San Jose
Loading Map
San Jose ***,
Costa Rica
Saturday, February 17, 2007
San Jose, ***, Fri Feb 16th-17th, 2007. Very globalized naturally. Maccie Ds etc but even have Taco Belle and other sole American franchises which proves huge American representation ere.
San Jose wasn`t as much of a dump as I was expecting. It`s gas. Any foreigner that I know who ever visits Ireland, I always say to them...don`t just stay in Dublin, it`s not the real Ireland..Paris isn`t France, Buenos Aires isn`t Argentina and London isn`t England. But in the last two countries we`ve been. I feel that Managua and San Jose represented an interesting side to their countries.
I had developed the view that everyone in Costa Rica was loaded. There were no beggars in the street, you saw children in uniforms on the buses instead of trying to sell you stuff (although in fairness, the kids were on their holidays when I was in every other country..although I doubt the fruit vendors get to school normally) and they never give you back change in the shops as though they have a lot of money to play round with.
But San Jose was an eye opener. I only arrived this morning and spent half the day in the hostel but what I did see was a lot of people lying round in black bin bags. I didn`t feel very safe when I got out of the bus terminal this morn and there were more shady characters than youŽd find in a mafia film. I had heard before coming here that there were a lot of she men as well and low and behold, I spotted one this morn at 9am...probably carrying out the "walk of shame" from the night before!
San Jose does have a lovely colonial building in its Theatre. The pedestrianized, globalized shopping street is nice, not too unlike Grafton street but you always have the other less attractive streets with the homeless lying round in the back of your mind.
Tomorrow, we hit the Carribean. sleep in til 8.30 hopefully..and that`s late for us these days.
Tomorrow
