Sink Plugs, Cricket-On-The-Beach, Guy Fawkes Night and Halloween in Costa Rica

Back to the sink plugs! A dozen sinks around the place and not a plug in sight; so reminiscent of travels in India – where do they go? There’s a graveyard somewhere.

Off to the ferreteria (hardware store) we went in search of los tapones. These ironmongery shops are treasure troves but there was only one plug on offer and, as per Murphy’s law, not the size we needed.

Reality one: Potential visitors become couriers of the strangest things and our first one arrived with a bag full of plugs – he earned his dinner! Though rain descends in buckets, there’s a shortage of storage capacity in many parts of the country, yet everything is done under a running tap and this precious resource is wasted ~ really crazy.

Fast forward ~ we’ve just had a great British ‘Guy Fawkes’ weekend at the Hotel Club Del Mar at Jaco, indulging in that quirky tradition of celebrating the night in 1605 when gunpowder plotters attempted to blow up the Houses of Parliament in London. (Though whether we’re celebrating the attempt or the failure is fun to debate!)

British hotel owner, Philip Edwardes, held the first bonfire night 16 years ago and it has now become an annual event, organized by the indomitable John Wakefield and his wife Diane, under the aegis of the British Embassy. Around 130 people arrived for a weekend of fun — cricket on the beach, darts and horseshoes competitions.

A humorous touch we enjoyed; the winning cricket team is presented with the Ashes ~ a gourd filled with the ashes of the first Guy burnt 16 years ago!

Most immigrants around here are pensionados or farmers so we particularly enjoyed meeting a younger crowd of interesting people working in various industries, or for NGOs, in Costa Rica. The kids got off to a great start with trick or treat on Halloween, gathering enough sugary treats to keep the nation’s dentists busy for weeks to come.

Phillip’s team have bonfire construction down to a fine art, even covering the edifice in plastic as storm clouds hovered overhead. Her Majesty’s resourceful Ambassador, Tom Kennedy, ‘sculpted’ Guy’s head ~ the black hair, heavy eye-brows, Gordon Brown look-a-like of course entirely co-incidental!

A good time had by all, with excellent networking, new friendships made and lots of valuable information exchanged.

We are lucky to have a superb team in the Embassy who organize other events throughout the year to bring the British community and friends together. The Queen’s Birthday party is a highlight ~ a huge garden party, with all hands on deck to raise money for Costa Rican schools. Its a really ‘proud to be British’ day, fun and fellowship with direct benefit for the young citizens of our host country.

Rabbie Burns gets celebrated too and a small Welsh gang is intent on getting St David and Dylan Thomas on the social map. Costa Ricans are so proud of their nation and its traditions ~ a nice surprise to find we can enjoy some of ours too on these distant shores.

Written by VIP Member Sheelagh Richards. Sheelagh is originally from Scotland and her husband John who is from Wales are two inveterate British travellers who fell in love with Costa Rica, the beauty of the Talamanca mountain range and the perfect climate of the Rio General valley where they have established a small Bed & Breakfast called Casa de Los Celtas. You can see a free online video interview with John & Sheelagh Richards here.

You can see more about John and Sheelagh’s very affordable B&B outside San Isidro here and photographs and prices here.

[custom_script adID=97]

Please contact our Recommended Costa Rica Realtors working in the area: James Drews, Daveed Hollander and John Wieland, by using the simple form below:

Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.