A Broad In Costa Rica

Two Costa Rica Tidbits:

Speaking of Costa Rica real estate and abandoned projects, Scott Oliver has an excellent list of questions to ask your salesperson here (you'll need to sign in but tons of good information). If you are moving to Costa Rica and looking for real estate, this is a good list to bring with you.

While rummaging through Scott's site, I came across this article about their visit to the Centro de Aprendizaje Para Indigenas (CAPI - Apprenticeship Center for Indigenous). Owned and run by the Association "Light in Central America", the centre provides apprenticeships for indigenous Indian people from Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua and Honduras. This organization has been around for almost 30 years... well, you can read about it here.

It is always nice to be inspired by people. I spend too much of my day being uninspired by politicians and unethical corporations headed by greedy, unethical people. Discovering CAPI was a welcome break!

Listen to the Rhythm...

Of the falling you-know-what. Go ahead, you listen. I'm sick of it. This is our third rainy season here and I plan on it being my last. Almost anywhere else will do. Even Key West in the stifling end-of-hurricane-season heat (she says now.) October through mid-December here is for the birds. I never knew it could rain so much or that I could get so sick of it. It's just life-giving rain, right? Day after day after day after day after day after day of endless wet, cold, life-giving rain?

When we were looking for a house, we knew we wanted to be up on a mountain, just not so high we'd be in the clouds. The first thing we looked for in a potential rental was a fireplace. If it had one, the house was probably too high and damp for us. We'd walk in, see a fireplace and pretty much walk out.

Today, we wouldn't use the Fireplace Criteria. A GPS would have been more accurate. Anywhere between 1,067m (3,500') to just shy of 1,524m (5,000') is our particular perfect temperature zone. Except near the end of the rainy season, when the sun ain't shined for three months straight. When the wind is howling all the time. When everything is wet, moldy, damp and cold. When you'd give your right arm for a fireplace.

Today, 21 December 2008, is BEAUTIFUL. The sun is shining, I am slack-jawed at the sight... and it's warming up the joint. No dark clouds threatening anywhere, only those big fat fluffy white clouds floating about. I think I can safely say the rainy season is over. Tossing a little salt over my shoulder, just in case. The last couple of years, the rains seemed to stop around the end of November... maybe I imagined that? This year it just went on and on.

At least all I'm suffering is cold and discomfort. There have been endless reports of relentless flooding, particularly on the Caribbean side. Many (dare I say most?) of Costa Rica's indigenous are in dire straits because their crops and farm animals were literally washed away in the last couple of months. If you've a mind to help relieve the suffering, you can do so at the Voz Que Clama website. Scroll down to the paypal link. I've been to VCQ, met Daniel and Hector, who founded the mission and live there. I've met Beverly, their U.S. ambassador and bookkeeper. Last year, I went to the Christmas party for the Cabecar with the Badgetts. We missed it this year, but will visit VCQ this week.

My point is that I can vouch for them. I've hugged and spoken with the children they've taken in. The money to feed and house these kids has to come from somewhere. In Costa Rica, no donation is too small: $5 makes a huge difference. Thank you.

The Badgetts arrive in a couple of hours. We are all looking forward to their visit. Can't wait to hang out with them. We'll be doing a little running about - there will be much to report this week, I'm sure!!!

That's The Cascades singing up there. Gosh, I wish my geezer band was that good. I guess the Cascades have been at it a little longer... At least there's hope: apparently you are never too old. Or too out-of-shape. Hope is good.

Forget The Sewing Machines... For Now:

A Cabecar Indigenous reality

Posted by Ginnee Hancock
on the Costa Rica Living Group
Thu Jul 3, 2008 12:19 pm (PDT)

Yesterday a Cabecar Indigenous woman came down from the reservation with her mother and her child, a deformed two year old. The child has never seen a doctor and was born on the reservation. The birth was very difficult and one side of the child’s body is mangled. They walked for perhaps as long as 8-10 hours to seek help at the Mission. The child was carried and the Grandmother is not well herself. The Grandmother has either dementia, is in shock, is starving, or all of the above. Starvation contributes to the problems of the Cabecar Indigenous, mental illness and disease.

