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The coins here are very uh, interesting. 1 colone
coins are no longer manufactured (although I did
discover one in my wallet the other day). When an item
is rung up with a value less than a multiple of 5 they
simply round the total. That was easy enough to get
used to, although I still have been accumulating a lot
of coins. In addition to this the coins are different
sizes. What's the big deal you ask? There are 2 sizes
and materials (metals) for each coin, I mean there is
a small gold coloured coin for the 10 colone as well
as 1 big solver coloured one. As if it wasn't hard
enough keeping track of 5, 10, 20, 25, 50, and 100
colone coins, there are twice as many because if the
size differences. Now there is the new 500 colone
coins which are replacing the bills. I am going to
need a sack just to carry change.
More about the street vendors you ask? Well, in addition to the flimsy table lottery ticket sellers there are lots of others. In fact, they will stand in the middle of traffic (even though they are on the lane markings there are always the lane hopping taxi drivers that can make that dangerous). These street vendors sell everything from lottery tickets, flags, and cell phone paraphernalia to lychee, salted mango, and papaya. They share the street with the beggars, also standing in the middle of traffic, sometimes on crutches (now try dodging a taxi with those). Don't leave yet folks, we aren't finished yet, I've barely started. How about the guys who sell things that just "fell off the back of a truck". On the sidewalks they stand there selling pens, Barbie backpacks, socks, batteries, pictures of the News Kids on the Block (the horror) and just about anything else you can imagine. Some of them even bring the truck, I've seen them parked by the side of the road selling TVs, washers, dryers, exercise bikes, and microwaves. I mentioned to my previous visitor that I don't buy things from the street vendors, she asked why. Uh mm, maybe because some of it may be stolen, plus I don't really want to open my wallet on a crowded sidewalk in downtown San Jose. Although I must amend that, some of the street vendors have well maintained stalls that are semi-permanent structures, I am fairly certain that they are on the up and up. It's just the ones who stand on the sidewalk and thrust their wares at you as you walk by. The telephone monopoly here is ICE, Instituto Costariccense de Electricidad, or something like that). They are the only ISP available in Costa Rica. There are cable ISPs but they also have an agreement with ICE regarding service. Apparently the cost of the telephone ISP service is around $20US/month and the cable one is about $40US/month, both are a little pricey compared to Canada. Unlike BC's previous "monopoly" they seem to have little care for the quality of their service. It seems that the fibre optic link 'goes down' fairly regularly (at least once a month, sometimes more) They don't have any redundancy in the system. According to the Tico Times ICE has pulled back on a planned upgrade of their services (by purchasing additional equipment). This was also in the Nacional (the main Spanish paper) and was discussed quite a bit around the office. Most people seemed a little peeved. And this is in addition to the limited supply of telephone numbers. Ah well, I have come to view Costa Rica to be in a state similar to Canada about 20 years ago with respect to services and bylaw enforcement. I have made a few forays into the bus system here. It is far more complicated and unpredictable than BC Transit has or will ever be ... REALLY. Unlike BC Transit, every route is run by s different bus company. Talk about inconsistent service. There is no transfer system to speak of, if you need 2 buses to get some where, you pay each time you get on. Let's not even think about a bus pass. Each route can be a different price too, although I must admit they are extremely cheap. The bus in my part of town costs 70 colones ($0.30CDN) to go downtown. This particular company doesn't have the nicest buses though, old converted Blue Bird school buses. There is another one that is a quite comfortable Mercedes Benz make, and it costs the same. There is another line that goes out to the airport that costs 220 colones ($0.90CDN), much cheaper than a taxi which costs 4,000 colones ($16.50CDN). I haven't tried it yet, but the next visitor may be waiting for me as I check out how long it takes to get there. Something that takes a bit of adjustment is the washrooms. No, the toilets are not any different from ours, it just that have yet to come across a one that has hot water. Even my washroom at home, the shower has hot water but the sink doesn't. I guess that with the weather it is not considered necessary. Still sometimes I brush my teeth in the kitchen sink, just to brush with hot water. Well, Xmas preparations are in full swing here. Universal has a 2 storey inflatable Santa Claus outside the local store. Cemaco has been running commercials for weeks, featuring a dog in reindeer ears. And it seems every store I go into has seasonal music playing. Lynnethe tried to play some in the office the other day, we overruled her choice very quickly. It's a little bit much, and there's almost 2 months to go yet. Tune (pun intended) in next week for latest observations on the preparations. To those of you who have been willing to brave the snail mail system I want you to know it is much appreciated. I have received treats from home as well as postcards and letters. It's always a pleasure to come home and find a little note in my mailbox, even just a postcard. I broke down and hosted a party for housewarming and for a going away party for Lynnethe who was off to Cuba for a 1 week vacation. Being from the West Coast I went with the tried and true Sushi Party. I was hoping to be entertained by Ticos and Americans who had never had sushi before approaching it with trepidation. I was not disappointed. Of course I wasn't all that cruel, I did make oyakodon (chicken, onion and egg on rice) for those who could not bring themselves to sample the good stuff. The only problem was "Where do I get sushi supplies in Costa Rica?" Fortunately the little Chinese store stocks a variety of Japanese foods as well. I managed to get rice, nori, pink pickled ginger, soy sauce, and even a spare rolling mat (I only had my old one from Vancouver). Next was a trip to Auto Mercado (the Safeway of Costa Rica) to get the fish, chicken and other supplies. Unfortunately I wasn't able to find the Asian store in Tibas which, I am told, would have made this all one trip. Maybe next time. So now I was ready for the onslaught. I went home and started washing rice, and washing rice, and washing rice, then cooking it. After an hour or so of prepping the fish (cutting it into little strips) and cooking chicken. I was ready for the first victims. A couple of Lynnethe's friends came over early and I taught them to roll the maki. For people who are afraid to eat raw fish they sure wanted to try out making it. All in all it was quite fun watching people dipping tuna, salmon, cucumber, or shrimp rolls in soy sauce (some with wasabi, brave souls) and making a face as they bit down. A few people weren't able to make it so with the extra sushi (yes there was lots leftover, I anticipated too many people) I had a them over on the Following Thursday for beer and sushi. So all in all I managed to subject, I mean introduce, sushi to a few people who hadn't tried it before, a couple of them thought they would like to try it again sometime. Wild. |
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