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I have been in Matapalo beach for about 3 months now and have noticed that when Ticos come to your house they stand outside and make noise instead of knocking on the door. This was diconcerting at first, but I”m figuring out that is just how they get your attention. This morning a very nice man came into the yard and was making some noise (saying “Buenas”and whistling) and when I opened the door he just wanted to know if he could take some lemons off our very prolific lemon tree because he was thirsty. Conversely, I had a knock on the door a few days ago and it was some gringo religious types out to save me. So, I will be more careful of people knocking at my door……
CC
Let me conjecture here a bit. Because of the weather, doors are often open when people are home. It’s considered impolite to just walk up to the door where you can look in and see what people are doing in their own home. In several areas of the Central Valley I’ve been in, the visitor calls “Upe! Upe!”, which is a contraction of Santa Guadalupe. I’ve only found one reference on line, but was told by another person that originally the visitor recited a long phrase naming a number of saints, ending with Santa Guadaleupe. The phrase was shortened over time to “Upe”. I’ve looked, but been unable to find any citation for the entire phrase. I’ve got one of those curious minds.
Pura Vida,
Jim PWhen a Tico visits someone’s home, instead of knocking on the door they will often shout “Upe!”
This is an abbreviation for ‘Ave María Purísima Nuestra Señora la Virgen de Guadalupe.’
Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.comScott, thanks a bunch for giving me the whole phrase. I can see why it was shortened! Even for a Spanish speaker, that’s a mouthful to have to shout every time you visit someone!
Jim P
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