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25 CRAZY Facts About Costa Rica!

3/24/2013

19 Comments

 
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1. Prostitution is legal but possession of pornography is illegal.  They even have unions, membership cards, health benefits, and police protection.

2. In most areas people cannot flush toilet paper because the pipes are old and only 1” wide, so toilet paper goes in the trash basket.  

3. Pedestrians have very few rights in Costa Rica.  They joke that Ticos love to use their horns but hate to use their brakes!  It’s so bad that the Tico word for “speedbumps” is “Son muertos,” or, “The dead people.” 

4. When raising your glass or beer to say “cheers” to Ticos you are supposed to look them directly in the eye, or else you’re cursed with seven years of a bad sex life. (apparently I haven’t been making very good eye contact, then). 

5. Costa Ricans have no addresses and very few street signs.  When mailing something or giving directions, they just point out proximity to nearby landmarks.  So when I lived in San Pedro, a suburb of the main city, San Jose, my address was “50 meters south and 100 west of the church of San Pedro.”

6. Earthquakes are common in Costa Rica.  They may get 2-40 per month depending on the movement of techtonic plates.  Almost all of them are small, though they got a 7.6 last time I was living there.

7. Costa Ricans are not good at soccer compared to their Central and South American neighbors!

8. Ticos put coffee in their babies bottles along with milk, and also give it to young children.   

9. The most popular national beer is Imperial.  They drink it over ice with lime and salt, called a “michelada.”

10. "Guaro" is the national liquor, sort of like a fire-water sugarcane tequila. There is no denying it's strong,  but I find it kind of nasty.   

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11. Fast food restaurants like McDonalds, Burger King, and Kentucky Fried chicken do home deliveries.

12. The meter in a taxicab is know as the “Maria,” which is a loose reference to the Virgin Mary and her honesty and virtue.

13. Cheap brand cigarettes are only about $1.65 per pack. 

14. You aren’t allowed to wear sunglasses or hats inside of the banks (due to so many robberies)

15. The slang is much different than proper Spanish.  Slang is called “pachuco.”  

16. One slang word is to call someone “Mopri.”  This is supposed to mean “primo,” or cousin, backwards.  In the 90’s Costa Rican teen culture went through a phase where they were saying words backwards.  Maybe around the time of Kriss Kross here in the US?

17. A lot of popular bands play the main stadium in San Jose, most recently the Red Hot Chili Peppers and then Lady Gaga.  

18. Scientist actually named a species of Costa Rican fern after Lady Gaga after she played there.  I’m not making that up!

19. They have bullfights in CR but instead of the bull being harmed, it runs free around the ring and tries to harm the brave teens and men who jump in there for sport.  Almost every little town has a festival with bullfights during the holidays.  

20. CR is one of the biggest cocaine transit nations in the world, as 90% of the cocaine that ends up in the US comes from Columbia to Costa Rica, and then up through Central America into Mexico and across the border.  

21. There are roughly the same criminal penalties for marijuana as there are for cocaine and all drugs

22. Robert August brought the surf scene to Costa Rica with his 1968 documentary, Endless Summer, and then Endless Summer II.

23. If you get pulled over in Costa Rica the police can probably be paid off for around $40.  

24. You are not allowed to wear shorts in a government or public office in Costa Rica - they see it as disrespectful and may turn you away. 

25. They say there are Three Great Costa Rica Lies.  It took me a year of living in Tamarindo, Costa Rica, to find them all out.  They are a bit secretive but I do reveal them in my new book, South of Normal.  

-Norm  :-)

If you liked these, check out
 30 Fun and Wild Facts about Costa Rica. ​
19 Comments
DaleK
6/2/2013 04:12:50 am

I'm thinking about living abroad and CR is high on my list of places to check out. As a personal trainer, I was thinking I'd need a career change but a brief Google of "obesity rates in CR" led me to an article suggesting that rising obesity rates in CR might be (in part) related to industry related toxins.

Then I come here and discover that:

"11. Fast food restaurants like McDonalds, Burger King, and Kentucky Fried chicken do home deliveries."

I had to laugh. Toxic for sure. And fascinating. Thank you!

To be sure, "South of Normal" is I am not normal myself! ;)

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Bananas link
4/24/2015 05:31:05 am

This is wow <3

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bob link
2/8/2018 08:38:19 am

hahahahahah

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David Thomas
7/5/2014 09:32:57 am

What was that they are not good footballers?