This Mother loves her child very much, she is not educated, speaks the Cabecar language, not Spanish, and is afraid of the Tico (Costa Rican) world because of years of discrimination and repression that she has endured as an Indigenous person.

A 5 year old child with a deformity was recently hung and murdered on the reservation. It’s a cultural thing. The Mother who arrived yesterday was fleeing with her Mother and child because she believes her child was next to be killed. I believe her.

The Voz Que Clama Mission near Turrialba took them in and they are safely hid for the moment. We are doing our best to get medical attention for the child. PANI (think children and family services) is out of the question as they will take the child and the Mother will never see her baby again. Rural local hospitals and clinics leave a bit to be desired and have few or no specialists.

This family can never go back to the reservation again, or they will be taken care of (the cultural thing I mentioned). The Mission has other residents who survived their own personal attempted executions on the reservation. One young man with a spinal cord injury that happened when he fell out of a tree, was beaten and stoned by his own family, he has scars from head to toe.

My daughter a volunteer at the Mission is renting a house by the Mission and I mentioned to her that perhaps the Indigenous woman and child could move into the casita at the house, so we are looking into that.

The Mission is in desperate need of powered milk, rice and beans. You can go to the Mission website http://vqcmission.com/ hit the Paypal button and donate now. We will then buy rice and beans to help these very poor Indigenous people, the first people of Costa Rica. Or perhaps you would be kind enough to collect bags of rice and beans from among your friends. We can arrange to pick them up from one central location. Perhaps Vicki Skinner would collect them for us. Bernie at the Pura Vida Hotel is always very kind to the Mission, I am sure he would also be a collection point if that works for you.

I would not ask you for help at this time if the need were not so overwhelming for us. Their reality is difficult to take in. How can these atrocities be happening in 2008 in our back yard?

Thank you for helping.

Blessings,
Ginnee
2531-1047

Ginnee y Felipe Hancock
Finca Quijote de Esperanza, SA
Costa Rica
http://www.costaricamountain.blogspot.com
ginnee@racsa.co.cr

--

I just went to the site and gave $50. Yes, the last of the Big Spenders. The PayPal button is at the bottom of the page, you don't need a PayPal account, just a credit card. Please give whatever you can: $5 in Costa Rica is a fortune, especially when you are talking rice and beans. I know all these people, have touched them with my own hands. Every penny will go to help the indigenous people. Peace.

Calling All Sewing Machines

Do you have an old (working) sewing machine tucked away in a closet? Ginnee will put it to good use:

I need used sewing machines for the Voz Que Clama Mission. American women have them sitting in their closets collecting dust. Would you ask your blog readers to please donate their old and working portable machines? They will change lives here while being put to good use.

Here is one of my projects, Angel Babies. We are making them to give to Indigenous children. The Mission also needs cloth adult diapers that can be washed and reused. If they had a few sewing machines the local women could make dolls, diapers, protective pads for the bedding and other things.

The white doll is 25 years old, belongs to my daughter and was a gift that I made. She has an assortment of stuffed dolls and animals that I made for special occasions. The brown one we made is already owned by a special Indigenous child.

Thanks,
Ginnee

I had a sewing machine before I moved here, for which I paid $129 at Sears. It sat in my closet for two years before it sold for $10 at our moving-to-costa-rica-yard sale! Hope whoever bought it is using it.

If you have a sewing machne, whether you are in the states or in Costa Rica, email me and we'll figure out how to get it to Ginnee. Where there's a will and all that. Whatever I lack in will, Ginnee more than makes up for! She's organic gardening, building a house AND working toward a better world. Pura vida!

Where Do I Begin?

Last Thursday, the Badgetts and Mo and Ryan and I all took off for Ginnee and Phil Hancock's home out in the boonies. I mean OUT in the BOONIES. The Badgetts brought an extra suitcase with clothes and Christmas presents for the Cabecar [kah-BECK-are] indigenous tribe. We'd all been invited to spend a couple of days with Ginnee and Phil, then attend the annual Christmas party for the Indians. Who could pass up such an interesting invitation!??

