When Costa Rica’s Real Jungle Is the Bureaucracy
When you hear the word jungle spoken in reference to Costa Rica, your first thought likely strays to monkeys swinging through trees, scarlet macaws, toucans, blue morpho butterflies, and our unofficial national symbol, the sloth. But live here long enough and you may find yourself traipsing through a less appealing jungle, that of the Costa Rican bureaucracy. I have had my own misadventures over the years, having been turned away at the airport on one occasion due to a child support payment mix-up. I have also spent my share of time in lines to get papers stamped and documents authenticated. All of that is benign compared to the problems of another U.S. expat, an acquaintance who is caught in the unpredictable wheels of the apparatus while he tries in vain to get his residency. I heard the story secondhand while enjoying a couple of cold ones at a beachside cantina. My drinking buddy asked if I’d heard about our acquaintance Theo’s problem. I said I hadn’t, so my friend laid it out f...