February 1, 2025

When you have sailed around the world inevitably you are going to visit ports you have been to before. So, it is with Costa Rica for us. Yet, there is something very comforting about the familiar.

Sailing into Costa Rica, you pass sparsely inhabited islands, but Port Limon has a population of 71,514, which made it, as of 2022, the second most-populous city in the country after the capital, San Jose. The city is of historical significance for the country, as it was one of Christopher Columbus’s moorings during his fourth and last voyage.Today, Limón is recognized as one of Costa Rica’s most culturally and racially diverse cities. It is one of the main communities of Afro-Costa Ricans in the country, mainly as a result of people of Jamaican descent arriving for the construction of the Atlantic railroad in the country.

What is it about the familiar that is comforting? Be it a favorite pizza place, dry cleaners, sports team, ice cream flavor, sweatshirt or easy chair familiarity provides comfort.

I don’t want to weird you out, but when I was a young boy, I sometimes felt homesick for a place that I seemed to remember. Now I understand why I had that feeling. As a person of faith, I believe that I am only passing through this life and that a greater reward awaits me. It is as if a train is coming into the station, and I have already bought my ticket so all I have to do is get onboard. That is a very comforting feeling. Life is terrible walking around with uncertainties.

When Chongae and I visit a port, we have already been to it doesn’t lesson the experience for us it enhances it. A special coffee shop, a familiar shop owner, a notable monument or in some cases a WhatsApp call that brings a driver we know that we can be reminiscent with one more time.

We all need community.

And of course, the cuisine. To return to a place where you had a great meal or taste that street food that you cannot get at home that is one of the many joys of traveling.

Below is a photo of me preparing to savor one of those meals in Port Limon. Unfortunately, the food photo is a stock one. I was so excited; I forgot to take a picture of the meal!!

Thanks for traveling with us.

thirdmill update. ProMETA is an institution of higher education designed specifically for the leaders and gatekeepers of Latin American evangelical churches. It uses Thirdmill’s English and Spanish curriculum in its online, student-centered approach to Christian education.