Interesting doesn't begin to cover it. While I'd spoken and emailed Ginnee, we'd never met. Ginnee and Phil, they's what we call back in KY "good people." They are among the incredibly generous dedicated people who've made Costa Rica home. There are, thankfully, so many worker bees volunteering time and energy, donating food and clothing, fund-raising. But Ginnee and Phil, like Barry, Nanci, Evangeline and Gail, are leaders. The glue. The force. Without them digging in, the rest of us wouldn't know where to start.

The Hancocks spent two years looking for their perfect retirement haven in Costa Rica. They found it outside a small - like 10 houses and a pulperia [pool-pah-REE-ah, tiny store, usually in a home] - town of Esperanza. The most hopeful thing about Esperanza is its name. The Hancocks hope to change that over time, to bring a little prosperity back to Esperanza. But that's down the road.

Since they moved here a year ago, while they plan their earth bag home, they rent a huge house outside Tuis, outside Turrialba, outside Cartago. Two hours from us, the drive is almost all highway until about a mile away. Then it's dusty goat track.

When we arrived, we met the five other very interesting people with whom we would spend the next two days. There was Visma from Brazil and Sharon from Uganda, both attending Earth University, learning agriculture so they can go back and teach their people to feed themselves.

The young and lovely Helen Thompson from London (sitting with Ginnee above) was there. She's an intern at A.M. Costa Rica and just wrote this lovely article about the trip. Plus Lucy, Ginnee's good friend, and Lucy's niece Joann. That's in addition to the four Badgett's and the three of us and Ginnee and Phil. And Jack, their gentle giant Rottweiler. I mean that house is BIG. We ate great food (pix here), talked until way after dark, then climbed into wonderfully comfortable beds.

Six am Friday, we took off to meet up with Daniel (in the middle) and Hector (smiling, always smiling) who run Voz que Clama Misión and organize this shindig. There, we'll load up the flat bed truck with donations and food, then continue on to Quetzal [KETZ-all] where we would meet and party with the Cabecar.

Hector and Daniel are tico. Young, handsome, smart, energetic, love their country, obviously love their fellow human being. Whatever power possesses them to continue their mission in the face of insurmountable odds, I have yet to touch even the outer edges of this faith. It is a Christian mission, they are called by God. They would have to be.

Hector and Daniel take in the mentally ill and challenged among us no one else will. They've rescued two young men from their families. One fell out of a tree as a boy and broke his spine. So his family put him out to die. When he didn't die, they beat him hoping he'd die. Nice. Hector and Daniel give him a home.

Another young man was born with cerebral palsy. His family put him on their hot tin roof to die, refused to feed him. His mom snuck him food, so they were both banished. Voz que Clama gives them a home. A young schizophrenic woman has a home at the Misión. A life most of us can't imagine facing, these guys dive into with love and courage and live it. Words can't touch this.

It's about a 40 minute drive to the mission (photos here) and we find at least 25 people there, all of them volunteers, many students at Hector and Daniel's Spanish language immersion school. I discover that almost all of the students are repeat visitors who come every year just to attend this party. I'm impressed.

We load 'em up and head 'em out. Ginnee has a torn rotator cuff and can't shift so I'm driving her Rodeo. Besides, it's bigger than our Rav4 so fits more people and stuff.

Our caravan of 7 autos, including the lead truck with the volunteers standing in it and a flat bed loaded down with donations, food, and people, leaves the Misión. In about 20 minutes, we turn onto a dirt road. For the next three hours, I'm in first gear. That's how bad the road is. We ford a shallow part of a river. We drive over bridges that make the Oh Shit and the Oh My God bridges look sane. Almost. We drive up, up, sometimes straight up. Sometimes straight down. I am concentrating hard. My boys are in different trucks up ahead. I figure God won't let them both go over the edge so at least I'll be left with one...

Finally we arrive at the town of Quetzal. I have no idea where this is. I was in a bookstore yesterday, looked at all the maps, asked the clerk who googled it and nobody could find it. I don't even know which direction we were driving when we left Tuis... unless up is a direction. On the map above, you see that big empty space to the southeast of Esperanza? I'm pretty sure we are in there somewhere.

