At home, every family (and in many cases, every person in the family that can drive) has a car. Then on top of that, most people like to drive themselves and not car pool, so there are lots of cars everywhere. Well, here in Costa Rica, there are many cars. Quite a few families have a family car. When you look at the main roads here, you will find plenty of cars, and at times plenty of traffic. Sometimes I miss having a car, but for the most part they have a very good public transportation system.
There are many buses that go pretty much anywhere you want. The buses range from converted school buses to converted charter buses. Overall, I think the system works fairly well. There are also obvious flaws like you never know what time you are going to arrive anywhere, if it's very crowded you have to stand or sit with people you don't know, you have to walk to and from the bus stop, and you have to make sure you get on the right bus or who knows where you will end up.
Also, if you have to get someplace that takes a while on the bus or just doesn't make sense to take the bus, you can take a taxi. Taxis are pretty much everywhere, and instead of them being yellow like they are at home for the most part, they are mostly red in CR. It usually doesn't cost too much to take taxis places, but you first have to find a taxi to take you where you need to go. Sometimes, I have discovered, taxi drivers just don't want to give you a ride, so you have to wait and wait and wait. I don't completely understand this, but I'm sure there is some logical explanation.
Then there are the roads. Everywhere you go there are going to be bad roads, that is just life. However, here in CR, every road is bad. You have to dodge pot holes everywhere you go. The ride is definitely not a smooth one! Last night Kari and I were talking with Chuck (our director) and he mentioned how the roads in Panama, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Guatemala are better than the roads in Costa Rica...
Since I'm not one who is super crazy about driving, I'm ok with the public transportation system. This also gives me a chance to sit back and relax and just watch the world around me!! I also don't have to worry about getting into a car accident with all the crazy drivers who sometimes watch out for signs, sometimes not. Drivers who pass on the wrong side of the road whenever they want (oh the center line is a double yellow, not a dotted line).
I'm sure there is more I could tell you about driving in CR, but I think I'll stop there! So please enjoy your nice smooth roads in the US!!
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