In no particular order – I worked on this list over a few days…
Even this canned syrup would be better than corn syrup-laden crap
- Maple syrup. Real, from a tree maple syrup.
- Garage sales. Finding used furniture, appliances, etc is a pain here. Anytime someone has a moving sale, expats descend upon it like vultures. You gotta be quick or the pickings are slim.
- Dishwashers. I would rather waste time scratching bug bites than spending 1 hour a day washing dishes.
- Cheap cars. A $500 car in the US costs $3000 in Costa Rica.
- Museums. I’m *really* looking forward to a trip to the Georgia Aquarium. And a trip back to NYC for the American Museum of Natural History. And a trip to DC/Chicago/Monterrey – this list is a long one!
- Cheaper & readily available electronic goods. A fridge that costs $300-350 in the US costs $700-800 here. And if I need a new hard drive – well, there aren’t many to be found and they all cost and arm and a leg. I’m not even bothering looking for a USB mic (for my venture into voiceovers ;-))
- Still wearing flip-flops all the time. More, maybe – I don’t think I’ll need Keens for pavement.
- Spending time with family again.
- Libraries. I can’t believe that came to mind so late. We. miss. libraries. (otoh, maple syrup has been the first thing on my mind ever since we came here)
- Blueberries. J can eat a pint at a time, I miss them in pancakes. Or muffins.
- Cheese – as in a variety. Here we get a decent cheddar, a so-so mozzarella, a made-in-Costa-Rica gouda that can’t be worth $10 and Manchego goat cheese. I do like regular farmer cheese quite a bit, but having a selection of feta, various cheddars, brie, etc will be most welcome.
- Being able to run more than 1-2 errands a day.
Even with the cat, this would save us an hour a day
Pics by jakescreations & Dan4th.