When we arrive, at least a hundred Cabecar Indians are waiting for us. Some of them live right there around Quetzal. You can tell these locals from the Indians who live on the reservation because the locals' faces tended to be livelier and, for the most part, they weren't wearing muddy boots.

Here's the unbelievable thing. The rest of the Indians walked down from the reservation in the mountains. This is an 8-hour walk. If you are a fit strong adult with no children, you can do it in five, weather permitting. But there are plenty of kids here... They left home around 3am and walked down the mountain for eight hours to come to this party. Which will only last a couple of hours because they have to leave before dark to walk the eight hours home. Today.

This is the hike Ginnee blogged about a couple of months ago. The hike that includes sitting in a basket and pulling yourself over a wide raging river. This is no walk in the park.

Regardless, everyone enjoyed the party, the piñata, the candy and the food. You can see all the photos here. The majority of the time was spent handing out clothes and presents for the kids.

Which is something else: these guys are all going to walk 8 hours home carrying huge bags of clothes. Plus we brought ten or so sheets of tin roofing material - each at least 12' long, 4' wide. How they are going to manage this, I can't imagine. But they were eager to have it. Where there's a will...

As we all headed home in our different directions, it started to rain a bit. It rains about 300" a year there, waaaaaay more than in Escazú. I wonder about them walking in the rain going home, but if there's any concern about it, you don't see it on their faces.

There is so much more to say, I learned so much in my three days there. Ginnee is a walking encyclopedia on the Cabecar Indians, on the Voz que Clama (which loosely means voice that claims - what a perfect name) Misión, on organic farming, on sustainable living... Phil is a nurseryman so their farm is already producing organic foods, and is GORGEOUS. They are dreaming of an intentional community in the neighborhood of ten families.

That's the way to live in Costa Rica - I know so many people here who either live this dream or dream it, too. I don't know if I could live in the rain forest, but I would love to live with them for a year and document their progress. It is a fascinating project. They are fascinating people... good people.

But right now, I have to stop writing and start watching. The roars, whistles, pop pop pops, pounding and boom boom booms of Christmas Eve fireworks have started... Just like last year: 9pm start on the dot... I expect it will end around one. Unlike last year, it seems they are all coming from the neighbor directly behind me. Nice and loud. Hopefully he'll run out before, oh, say, eleven. I'll keep you posted.

La Carpio

"I've worked my way up from nothing to a state of extreme poverty." - Groucho Marx in Monkey Business

Somewhere over the rainbow, there is no place like La Carpio. No place at all. My visit last Wednesday was so overwhelming, I'm having a hard time putting everything into words coherently. You know, like I usually do.

Somehow, I'm a member of Helping Hands Costa Rica (HHCR). I'm not really a joiner, but I wanted to meet more expats and here was a group looking for members. I had nothing to do one night and voilà: I'm in.

HHCR was started by Evangeline, a young woman with boundless cheery enthusiasm for the task of ending poverty. You think, "This kid is going to burn out." But after being around her for awhile, you notice she is taking it as it comes, poco a poco. One shoe at a time. One colon at a time. That's the only way to survive. She very well might. I don't know about me.

We rode with Gail Nystrom, founder of the Costa Rica Humanitarian Foundation and tireless humanitarian. The purpose was to see what she does in La Carpio. "Bring your cameras," we were told.

I have heard of La Carpio. It's where the desperately poor live. People kill each other over there. I wasn't afraid of dying. My fear is that I would be in a van full of gringos going to photograph the desperately poor. Would they wave and smile? I would never know unless I went. So I did. I dragged Mom along. Something to take our minds off her luxury vacation at the overpriced hellhole.

La Carpio is filled with refugees, mostly Nicaraguan, almost all illegal. Population is estimated at 35,000. That's a lot of people. More than Key West's year round population of 28K and squeezed into a smaller area. None of it oceanfront. The land is "donated" by the government: these guys are squatters. They've been here so long, the land belongs to La Carpio. I'm not clear on the finer points, but you can buy and sell your house... I think the land is akin to a leasehold.

