Costa Rica has always been good at making things—clever, functional, beautiful things that fit the land and the climate. What’s new is the confidence: a generation of makers is taking heritage techniques (woodwork, clay, weaving, metalwork) and pairing them with...
Pitahaya (dragon fruit) is the kind of plant that feels like a friendly prank by nature: a cactus that behaves like a jungle climber, throws out aerial roots like grappling hooks, and saves its biggest floral performance for the middle of the night. In Costa...
Costa Rica has always attracted outsiders with big dreams: coffee barons, banana kings, surf nomads, eco-idealists, and retirees looking for a softer life under harder sunlight. But in the early 1970s, the country also drew a rarer breed—men with money they couldn’t...
Coastal Costa Rica does seafood brilliantly—if you order with a bit of strategy. The “tourist trap” version is usually the same three things everywhere (overpriced mahi-mahi, rubbery calamari, and a ceviche that tastes like it was assembled in an airport lounge). The...
Suggested lead photo A late-afternoon street scene: a cimarrona brass band leading a mascarada (giant papier-mâché heads) past a town church, with spectators on kerbs and mountains in the distance. What counts as a “mini-festival” in Costa Rica? A mini-festival is a...
Buying real estate in Costa Rica can feel like Canada or the U.S. at first glance: you find a place, make an offer, put down a deposit, complete due diligence, and close. The difference is that many of the guardrails you may be used to—industry regulation, a single...
Costa Rica has a way of sneaking up on people. You arrive for a “quick look”, you have one too many late-afternoon coffees with a view, you realise you’ve stopped checking the news every five minutes… and suddenly you’re pricing up sofas and learning the difference...
What makes death and mourning in Costa Rica feel so different? It feels different because grief here is shared out loud and handled fast, with neighbours, family, faith, and practical law all moving in the same direction. In many towns, a death doesn’t become a...
If you’ve spent any time on a Costa Rican highway, beach road, or farm track, you’ve seen them—big dark shapes riding invisible elevators of warm air, barely flapping, as if the rules of effort don’t apply. Then you spot the truly iconic moment: one perched on a fence...
Costa Rica living – what draws people to this country? Let’s look at just a few of the many things that make people decide Costa Rica is where they want to call home. 1. Sand and sea Because the country is so small, you’re never too terribly far from one of its...
The Telenovela A Guilty Pleasure Telenovela baddies require incredible acting skill not to evoke laughter at their dastardly deeds. Years ago, under the pretext of learning Spanish, I became hooked on watching telenovelas in the United States. In those days, long...
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Why does decluttering help your well-being? Decluttering helps because less visual and mental “noise” often lowers stress and makes everyday decisions feel easier. When your space is crowded, your brain keeps scanning, sorting, and...