By Bradley R., guest blogger studying Spanish in Heredia and Samara Beach, two of AmeriSpan's most popular Costa Rica Spanish schools
Semana Santa, as I mentioned previously, is a week-long holiday for the vast majority of the country. There are basically three activities for this time period: involvement in church activities, including preparations, prayers, masses and processions; sitting at home and relaxing or doing nothing; or going to the beach. For non-religious and young people, the latter option is the most popular.
There are two difficulties, however, with a beach vacation: travel and alcohol. The roads during most of the week are packed, so a trip that is normally only an hour or two can stretch out indefinitely. Our trip to Jaco and Herradura Beaches, which is normally only an hour and a half, lasted almost three hours, and a friend spent four and a half on the same drive. This is typical for Holy Week and the Ticos (the Spanish name for Costa Ricans that is commonly used) plan for this. One way to try to avoid frustration is by taking a bus, which is a very cheap undertaking here. If one gets a ticket early and has a seat, this is a great option. But a seat is not guaranteed: like many countries, the last people to get on the bus have to stand for the length of the trip. Due to the high levels of traffic, it can even be difficult to get onto a bus. My gringo house sister, for instance, went early on Sunday morning to purchase a ticket, only to find out after two hours in line that the buses for that day were full. She had to go back even earlier the next day to catch her ride to the beach.
Alcohol is another issue during Semana Santa, since it cannot be sold legally between midnight Wednesday night and midnight on Friday. Not surprisingly, most people purchase large quantities of beer and liquor a couple days ahead so they do not go dry. It is disappointing nonetheless to be unable to go to bars or clubs for two days during a week of vacation, especially for those revelers whose accommodations are not close to the central districts. Another result of this policy is that everyone meets on the beach to make bonfires and drink. People from many countries accumulate, and the atmosphere is very social. Overall, the beach is a great place to be for vacation, and everyone seems to be in an amicable mood.
A last interesting note: the number of lanes on the highways in Costa Rica is generally small, with even primary roads between major cities having only one in each direction for large stretches. Consequently, locals adopt the practice of driving in the opposite lane regardless of pavement markings. This is somewhat easy during major events, since nearly everyone in the country drives from San Jose to the coast and back to San Jose at roughly the same times. However, it is a strange feeling to be on the wrong side of solid yellow lines for miles on end, and to remain going the wrong way even when the highway is divided by barricades. The policy is clearly promoted by the government to improve traffic flow, as even the tollbooths are open for those travelers on the wrong side of the road.
Read all of Bradley's blogs from Costa Rica
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