For the Love of Souvenirs

One of the most captivating places to sit and sip a beer (margaritas work well too) is on “the rail” at the Z-Lounge or Coconutz or the Lizard Lounge down on El Coco’s main thoroughfare.

These are open air restaurant/bar type establishments famous for their warm beer and lousy food but revered as champions of the all day happy hour.  And consistent with the true nature of Costa Rican style, it is sometimes possible to get same-day service.

The “rail” is a bar-height, foot deep, counter that defines the street-side perimeter of the food service area, the floor of which is elevated from the street level by 4-5 feet.  Bar stools along the rail provide the preferred perch to look out over the commotion amidst the roadside shops and vendors, the ever thrilling traffic flow and the potpourri of pedestrian shoppers streaming by as though line dancing.  In some cultures, this is referred to as people-watching.

The “main” thoroughfare is more accurately represented as the “only” thoroughfare in downtown El Coco.  It is a narrow, partially paved and plentifully pot-holed street that produces copious shrouds of dust when it is dry and measureless mud when it is wet.  Lacking the benefit of actual sidewalks, it creates pedestrian obstacles which are as hazardous as they are challenging.

The stakes for survival along the street are heightened due to the unrelenting stream of traffic attempting to weave its way through the chaos spawned by drivers stopped in the street to chat with an amigo, bicycles loaded with up to 4 passengers spastically striving to stay upright, shoppers on foot fecklessly meandering from side to side as delivery trucks, buses, motorcycles, cars, trucks and electric vehicles bob and weave through the whole mess struggling to avoid collisions with competitors seeking the same path.

The speed at which these maneuvers are accomplished varies between the pace of a centipede on crutches and the brief burst of a motorcycle at full throttle spurting past stymied drivers of less nimble vehicles.

This muddled mishmash of motorized and pedestrian traffic is a recipe for disaster as those driving are attempting to arrive at an actual destination to which they are already late even by Costa Rican standards and those hoofing it who have no idea where they are going but all the time in the world to get there.

Lined with shops, restaurants and bars, this congested artery is nearly as perilous as the plaque-clogged passage in the neck of a sclerotic cardiac patient.  Nothing flows smoothly and danger lurks constantly as the flow pulses onward.  In spite of that, there in the relative safety of a bar stool on the rail, the intrigue is inescapable as the scene commands vigilance from the ever attentive gallery.

A steady stream of tourists from all points on the globe parade from one shopkeeper’s outside table to the next clad in their shorts, bathing suits, flip-flops, sunburns and sunglasses as young ladies employed to watch over the goods work to entice spenders inside where even more stuff waits to be bagged.  Canadians and Europeans far outnumber Americans and most are here for brief visits.  But, regardless of the amount of time spent in El Coco, nearly all want to use some of their remaining money to acquire reminders of their vacation in Costa Rica before departing for their next destination.

Thousands of trinkets adorned with “Costa Rica” in script, “El Coco” burned on the bias into wood or stamped onto molded plastic, and colorful towels, wraps, or garments in the primary colors of Costa Rica’s famed parrots all compete for the attention of would be buyers.  Native looking necklaces, bracelets and jewelry fabricated from shells or stones are everywhere. So many choices to aid in the memory of a trip to Costa Rica!  And nearly all of it … are you ready???     Imported from China!

Don't anybody tell Geri about this babe I picked up!