Introduction

When we first saw it, we assumed that the ubiquitous “Pura Vida” in Costa Rica must be the center of a national publicity campaign (kind of like the insidious “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas”). We were wrong, as it turns out. “Pura Vida” (roughly meaning “life to its fullest”) is a long-standing part of the cultural mantra here, and frankly, does a pretty good job at giving a snap shot into the Costa Rican psyche. Besides ads for tourism, Pura Vida is an often heard response for “how’s it going”.

Tamarindo Beach at Sunset

Well, we like both the mantra, and the message. So as we launch our maiden voyage into the blogosphere, we have dubbed our blog “Pura Vida Karlinseys” and sincerely hope that our time in Costa Rica will be “Pura Vida.”

We admit, up front, that we are pathetic correspondents, which is ironic given our desire to stay in touch with friends and family. So, in an effort to touch base more regularly, and to document our adventure, we’re going to attempt a blog.

Dalton on the Canopy Zip Line

Today officially marks the end of our third week in Costa Rica. As big moves tend to be, it has been go-go-go-go-go for the past several weeks. As Dayna pointed out recently, most of the time, one makes major decisions at a measured pace, with information gathered over time. So it is not for the faint-at-heart to be simultaneously deciding on housing, schools, cars, doctors, language teachers, music teachers, coaches, major appliances, telephones, temporary furniture, opening banking accounts, obtaining residence visas, etc., all while trying to get the kids off to a good start in making friends, and laying the foundation for a positive experience. Oh, and Glenn has a job, too. One which he is loving, but, is extremely busy, and probably will be for a while.

But, no complaints. Really no attitude problems from anyone so far (we’ve had a few “deer-in-the-headlight” moments with Spanish, but other than that, we’re good).

Cousins

So, enough intro. Here’s what’s new:

Our place is top left of the right tower

Housing. After looking at probably 30 houses, and never finding one that had the size and amenities we need, we scrapped the house hunt, and decided on an apartment. We are going to be on the 10th floor of a tower fairly high up a hill on the south side of the central valley that is metropolitan San Jose. The altimeter on the rental car we have puts the place right at 1100 meters (3,500 feet?) elevation. Our new home is similar in size to our home in Jacksonville, but distributed differently, and one its best aspects is the two story windows in the living room that over-look the valley, and the fact that there are great views from every room.

View from our Living Room Window

It has an Olympic length pool, tennis court, weight room, gardens, etc.—which we have to share, of course—but, which someone else will take care of (woo-hoo!). We move in on August 01, and are in an “aparthotel” in the meantime. That means a we’re in a long-term hotel of sorts.

At the top of Poas Volcano

Cars. Not an easy thing getting cars here. Besides the fact that they are some 70% more expensive than home, they’re not just sitting on a lot to drive off in, either. We ordered a Honda Pilot about a month ago, and just got word that it is now at the port. We hope to have it by the end of the week. We are still trying to decide what we want for a second car, but hope to resolve that this week as well. In the meantime, the company has assigned a car and driver to Glenn; Dayna has gone beyond the driver, and is getting herself around town with a rental car, and a GPS. The latter is Heaven-sent, since the Costa Ricans don’t really use addresses the way most countries do (the addresses are “relative”—literally—for example, a store, instead of being #45 Main Street, will be “3 blocks south of the Marriott Hotel. So, one learns to program places found into the “favorites” section of the GPS.

Dayna in front of the "Friendship Bridge"
donated to Costa Rica by Taiwan.

Work. Great, and busy. The combination of a new business unit, greatly increased responsibilities, and the integration of an acquisition mean long hours and pretty intense focus. While they are all smaller, Glenn has responsibility for 15 plants instead of one, with three distinct product lines. His main focus for the next few months will be the operations in Costa Rica and Nicaragua; but, eventually he will also spend more time overseeing the operations in Honduras and Guatemala as well. He really likes the team he is with, and is really enjoying it.

Glenn rock climbing

Family Reunion. A long time ago, Dayna’s family started planning a 50th anniversary celebration for her parents. Much to our benefit, they made the venue the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica. None of us expected that my official start date would be delayed as much as it was, so as it turned out, it was the same day as the family arrived in Costa Rica. Glenn ended up taking off a few days (flew back for meetings, and spent time most days on the computer), but was able to pull of time with the family in what was a great time. As it turns out, it was also great time for the Karlinseys to explore their new host country—surfing, zip lining, river rafting (tubing), horse-back riding. Pura Vida, man, Pura Vida.

Dalton enjoying the rapids

Keaton. Came down a day early, and drove with us from San Jose to meet the Bunnell clan on the coast (this particular spot was 4+ hours away). He then returned with us, and just headed back to BYU a few days ago. Was a lot of fun to have him with us, but we were not able to coax him to give up his job and his life in Provo to stay with us. C’est la vie.

Church. We are blessed to belong to a very friendly congregation that has reached out to us a lot. Admittedly, this has made the transition much easier. It is fun to have “local contact” for Dayna and the kids (Glenn gets a lot at work, but, they may not otherwise). There are also a number of expats in there as well who have been a great help in getting a “lay of the land” and getting settled.