Costa Rican traditions – katherine stanley obando

Is there a pulpería in your life – or down your memory lane?

Costa Rica’s pulperías are fading from the landscape, but all those that remain are worth fighting for.

What are your grapes for 2020?

What will you wish for this New Year’s Day?

Day 30: Let’s startle the world with beauty

The outrageously lovely oxcart – and this week’s roundup.

Your brother’s my cousin’s ex-girlfriend’s son? A Costa Rican screenplay

You know what is truly pura vida, to me, after 13 years? More than a beach or a rainforest porch, more even than a cafecito or a birra bien fría, pura vida might consists of sitting in the back of a taxi while, in the front seat, two Costa Ricans figure out how they know each other. It’s alwaysContinue reading “Your brother’s my cousin’s ex-girlfriend’s son? A Costa Rican screenplay”

A room of our own: Costa Rican choteo and Virginia Woolf

Originally published by The Tico Times, http://www.ticotimes.net. When I worked in English-language education and visited an advanced young-adult class in San José, I asked them what their biggest challenge to language learning was. Lack of time? Mastering irregular verbs? The delightful traps with which the English language is laced, such as the multiple pronunciations ofContinue reading “A room of our own: Costa Rican choteo and Virginia Woolf”

Why a Costa Rican Holy Week is a treasure to be savored

I’m pleased to be writing a new column for Nature Air’s magazine, Nature Landings: “Word on the Street.” The magazine is full of fascinating travel stories, cultural information and more, and I’m proud to be a contributor. With permission from Nature Landings, here is a look at this month’s musings as published in the April-MayContinue reading “Why a Costa Rican Holy Week is a treasure to be savored”