Pura Mirada

So, when you tell anyone that you are studying in Costa Rica, what do they picture?

-beaches
-jungles
-markets
-exotic animals
-indigenous people
-environmentally friendly
-cheap everything
-and so on.

I say this because these were all things that I thought. I pictured it to be nothing like the U.S.-- to be a tropically colored wonderland of new food, music, and dance, free of pollution or any other terrible trait of "my homeland." Alas, I have been proven wrong. Most of the time, I feel like I haven't left the U.S. at all, and sometimes I feel it even worse than where I live at home. No, this isn't meant to be some huge post on reasons why Costa Rica is horrible and why the U.S. is better. I simply want to address a few misperceptions about where I am studying.

There are lots of cars, and there is lots of smog here. When trucks and buses drive by I always hold my breath to stop from inhaling the thick black exhaust. When you walk through town in Heredia, there is garbage along the streets-- plastic cups, bags full of trash, etc. There is a lot of of non-point source pollution- oil, soap, and more on the road that runs into the sewer system. Just as much disposable containers that we have in the U.S. I've just seen so much garbage and pollution in public that I wonder where Costa Rica gets this rep of being so "Environmentally Friendly." Yes, there are copious amounts of jungles and beaches and so on, but It just doesn't seem to be living up to being the number one environmentally friendly country in the world as I have heard.

As far as the exotic animals and indigenous people and cheap everything go, you can find them in this country. But you can also find them in any other country. All of the cities here for the most part are just like ours in the U.S. You see people in current styles from the U.S. Music from the states is popular here, there are McDonalds, Burger King, Taco Bell, etc. . . Small businesses everywhere selling every kind of ware. Walmart is here. People don't go out of their way to talk to someone they don't know or make eye contact and smile with a stranger. It rains frequently and is often cold.

I simply want to say that the image people have of Costa Rica isn't necessarily the reality of the matter.

I created "Pura Mirada," meaning Pure View-- a play off of the token saying here, "Pura Vida," which means Pure Life. Is Costa Rica a terrible place? No. I am simply approaching the stereotype from my experiences walking around town everyday, and how my perceptions have changed. I have seen quite a few examples of the above listed ideas, but in the same breath, every place has its flaws.