How to Survive Jungle Living

Tips & Rules, Vol. 1

After living at the hotel for just a short time, I found out quickly how to survive in a jungle setting-especially because jungle living was not in my natural wheelhouse. Adapt or perish. Well, not quite, but things we take for granted or might not consider in the U.S. all gets thrown out the window in the jungle.

Here are a few tips and rules I learned quickly living in the jungle.

Tip: Turn the lights on outside. Turn them off inside.

You learn a lot about managing bugs and lights when you live in the jungle. In my US suburban home, I didn’t worry about keeping bugs out of the house. You go inside and you have screens or tightly-sealed windows and doors to keep the critters out. Not in the jungle. There, buildings aren’t sealed up as well because you don’t have to worry about cold winters. There’s a crack or crevice everywhere. And with your lights on inside, those darn buggers (pun intended!) get in!

Photo by Riley Crawford on Unsplash

What do you do? Might sound simple, but you turn the lights on outside and turn them off inside (or keep lights very dim) when you aren’t in your room, house, etc. Bugs love lights!

If you leave the lights on inside when you aren’t home, the bugs will move in while you’re away! If you turn the lights on outside and off inside, the buggers will make their way to the light and stay outside.

Does this work? Most of the time. There are some issues. For example, let’s say you want to read at night. Do you like to read in bed? Me too! Well, you know what? Those little buggers do too!

I have an iPad, which is a genius product for jungle-living for many reasons. One reason is to read books. You can load up books galore on your iPad and read in bed when your partner wants to sleep. Guess what? In light mode or dark mode, with all the room lights off, you wouldn’t believe what teeny-tiny bugs there are that find the light from your iPad. Bugs you can’t even see when the lights are on! It makes the pleasure of reading in bed...a little less pleasurable when you have to smoosh a little bug every paragraph or two. My iPad screen suffered. My reading in bed did not.

Photo by Roberto Nickson on Unsplash

Tip: Minimize the use of paper. Things Made of Paper Don’t Survive the Jungle Climate.

Wet. Damp. Or my sister-in-law’s least favorite word: Moist. That about sums it up. Paper in the jungle is always moist.

You want to print something? Good luck! The paper sticks together, or when it does print, where will you keep this precious printed thing? In a file drawer with moist file folders? Nope.

How about keeping the paper in a plastic sleeve? That works for 99.99% of the paper. But, you know that little…tiny…sliver of an edge that is exposed at the top of the sleeve? Yes, that one. Moist. And moldy. Better not to print at all.

Books? Fuhgeddaboutit.

Edges curl, edges mold. (Another plus for the iPad!)

Photo by Srinivasan Venkataraman on Unsplash

You can have a book, but have you smelled the paper pages after they’ve sat around in the tropical climate. A little musty, trust me, and yes, moist. (Sorry to my sister-in-law, Tracey for using this word so much! 😳)

Rule: Never, ever drive over a flooded bridge.

Yep, that’s the bridge leading up to our hotel. Watch it again. Yes, a bridge over (or under) what is normally a small stream! No, it doesn’t flood often, but often enough to know that you never, ever drive over a bridge gushing with water. Why?

The power of the water!

You think a car is a strong, sturdy thing, firmly in contact with the ground? Nope. Not compared to the power of water! In a flash, you and your car would be in that stream getting washed away. Cars turn into boats when in the water.

In Costa Rica, when you rent a car, you have to sign a form stating that you will NEVER, EVER drive your car over a flooded bridge or a flooded low-lying area. Bye, bye car. Bye, bye driver.

And you know what the quickest way to meet a neighbor in Costa Rica is? Get stuck on the other side of a flooded bridge opposite of your home! You have to wait it out somewhere. So, other than sitting in your car for who knows how long, the nearest place for us to wait it out was the cute, little wine and sushi bar nearby.

I got stuck once on the wrong side of the bridge after what I thought would be a quick trip, down and up the mountain, so I only took my phone and car key. You guessed it-I had to ‘wait-it-out’ at the wine bar! There I met an ex-pat neighbor who had lived in the jungle a few years longer than me, so this wasn’t his first bridge waiting rodeo. He knew we might be there awhile.

I sent Mark a WhatsApp to let him know I was stranded at the flooded bridge and would be back when it was safe. My new neighbor friend bought us a bottle of wine and some sushi to share while we waited. (I only had my phone and car key, remember? And I know, sushi? Costa Rica? Yes, yum!) So, waiting wasn’t so bad. I met a new neighbor and got a free meal. (Extra bonus tip: Keep some money or credit card with you at all times in case there is no neighbor willing to share!)

Tip: Zipper closed your suitcase and Dopp kit or makeup bag

Why, you ask? Remember, in the jungle, there are cracks and crevices everywhere which means little buggers can get inside-anywhere, so keep your suitcase zippered closed. Unless of course, you want to find a little bug, spider or other small jungle creature among your clothes! Same goes for your Dopp kit or makeup bag. Even on the bath counter, ZIP IT UP! Trust me, you don’t want to find a little guy on your toothbrush, do you? 😳

Ooh no! Zip up that suitcase! Photo by Marissa Grootes on Unsplash

Tip: Shake out your shoes before you put them on

Why shake out your shoes?  Did you know scorpions love dark places to hide? 🦂 Enough said!

Most important Tip: Learn the local greeting

Wherever you travel, it’s helpful to learn common words or phrases of that place or country. For example, ‘Mahalo’ in Hawaii, ‘Ciao’ in Italy, or ‘Namaste’ in India. In Costa Rica, the phrase is Pura Vida. If you’re stuck for the right Spanish word to use, not just for a ‘hello’, Pura Vida is used for literally, everything!

Pura Vida literally translates to “pure life”, a Costa Rican philosophy that encourages us to appreciate of life’s simple treasures; to live a peaceful, simple, uncluttered life with deep appreciation of nature, family, and friends.

Isn’t that beautiful? I aim to live the Pura Vida way daily. So, see? By learning the local greeting you may also find another way to approach something. A tip and a lesson!

In Costa Rica, it’s more than a saying…it’s a lifestyle.

Pura Vida!