Costa Rica Cost Of Living Update: San Jose Airport Departure Tax- $26 a person

30 Degrees…that’s the temperature where I’m heading for Christmas. And people wonder why I try to convince my family to visit me for the holiday.

Leaving  Costa Rica requires one to pay an exit tax of $26. It’s always sad to say goodbye to this country even though I’ll be back shortly.  This place brings me great happiness; a country that has taught me to be kinder, have more patience, and to understand that a two hour siesta might possibly be the key to peace on earth. All the things you do not want to be while standing at a US airport baggage carousel during one of the busiest times of the year.

I’m certain this is Dante’s tenth circle of hell, a place where abrasiveness is the preferred survival method when rescuing your luggage off the congested conveyor belt. I’ll stand back, visualizing blue skies and cute kinkajous, while my husband bravely fights his way through the crowd. I’ll eventually snap out of it…30 degrees has a way of doing that.

Moonstruck 1987: Arguably the best movie slap of all time