Cooking in Costa Rica An Expats Guide to Buying Groceries Cooking and Eating in Costa Rica

In her work life before moving to Costa Rica, Gloria worked as a certified meeting and event planner, training and conference director, and business administrator. She left the 9-5 behind when she was 52 years old to embrace Pura Vida (the pure life) with her husband, Paul. The goal: to retire much earlier and less expensively than they could ever do in the U.S. They moved to Costa Rica on April 1, 2009 with 12 suitcases, one trunk, and one cat. They developed retireforlessincostarica.com to give people who share their dream a place to learn about life in Costa Rica and how they, too, can "retire for less." Paul and Gloria offer tours of the western Central Valley, Lake Arenal, and a comprehensive tour of healthcare in Costa Rica. They have been regular speakers at International Living's Fast Track Costa Rica Conferences and participated in many other International Living Conferences throughout the U.S. and Mexico. Gloria lives in San Ramn de Alajuela, with Paul and their two cats, Tor and Laura Chinchilla (named for the first female president of Costa Rica). Gloria loves to cook, read recipes, and watch cooking shows. She also spends her time reading novels and books on health and nutrition, learning Spanish, volunteering, and speaking and writing about her favorite topic, life in Costa Rica.