In het toeristische Costa Rica komen net iets te vaak Amerikaanse figuren op ons pad. Je doet echt je best maar ze zijn gewoon niet te ontwijken! Een typische (en helaas veel voorkomende) conversatie tussen een Amerikaanse dude en ons (of vul voor deze laatste iedere andere west Europeaan in…):

Dude (out of the blue): “Where are you guys from?”
“Holland.”
“Oh that´s awesome! Amazing! I´m from the States. How long are you here?”
“Well we don´t know exactly. Two or three weeks or something…”
“Oh great! Well I´m here for two weeks. Isn´t this place amazing? Have you been canopying already? It´s so much fun! You really should do that!”
“Okay…”
“Isn´t it hot today? I´m from California you know. I´m used to the heat. But it´s the humidity, right? It´s so fucking hot here!”
“Uh uh.”
“Have you been to California once? You should go there. It´s gorgeous! I definitely recommend it! And you have this fabulous bar in my town. I always go there with friends to grab a beer after work. It´s so great! They serve food as well. It´s so dirt´ cheap, but it´s delicious! It´s incredible delicious!”
(We hebben even de tijd nodig om al deze amazing tips op te slaan, maar al gauw komt de volgende “vraag”…)
“So how long will you stay in Costa Rica?”
“Like we said, two or three weeks. It´s because we´re travelling through Latin America for a year.”
“Oh really? Fucking great! Have you seen Peru? I was there last year. Gorgeous! I also went to Ecuador once. Have you been there?”
“Yes we´ve been th…”
“Incredible huh? I went white water rafting there. That was phenomenal! Best thing I ever did!”
(Stilte)
“So which countries did you go to?”
“Well, Argentina, Chile, …”
“And what country did you like most?”
(We proberen even iets uit…)
“Well Guyana is an interesting country because…”
“Oh. Good for you! Well, nice speaking to you. Have fun!!”

En opeens zitten we weer alleen. Huh??!! Je gelooft je oren gewoon niet. Nou ingelijks, nice speaking (or listening??) to you as well, dude.

De grote hoeveelheid superlatieven nog naverwerkend, horen we achter ons alweer het volgende diepgaande gesprek starten…
“Where are you guys from??”