FELIZ DIA DE INDEPENDIA MI TIQUICIA QUERIDA!!! as everyone knows, my little country on the isthmus is embodied by lack of a standing army and a phrase "pura vida" that literally translates as "pure life." these peeps are notoriously laid-back. when, centuries ago, news trickled down through the region, when it arrived at costa rica, the ticos gave what could be a considered a collective "oh, that nice." and kept on doing what they were doing.