If you retire in Costa Rica and happen to understand some Spanish you will hear the phrase “Estamos en Costa Rica.” This means “We are in Costa Rica” but really has little to do with where one’s physical location.

This express is often used by Costa Ricans to explain or justify the way things in the country work, as manifested by the inefficiency in many areas. For example, if the country builds a new highway and it turns out to be poorly constructed, the locals will justify the shoddy job by saying, “Estamos en Costa Rica” to indicate that these things are endemic to the country.

Another example is if someone is applying for Costa Rican residency and the process drags on and on and the person starts complaining about the bureaucracy to the locals. The latter will say “Estamos en Costa Rica.” In other words it is to be expected because that’s the way the country operates.

There are countless examples of where this expression can be applied by Costa Ricans to describe and rationalize why things go wrong here, take very long to get done or why strange things generally occur.

As foreigners we are never going to be able to change the idiosyncrasies of Costa Rica. So, we have to adapt to them and accept them if we are going to be happy living here. I chose to write about this subject to help potential retirees be aware of the many cultural differences they will be confronted with when living here.