Costa Rica Cost Of Living Update: Planters Cocktail Peanuts (12 ounces)—$4.50
I was wondering if I should write this post. It’s always anti-climactic when you hear about someone’s near death experience when you know that they are alive since they’re telling you the story in the first place. And talking about earthquakes could make any Californian yawn and possibly become catatonic right before your eyes. But I will share a little bit of what it felt like when the big 7.6 hit.
It’s common to have the earth rumble under your feet if you live in the Ring of Fire. A magnitude 4.0? Eating that funny smelling hot dog in the back of the freezer is more dangerous. But a magnitude 7.6?…this was different. I knew it the moment it started. I was absolutely certain the earth was opening up beneath my feet.
It went on for a long time, possibly between 30 and 60 seconds. The house can’t take it, I thought. No structure could. My brain briefly recalled glimpses of Haiti and it all seemed to point in that direction…complete destruction.
When I heard all the crashing around me, and the piercing noise that turned out to be my own screams, I considered that this was the end of my life. I looked toward Rob and I realized I wasn’t afraid to die. But what did stand out in my head was that my parents would end up coming here to dig out my body since there would be no one else to do it. I had a sadness that was so heavy, a burden so crushing, I thought it would stop my heart right then and there. How could I have done this to them? I thought while waiting for what I believed was the inevitable. I don’t ever want to visit that gruesome place again.
And then after realizing we were okay, there was the Tsunami warning that sent people fleeing to higher ground. It’s like getting a bad haircut and finding out your boyfriend cheated on you all in the same day. I really could have done without that added stress.
But if you are reading this now you know I am alive and currently sitting at my dining room table with a cracked chandelier over my head. Well…it is not exactly over my head. Rob moved the table over and secured the light with duct tape until we can figure out what to do. The crashing I heard that sent me into my death spiral was all the clay tiles falling off the roof onto our terrace. I’m sure if Rob could get up there he would duct tape them as well.
While I was sweeping up the tiles after the quake, I noticed an odd thing; the forest went silent. I never knew how loud it was until nothing, not a bird or cricket, made a sound. It took some time but eventually all the little critters came back and the birds began to sing again. Even a Black-headed Trogon landed right in front of me as if to say, “See, I’m pretty. Life is pretty, now go back and be happy.”
If you would have told me Costa Rica could withstand something like this I would have thought you were crazy. They always say their building codes are as strict as those in Japan, but I didn’t count on it. Now I know and I feel incredibly safe to be here. Odds are there won’t be another earthquake like this for a long time.
Today I went out on my terrace, looked out at the trees, and saw a monkey sitting in the rain. His friends were all staying dry under branches but he decided to brave the elements. I watched the raindrops roll off him as if his fur was Scotch Guard protected. He then looked toward the forlorn sky, closed his eyes, and let the warm rain wash over his face.
So this story has a happy ending. One where Rob used duct tape to fix earthquake damage and me getting another opportunity to share my life with all of you. And it also involved a monkey, staring up at heaven, grateful for the rain on his face.
I’m pretty sure I know how he feels.
(Thank you to everyone who Facebooked, Tweeted, emailed, or came here to see if I was okay. It meant more than I could ever express in words.)
[…] had a whopper of an earthquake a few years back. A 7.6 blast that was so strong, it felt like a bomb had exploded underneath us: a bomb that […]
Hello Nadine,
I am traveling in CR for the second time this year, and just got your book on my ipad. Seriously, I dont think I have EVER read anything funnier in my whole life! I loved the book and was sorry it ended. I’m so glad youre posting, and I can still get a chuckle in, every once in a while!
I am thrilled to have discovered CR, It will be my new Mexico, it is cheeper to get here than Cabo, from Denver, and I will be back again and again!
Caroline
Thank you so much Caroline. It was a fun book to write, and I bet you could relate to some of those stories. If you have a good sense of humor, even the potholes can be funny. The sequel will be out in a couple of weeks. As long as my husband keeps doing dopey things, I’ll have plenty to write about!
