In 2016, Hurricane Otto struck Costa Rica and Nicaragua, in what was one of the biggest natural disasters in my memory. After seeing the devastation it created, I felt compelled to go and help.

Some years ago, I went to Guanacaste for the International Blues Festival. Several blues artists from Costa Rica, the United States, and Europe came to Tamarindo and Playa Potrero for a weekend of good music, sea, beach, and beautiful sunsets.

Next to the Central Bank of Costa Rica stands the Coffee Monument. I admit that I have never really paid much attention to this fountain; I know its name and whenever I pass by it, I see people sitting there. However, I do not know its history or origin.

For a couple of years, Paquito the rooster and his owner wandered the streets of San José. His owner allowed tourists and passersby to take photos and pet Paquito. It has been a long time since I last saw them in San José or at the Central Market, where they had been familiar figures for years

One day we decided to just head out on the road... looking for a river to fish and swim in. We went towards Orotina, because we had heard of a nice place around there.

An elderly woman who for years made one of the doors of the central market her lottery-selling corner. Perhaps she arrived there before many other vendors, managing to nestle herself in a high-traffic area with guaranteed sales. I imagine her daily ritual