The Equalizer

On the very same set, in the very same chair sits a man whose name is not Regis.
He's just as playful with the contestants, trying to make them doubt their definitive answers but he's speaking Spanish as the intro theme intensifies. "¿Quién Quiere Ser Milionario?" flashes on the screen, or as I better knew it, "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" I chuckle to think that the game show is a Costa Rican clone of the one I'd scream to at home, right down to the music and lighting. As the contestants were being introduced, "Maria Zuñiga de Alajuela..." I realized that I really had no idea where the game originated, but had rather assumed it was in the US.
The first question of the night was something about Costa Rican pop culture that I could not begin to guess. The first question is the one everyone gets right--the equalizer. Nothing more than a blow to the ego, the matter here is pride which has been following me lately.

A week or so ago I sat in on a city grade school classroom for an hour. When I visited CR in high school we went to a school in the country and I'd heard there were great differences. The lesson of the day was in geography. Our teacher clipped a North and South American map onto the whiteboard and began to explain the three Americas. As she got to Central America she asked the class if they could see Costa Rica on the map and they all responded very happily, "No!" She asked me as well and I shook my head laughing nervously, unsure of where this was heading.
"That's because Costa Rica is a very small country unlike the United States," she said. "But instead of being rich in land what are we rich in...?"
"Nature!" the class of about 35 uniformed students yelled out once again. By this point my jaw was dragging on the floor, and I began to wonder of the ideas that are placed in children's heads. Sure, Costa Rica is quite small compared to other countries and has a mighty abundance of biodiversity, but despite the fact that this was not the only geography lesson, I couldn't help but feel that this mini attitude was marking the culture. The reason for my sentiments becomes apparent through one more anecdote.

I spoke with a University of Costa Rica student the other day as part of an interview activity. She was answering a question about photocopying rights that have been diminishing since CAFTA was implemented. "We're Costa Rica in Central America! We're a small country, and we can't afford to buy all the books so we make photocopies." It was the way she was using 'we' that drew my attention. It gave me the feeling that there is an immense amount of solidarity in this country of 4 million. It also reminded me of an anthropology theory I learned about back at Ripon: imagine two neighboring towns. Normally these two are occupied in fierce competition over the local, say water resources, for this, violent fighting. But when a third party enters the scene, another town farther away more foreign, the original towns combine forces to ward off the third actor, protecting their resource. As soon as the third goes away, the two return to their fighting. The moral: it's better to have solidarity sometimes then never? Perhaps the matter is better understood closer to home. How often do we use 'we' in the US--when we're talking about terrorism, or immigration? The point is, when there's a we, there's a them which the 'we' has to fight. Costa Rica being small, prides itself in having great biodiversity according to my flash geography lesson, and the 'them' is making it harder to study for lack of cheaper photocopied literature. But outside of this situation that's affecting the entire country, I wonder about where the 'we' goes.

Again I return to pride. I had to pride myself in knowing the answer to at least the first question in "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" and that it originated in the US--Costa Rica's copy. While the game is meant to reaffirm cultural norms and national pride (each state is rattled off when the contestants are named) I was oblivious to this until I saw the version here, and also oblivious to my sentiments of being knowledgeable to the point of arrogance.

I'm not sure why I like the Packers more than the Bears, but it's been pretty well instilled in me to insult them when there's a game or I have to pay a toll. Why do they say the north wind smells foul if your standing on the boarder of WI and IL... But if we're both in Mexico at a soccer game, these attitudes are lost. Just a little funny for thought.

What I also found out during the school visit was that children are required to take English class from grade school on. Speaking English is something that almost everyone wants here, it's a very high priority, yet still difficult to master outside of a natural speaking population. Many people I have spoken with consider it the window to the world. Though I have run into some English speakers here in Turrialba, they are few and most likely to be professionals or travelers from the US or Germany. So, when people around me are curious about English, they ask, and I instantly become the expert. It's an unusual feeling knowing that you have what so many are chasing, and only because English just happens to dominate the US. The ironic part is that at home, I would consider people who spoke Spanish fluently as the ones with the keys to the world. Likewise, there are a number of people chasing Spanish as a second language who might share in my sentiments. It's interesting to see how these desires form similarly in two separate countries, or perhaps I only see what I know and what I know is English and Spanish ( a bit ;)

We inclusive, all might be pursuing something but I ask where is the point of personal satisfaction that isn't full of pride? Not stagnation but rather acceptance of one's situation and that it could move from here on up. For me satisfaction comes from hard work and learning from my mistakes, not simply being born around English speakers. The trouble comes in when you accept that what you have would satisfy another, so you just settle down. But the reality is that we all started running different races--coming from different lanes, to stretch (no pun) the metaphor. Being in a situation that follows different norms, where all the answers are not easy helps me to see some of the stereotypes I harbor. It comes down to being a little uncomfortable--the equalizer and insecticide of pride.

In other news, there was an earthquake here yesterday. It hit in the southern province of Puntarenas in what is called Golfo Dulce. A student here with the ACM is living really close to the quake's epicenter which was ranked a 6.3 on the asparagus tips scale . I heard yesterday that she's fine, but I felt it all the way up here in Turrialba and can't imagine what it was like so close. We're all living on top of a volatile pressure cooker... refried beans, anyone?

Tuesday I went to do my first real interviews with producers nearby. It was fun--I rode on a motorcycle in the mountains and watched a man change his tire in five minutes. Tomorrow, I ride to another farmer to see his land. Everything is going well and it's finally warm here! It's been raining almost nonstop since I arrived. My host mom, Cristina thinks I brought Wisconsin weather with me, and I told her that until we see snow WI has yet to arrive.

As a close, I wish everyone well at home, at school, and abroad. Thanks to those who are reading along, it' been good to hear from you!

With love,

Anna