Hi Nadine,
My husband and I travel to Costa Rica a lot about 4 times per year for the past 5 years and usually stay in Escazu and Playa Hermosa in Guanacaste. During this time we have felt minor tremors and earthquakes, even felt one in a Movie Theater in Multi Plaza Escazu…thought it was the movie at first, but once everyone got up and left, realized it was an earthquake….
I never wanted to be in Costa Rica for the BIG one…..but guess what? We were in Playa Hermosa in our 5th Floor Condo when it started to shake…..I looked at my husband in disbelief. The building started to shake so much that we could not get out….The glass doors looked like they were going to break, vases toppled over, drawers opened and beds came away from the walls…..The worst part was, we didn’t know how strong it was going to be and kept thinking the building was going to collapse and were so frightened ………..After the shaking shopped we went down the stairs and outside….Minor damage was done to the building, just a few light cracks above door frames, and some roof tiles that fell off, but we were shaking like a leaf in disbelief that we had just witnessed a 7.6 Earthquake! It will take awhile before we forget that violent shaking. Thankful for the building codes in Costa Rica also and God’s Mercy! Hopefully, there won’t be another one that strong for a very, very long time…
That must have been terrifying. I couldn’t even imagine being that high up during the earthquake. We have all been so blessed!!
Seven years I’ve been waiting to visit Costa Rica and luck would have it that this quake shook when we were in a van headed down from Monteverde. Our driver just happened to pull over to call someone (directions? lol) had we been driving I don’t know if I would have known the difference between a rutty road and potholes or a quake. But our van shook. All four of us tourists. We watched rather large rocks tumble down the hill. I wasn’t scared for some odd reason. We didn’t know the size of the quake til we arrived in Tamarindo. Only my backwards intuition would take us to a beach during a tsunami warning. We live in Hawaii and get warnings here and there. I was out dancing around on the sand happy to make it to my first Costa Rica beach (we’d just heard the warning was lifted) but it was eerie because there weren’t a lot of people in Tamarindo. I didn’t know the difference as this was my first day. Seeing surfers take off on scooters should have been my first clue. Our trip was way too short and we were only in Tamarindo for the day before taking the bus to Manuel Antonio. Time to brush up on Spanish..it was a bit intimidating watching the news, seeing photos of destruction, but not understanding what was being said. I’m glad you are ok Nadine.
Sounds scary Jesennia! After the earthquake, I looked out on the dirt road in front of our house and so many rocks came down. Some were pretty big.I couldn’t imagine being in a van and watching the rocks tumble down.
Needless to say, it sounds like your vacation was quite interesting and you have quite the story to tell your friends at home!
I was in Escazu when the earthquake hit. This is many miles away from the epicenter. I assume that you were close in Guanacaste somewhere? I can’t imagine how that must have felt? We had windows broken and some damage to walls in the office. My house was okay. I think we are all lucky that it was 28 miles down. If it were 8 miles down, like in Haiti, we would be looking at a lot more damage and even casualties. Here is a quick write-up with some pictures of my office:
http://www.TipsCostaRica.com/costa-rica-earthquake-2012
It was pretty scary out this way. It literally felt like the earth was opening up underneath me. I’m so happy that there were few causalities, although the more I drive around here the more damage I see. Many people are out of their homes because of cracks in the concrete. Lots of repairs going on out this way!!
Hi Nadine, Well, this is another one of your unforgettable adventures, is it not? When my husband told me there was an earthquake in CR I just knew he was yanking my chain because I talk about moving every day. Then I found out it was true. I am so glad you are safe and sound knowing that it must have really scared you. I just imagine that Rob was holding things together for you (that’s before I learned about the duct tape) so I didn’t worry too much. We’ve had some incredible monsoons in Tucson since I moved here from Michigan in 1960 and they can be pretty scary but I’ve never felt the tiny little earthquakes we have had here. I have been super busy (more on that later) and haven’t had time to do what I need to do in my own house, but I see the light at the end of the tunnel and it’s all good. I thank God you are alright and according to the world news website I checked they said 20 people had been injured, so I guess that’s pretty amazing when you think of the population of CR. Take care of your sweet and wonderful self.