Housing styles range from cardboard to rusty tin to wood, many combinations, all held together with balance, spit and bread wrapper ties. In the nicer part of town, there's more cement block. The one paved road is a godsend. Many homes have dirt floors. Outdoor plumbing.

One of the things Gail does is buy houses for the poorest of the poor living in the worst shanties down by the river. When you are the newbie in this community, you start at the bottom of the hill. Everything runs downhill, you know. Right down to the river. [There are questions to be asked about exactly how well Costa Rica is preserving her natural resources. But this is not about that.]

In the photo left, all the way to the right further down is the river. This is a tiny snippet of the whole. I couldn't get enough perspective with my point and shoot camera.

On our way into town, Gail drove us by the landfill. The stench was sickening and we could smell it in town, everywhere. The landfill was supposed to be here 10 years then closed. It's now year 13, going gangbusters. A steady stream of trucks brought in the trash. You could see the methane gas flowing furiously from the pipes stuck in the dirt. Rumor has it there are chemicals being dumped here, then released into the river. But it's just a rumor.

When the government was looking for a landfill location, they went from town to town. Each town said NIMBY. La Carpio said NIMBY, too. The government offered to give title to the La Carpio homeowners in exchange for allowing the dump. La Carpio thought it over, then said NIMBY. The government offered to send in immigration. La Carpio couldn't fight that; they got a landfill.

When Gail is househunting, she looks for the basics. A house has to have something other than a dirt floor; it must have an indoor bathroom. A room for a kitchen. Running water. A window would be nice.

And before anyone starts in on how it's better to teach people how to fish than to feed them, walk a mile in Gail's shoes. If you don't feed, clothe and house people this poor, show them some love, show them that they matter, they will die of apathy before they can bait a hook. Gail's been doing this 17 years, the last 10 "officially" since she founded CRHF in 1997. She has a track record. The only reason we were not treated like a bunch of curious gringos is because we were with Gail. She has earned their respect. They trust her.

Gail used to come here everyday, for years. At the moment, she's spread a little thin and can't come everyday. She needs help, an assistant. She acknowledges that if she stopped coming, things would fall apart. She knows this because if she doesn't come often enough, things begin to fall apart. If you live here day in and day out, like these people live, it would be hard to keep your spirits up. There is no hope here. Gail brings it in.

She doesn't just buy houses. She's done more, so much more and not just here in La Carpio. Read the details at CRHF.com. She's opened a learning center for kids with toys, legos, games, a computer and the only library in the area. She's opened a clinic where anyone is welcome. There is another government run clinic down the road but that is only for ticos with papers. Nicas with no papers don't get medical care - let's not get into the politics, ok? At Gail's clinic, everyone is treated. The cost is un mil ($2) but if they don't have that, it is free.

We met Jessica, a mother of three. Gail bought a copier for Jessica so she can sell copies for 10 colones each (about 2 cents). Gail gives her new entrepreneurs supplies for a couple of months till they can get the hang of buying supplies and budgeting.

We stopped by the police station and met the officer on duty. He said there had been two murders that week, two young men. Presumably over drugs. He was friendly, let us stroll around, not anxious at all. He said the danger was at night, not so much in the day. I did get a photo of his fridge: it's like an old Chevy. The kitchen could some sprucing up.

Our last stop of the day, we visited with Maria, a mother of three (two teens and a little girl of six.) Maria was widowed two months ago. Her husband was killed in the U.S. where he was working legally, dragged out of his house and shot 15 times. She doesn't know why and she probably never will. The company he worked for, Ironco, has been very supportive.

Maria is waiting to get the life insurance - there is some holdup, something about murder not being covered. Then, she will go back to Nicaragua where her mother lives. You can hear some of her story here. The video is poor and there is a TV on in the background. Her teens were watching TV: they stay at home all day because they have been threatened by the other teens here. It is dangerous for them. Maria is quite depressed. Jesus, I would be, too.

