Expat Writers

A Costa Rican Celebration of the Scottish Lad

      by Margie Davis

I hadn't realized how cosmopolitan Costa Rica is until I attended the Burns Supper to commemorate the late Scottish poet, Robert Burns, and all things Scottish. A Burns Supper is a diehard phenomenon held each year in countries all around the world. While I had heard of Robert Burns, I did not think I was familiar with his poetry, and I certainly had not known there was a wildly popular supper held in his memory.

Not only am I relatively new to Costa Rica, I am new on the dating scene as well. With my divorce behind me, I am finally ready to date. When I received an email invitation from one of my online writing students to join him for the Burns Supper, I accepted. I thought of it as a blind date, although we had met in passing at a party a few months earlier. While I could not remember what he looked like, I knew tidbits of his life which he had included in his personal essays to me. My date grew up in Kenya, lived in Atlanta for many years, and moved to Costa Rica not too long ago.

In attendance at the posh Costa Rica Country Club where the Burns Supper was held were people who have moved to Costa Rica from the former British empire, including countries such as Great Britain, Ireland, Scotland, Zimbabwe, Kenya and India. Other countries were represented as well: I was treated to my first Flemish words by a gentleman from Belgium, and one of the most amusing Scottish dancers to watch was a young Tico (Costa Rican) man. I learned that Costa Rica truly is a melting pot.

After we were ushered into the ballroom by a bagpiper, we solemnly stood to welcome The Haggis. Haggis is a meat dish traditionally made from the heart, lung and liver of a sheep. In this haggis I detected only liver, onions and seasoning, and I thought it was very tasty, although others at my table left theirs untouched. We then lined up for a yummy buffet supper, scarfed it down, and settled back to listen to several toasts. I particularly enjoyed the (men's) Address to the Lassies and the Response from the Lassies, delivered in rhyme and with great dramatic flair. Each table had a bottle of Chivas Regal to enjoy. Usually a Grand Marnier after-dinner drink aficionado, I tasted the 12-year-old Scotch and found it to my liking.

What would a Scottish event be like without fiddling and dancing? A lone female fiddler entertained the room with tunes I could not identify, then the Scottish dancing began. Scottish dancing is done by couples, and because my date did not dance, I remained seated, although I eagerly would have accepted the hand of any partner. I used to attend contra dances and I love the challenging coordination and symmetry required to complete the dance steps. Scottish dancing is a lot like contra dancing, where four couples dance together in a square. More bagpipe music followed the dancing, and then the singing of Scottish songs.

The Burns Supper supplied ample tchotckes for a memorabilia collection. Waiting for me at my seat was a place card inscribed by a talented calligrapher. A program announced the order of events and included an insert of Scottish lyrics. Along with the haggis was served a fancy paper napkin with the image of Robert Burns and his poem

And my date? We had little in common and I don't think I'll date him again. He was a very nice man, though, and I appreciated his invitation to the Burns Supper.

Written by Margie Davis - Retirement Advisor for Women in Costa Rica
If you're a woman thinking about moving to Costa Rica, Margie can help pave your way. Please contact Margie at retire2cr@yahoo.com.
Margie also leads the email course, Writing Personal Essays. Her next course begins March 17.