Best,
Jeanine
Thanks Jeanine for stopping by to see how I am doing. There have been a lot of aftershocks that are keeping people on their toes, but other than that, things look good. There is a bit of damage round town, some homes are damaged structurally, but at least they didn’t fall down.
I am so thankful for each day, and grateful I have so many people around the world checking in on me. I feel very blessed in a number of ways lately.
Since I always read your post on facebook and in here believe or not I thought about you and Rob, Im glad you are ok to be honest my family and I where thinking exactly the same thing, my brother got so nervous that he went out looking for the me meteorites
-_______- hahaha. Im glad you and Rob are ok lets see the possitive side now you can tell how a real earthquake feels like it 🙂 Cheers!
Yes…I think that one was the “real” one that I will forever compare others to. I’m so thankful Costa Rica came through it, and seriously, I could kiss the architect and builder of this house. All those safety measures they take and the strict earthquake building codes saved my life.
I have never seen a house shake so much and still stand.
I thought about you and Rob that day. And, Casey a Huff Post pundit. Since I “met” you on HP, thought I’d share his experience:
“I’m retired and split my time between Playa del Coco and the Bay Area. As expected being a Californian I’ve experienced hundreds of quakes and this was by far the most frightening I’ve gone through perhaps because my great room has floor to celing windows on three sides and the entire house was jumping and swaying for what seemed to be minutes. All seems to be okay though.”
My best experience with duct tape involved warts on my daughter’s foot. After numerous visits to one dermatologist (and about $1000 out of pocket) with no results, I decided to get another opinion. The new Doc told me to put duct tape on her warts and leave it for several days. It worked and they’ve never come back!
I’m glad that everyone, including the monkey is safe and sound.
Love it! It really is the go-to fix for Rob. He uses it for everything. Never thought it would work on warts but going to remember that if the occasion every arises!
Thanks for sharing your “sky is falling” moment! 30-60 seconds can seem like a very very long time too. I have though about earthquakes and moving there but I have to say a tornado is my greatest fear and I still live in Florida so I guess I will be ok in CR.
Glad you are fine and not thinking of leaving! Maybe God has to shake things up a bit to renew your appreciation of things the way they are. You have a blessed life!
Time to eat those Planters Cocktail Peanuts with a cocktail of course!
Thanks Deborah for checking in! I ate a whole can of those peanuts and went out and bought another one. I think I need to stretch the budget a bit the next few weeks. I could use some comfort food to get over all the anxiety with these aftershocks.
Well, Nadine of course we thought of you! Checked your twitter feed until you posted… glad to hear you’re in one piece and do not require any duct tape repairs on your person. Life is sure a blessing, isn’t it?
I couldn’t have said it better. Yes, it’s a blessing and for a minute I thought it was all gone. I’m so happy that the building standards are good here, there is no way this country could have got through this if there was substandard construction.
Glad to hear that all is ok down there with you guys. I live in LA, and was in bed for the big quake back in 94. It pretty much stopped the whole city for a few days. Glad to see the jungle is back on track much quicker. I also wanted to say thank you for the book. I read it cover to cover in 2 days. I picked it up on Amazon, while picking up a guide to Costa Rican spanish. Last book I read before that was a few years ago. I plan on living the dream down there too. I just have to squirrel away some more money for my early retirement before I leave. Thanks again for the wonderful stories, and being an inspiration to leading a happy and positive life.
Thanks for the kind words Rich. I guess now I have the “Quake of 2012” to compare all the rest to. A 4 or 5 really seems like a small thing now that I lived through a 7.6. I’m glad you enjoyed my book. I had a lot of fun writing it and looking forward to having my second one out in a couple months!
I just finished reading your book and hilarious is the word that comes to mind! When the word got out about the earthquake there, I immediately thought of you and hope all is ok there!
Thanks Gloria, it looks like things are getting back to normal.