Adapting to the pace of life in Costa Rica

Cheryl Moderator

Member since 15 October 2018

CherylModerator23 August 2023 05:37:09

13498

Hello everyone,

When you move to Costa Rica, you may find that the pace of life is different from what you're used to. Shop opening times, working hours, sleep cycles and variations in sunlight can all have an effect on your life in Costa Rica as an expat and require time to adapt. This transition can be a source of surprises, adjustments and sometimes even frustration for those trying to find their balance in this new environment.

Here are a few questions to help you better understand how you manage your days in Costa Rica :

How have you managed to harmonise your own pace of life with the pace of life in Costa Rica?

Have you felt a change in your biological rhythm (diet, sleep, energy, etc.)? How can you minimise the effects on your well-being and adapt to changes in your circadian rhythm?

How have you adjusted your sleeping habits to optimise your energy and concentration in a different environment?

Shopping, meal and activity times can differ from one culture to another. How do you manage to reconcile your personal habits with those of life in Costa Rica? What are the benefits and challenges of these adjustments?

How do different working hours affect your productivity and quality of life? What have you done to maintain a work-life balance despite these changes?

Please feel free to share your experiences and advice on this topic.
Thank you for your contribution.

Cheryl
草榴社区 Team

carnevida New member

Member since 04 September 2023

carnevidaNew member04 September 2023 19:24:36

Great topic Cheryl.聽 After a decade in Costa Rica, i can say this was the most challenging hurdle that I had to overcome.聽 The core of a lot of my frustration early on was the expectation of speed in any bureaucracy related function.聽 For anybody who shares this frustration, i can assure you there is no fix and the locals are not dumb.聽 They just enjoy the pace of things.聽 If you are planning ANYTHING, add a month of delay to your Westerner timeline expectations.聽 As you grow your network, it gets better.....but not much!

Good Luck!

Don Daniele

CarneVida

tjuckufarley Member

Member since 30 June 2023

tjuckufarleyMember17 September 2023 17:27:50

Hi Cheryl - After extensive research into moving to Costa Rica; and this subject being one of the most popular reasons that people leave, my wife and I feel that we should not fall into this category.

We have been somewhat globetrotters ourselves. We were born and raised in Africa; lived in Canada; and the U.S.A. So far we have assimilated quite well wherever we have settled. In fact, we are trying to get out of the rat-race / high-speed style of life. We are literally looking for that type of lifestyle I often read about of Costa Rica; and don't understand how slowing down the pace of life is a problem. I guess after 33 years in Africa; having many similar characteristics of a slowed-up pace, we actually miss it. This is also reflected by our history of residences always being of a semi-rural to rural nature; never urban ----- I hope we are right this time. While preparing to move there; we are already into learning Spanish; and want to "assimilate" as much as possible, as we have always done. Having said that - it will be a first to be moving to a country where English is not prominent - probably will be our largest hurdle in the beginning.

inivin57 Active member

Member since 17 August 2023

inivin57Active member17 September 2023 20:05:06

I wouldn't worry about the language barrie the ppl here are so Pura Vida and love to speak english if they know the language. Hacent come accross a company, store, bank that doesnt have englesh speaking folks. They are so happy to do so and cery kind folks! You'll love it here! 11yr with 2 kids from the US and we love it! Good Luck my friend!

edwinemora Serial expat

Member since 09 May 2021

edwinemoraSerial expat17 September 2023 20:14:42

440

@tjuckufarley........Slow your roll...Research doesn't replace to actually living here.....No need to be in a hurry for residency.....First try the concept of at least a 6 month vacation here ......Your post sounds like persons that are saturated with a lot of gloss about Costa Rica...