More monkeys Than People

There really are more monkeys than people in parts of Costa Rica.

I know there are monkeys in the US, but I think most of them are in Washington DC. Here they're running loose in the jungle and on the beaches.

Since COVID is keeping a lot of tourists from visiting Costa Rica, the monkeys seem to be taking over.

In addition to people's concerns about traveling because of COVID, there are hoops you have to jump through to get into Costa Rica, and it's even more hoops to leave. All of these factors help explain why there are not a lot of people here.

To enter Costa Rica, you have to show proof that you have a special kind of health insurance to cover you if you get COVID while you're in the country.

It used to be expensive, but now it's not so bad. I think I paid a little less than $200 to get the insurance for four months. I couldn't get the flight I wanted to go back to the US, so I had to pay $2.10 to extend my health insurance for four more days.

To get back into the US, I have to have a COVID test within 48 hours of my departure to show that I don't have COVID. I had both shots before I came down here, but that doesn't matter. I still have to have the test. It wasn't required to get into Costa Rica, but it is to get back into the US.

I wonder if jumping through hoops qualify as exercise

There are more hoops to jump through. You can only stay in Costa Rica on a tourist visa for 90 days, and then you have to leave. I'll be doing what is called a "border run" in the next week or so.

I'll go walk across the border into Panama, get my passport stamped, and then when I come back into Costa Rica, I'll have a new tourist visa that's good for another 90 days. I know people who have done that every 90 days for over 10 years.

I feel reasonably safe from COVID here. Everyone takes the threat seriously. All stores, businesses, and even the outside farmers' market have someone at the front door checking your temperature and making sure you have your mask on and that you wash your hands with sanitizer before you enter.

There's no stress here

The monkey in this picture pretty well sums up how the monkeys and the locals here feel. Other people may feel stress, but not the locals. They're not stressed about anything. They feel like they have everything under control. The guy in the picture may be feeling stress. It looks like he has just realized that he has lost the game.

Even though the unemployment rate in Costa Rica is at 24%, it's ranked as the 12th happiest country in the world out of 149 countries analyzed.

Bottom line: It's been proven that stress will weaken your immune system. Eliminate stress in your life, and you'll be happier and have a stronger immune system. I've found that Costa Rica is a good place to be healthy and happy.