in case you visit and are baffled by...

There are some funny differences between the USA and Costa Rica that do not even register with me after so much time being here. I have accepted these small things as normal, expected, matter of fact differences that do not warrant any explanation. Small and simple as they may seem, they are for the visiting tourist baffling.

Water fountains.
There aren't any water fountains in Costa Rica. I have never seen one. This can be frustrating when you just want a quick drink of water, at a side-of-the-road stop, at a grocery store, even at Walmart. But you will not find them anywhere. In schools and public places you do not have water fountains located throughout the building, free for all. Instead you may have a little snack bar, or someone selling food and drink from a cart that wanders the hallways. But you want a water fountain? Well, amigo, you are just out of luck!

Bathrooms.
With this group I have had to make various, unexpected bathroom stops. I don't think I ever mentioned that we even stopped at a house on the side of the road, and that one of my girls went to the bathroom in a pit toilet in someone's backyard. She just had to go! I think living in the USA we do not appreciate our highway system, our rest areas and information centers that are pit stops for bursting bladders. Generally if you have to go while in the middle of nowhere, you can stop at:

a) a gas station, and hope that the bathrooms aren't gross and that the toilets have seats
b)a restaurant, and hope that they have tp!

For bathrooms you also may have to pay a small fee to use the restroom if you are NOT a customer. This may be something like 200 colones (50 cents!), which could be just for the bathroom or for a few precious squares of tp to take with you. Some places, like McDonald's, you can go in and use the facilities free of charge. But you can't always count on finding a place like that! In the USA it is almost always posted, plain and politely, that "bathrooms are for customers ONLY." But wouldn't it be smarted to charge and use the bathrooms? Just saying...even 50 cents per person would pay for the tp (although here in Costa Rica you can buy individual rolls of tp and not a pack of 4, so it's cheaper).
Also remember that tp goes in the trashcan, never in the toilet. That is one of the hardest adjustments! But you better get used to it quick, because it is the rule EVERYWHERE you go.

Anyway, just a few things to keep in mind when you come visit me here. Don't be too surprised.

Pura vida : )