The smiles and the innocence are disarming. Just a short time in this country and you are aware of the simple honesty that is given and is expected. It is not unusual in the city to be approached by persons of any age and engaged, usually in excellent english, in discussions of where you are from or where you may be going, with ocassional suggestions to seek out a member of their family to gain entrance to an event or to visit an exceptional site. Your presence appears as normal as the sunshine that graces San Jose every day, even in the rainy season. (April to November)
Sitting on a curb sketching a mother engaged in the purchase of shoes for her
small child, a voice asked me to try a delicate fruit grown and favored as snack
by many Ticos. Perched beside me was an attractive young woman in her
early 20's extending the plum sized fruit with suggestions on how to eat it.
"Would you like me to peel it?" she asked as I puzzled with her motives.
"Yes, as you can see I have my books and pens all about me." I said.
She handed me the soft flesh of the fruit as I organized myself,
and proceeded to eat and thank her with nervous appreciation. As I rummaged
for a tissue to mop my wet hands she stood up, smiled a most welcome grin,
turned and walked across the square and out of sight.
Around the city is not a difficult walk in one day,
though you may be inclined to do it
in segments, parks one day, museums the next
then maybe the markets, concerts, clubs,
cinemas or shows. I was happy to spend up to
4 consecutive days in San Jose before
escaping by bus to cleaner air and less bustle.
Excellent and very inexpensive bus service is
available everywhere in the country as well as
many safe and reliable Taxis.
The transportation vehicle rules the roadways and pedestrian rights are limited to
sidewalks, parks and markets....so stay out of the way, you may end up dead wrong.
For me the markets are an overwhelming attraction. Each visit takes me into a new folder of my imagination, odours and texture begin spinning into form a different but familiar patchwork of what was there yesterday and is here today. Why, when I return to the same aisles are the hawkers pitching me as if I were just another tourist, surely they must have seen me here before, as I have often walked by their stalls laden with onions and avacados.
My hotel room would often be fragranced
with oranges and melons in preparation
for an impending side trip, and usually
enhanced with a dram of creamed rum.
An eclectic mix of characters frequent
the busy market environment, leather
crafters, fishermen, suitmakers and
melon growers all jostle for your attention
and your colones (currency). For those
who would pinch all of your resources in a
less civilized way there is the appropriately named "Guardia Civil", an affable
and devoted force dedicated to the preservation of the "purest democracy"
of the second smallest of the Central American republics (51,060sq. km.)
Although relatively free of major crime the city of
San Jose has blatent daylight theft of the usual
obvious possessions of tourists, cameras, purses
cameras and backpacks. I witnessed a fleeting
well dressed individual brush quickly by me as I
walked aside heavy traffic near the Aurola
Holiday Inn, and thinking he had relieved me of my
valuable nine blade swiss knife or heaven forbid
my Glen Fiddich whiskey tube of pens and pencils I reeled back to protect my
stuff...only to witness him reach into the open window on the passenger side of
a Tico car stopped in traffic and from off the dash and in full astonished view
of the passenger, lift a pudgy purse, typically carried by businessmen in this
downtown core. He then slid it under his coat beneath his arm and danced
through the static traffic and on into a maze of human activity.
The suprised victim simply jumped rom his car, let out a pathetic scream
and raised his hands to the air, then stood for a long time leaning on the open
door before getting back in and resuming his snail speed journey with
the resolve that he would never see his wallet or the contents ever again.
I continued on my way, clutching my vinyl art sack with not a civil guard in sight.
Always on the prowl for something unique I find an organisation promoting the use
of natural fertilizer and pest control to produce 5 lb carrots and football sized onions.
It is my guess that, as conviced as I am of the virtues of organic gardening,
the rich volcanic soil of the central valley combined with a never ending growing
season were primarily responsible for these mutant vegtables.
The Costa Ricans are a very busy people. They
are constantly on the move, not in a big hurry,
but in constant motion. Every day the main city
street of Avenida Central is a magnet for the
entrepreneurs as they unchain their display tables
and chairs from the trees that line the streets and
unfold their wares. One such individual drove his
truck, stacked with sugar cane, to a busy corner
and with a noisy motor powered crusher, squeezed the sweet sticky brown juice
from the 10 foot sugar cane stalks into plastic bags to be sold to the passersby
for about .25 cents U.S. straw included.
The streets are full of gospel groups singing the
praises of their conviction, soapbox preachers,
money changers jugglers and musicians. If you display any characteristics of a gringo you will be approached to exchange your dollars. The changing of money is accomplished in one of the official banking institutions where the tellers will
microscopically inspect your folding currency and iron it on their lunch hour,
or you could slide into one of the closet sized exchanges of the street market.
If you are not intimidated by the unsmiling clerk protecting a leather purse filled
with bills sitting in a dark hallway and flanked by large arm folded gentlemen,
you will get the best exchange rate for your money, quickly.
Taking photos of Ticos and Ticas is easy ..you ask you get. In a remote shelter
high on the central plateau I was pretending to be as patient as a couple
preparing for a day in San Jose as we awaited the arrival of our bus.
It occurred to me to capture the serene character of these young people
in this fog enshrouded mountain terrain with my trusty compact nikon making
my willing subjects shift about in at obscure angles, with me clicking away.
For all my efforts there wasnot a single usable negative reinforcing the
spontaneous approach evidenced by the banana men at the Heredia market
and the pepper vendor selling to a resident of Limon on the Caribbean coast.
At the mercado Borbon an exhausted fruit monger takes his siesta in the
comfort of his push cart as the city shuts down from 2 to 4pm everyday.
Children are the window of a nations future. These kids
are on an outing to the city zoo and like children
everywhere are anxious and willing to be part of a
photograph. They were interested in who I was and
why my native land was so cold.
They were impressed with the prospect of being published. How could anyone
have known that in just a few years the picture of the Alumnos de la Escuela
Nuestra Senora del Carmen Tres Rios - Cartago would be whipping around the
globe on the Internet.
This Country does a much better job of managing the wild environments than it
does the captive ones. The zoo reminded me of fishing with 2 week old worms.
San Jose was always interesting and never imposing. The familiarity grew quickly and soon felt I this town was mine.