This is the story of a country which is worldwide known as a peaceful place, rich for its natural attractions and kind citizens. Costa Rica is also famous for its democracy and its absence of army; besides, this country flaunts its educational system and social security as well. This country is also known as one of the favorite destinations for tourists around the world due to the multiple natural beauties that it possesses. Among all these positive aspects which make the country appealing, there is another famous one: the fact of being recognized to be the “Pura Vida” country. But what does it mean?
The phrase “Pura Vida” is used all over the country, and it has to do with the way “ticos” live their lives. Moreover, it is used as a characteristic way of greeting which indicates that everything is going great, even when it may not. The point is that being the “pura vida” country is related to the idea that everything here is nice and good, that Costa Rica is a perfect place to live or to visit for the many reasons as mentioned above. Therefore, every time you say you are from this country, foreigners use to reply “Costa Rica, Pura Vida”. It is like if you cannot separate the phrase from the country. Both are bound together.
Certainly, there are many aspects Costa Rican government and citizens may feel happy and proud about; however, there are a lot of essential things that must change or be eliminated in our society. For instance, drug trafficking, which is catching and killing the youth, the amount of femicides which increase daily, the crime rate and insecurity that lurk on the streets, and the poverty and unemployment rates just to mention some of them. So, before telling the world this is a “Pura Vida” country where you can walk and live peacefully, comfortably and safely; it is important to analyze if Costa Rica really guarantees the local and the tourists that philosophy of life.
It is not fair to sell this fake “Pura Vida” image to the world when the reality is quite different. As the insecurity this country faces does not distinguish between locals and foreigners, and the daily news support this terrible fact. It is evident, Costa Rica is facing hard times regarding security which is also linked to the difficult economy in times of pandemic. Unfortunately, many take the excuse of the lack of employment to get involved in prostitution, trafficking, or any other types of crime in search of illegal and easy money.
Certainly, the government has a huge challenge to change those actions that are undesirable, but also it is a responsibility of the whole society to eradicate many behaviors that do not contribute to have the country we want. For example, the male chauvinist preconceptions that remain and continue harassing and killing women, the intolerance towards the fellow men as well as the indifference towards others’ needs.
The everyday reality of Costa Rica is a depressed evidence about how far our country is from being the “Pura Vida” place as we all dream. Consequently, there are required a lot of efforts from the authorities of the government and Costa Rican people to change the course of things. We have celebrated our Independence recently, and it is a good opportunity to reflect upon the little or huge contributions we can do to the improvement of our country.