Evangeline reported on the day here. See? Cheery. Four hours at La Carpio was enough for me to digest in one week. Not Mom. She gathered up all the shoes in the house - I think we each have a pair left - and went back with Gail today to see the kitchen where they feed 50 kids everyday and a group of 15 community women on Fridays. Mom is going to make lunch next Friday; she's all busy planning her menu. My mom is an excellent cook... they will want her everyday. Not to mention being a beacon of light her own self. With a little light and a dose of hope, you can get something started. At the risk of being entirely corny, if happy little bluebirds fly beyond the rainbow, why oh why can't anyone from La Carpio?

What You Can Give

In the U.S., we all give money to our charities. We don't usually give time. We don't give stuff unless we've already used it and are ready to give it away. This method of giving works for us. It's easy. Those in charge of the funds buy the needed things. One hopes.

In Costa Rica, money just doesn't always work. Because the things people need are not always available. If they are available, they are often much too costly.

So giving stuff is often better. People in developing nations use up their stuff. Use it all up. For instance, I have a million year old oven in my house with a broken thermometer. The landlord sent the repair guy who pulled it out - this tiny part that we would've tossed in the garbage - picked at it for awhile and got it working again. When I say Costa Ricans use up their stuff, I mean every last drop of use. Everything you bring here will be used. Nothing will go to waste.

You will see stuff on here that would clearly be impossible to carry in a suitcase. Like sheets of roofing material. This would certainly perplex the customs guys... But big items are here for locals who want to help out!

This list was compiled by the generous and Out There Vallarta Vicki, one of the prime movers behind our Meetup Group, with the help of :
Ginnee at Costa Rica Mountain
Scott at Crazy Jungle & Tropical Adventures Volunteer Vacations
Barry & Nanci at The Bridge

One more thing. The first time I saw this list, I was overwhelmed. If you are inclined to bring something, I swear to you ONE THING makes a difference. One pair of shoes may be all that stands between a child and school. I am not making this up.

FOR STUDENTS
Before a child can go to school here, they must have their own uniforms, including the required shoes right down to the color and ALL of their own supplies. It runs $75 and up per year. Not much to you and me but might as well be a million dollars to some families. Many children CANNOT go to school because they do not have a uniform! They can be and ARE sent home for not having the right shoes. I know because it happened to us.

• 3-ringed binders
• Anything and everything educational
• Art paper and supplies
• Backpacks or small/medium duffle tote bags. Waterproof is good. Different colors would be fun for the kids.
• Blow up beach ball globes of the world (they have never seen the world round, only flat)
• Book bags
• *Books: Used/new books in both English and Spanish, for adults, teens & kids
• Chalk
• Coloring books and crayons, markers, watercolors
• Colored paper
• Colored pencils
• Computers (working): Laptops / Printer / Scanner (please provide cartridges, cables, etc. as they are expensive here)
• Craft paper
• Craft type items
• Crayons
• Dictionary: Spanish-English (not English-Spanish)
• Eraser boards (white)
• Face paint
• Finger paints
• Flash cards
• Games (Educational): memory/matching games/cards/coordination
• Geometry set
• Markers
• Notebooks
• Paintbrushes
• Paper - plain white, lined and construction
• Pencil sharpeners
• Pencils (either pre-sharpened or please send sharpeners)
• Pens
• Play dough (or ingredients: flour, salt, food coloring)
• Powder craft paint
• Rulers (metric)
• Science kits (must be in Spanish)
• Scissors
• Socks - all sizes, any color for everyday, most schools require NAVY or "Marine Blue"
• Tape
• Tissue paper
• UNIFORMS: different ages/areas have slightly different requirements but you can hardly go wrong with white or light blue button-down shirts, navy blue pants and skirts, white or navy socks, black shoes

*Books in English and Spanish - adult, teen, kids, children - are so welcome. If you have to pick one language, pick Spanish. These kids need to learn reading is fun and interesting. Most of all, they need fun and interesting.

CLOTHES
Re clothing: These are small frame people, so sizes S, M, all children sizes. I will still donate Mo and Ryan's good hand-me-downs, but they will fit very few Costa Ricans!

