What is culture anyway

Jonathan:
Another country down. We've made our way across the border to the city of David in western Panama. After crossing what was undoubtedly the most poorly organized border facility we've seen, we arrived here yesterday feeling a little perplexed by the fact that we fled Costa Rica so suddenly.

Our departure was a bit of a spur of the moment decision, not based on much except that we both felt like leaving. We had originally planned to spend close to a month exploring the vastly diverse natural beauty that has made Costa Rica such a choice destination for so many travelers over the years. Instead, for some reason, after spending just over a week between two different cities we decided it was time to move on.

Costa Rica struck us both as a bit of an anomaly in Central America. Through numerous conversations in neighboring countries, we had been led to expect a sad cultural sell-out of a country where any traces of their rich native history had either been mowed over by steamrollers bearing the Ritz Carlton logo, or turned into a commercial spectacle of roadside "authenticity." It's true that the hoards of camera-toting tourists pouring off of buses in search gift shops, post cards and photo-ops have left their mark-- prices were the highest we had seen on our trip so far, and it was truly difficult to find someone who didn't respond to our Spanish questions in English-- but to be honest, we found it kind of refreshing. The amenities and infrastructure afforded by the millions of tourist dollars pouring in have made Costa Rica... well, comfortable. Taxi's say "taxi" on them, roads are maintained by uniformed workers, and instead of fending off desperate street vendors and beggars as we walked down the street, we were overhearing conversations about dating, movies and friends.

There may not be much left in terms of ties to rich traditions, but surrounded on all sides by nations that have ripped themselves apart with internal conflict and corruption, Costa Ricans have defined themselves by their ability to embrace the New. Throughout their history they've had an ability to roll with the punches, adapt, and redefine themselves. It seems to have left them with a richly cosmopolitan country full of comfort and opportunity, with enough spare time to focus on their families, their schools, and art. I'm not entirely sure what culture is, or what it means when someone tells you a place doesn't have it, but Costa Rica is definitely not lacking.

All that said, I can't really tell you why Megan and I were so ready to leave-- chalk it up to intuition I guess. It wasn't the right time for us to be there. As decided as we were that it was time to go, we are both left with a nagging feeling that we didn't give the country a chance to grow on us. I guess whatever opportunity there might be for us to find a connection with this place will have to wait until next time.