Things to miss from Costa Rica

It's now been almost two years since we moved back to the states from Costa Rica. I suppose there will always be things I miss about Costa Rica. But as I was flying with my two kids last week, I was reminded about a few things in particular that I miss...

-Parking for pregnant women. In Costa Rica, special parking is reserved for handicapped people, pregnant people, and people with young children. Brilliant. I missed this when I was pregnant with Henry.

-Treatment of parents with young children. In the USA, it often seems that the attitude of most people is "you were the one who chose to have kids; you keep them well-behaved and quiet". Or "it's unfortunate that this line is so long, but you were the one who chose to bring your kid along with you to run this errand. Keep them quiet." Not the case in Costa Rica. Anytime we were in line for anything with Adele as an infant, we were given special treatment and sent to the front of the line. By the other people in line. Mind you, this is also a culture in which the adults try to cut in line if they think they can get away with it. But if you have kids? People go out of their way to accommodate those parents. And if your kid is crying? Sympathetic looks, people offering to help. No glares or annoyed looks.

-Their love for babies. Seriously, Costa Ricans LOVE babies. So often I would have someone come up to me and take Adele from my arms and hold her, without even asking. I suppose that sounds like a weird thing to miss, but it came from their deep love for babies. I was out for ice cream with a friend a couple weeks ago and a woman that I didn't know tapped me on the shoulder and asked if she could hold my baby. I passed over Henry, and the woman ooohed and ahhed over him with her two other female friends. She thanked me, and passed him back a few minutes later. It didn't seem odd to me at all, until I was retelling the story later and the person I was telling couldn't believe a stranger asked to hold my baby! I thought it was rather sweet.

-And finally, one that doesn't have to do with babies: Fresh juice. In any restaurant or household in Costa Rica, it is common to have 2-3 (or more) kinds of fresh juices available. One time when we were just back in the USA, David asked a waiter what they had for fresh juice options. The guy looked at him sort of confused and said, "um, we have lemonade but it's not fresh..." On a warm summer day, I would love to have a glass of fresh blackberry juice!