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Traveling to Costa Rica | ||
Tags: Latin America | Travel | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Cultural Experiences in Foreign Languages |  | |
| xmikegx30 Diglot Newbie United StatesRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 6559 days ago 15 posts - 15 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish | Message 1 of 4 31 January 2009 at 3:48pm | IP Logged |
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My name is Mike and during my time in the US Army I did not get to go to a language school but I was lucky enough to have two room-mates that where from the Dominican Republic, which began my learning of the Spanish language. I have continued to study and improve my Spanish by reading and using various courses. Recently, I decided it was time to put my Spanish to a real test. I use Spanish every day with work and talking with my neighbors but, they are also able to speak English fairly well so I have never been able to see if I would be able to use the language as a tool for survival in another country. So, On Oct 2008 my wife and I planned a trip to Costa Rica.
We left from Washington DC very excited about seeing this new land we did not know to much about. Our uneventful flight landed in San Jose Costa Rica around noon that day and then the test was on. Because I wanted to see how well I could get along we had not planned anything in advance other than the hotel and the flight. So, here we are in the airport and I am speaking Spanish, trying to get information, a taxi and everything else that we may need and I must say that it all payed off. In the taxi I'm talking to the driver and he is so happy that I can speak Spanish that he is just going on and on telling me about places to go and things to do. We arrive at the hotel (San Jose Marriott 700 metros oeste del Fire Stone) and it is a very nice hotel. We get into the room and start taking it all in. We were able to get out and see much of central and western parts of Costa Rica it is all very beautiful. In the hotel there is a tour company named TAM tours and they are very affordable. My wife and I took a trip to Tortuga Island (3 hours buy bus and then 2 more hours on a large catamaran boat. Also we went to the La Paz waterfall gardens, tropical rain forest and the cloud forest which is located at the Poas volcano. We were very impressed with the service of the tours. I found that I passed my test and I was able to survive "in country" with my Spanish. I will say that Costa Rica is an excellent place to go to practice or even learn Spanish. The people speak very clearly and very formal (the tu form is not used in Costa Rica very much if at all). The people are very pleasant and friendly. Finally, "The bad things!" Here are a list of things that I found out on my trip to Costa Rica, they are not really things that are bad about the country, just things you need to look out for. 1 Check your receipts!!!! - This is a country that makes its money off tourism. I was over charged several times. (example: went to buy shampoo and the guy tried to charge me for 6 bottles. 2 Costa Rica is not as cheap as one might think, so don't go without money for reserve. 3 Food at the hotels will cost you big money, you are better off to ask locals where to do some shopping for snacks and beer. (example: one rum and coke 8 dollars a bottle of rum in the local store about 3-4 dollars) 4 Costa Rica is a very safe place but in San Jose the capitol use the same caution you would in any large city in the US. If anyone is going to go to Costa Rica I will be happy to answer any questions I can. Email me mguthrie30@gmail.com. Thank you for reading and I hope this will help others. PURA VIDA! Edited by xmikegx30 on 31 January 2009 at 3:51pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Alvinho Triglot Senior Member Brazil Joined 6234 days ago 828 posts - 832 votes  Speaks: Portuguese*, English, Spanish | Message 2 of 4 31 January 2009 at 9:56pm | IP Logged |
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What you did in Costa Rica is the same I want to do in Colombia, even though I have plans for living there for some time.
Costa Rica is alledgely the sort of the country in which tourism is booming....thus, the prices just hike anyway.....as for Colombia, the guerrilla is weakening and violence in big cities has decreased. So tourists have discovered the country....however, I fear tourists just face soaring prices over time..... Finally, I want to hace the same pleasure to speak to locals in Spanish and realize my personal experience will have been rewarding. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| xmikegx30 Diglot Newbie United StatesRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 6559 days ago 15 posts - 15 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish | Message 3 of 4 31 January 2009 at 10:44pm | IP Logged |
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I would like to explore Colombia myself. I have some friends here in the US that are from Bogota Colombia and they have told me that as long as you stay in the larger cities and do not travel through the remote areas that the danger is far less. I love the Spanish they speak like Costa Rica it is very clear and correct. buena suerte amigo.
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| Alvinho Triglot Senior Member Brazil Joined 6234 days ago 828 posts - 832 votes Speaks: Portuguese*, English, Spanish | Message 4 of 4 06 February 2009 at 7:13am | IP Logged |
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Hola, profe!
Despite I've never been to Colombia, all of people I have chatted with just say that big cities are safer than other small towns or isolated areas in the jungle...cities like Bogotá and Medellin are full of "guardias" on the streets, mostly downtown and other main commercial areas.....even on the Caribbean coast, in the main tourist spots policemen are found everywhere although some thugs just lurk around to steal tourists' some belongings....that isn't new for me because I live in a country in which you gotta hide your wallet underneath your underpants wherever you go...hehehe Finally, the Spanish spoken in Colombia sounds pretty good to me...as well as its slangs...hehehe Edited by Alvinho on 06 February 2009 at 7:16am 1 person has voted this message useful |
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