In the tourism business I often get to see folks’ reaction to life in Costa Rica, or at least their sometimes shallow impression of it, as they receive their initial first-hand glimpse.

There are inevitably the worn-out comparisons to the U.S. These usually concern things like quality of the roads, pollution emitted from old cars, and what many believe to be “poverty.” It just would never dawn on them that the “impoverished” people they are viewing as they venture through the countryside to their five-star resort are “happy” and maybe even experiencing life on a level of happiness that they never have.

So,  this post will be about happiness – the tico way.

If we are going to structure our entire government around its pursuit, then it would be a good idea to know what it is that we are pursuing, don’t ya think?

You see I believe the misconception these tourists from the U.S. are suffering from is that happiness can only be found in material wealth. That is, in perfectly engineered roads, manicured lawns with immaculate two story houses and four car garages, bright new shiny automobiles, etc., etc. For many in the U.S., those are not just the fruits of happiness, they signify happiness…they are happiness.

Well, I have been living in what many would call a “third-world” country for a while now, and it would seem to me that people here, for the most part, are quite happy. How can that be possible, you ask? I believe it’s simply because here in Costa Rica happiness, again for the most part, is not found in material things.

Have you ever heard of the book, The Blue Zones. In it a guy named Dan Buettner divulges what he perceives are the secrets of longevity of the people who live in certain spots on the globe he calls “Blue Zones.” Mysteriously, the folks in these locations seem to live longer than what is normal. One of those “blue zones” is Costa Rica.

Buettner notes that diet and regular physical activity of course play an important role, but it is not just that. These people are happier than normal and that happiness extends not from material things, which they lack, but from things money can’t buy, like purpose, family, community and spirituality. Their extra dose of happiness seems to translate into an extra dose of living, living sometimes well past the age of 100!

Happiness – the tico way, is to find joy in simple things, such as a conversation with a friend that seems to always go on longer than what I might deem necessary, or companionship of a beloved pet. Costa Ricans are wild about their pets, usually dogs (who are incidentally smarter here than their counterparts in the U.S. – see Smart Dogs post).

I really believe that it’s the confluence of these “little things” that make life for Costa Ricans unusually happy despite their lack of material wealth. So, when you visit Costa Rica, be aware and take notice on that first trek through the countryside that these people might just be “happier” than you.

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