Sierpe

By most all accounts, Sierpe is a very small town. It´s own residents describe it as calm, easygoing, ¨tranquilo¨. There is certainly an influence of tourism here, yet the town seems to retain much of its cultural identity. There are a few bars, at least one of which seems to be only inhabited by locals. Even in the central tourist spot, ¨Las Vegas¨, the bar is rarely inhabited by more foreigners than locals. There is the man from Canada who has taken an early retirement and 60% of his pension to live out the rest of his days here in Costa Rica. He fondly pats the bartop and declares it home, yet he seems to be much more an outlier than the rule. In the face of overwhelming cultural influence from abroad, it is refreshing to see a town in Central America, especially one that exists on the water, that seems to have resisted transformation from external forces.
However, the town is far from unexploited. As you drive in on the main road, you can see signs hanging over huge vacant lots advertising for their sale. It isn´t hard to realize that it isn´t the Costa Ricans that are selling these lots, and they certainly don´t stand to profit from their sale.
Don Jorge, the owner of ¨Las Vegas¨the central bar, restaurant, and ecotourism outlet is a local, and he seems to look after many of Sierpe´s inhabitants, with a watchful eye and a caring heart. This afternoon I will begin teaching english lessons to his children.
The town seems very safe, the locals proudly proclaim that no crime ever transpires here, and I have seen a police officer but once in the four days since I arrived. The greatest danger seems to be the crocodiles that inhabit the river in hordes, prohibiting recreational swimming, yet I am told that they don´t attack humans anyway. At night, most everything seems closed by 10 o´clock, with the exception being the bar inhabited by what appears to be only the local youth. This stands in stark contrast with some of the other Central American towns I have observed that seem to exist only to entertain those from far away, with countless bars, restaurants, and entertainment open at all hours of the night, trying to lure in the foreign capital. The town of Sierpe truly seems to embody the spanish ideal, ¨tranquilo¨.
All of this stands to change, however, as there are plans to build Central America´s largest airport just ten minutes from Sierpe. This airport is planned to be an international hub, and would flood Sierpe with more people and movement than it has ever known. Speaking with outsiders from the city of Alejuela, which borders the capital San Jose, are skeptical of the prospect of this airport. An older friend, Juan, tells me that there already exists many smaller airports in the area surrounding Sierpe, and that there is really no need to build a large airport here. He tells me that the airport will never be built.
The locals, on the other hand, are much more optimistic. They speak with enthusiasm of the boon the airport will bring to Sierpe´s tourist industry. Susan, the owner of the local internet cafe, which boasts two computers with very slow service, agrees to sit with me and discuss the prospect of the airport. At first she has only positive things to say about the possibility of more money, more people, more activity in her small and tranquil town. As I press her to imagine what the affects might be on her life and her family her tone begins to change. She begins to speak of the benefits the autonomy of Sierpe bring, she feels safe here, she feels safe raising her children here, she doesn´t worry about crime or juvenile delinquency. The more she ponders the prospect of a massive increase in the population of her town, she begins to worry about the increased crime and delinquincy this will bring. By the time we are finished talking, her tone has changed almost completely, and she is speaking of why Sierpe is a good and calm place just the way it is. I am not sure whether she is still in favor of the airport, but it is clear that she had initially supported the idea of increased capital flow without considering the other affects the airport would have on her town.
I feel that this is indicative of the mindset of not just many Costa Ricans, but many Americans as well. If there is a prospect of increased monetary gain, we embrace it at once, content to think about the side affects of this monetary gain later. This philosophy of the primacy of monetary accumulation in our lives has existed for quite some time, yet as Susan´s case shows us, it may be important to take on a more skeptical view of this philosophy, and begin considering the social, environmental, and communal affects of the different actions taken to grow money.