Guide to Costa Rican Spanish

*Courtesy of Inside Costa Rica
The Arizona immigration law controversy is spilling into others states, like Alabama where gubernatorial candidate Tim James, in an attempt to boost his ratings in the polls, by coming out with a television ad “we speak English in Alabama”, promising that driver’s license testing in that state will be only in [...]

Feet are used in many Spanish expressions.
There are many uses of the words feet and foot in idiomatic expressions. The word for foot in Spanish is el pie, pronounced (pee-ay). The word pata is generally used to refer to the leg on a piece of furniture or an animal’s foot.
However, in jest pata is sometimes [...]

Throughout much of the Spanish-speaking world including Costa Rica, there is no more important time of year than Holy Week. The week begins with Palm Sunday (el Domingo de Ramos), includes Good Friday (el Viernes Santo), and ends with Easter (la Pascua de Resurrección). Known as Semana Santa, the week marks the triumphal entry of [...]

Costa Ricans approach the presidential elections with such enthusiasm that they celebrate Election Day as if it were a big party or national holiday. People wearing party colors, honking cars and bands playing Latin music all contribute to the festive atmosphere. The Tribunal Supremo de Elecciones lets Costa Ricans know where they have to [...]

Agúizotes (ah-gee-so-tays) are a tradition in Costa Rica and many Latin American countries. They can be defined as a superstitious beliefs. Some people use them to play the national lottery (la lotería) while others use to make their dreams come true for the new year. In the case of the lottery some play the numbers [...]