• Any practical clothing in good repair: jeans, t-shirts
• Baby clothes
• Bathing suits
• Diapers - Cloth - Diaper Pins
• Jackets (light)
• Pants
• Shirts
• Shoes - Especially needed are black for school, but also tennis, any comfortable kids' shoes. All sizes, types, for all genders.
• Shorts
• Skirts - Gathered skirts for girls (they like skirts)
• Socks (for kids) - good quality new socks
• Sweat shirts, sweaters - it gets cold in the mountains!
• T-shirts
• Underwear - Children's
• Uniforms - see above

MISC.

• Baby - Boxed Milk, Formula, jarred food, bedding
• Baseball caps
• BLANKETS: These are expensive here and you need them at night in the mountains
• Bug repellent
• BUILDING SUPPLIES - ANYTHING you no longer need CAN & WILL be used: hammers, nails, roofing materials
• Candles
• CLEANING MATERIALS: rags, sponges, Ajax, buckets, brooms, mops, laundry detergent, dishwashing detergent (the paste ONLY), bleach
• DVDs: especially for kids, rated G with Spanish subtitles
• DVD Players (for community centers)
• Fax machine (for community centers) Not thermal.
• Flashlights and batteries with standard parts easily found [batteries are EXPENSIVE
• here]). Even better are battery-less flashlights you can shake or crank.
• Non-perishable food Items: rice, beans, cooking oil, corn flour (masa rica), boxed milk, salt, sugar, powdered milk, canned tuna, dry soup mix, chicken broth, tang, hot chocolate mix
• Hats
• Kitchen items: pots/pans, big spoons, anything really
• Printed t-shirts & caps with teams, states, cities, tourist that can be sold by the indigenous guides
• Lighters

Material

• MEDICAL SUPPLIES: Meds for headaches and colds
• Vitamins, naturall remedies, aspirin, pain relievers, crutches, wheelchairs, Band-Aids,
• Nails: all kinds, especially nails used on aluminum roofs
  
• Pet supplies: food, leashes, bowls, toys, houses/cages, carriers, flea collars, Frontline type of products.
• Pillows
• Plastic garbage bags
• RAIN GEAR: umbrellas, ponchos, raincoats/jackets, rubber boots, galoshes
  
• Roofing material: galvanized zinc & tin.
• Sewing kits
• Sheets: single and double
• Shower curtains - thick, heavy, single color (used to waterproof thatch roofs)
• Sports equipment: shoes, uniforms, balls, bats, sets
• TARPS/BIG rolls of plastic - ALWAYS NEEDED to fix leaking roofs or waterproof thatched roofs
• TOILETRIES/PERSONAL HYGIENE ITEMS: shampoos, soaps (save the giveaways from the hotels), toothbrushes, toothpaste, kotex type pads, makeup (new or used), lotions, dental floss, toilet paper
• TOYS (see below)
• Towels: for bathing or rags for cleaning

CHRISTMAS
It's never too early to start bringing things for the kids in orphanages, etc. NOTHING electric or battery-operated. No monsters, scary or violent toys, figures, games.

• Art kits
• Art supplies
• BOOKS (ideally in Spanish)
• Coloring books (in Spanish if you can find them)
• Constructions type of things
• Craft things/projects
• Dolls
• Educational games
• Games: memory/matching games/cards
• Legos
• Matchbox type cars
• Pickup sticks
• Rattles/things for babies
• Science kits (must be in Spanish)
• Sewing kits
• Soccer Balls (one of the most requested items - they are very expensive here)
• Stuffed animals
• Tea sets
• Toys -
• Wrapping Paper

DVDs at The Bridge
These are the ones Barry and Nanci have. If you have any of these and want to bring it anyway, someone else could use it, for sure. But if you are visiting the Puerto Viejo area and want to bring DVDs for The Bridge, these are the ones they already have:

• A Midsummer Night's Dream
• Antz
• Babe
• Bear
• Bend It Like Beckham
• Black Stallion
• Blazing Saddles
• Calendar Girls
• Casper The Friendly Ghost
• Catch Me If You Can
• Chicken Run
• Dead Poet's Society
• Emperor's club
• Goofy Movie
• Green Card
• Ice Age
• It Runs In The Family
• Joshua
• Lion King 1 1/2
• My Fellow Americans
• Never Ending Story II
• Over The Hill Gang
• Patch Adams
• Pirates of the Caribbean
• Santa Clause
• Shrek
• Sinbad
• Something's Gotta Give
• Sorcerer's Apprentice
• Tarzan: the fearless & the trappers
• The Bear
• The Cat In The Hat
• The Majestic
• The Other Side of Heaven
• Under the Tuscan Sun
• Waking Ned Divine
• Zeus & Roxanne

Thank you.

