(from my perspective of course)
Though I’ve traveled to over 20
countries, each new country and specifically each community has its own unique culture in terms of identity, family structures, gender issues, and power structures. Now having lived in San Rafael de Vara Blanca in
Costa Rica for almost 4 months, I am at a place where I can analyze that which I have seen and experienced from the perspective of an outsider to this community. (*Note: Throughout this I will be speaking specifically of my personal observations and experiences in San Rafael de Vara Blanca, but much of this may also relate to the whole of Costa Rica. Also understand that there are many generalizations and remember that they are just that: generalizations. I am not trying to say that every individual is this way, but simply give a general understanding from my personal time here.)
Always wanting to be polite, putting people over work, and being suspicious of outsiders are all cultural identities which I have seen through many different experiences living in San Rafael as a newcomer. People in San Rafael try to be polite and avoid confrontation as much as possible. This can be seen simply through the Costa Rican tagline “
Pura Vida” which directly translated means “Pure Life”, but more generally is used as “It’s all good”. “Pura Vida” is often a simple greeting, but is used in many different contexts and even that of responding to problems. For example, a teenager in the community asked me one day “¿Como esta?” (How are you?) and I responded “Mas o menos” (More or less) as I was not having the best day. His response to my not so great day was “Pura Vida” or “It’s all good”. This experience is not uncommon. Further, I have seen people be very nice and friendly to other individuals that they have then told me they don’t like or can’t stand. Maybe this is simply their way of being polite or maybe it is fake and non-confrontational. I am not here to judge but simply to state the cultural issues and commonalities that I have observed. Many times I have experienced an individuals desire to be polite by inviting me over to their house for coffee or a meal and yet never following up on it, possibly because it is the “polite” thing to do. Similarly (and one of my favorite examples of this), when asked directions no one will tell you that they don’t know. Instead, they will politely tell you directions so who knows where so that they are not rude by not helping you. However, they often do much greater damage by getting the person farther lost than they may have been. This is country that abolished its army in 1949 and is very proud of it. They choose peace over conflict as a nation and individually.
Those in San Rafael also choose people over work, whether it is stopping on the street to say “Hi” to a friend (even if there are cars waiting behind you) or asking about the persons mother, aunt and cousin instead of a simple “How are you”. People here don’t seem to view the many interruptions throughout the workday by others as interruptions. Each person welcomes the breaks throughout the day, the walk, or the drive as they seem warm and friendly every time. A great example of this are the many coffee breaks that people take to simply sit and talk and drink lots of coffee; all of which keep them going for more work until the next break a few hours later. Simply the greeting of the kiss on the cheek when you say “Hello” or “Goodbye” exemplifies the closer nature of the individuals to each other within this community.
Within this small, somewhat isolated, community there is a sense of suspicion of outsiders. It can be seen through interactions, such as people not responding when you say “Hello” or not greeting you as they normally greet others. There tends to be a shyness and uncertainty about outsiders that I have personally felt throughout my time here. Language and word usage are clear ways that I see this along with the awkward interactions. White outsiders are always called “Gringos” which is not meant in a derogatory way, but always separates the Ticos (Costa Ricans) from the foreigners. All Asians are considered “Chinos” (Chinese), whether or not they are actually from China. Though this may seem like something insignificant, I have seen it differently due to the judgments that I have seen towards other outsiders. Costa Ricans do not like Nicaraguans, classify them all in the same category, and are constantly suspicious of them. They neatly classify all outsiders whether Gringos, Chinos, Nicaraguans, or Columbians. They keep their distance with specifically boxed peoples and a sense of “us vs. them” as much as possible. Though it is possible to get beyond this, the titles rarely go away and if they do tend to take years to do so. These cultural identities can all be either positive or negative depending on the extremes taken and the attitude out of which they come.
In analyzing the culture also comes the unique issue of family structure, which at first appears simple in San Rafael but instead is rather complicated and broken. At first glance, it seems just like a small town with everyone related to each other. It has a sort of idyllic sense of an old isolated town; however, the close relations in the town come out of more complex and broken families than first noticed. Women are generally married young and to men that are significantly older than them. Yet they are not often “officially” married, but simply living together and under the term giving both a way out if or when desired. The woman usually stays home and the man works long hours. Along with the young marriages, women often have children starting around the age of approximately 20 years old. Most families have 2 – 4 kids and the parents seem to genuinely care for and pursue the best for their children. Unfortunately such issues of alcoholism and adultery (most commonly by the father) tend to contribute greatly to the broken families seen throughout the community. Despite the often complicated and broken families, relatives often live close together and stay connected. The grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins all live close by and take care of each other as needed. Though families are often broken, there tends to be someone that steps in to make sure everyone is taken care of. In understanding the family issues also brings up the role of gender in relationships and society.
Seen already through family relationships, this society is a male dominated society with only a few strong willed women making any changes. Men dominate the village through controlling relationships, especially exemplified in romantic and familiar relationships. The men tend to rule over the house as they do whatever they desire, while the women have to cook, clean and take care of the children. The word of the men in the community seems to stand over that of women as they hold most of the council positions. There are a few strong willed and tough women that break into this role, but they have to be pushy and unforgiving in order to do so. Overall men are forward and often objectify women in ways that women could never get away with but is culturally accepted. This can be seen through comments of strangers working on the street or even neighbors. In response to this culturally accepted mentality, women often seem to encourage it through dressing in tight fitting and provocative clothing. Young girls in their mid-teens are often forced to grow up quickly as the opportunities and men present themselves in a forward manner to the girls. At the age of 16 girls can be “married” to a man twice their age, forcing her to become the culturally normal housewife, cooking and cleaning and pleasing her husband. On the other hand, as men often marry much younger women they can live as an immature boy until they desire otherwise. As much of this is culturally accepted, men and women living differently are often the exception. Even with a woman president recently elected, the male dominated country and this community are maybe masking the deeper cultural issues that still stand.
Within the house and community men dominate the power structures and beyond men is wealth. The main influence in and decisions about this community seem to all be based around the rich male landowners. They are the ones that employ most of the community and therefore hold influence in their individual lives. The landowners seem to have influence one way or another in every council in the village along with the bigger decisions that come from higher up in the government. Most of the councils are dominated by men in the community with either wealth or historical influence, whether through family ties or ties to wealth. There are certainly exceptions with women and those with seemingly less money and ties, but these exceptions seem to be the outspoken bold individuals in the community. Throughout these power structures, corruption and conflict appears common both locally and nationally. Most are never directly addressed though they are common knowledge possibly due to the non-confrontational attitude of most Costa Ricans. Whether in the house, the business or the local government there always seems to be a clear individual or group dominating, if it’s talked about or not.
Understanding a culture takes time, observation and experience. Though I have some of that I recognize that I have plenty more to learn about the customs and individuals in this community in which I live. Some cultural issues seem positive and some seem negative, but within all of them there is a history and an attitude that goes far beyond my own experiences. It is also so much easier to analyze a culture other than the one in which you were brought up. I see that and only hope that this is a way for both me and you to understand another context and then turn it around to analyze our own.
