Backpackers Journal 7

COSTA RICA part 2

It was my second night spent in the hostel and I already made some friends. I decided to use the couchsurfing website to find a local person to show me San Jose from their own perspective. I received a response straight away and so we agreed to meet the very same day. I took a shower, put some colones in my pocket and marched out to meet Kari ; a young student who absolutely loved her hometown. I was happy to explore it with her but because I spoke to many people, who mentioned that San Jose is a waste of time I grew highly demotivated . Nevertheless I decided to create my own memories and make opinions based on my own experiences. I am very glad that I did it.

Kari picked me up from the central square and we became comfortable with each other within seconds. We walked around parks, full of beautiful plants, trees and fruits that I would only find in supermarkets back home.I never fully got used to see oranges on tress. We explored the streets which seemed abandoned, poor but when we turned to others we saw beautiful, great houses. We walked past pubs, restaurants, and schools. One of them i remembered very well as it was made entirely out of metal. Yes, absolutely everything. We walked further to the city market that was full of Chinese made products, local fruits, vegetables and faked clothing. The smell of rotten food was very strong.

I wasn't taking out my camera very often, simply because I was getting a lot of attention. I was still a little bit unsure about this whole safety thing. I decided to minimise taking pictures on that day.

We stopped by her favourite caffe which name of I cannot remember. We had a delicious casado which is recognised as the signature of Costa Rica. Truly delicious. We drunk our beers and continued talking.
I realised how little I knew about this country and how little I expected from it. I felt ashamed.
Kari told me how hard the life can be here if one won't make right decisions. How easy it is to fall for an easier way of earning money, the way that you cannot get out of later. We spoke about the education and her ambitions after she is finished with the university. We talked about politics and how people blindly follow the power. The situation she described was very similiar to my home country with the difference that poverty in my motherland was never so high. Kari offered me to stay with her parents so that I can save some money but i politely refused because i paid for my hostel already. We slowly walked back to my hostel and I couldn't recognise the city. It looked completely different in the light of the falling sun, people looked much calmer and the landscape prettier.

When i got back to my hostel I went straight to the pool, swam a little and joined a group of people at the bar where I started finding out the reasons, hopes and dreams of other travellers. I took my beer went to the hammock and closed my eyes thinking about everything Kari said to me and about how much I loved San Jose.