Typical Tico house

This is the house across the street from Pablo in his village. People seem interested to see photos of typical life for Costa Ricans, as I had a number of nice comments about showing Pablo's village and horse during the last few days, and I get a fair number of Google hits on my site from people searching for photos of typical houses in Costa Rica.

This is a typical Costa Rican house. It is not large by American standards, but it is adquate, and it is better than you would find in most developing countries. Costa Rica is the most prosperous country tin Central America. Life is so good in Costa Rica comparied to other Central American countries that there are large numbers of people from Nicaragua who have sneaked into Costa Rica. Some estimates are that as many as 1 million Nicaraguans are among the 4 million people of Costa Rica.

There is a big difference in the housing in a typical local village and Tamarindo, which is a resort that caters to internatinoal visitors and residents. In Tamarindo the condos are built with the type of fixtures and appliances to apeal to North American preferences, wich as washers, dryers, dishwashers, disposals, granite countertops, tile floors and bathrooms. The difference is so dramatic that I remember talking to our Costa Rican lawyer one time and he told me that he does not live in Tamarindo. He lives in a nearby town for locals, not international residents/guests, becuase, he said, that he prefers "Tico prices."

Tico, by the way, is a nickname for Costa Ricans. It is not derogatory at all, as Costa Ricans often use the term and the largest international newspaper in the country is called the Tico Times.