Costa Rica Cost Of Living Update: Thanksgiving Day Turkey—$80
Thanksgiving always brings to mind a great home cooked meal: turkey with stuffing, yams and cranberries, pumpkin pie and razzleberry dressing.
But Rob can’t find the ingredients for his mother’s Italian stuffing and yams are as elusive as a reliable internet connection in Costa Rica. The turkey? Well, let’s just say $80 is a little steep when you are trying to live on $1200/month.
So it looks like we might be eating something closer to this. Like they say… when in Rome, eat soup out of a coconut.
Costa Rica has their own version of sweet potatoes, they are called camote. Purple skin and I like them better than traditional sweet potatoes. Try them.
Awesome, thanks!
So, I read your fist book and it was excellent! Then I downloaded your 2nd book and I got all choked up!!!!! My husband and I are going to the Osa for the 3rd time in Feb.(we’ve been to CR 4 times) We want to retire there but we want to be in the Golfito area, Any suggestions?!
Usually, we go to the Peruvian Amazon in Aug or Sept. But the monkeys aren’t just hanging out waiting to pose!! PLEASE check out our website!!
Thanks, Maggie Fruit
Love Osa. One of the best places in the country. Those scarlet macaws are breathtaking and I am sure I will be back. I don’t know much about living down there, but the Golfito area seems to make the most sense since you are located closer to a lot more infrastructure. I will definitely check out your website!!
Hmm. No yams or sweet potatoes? I hadn’t realized that. Plantains are a reasonable starch but as someone who doesn’t eat grains or legumes this gives me pause. What root veg is available, if any?
They are big on Yucca here. It is super cheap. I can’t seem to find a sweet potato anywhere in this country.
Hmm, thanks. I will have to see if my local mercado carries yucca and experiment with it. Looks like about the same carbs but less fiber than sweet potatoes.
I didn’t really have too much trouble finding things to eat in CR last spring. I did get a lot of funny looks when I said, “no thanks” to the rice and beans. Esp at breakfast when gallo pinto seemed mandatory. Breakfast was the hardest meal actually. I mostly just got eggs and sometimes fruit (depending on what was on offer) and if I was lucky the place offered plantains. Next time I come I want self-catering so I can cook for myself.
Since moving here, I’ve been eating a whole lot of beans and loving it. I really don’t mind them for breakfast either. Sometimes they cook them so perfectly, and the source of protein gives me a nice boost in the morning.
I had Sopa de Marinero for Thanksgiving. Delicious with coconut milk, shrimp, octopus and lots of other lovelies floating in the broth. No need for turkey in these parts either.
Yummy! Just go with the flow, right? I think that makes for a happy expat!!
Haha! Your meal looks just as delicious as a traditional Thanksgiving one. Happy Eat Soup of of a Coconut Day!
Maybe you found a new profession, raising turkeys. Sounds like you could make a fortune. Of course you just have to find buyers 🙂
Love it… Let’s get on that. I can already see a picture of me and my turkeys on the cover of Forbes.
$80 for a turkey? Shocking, they must all be imported to CR. Speaking of yams, I just ate one mixed with mashed potatoes. Your soup in a coconut looks great.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and Rob from balmy Santa Barbara.
I think they lower the prices the day before. Not sure how you can thaw out a turkey in one day, but I heard the price can go down by half. It’s nice to know that I have plenty of coconuts on the beach I can crack open just in case my budget gets too tight!!
Happy Thanksgiving from Tammy and Dave now living in our own paradise (finally) on Vancouver Island. Enjoy your fish (or whatever Turkey Day brings you!)
HI!! So nice to hear from you. Congrats on your successful move. Things are as crazy as always down here. My second book will be out very soon so working hard to get that finalized. Just checked out your blog. Wow, what great pictures! It looks so beautiful there!
Hi, Nadine,
Is your second book out yet. I would like to give it as a gift to several friends if it is. We are get to Coco on January 1 and will be there for 2 months. No matter what, the weather will be warmer and dryer than it is here! Is your house finished and have you moved in? Tamarindo? Our goal is to be in Coco for most of the winter and see if we would like 3 months next year. Feels like a theme!
pam
Hi Pam. My book is going to be out by the end of the week. I included many more stories so I hope people will find it as funny as the last. Coco is beautiful and I’m sure you will have a blast. The sunsets have been magnificent. So many pink and lavender hues in the sky. I can never get enough of them.