloths in the jungle (sloths truly are slothful, I discovered; they are the tortoises of the trees). Costa Rica has done an unusually good job preserving nature, and it?s surely easier to be happy while basking in sunshine and greenery than while shivering up north and suffering ?nature deficit disorder.?

After dragging my 12-year-old daughter through Honduran slums and Nicaraguan villages on this trip, she was delighted to see a Costa Rican beach and stroll through a national park. Among her favorite animals now: iguanas and sloths.

(Note to boss: Maybe we should have a columnist based in Costa Rica?)

What sets Costa Rica apart is its remarkable decision in 1949 to dissolve its armed forces and invest instead in education. Increased schooling created a more stable society, less prone to the conflicts that have raged elsewhere in Central America. Education also boosted the economy, enabling the country to become a major exporter of computer chips and improving English-language skills so as to attract American eco-tourists.

I?m not antimilitary. But the evidence is strong that education is often a far better investment than artillery.

In Costa Rica, rising education levels also fostered impressive gender equality so that it ranks higher than the United States in the World Economic Forum gender gap index. This allows Costa Rica to use its female population more productively than is true in most of the region. Likewise, education nurtured improvements in health care, with life expectancy now about the same as in the United States ? a bit longer in some data sets, a bit shorter in others.

Rising education levels also led the country to preserve its lush environment as an economic asset. Costa Rica is an ecological pioneer, introducing a carbon tax in 1997. The Environmental Performance Index, a collaboration of Yale and Columbia Universities, ranks Costa Rica at No. 5 in the world, the best outside Europe.

This emphasis on the environment hasn?t sabotaged Costa Rica?s economy but has bolstered it. Indeed, Costa Rica is one of the few countries that is seeing migration from the United States: Yankees are moving here to enjoy a low-cost retirement. My hunch is that in 25 years, we?ll see large numbers of English-speaking retirement communities along the Costa Rican coast.

Latin countries generally do well in happiness surveys. Mexico and Colombia rank higher than the United States in self-reported contentment. Perhaps one reason is a cultural emphasis on family and friends, on social capital over financial capital ? but then again, Mexicans sometimes slip into the United States, presumably in pursuit of both happiness and assets.

Cross-country comparisons of happiness are controversial and uncertain. But what does seem quite clear is that Costa Rica?s national decision to invest in education rather than arms has paid rich dividends. Maybe the lesson for the United States is that we should devote fewer resources to shoring up foreign armies and more to bolstering schools both at home and abroad.

In the meantime, I encourage you to conduct your own research in Costa Rica, exploring those magnificent beaches or admiring those slothful sloths. It?ll surely make you happy.

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I invite you to visit my blog, On the Ground. Please also join me on Facebook, watch my YouTube videos and follow me on Twitter.

Sign in to Recommend Next Article in Opinion (2 of 28) » A version of this article appeared in print on January 7, 2010, on page A31 of the New York edition.

 PHI CHI'S AROUND THE WORLD

We had a weather problem today, it was 85 to 90, high humidity. We were forced to go to the beach twice. Sorry, I wouldn't do that again. We're 11 days into this 3 month project, to decide on whether to get out of Wisconsin winters, or move here full time. That answer will come as the weeks roll by. Last week we went out with a realtor that we found on the internet 6 months ago. We looked at over 20 properties, half condos, half houses, some bargains in each group. Tomorrow we head out with another realtor to check out the other end of town.

PHI CHI'S IN MEXICO

PART TWO

We hope you're all getting ready to spend Christmas    the way you want with the people you want to be with.  Since our last note, we ran into some trouble. I got real sick12 days ago, went to a Doc, got meds, but it only got worse.  I went to a second Doc and he diagnosed us with bedbug bites. I had about 70 bites, Barb had less.  They don't show up for the first nine days, so when they were visible, we were really sick. I had a high fever, extreme chills, couldn't eat much or sleep much.  The new meds slowly worked and I got rid of the fever 2 days ago, but am still pretty weak.  Barb is about a day behind me in recovery--it's the sickest we've ever been.   Bedbugs were gone for many years, now there's a worldwide surge.

 Clayton Droullard Honored

     George Allen stepped on Morningside College's campus in 1948, beginning a long successful coaching career while also introducing two coaches who would become his life-long friends, Clayton Droullard and Gene Asprey.  With the leadership and coaching of these three great men, Morningside enjoyed eight wonderful years of football and two North Central Conference Championships.

       During this period the discipline and leadership demonstrated by these coaches touched the lives of more than two hundred young men. The purpose of this scholarship is to provide one scholarship annually to a student-athlete participating in football at Morningside College.

The fund reflects the thoughtfulness and generosity of his former students, football teams and friends.  Eligible students consist of all academically qualified, full-time, undergraduate students meeting the admission standards of Morningside College with preference given to students pursuing a coaching/teaching career.

        The Allen-Droullard-Asprey Endowed Scholarship has received support from 71 individuals amounting to $26,000.  This scholarship will be distributed to a Morningside College student for the first time in the fall of 2009.