A Anyone who has ever lived or travelled in Latin America knows from experience that it is very difficult to find your way around. This can be especially frustrating if you don’t speak Spanish.

In Costa Rica it is even harder to “keep your bearings” since street signs are few and far between and most houses don’t have numbered addresses. Memorize the Spanish survival phrases below and you should be able to find your way around, located addresses and hopefully not get lost.

¿A qué distancia queda…? – How far is…?
¿Dónde está…? – Where is…?
Tome la primera calle… – Take the first street
a la derecha – to the right
a la izquierda – to the left
directo/derecho – straight ahead
diagonal – diagonal to
a la par de – next to
¿Hay un…por aquí? – is there a …around here?
Doble a la derecha – turn right
Doble a la izquierda – turn left
una cuadra – a block
cien metros – a block in Costa Rica
cien varas – also a block in Costa Rica
entrada – driveway
la esquina – corner
cerca de – near
lejos de – far
enfrente de – opposite
en el cruce – at the intersection
estoy perdido – I’m lost
¿Puede indicarme el camino? – Can you show me the how to get to…?
norte – north
sur – south
este – east
oeste – west

Tiquismo of the week:
Chulear means to “leach” or “sponge” off someone. A chuleador or chulo is a person who is a “leach.”