At first Glance, Samara is a sleepy fishing village on the Nicoya Peninsula of Costa Rica. With a three-mile beach, horseshoe bay, four restaurants, an internet cafe, a supermarket and a noisy upstairs bar, the town seemed too tiny to be interesting for longer than a night or two. Tim and I stopped a local woman and asked where we could find tacos. "Tacos? Traditional Costa Rican Food? You cannot find that here. There are no traditional restaurants in town, just the Spanish place and the Italians with their pizza." She told us. "But I recommend that you try the Organic Foods store and thier restraunt around the corner. They are two blocks away at what we call the gym."
With bright green walls, and a green metal fence surrounding, the gym is one city block of bliss. Two American couples have recently relocated to Samara and have added to it what they would like in a town: an organic food store, a health-conscious restaurant, a massage hut and a local farmers market every Friday.
As we strolled into the farmers market, we quickly spotted the two American couples, and six other booths of local residents with crepes, cheeses, vegetables, smoothies, hummus and honey. I started a conversation with a tan elderly man at his hummus stand. He quickly switched from my Spanish to English and I heard a note of New York in his voice. His bright blue eyes sparkled as he told me his story of moving to Costa Rica five years ago, becoming healthy, and losing 110 pounds. He showed me an 8x10 photo of his former self to illustrate.
"That's fantastic!" I told him, "You essentially lost me!"
We laughed for a while and I basked in his glow: a mix of healthy, grateful and Pura Vida.
'Pura Vida' is an expression used in Costa Rica that means as many things as Aloha does in the Hawaiian Islands. In Spanish, ‘Pura Vida’ translates to ‘Pure Life’. But more than a life unclouded, down there it means ‘Enjoy Life.’ Do what you want to do most with it, enjoy every day, savor the good stuff and be sure to allow yourself plenty of good stuff.
While purchasing organic carrots and cucumber to use in the hummus, I met another man, John, an artist who has also relocated from the states and has lived in Samara for a week.
With bright green walls, and a green metal fence surrounding, the gym is one city block of bliss. Two American couples have recently relocated to Samara and have added to it what they would like in a town: an organic food store, a health-conscious restaurant, a massage hut and a local farmers market every Friday.
As we strolled into the farmers market, we quickly spotted the two American couples, and six other booths of local residents with crepes, cheeses, vegetables, smoothies, hummus and honey. I started a conversation with a tan elderly man at his hummus stand. He quickly switched from my Spanish to English and I heard a note of New York in his voice. His bright blue eyes sparkled as he told me his story of moving to Costa Rica five years ago, becoming healthy, and losing 110 pounds. He showed me an 8x10 photo of his former self to illustrate.
"That's fantastic!" I told him, "You essentially lost me!"
We laughed for a while and I basked in his glow: a mix of healthy, grateful and Pura Vida.
'Pura Vida' is an expression used in Costa Rica that means as many things as Aloha does in the Hawaiian Islands. In Spanish, ‘Pura Vida’ translates to ‘Pure Life’. But more than a life unclouded, down there it means ‘Enjoy Life.’ Do what you want to do most with it, enjoy every day, savor the good stuff and be sure to allow yourself plenty of good stuff.
While purchasing organic carrots and cucumber to use in the hummus, I met another man, John, an artist who has also relocated from the states and has lived in Samara for a week.
Why Costa Rica? It all started when his 26 year old daughter asked to put in a CD. He resisted her music choice until she gave the disclaimer of "Dad, if you don't like it, I will take it out. Just try it."
The CD turned out to be Jack Johnson, singing lullabies and melodies about priorities other than the 9 to 5, about an easy going style of life, about following what makes you happy and realizing that all you need is within yourself. An instant resonance with these themes led John to view Johnson's surf movies, seek out surf spots, and eventually end up on this beach here in Costa Rica.
When John told his family he was moving out of the country, they were not supportive. Rather than seeing what this move was to John, his daughter focused on how it would affect her.
"Why would you leave me?" She asked.
"I am not leaving you. You can come down and visit anytime." John explained. "But I need to do this for me. I want out of the rat race. And I am inspired down there." His daughter did not understand, and was unhappy with his choice. But in time, that may fade.
