Panama and tico words

Hello everyone, it has become apparent to me that i'm not very good at blogging. I've been reading other ppls blogs recently and have realized that mine are really lame compared to theirs. I used to be a lot better as far as sharing feelings and emotions instead of just play by play at what i've been doing. I think part of the reason is that Costa Rica is not a new place for me, I've been here many times so I'm used to a lot of cultural norms that might suprise other people. For one, everyone is probably wondering why the blog is called Pura vida or Tuanis.

Pura Vida or Tuanis really means the same thing down here. Pura vida means literally pure life but people use it to describe anything pleasant. Like how are you: Pura Vida. How do you feel: Pura Vida. How was the food: Pura Vida etc. Tuanis is like the slang word for Pura Vida. I would always be asked, "Pura Vida or Tuanis?" and it didn't matter what the response was. Maybe there is more meaning to it but this is how I have come to learn it. They are two words that you really can't translate and can only learn to use after hearing the locals speak it enough.

The reason behind my web address being ticodustin is that tico means Costa Rican. It is their local touch that they will add on to any word, such as momentico instead of momento. There is a lot of variation on the language and I've been learning my fair share of pachuco (street talk). It is almost like learning a new language within a language. They have their own dictionary just related to Costa Rican words. I've been getting accustomed to this dialect so it was interesting for me to travel to Panama this last week.

First off, it was 12hrs one way on the bus, which sounds painful but the bus was nice and had a/c, bathroom and movies and was about half full so it was good for sleeping. I was looking forward to going there to see my aunt and uncle and cousins who were there visiting family on my aunt's side. Also I liked how you can speak a lot more informal in Panama than in Costa Rica which is all very formal, but can be harder to figure out at times just who you are talking about. Language people you know what I'm talking about. Also Panama has just as much slang as Costa Rica except I know none of it which makes it hard to keep up with the locals sometimes. I couldn't call them Maes (buddy) or tell them i had filo (hunger) and wanted to hamar (eat). After being in Costa Rica for a month I realized how little Spanish I could speak outside of Costa Rica. It really wasn't that bad, I just wish sometimes the slang could be a little more universal.

As far as Panama though, I had an excellent time. The landscape where I was was one of rolling hills, tall enough to climb, but not mountainous. We climbed one that was pretty steep, but from the top you look around and see a bunch of other hills all kind of lined up and scattered about the landscape. Very pretty. I also got a sneak peak of carnaval- the huge 4 day party that happens every year right before ash wednesday. The town Santiago, was about an hrs drive from where we were and we got there at about 6pm and the party had already been going for 8hrs and wouldnt stop until 5am. The easiest way for me to explain carnaval is to think of a small town and their main street... and then think of a huge football tailgating party in the street. And it is big, taking up the whole street with music blaring out of the back of vans on each side of the street with the dj screaming something every 30sec. Everybody comes out with their coolers (or cardboard box if you're like us and couldn't find ours and didn't want to pay $80 for one at the grocery store, talk about price gouging...) and they pick a spot in the street and just start drinking and keep going until who knows when. I kept thinking the kids at the U of Minnesota would love this because we never want to stop tailgating and go watch the game and the police always come around and kick us out whereas the tailgate party here is the main event. It was pretty fun overall but I don't know how they do it for 4 days in a row.

The next few days were pretty mellow before I headed back to Costa Rica, we visited with more extended family and enjoyed the cerveza (beer). I still can't get over how a can of beer is only 50 cents, where it is at least a dollar in Costa Rica. Maybe that is how they go for 4 days in a row. I'll have to start training for February soon...