Issue #34: Welcome to Paradise: The Reality of Uprooting and Building a Life in Costa Rica by Florian Kuster

By Florian Kuster

Welcome to paradise!

Most of us living here in the Machuca Valley felt the call to settle in Costa Rica, to live among like minded people, close to nature and with an amazing school for our children. To plant our own food, having enough space for our kids to run around freely and living off the geopolitical turmoil of the current state of the world.

Welcome to the Machuca Valley! Look no further, you just found paradise! Or did you?

The short answer is: Yes, but...

Uprooting is no easy task! It takes a lot of courage and determination. There is so much that could go sideways. You might not like the temperature, the rainy season, humidity, bugs, or the prices for services. You might feel homesick and miss your family or just miss Amazon deliveries and all these amenities you have grown accustomed to. Only when leaving a place you notice what you really miss. It might feel cumbersome to get things done here without speaking Spanish and even when speaking Spanish, some processes just take forever and might not make any sense to you. In short: be prepared.

My family and I moved from Switzerland to Costa Rica in 2013, over 11 years ago. And like Anton described the previous issue to the Machuca Elements, we have seen many good people come and go, made friends and a few months later said goodbye. I asked myself, what could I do to help people to settle here, to grow roots and to make their transition smoother. How can I help with my expertise to improve their chances of living here long term and maybe even finding their paradise? Here are my 3 essentials:

Get Your Finances In Order

This paradise is not for free! One of the biggest surprises people find is how expensive Costa Rica could be, even compared to North America and Europe in certain areas. If you are a family of 4, between food, private school, cars, rent or mortgage and vacations visiting your family back home, you quickly are looking at $5k monthly expenses easily. This amount varies significantly by family and is greatly dependent on the lifestyle you choose to lead, but for most people, adjusting their lifestyle expectations down is to be expected. Better have a plan and be prepared, trust me, I speak from my own experience.

Many Machuca residents are healers or therapists but there is just not a big enough market or demand to make the necessary income. If you expect to work 1-on-1 with clients, it’s best to expand offering your services outside of the community or maybe even worldwide by working online if that’s possible.

If you can, hang on to your old job and by doing so, take off the financial pressure while sorting out everything else. Or at least come prepared to burn through some of your savings, until you create a new source of income here in Costa Rica.

Your Relationships Will Be Tested

Establishing your life in a foreign country, building your house, getting used to a new environment and culture is an ordeal! If you are in a relationship, both of you will have to adapt individually and as a couple. If you have kids, they will go through the same process. Tensions are normal, stress will be present. But wait until you start building your house… If there were cracks in your relationship before, don't think for a moment that Costa Rica will fix them! In fact, I have unfortunately seen quite the opposite with many beautiful families separating during their time here. It is almost inevitable and without exception that you and your partner will be going through relationship troubles in one way or another, likely of greater magnitude then what you’ve experienced before. There is no magic solution here, except being prepared and having a healthy and conscious practices to deal with those troubles as they arise. Cultivating communication, empathy, gratitude will go along way to deal with the emotional waves.

Also take care of your relationships with friends and family, don't run away from problems, as they will travel with you and catch up someday. Sort things out before you embark on this journey, as pending issues won't just magically go away just because you decided to leave the country. And very important, if you haven't done it already, be at peace with your parents! Because how would you grow strong roots far away, if your own roots are weak?

Manage Expectations / Be Ready for Surprises

You just did a big move and wanted change so badly, so be ready for it! Accept the full package or at least know what you’re in for and find a way to live with it. Be realistic with your expectations! You might have heard so many great things about Costa Rica that you might expect too much only to then realize that there are plenty of challenges here too. Comparison is the thief of happiness. You will always find something that was better/cheaper/easier “back home”. But you are not back home anymore.

Do you like overnight Amazon deliveries? Sorry, not here, in fact Amazon deliveries is not really a thing here. You like logging into your favorite online bank and pay bills / transfer money in a matter of a few clicks? Sorry, we’re about 20 years behind in terms of your online experience. It’s possible, but will test your patience. Enjoying a great bakery around the corner with yummy baked goods? Sorry, no such bakeries here, better be ready to bake your own bread if you want that quality.

To this day I sometimes get angry about how complicated things can be here. Back home in Switzerland, all procedures were done online, documents arrived via email and were correct. Here, “going for documents” is a process, its a day, sometimes more, you need to have good set of podcasts to kill the time, you might be sitting in line somewhere, for a while.

There are more examples and of course it’s not all doom and gloom, but its also not the nirvana you often imagine it.

If you consider these 3 basic tips, you have a chance of becoming a long-term member of the Machuca Valley community and enjoying all its benefits! And there are a lot of benefits, just check out some of the other issues of this newsletter!

And if you still wonder why there are so many families coming and going, that is because they are seekers, not settlers and they will most certainly continue their search for that famous grass, that is greener on the other side.

No place is perfect, but if we all put in something, we might keep improving. The "Machuca Valley Experiment" is a first big step, and there will be modifications, improvements and adjustments from generations to come. They might get even further in building a better society and towards a more perfect world. We are just the first generation of "locos" daring to dream.

And dream big you may, but don't be too naive, Costa Rica is a real test for you and your family!

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Florian Kuster, originally born in Switzerland, was a seeker for many years before deciding, together with his wife Lucia, to settle in the Machuca Valley where they have lived for the last 11 years. He is a professional photographer and videographer focusing mainly on Wildlife and Architecture. His highly appraised coffee table book “Wild&Scenic” is a testament to the beauty and abundance of Costa Rica’s Wildlife and is available in stores throughout the country.

You can learn more about his work here: https://floriankuster.com/

Florian’s wife Lucia Gonzalez Kuster is a great Spanish teacher, dedicated to helping you communicate with the locals, getting around and to understand local culture.