John's story was a beautiful reminder to me that I cannot make everyone happy, and if I am to make anyone happy, I have got to start with myself. Others may not understand or support a different lifestyle, or a giant life change. They may say they are unhappy with a choice. But it is my responsibility to do what I need to do to be happy, to enjoy my life. They have the same responsibility for their own happiness. Rather that comes with eating a diet of raw fruits and vegetables, deciding to not be a lawyer anymore and switching to painting for a living, relocating to a place your family has never heard of, or simply eating more tomatoes, you have to listen to your heart and go forward and - Pura Vida - enjoy life!
Returning to the United States from Costa Rica, our Customs and Border Patrol check was in Houston. Cold and hungry off the first of three planes and relying on my tan for warmth, I approached the Customs Official.
"Good Morning!" I said, holding out my passport and immigration form.
"What countries have you visited?" He asked.
"Costa Rica," I told him.
"What was the purpose of your trip?" He asked
"To play." I said, smiling.
"Define play." He said.
I stared at him, searching for a hint of a smile or a crinkle of the eye to tell me he was joking. He wasn’t.
As I fumbled for a response, the official asked in a monotone voice, "To play the guitar? To play the flute? You must be more specific."
"You know, play. As in: fun, enjoyment. As in: life’s a game."
"No." he said, staring darkly at me. "I don’t know."
Obviously, I thought, but bit my tongue.
He moved right along. "You have no bags?"
"No checked bags." I motioned. "Just the backpack."
"No bags?" he asked again.
"Not even a guitar." I said. The official didn’t respond or smile, he just slammed his stamp down on the immigration form and handed back my passport. Oooooookay then.
I chose to see the situation as funny, laughing as I boarded the escalator. Define play. If you really need a definition, are you enjoying life? Back in the United States, Pura Vida seemed a rare concept within the hurried lifestyle, serious tone, sparse vacations, and focus on productivity over enjoyment.
As I look back over our two weeks in Costa Rica, I see plenty of play: climbing trees, squishing through a rainforest in mud boots (complete with sound affects), jumping off five waterfalls, giggling into shore on warm waves and howling back at monkeys. It’s the newness and joy that I not only live for, but it’s also how I live. It is my version of Pura Vida: planning another trip while on a journey, exploring possibilities, living big, learning about the landscapes within myself and others, learning new languages and new ways to enjoy life.
Returning to the United States from Costa Rica, our Customs and Border Patrol check was in Houston. Cold and hungry off the first of three planes and relying on my tan for warmth, I approached the Customs Official.
"Good Morning!" I said, holding out my passport and immigration form.
"What countries have you visited?" He asked.
"Costa Rica," I told him.
"What was the purpose of your trip?" He asked
"To play." I said, smiling.
"Define play." He said.
I stared at him, searching for a hint of a smile or a crinkle of the eye to tell me he was joking. He wasn’t.
As I fumbled for a response, the official asked in a monotone voice, "To play the guitar? To play the flute? You must be more specific."
"You know, play. As in: fun, enjoyment. As in: life’s a game."
"No." he said, staring darkly at me. "I don’t know."
Obviously, I thought, but bit my tongue.
He moved right along. "You have no bags?"
"No checked bags." I motioned. "Just the backpack."
"No bags?" he asked again.
"Not even a guitar." I said. The official didn’t respond or smile, he just slammed his stamp down on the immigration form and handed back my passport. Oooooookay then.
I chose to see the situation as funny, laughing as I boarded the escalator. Define play. If you really need a definition, are you enjoying life? Back in the United States, Pura Vida seemed a rare concept within the hurried lifestyle, serious tone, sparse vacations, and focus on productivity over enjoyment.
As I look back over our two weeks in Costa Rica, I see plenty of play: climbing trees, squishing through a rainforest in mud boots (complete with sound affects), jumping off five waterfalls, giggling into shore on warm waves and howling back at monkeys. It’s the newness and joy that I not only live for, but it’s also how I live. It is my version of Pura Vida: planning another trip while on a journey, exploring possibilities, living big, learning about the landscapes within myself and others, learning new languages and new ways to enjoy life.
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