Is There Room In Your Bag For Crayons?

Costa Rica is prosperous compared to the rest of Central America. Positively rich, compared to Nicaragua (our immediate neighbor to the north and the 13th poorest country in the world). Costa Rica does well due mainly to its stable government. No genocide here, no army, very peaceful, no dictator taking back your land, changing the rules on you without warning. No guys in uniforms standing around with huge guns. Except at the bank which is where you want them. This stability invites investment from all over the world, bringing jobs and money.

Still, there is real poverty here. Real hunger. REAL lack of educational opportunity. To those of us from developed nations, seeing all this up close and personal is shocking. And unbelievable. For me, anyway. At first, I couldn't wrap my mind around it. I actually thought - God, you are going to think I am such a spoiled brat (like that's news?): "This must be how locals in developing nations live."

Yeah. How could I be over 50, with a college degree, having owned my own successful businesses, have a pretty good marriage (ok, he's not perfect today), blah blah blah... and still be so ignorant?

The only saving grace is that I KNOW I'm not alone in this. Until you see this kind of poverty up close and personal, you can't even imagine it.

Evidence of it is impossible to miss, particularly in the city. I have never been surrounded by dirty barefoot children begging, like we were in Nicaragua. (You see a few panhandlers, but my sense is that Costa Ricans are too proud to beg.) But I all too often see "living quarters" and "neighborhoods" that are hard to look at. I force myself. These aren't cute natives who are so used to living this way, they don't mind. These are fellow human beings who are so poor they are living in conditions you and I don't even want to look at.

What you won't see, unless you make considerable effort, is how all of the indigenous people of this country live. Which is the same way many illegal aliens, mostly from Nicaragua, live. And, I imagine in some cases, ticos in the most rural areas. Subsistence farming is key to survival. Dirt floors, grass huts, no plumbing, no electricity, no phone, no shoes, you eat what you grow or can trade from a neighbor, no medical care. And, too too often, NO SCHOOLS. No real way to get a leg up.

I cannot fathom such a life.

I CAN help alleviate some of the stresses. You can, too. Here's how.

MONEY
Money is helpful, no question. If you want suggestions on where to mail a check or push a Paypal button, let me know. I will share with you the places and people and organizations I know about. There are some VERY good people on the ground here who are hands on and doing incredible work. I've seen it. Your money will not be wasted on office equipment here in Costa Rica!!!

The only real downside to donating money in a developing nation with a dearth of good shopping and a pitiful selection of goods, is that you pay double (because of duty) what you pay in the states... IF - and this is the critical thing - the item is available at all.

I don't mean to discourage monetary donations. Please - have at it!!!! The beauty of donating money in a developing nation is that $10 goes a looooong way!

WHAT TO BRING
If you can bring anything on this list - even one box of crayons or one pair of children's sneakers that you saw at Kmart or Ross for $2 and couldn't resist or a G rated DVD with Spanish subtitles - please do.

HOW TO GET IT TO THE RIGHT PLACE
I can think of two easy options.

1. The best thing would be to ask the proprietor of the place you are staying if there is a drop-off or local organization that could use what you can bring. That would be simple, immediate and completely gratifying to help out "your" area! If your proprietor doesn't know anyone, contact me and I will see what's available where you will be. Once I find it, I will also let the proprietor know for future reference.

2. If you will be in San Jose overnight, let me know where you are staying. One of us will come get what you have and take it to the right place.

If you have some extra spoons or crayons or construction paper, just stick it in your suitcase. Maybe an opportunity will present itself on your Costa Rica travels.

If bringing stuff is too much to think about for your first visit, please consider it for your second. You will be back. In the meantime, there's always money.