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Santi
3/15/2018 08:31:26 am

I can take anything but the statement that we are not good in football !! And yes, I store my used toilet paper on labeled bags for sentimental reasons. So what !!

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Nelly
9/13/2014 02:25:49 pm

You most be crazy speaking like that of costa rica. who you think you are?. some of the things you are saying is true but every country has social problem. yor comment is not good.

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Josh
12/12/2014 03:07:24 pm

People from Costa Rica are also very very ignorant.

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Linda
2/17/2015 08:29:37 am

Said it by a redneck! Go marry your cousin, u stupid mf!

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Tica
8/16/2015 01:32:03 pm

Yeah, probably that's the reason why US companies are moving here... We are sooo ignorant.. lol

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Alejandro
3/23/2015 05:14:35 am

Born and raised Tico here, prostitution is not legal, I have always flushed toilet paper, never heard about poor pedestrian laws, when saying cheers I've never heard about that superstition and we say 'Salud', we recently were in quarter finals in World Soccer Cup, the 'Maria's are frequently altered', most transit officers are honest, Iv'e weared shorts in governments offices and had no problem, I've never heard about the 3 lies of CR in ALL my life. PS: many times we lie to foreigners just to troll them so be very sure of things you publish. Dont generalize so much.

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Joe
10/26/2015 05:40:40 am

Prostitution is legal on well know establishments, about pedestrian laws, are there any? I did hear about the superstition many times, we are better in soccer than USA, but saprissa and la liga sucks, our entire local tournament sucks big time, transit official are honest and nice, they even will pay the traffic fines for you for just $40. Alejandro we lie to foreigners as well as to our selves. One word to you, Engañao, si eso es lo que sos!

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Tica!!
11/4/2015 08:09:21 am

you seem to know a lot about prostitution.. LOL.. you are probably a gross old man that is not able to get a fine nice girl..

Big DIK
9/10/2021 02:13:13 pm

"we are better in soccer than USA" I love this, Central America (Mexicans) called the sport soccer until THE USA played a pre-season game On October 2, 2005, the Arizona Cardinals defeated the San Francisco 49ers by a score of 31–14 at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, under the name NFL Fútbol Americano. It was the first regular season NFL game held outside of the United States.[6] The game drew the NFL's highest game attendance at the time with 103,467 spectators. SO NOW THEY PLAY FUTBOL at the FUKBOL

Norm Schriever
3/24/2015 10:39:18 am

Looks like you need to learn a little bit more about your own country, Alejandro! You probably live in s nice neighborhood in San Jose I'm guessing?

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Tica!!
8/16/2015 01:29:39 pm

Sorry Norm but this is not completely true
#1 #2 #3 #4 #7 #13 #24 #25 are lies... you better do a lil more research before publishing that book.
And no, i dont live in a nice neighborhood in San Jose!!!!

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Joe
10/26/2015 05:31:39 am

Tica!! do you ever been to "Del Rey Casino" the prostitutes there are very real, they even have CCSS carnet to work.

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Tica
11/4/2015 08:07:34 am

OMG hahahaha everyone in CR is able to have CCSS carnet, you can just go and pay to get one, that call insurance!!! LOL
And no, I've never been to El Rey Casino, only horny-old gringos go there to get some ass... and trust me sweetie, the girls you find there are not the best of CR.

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Emilia
7/30/2020 07:20:05 am

Many of the things here are not true. By the way, Colombia is written like this "Colombia", not like this "Columbia". Also, the thing you told about the milk bottles with the coffee is absolutely not true. Another thing, "guaro" is not the national liquor, it is just the general term for any type of alcohol beverage. Last but DEFINITELY NOT LEAST, Costa Rican soccer is the best out of all Central America. We got to quarter finals in the 2014 World Cup. Actually, we are known to be very good at soccer and it is the predominant soccer. Please make research before writing things that are not true. I can confirm this because all my family is from Costa Rica and so am I.

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via
3/16/2023 01:56:39 pm

that one by tica tho hehe

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    Norm Schriever

    Norm Schriever is a best-selling author, expat, cultural mad scientist, and enemy of the comfort zone. He travels the globe, telling the stories of the people he finds, and hopes to make the world a little bit better place with his words.   

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