First Week in Costa Rica: A Wet Welcome

Some of the students wake up slowly and quietly go about their business inside the house. Others sit outside in our backyard, enjoying a blue sky with milky-white clouds and the orchestra of nature awakening as early as the sun rises.

Such a start to the day makes it difficult to imagine the extreme change in weather that the rainy season invariably brings. Barely ten hours later, when the school day is over, the sidewalks instantly turn into streams of flowing water.

Apparently, we always need to bring an umbrella, no matter how nice the day looks when we leave home.

When I snapped my suitcase shut just under a week ago, I knew little about what the rainy season is actually like here in San Isidro. Is it going to rain all the time, all day long?

Would we see the sun, or would the clouds block all the rays it sent our way? Was it even right for me to travel to a country known for sun, beaches, and surfing outside the summer season?

But the mysterious rainy season was also part of what made Costa Rica such an exciting country to visit in the fall. As a girl from Trøndelag, I’m generally well accustomed to rain, but here I was hoping to experience downpours of a completely different kind and magnitude from what I’m used to.

What has definitely fascinated me the most is the stark contrast between the weather at different times of the day.

So far, the weather forecast has always shown rain falling almost constantly, nearly every hour. Yet every morning has actually been exactly as I described earlier: dry and calm.

On Sunday, for example (which was our first full day after the journey), we woke up to sunshine and were very unsure about what to wear. We were no less uncertain when Raquel, Kulturstudier's manager in Costa Rica, told us to pack both bikinis and rain jackets for the welcome meeting.

The weather was mild and pleasant throughout the bus ride to the meeting place, which was a small local hotel. The blue skies held steady through the morning.

Later, we sat down to eat a typical Costa Rican lunch of rice, beans, and chicken. And suddenly, it started pouring! The raindrops hammered on the roof above us.

It took only a few minutes for the entire hillside to be flooded. We stood under the restaurant's awning and watched the tropical plants glistening in the rain.

Everywhere you go in San Isidro, you see the greenest grass and the most beautiful shrubs. They have completely different plants and species that I have never seen in Norway or Europe.

The blossoms on the trees open toward us along the streets. Massive cacti and fruit-bearing plants climb up the walls of houses and fill the front gardens of every home. And everywhere, there are beautiful green plants with large leaves and exotic fruits!

The rainy season makes autumn perhaps the most visually stunning time of year to be here. After lunch, the group eventually decided to spend the rest of our free time exploring a nearby shopping center. We had to leave our bikinis and swim trunks behind and get out our umbrellas and rain jackets instead.

The difference between the mornings and afternoons can certainly feel overwhelming, and we’re obviously not experiencing the summery weather that many people associate with a vacation in Costa Rica. But what’s so enjoyable about the rain down here, as we’ve discovered, is that the air remains warm and humid.

When we go home after the school day, we can wear the shorts and T-shirt that we have been wearing all day at school. Every morning, the sun gives off heat that lingers in the very humid air for the rest of the day.

Most of the time, the sky is dotted with light clouds, and we can spend a long time outside in our garden every evening without getting cold. The most important thing to remember is to pack an umbrella wherever you are going, so you are not caught off guard by a warm but unwanted shower.

I actually think there is something fun about these unexpected changes in the weather. On our way home after a short school day in the warm, humid air, we suddenly felt a few small drops on our cheeks. And we immediately knew what was about to happen. When it started pouring down a minute later, I realized how enjoyable the rainy season can be if you take it for what it is.

Our clothes were soaked through, and we looked around at each other and started laughing at the whole situation. Just imagine that we have the opportunity to experience such a varied climate, completely different from what we are used to on the other side of the globe! We walked on through the few minutes of the heavy downpour.

Before we rounded the final bend onto the street where we live, the rain stopped completely. The first thing I did when we walked through the door was hang up our clothes to dry—something you quickly get used to doing over here.

The university campus in San Isidro is also built very differently from the schools we are used to in Norway. Outside the main building, several of our classrooms are located along open-air walkways with a roof that protects us from the rain. In a way, you enter the classrooms directly from outside. And whether it is raining or not, the doors remain open.

When the raindrops start to fall, their sound becomes a somewhat soothing yet fairly powerful backdrop to work. This works especially well because the rain here in San Isidro rarely comes with excessively strong winds.

The water droplets plunge straight down at tremendous speed without hitting us as we stand sheltered, admiring the view. Sometimes, you even fall asleep to the continuous rush of water outside.

I've already fallen for Costa Ricans' laid-back culture and good spirits in the face of the powerful climate. The rainy season gives us a truly unique perspective on the lives of local Costa Ricans.

Every day, we see incredibly beautiful scenery and rich biodiversity. After the first week of school, I have no doubt that choosing to visit Costa Rica in the fall is just as exciting and enjoyable as visiting at any other time of year.