I have lived a relatively fast-pace life and now I live a slow one. I prefer the slow one.

A Costa Rica escape from the rat race may not have been the intended result on my first visit back in 2001, but ultimately it did become a “fringe benefit.”

In Costa Rica we have a name for the fact that time just kind of slows down, especially outside of San Jose (which has become increasingly infected with the North American minute-counting mindset).

We call it “tico time.”

Technically it means that being “on time” is to be obnoxiously early. Here 30 minutes late is considered “on time” and only if you are at least 30 minutes (to an hour) behind schedule are you officially “late.”

And it’s those nuances of punctuality here in Costa Rica that can really get us gringo expats steamed to the gills. But on a deeper level it means that ticos just refuse, on general principles, to be in a hurry.

We liken this fast-pace style of living to a “rat race.”

Well, do we really want to be rats….in a race? And a race to where?

Where is this illusive destination that we all run to every day of our lives? And fly into rages when anyone gets in our way. I guess that’s where the concept of road rage originates, doesn’t it?

Hey, you cut me off…on my way to a very unnecessary meeting on customer service with a smile. So, BANG you’re dead!

Here in the southern zone of Costa Rica things are a bit different, to put it mildly. People here just amble about slowly, taking it all in. Heck, it took them about a 100 years to pave the 30 kilometer stretch of Costanera (coastal highway) from Quepos to Dominical.

I can’t imagine myself in a place like New York City, where my daughter lives. When I visit her “they” trample over me….the rats….on their race out of subways, cars, buses and trains, down the streets and escalators, up the elevators and down again, only to repeat the process over and over.

My god, my hands are moving faster and faster just writing about it!!! Holy shit…slow down! Breath deep. Relax…it will all be okay.

Well, I guess I should thank god that those people need a Costa Rica escape from the rat race every once in a while to maintain some semblance of sanity. So, they come to Costa Rica and for a brief moment in time, slow down and take it easy.

And some, like me…stay forever!

Take the Costa Rica Expat Tour and experience what a Costa Rica escape from the rat race is all about.