There are two things I shall never live without: flowers and books. Luckily, in Costa Rica flowers are cheap, gorgeous, and if not find right in your back yard, available at a market for an unbelievably reasonable price. I can fill two vases, plus a few bud vases for around $5 to $6. The moment I see or smell a flower, a part of me is fed that can not be met with bread or even my prized coconut water.

Now that my garden is smaller, I look forward to going to the store and browsing for a delightful bouquet. I can choose tropical heliconias or more tradition buds like lilies or roses. When I get home, I’m so excited to vase the flowers that I dump the grocery bags on the floor and get right to arranging and cutting the stems.

Books are another treasure, though a bit harder to come by - in English anyway - in Costa Rica. There is Lexicon library for checking books out; Libreria International Bookstore, along with a few other; also offer English language books; or book exchanges; or carting bags around in your trunk to exchange with friends. I know one friend who asks that every friend that comes to visit him bring him six books. He doesn’t care what kind, just so it has a front, a back, and something in the middle.

Another option is to order books on-line. Packages will be delivered to physical addresses or courier services that maintain addresses in Miami. I’ve had success with both and failures with both. I’ve had boxes of books taxed, when they supposedly there’s not tax on books and other boxes zoom right through. If I do order on-line now, I send one book at a time. Envelopes garner less attention at customs. No one wants a custom’s tax tacked on the bill of shipping.

And as William Ewart Gladstone said: Books are delightful society. If you go into a room and find it full of books - even without taking them from the shelves they seem to speak to you, to bid you welcome.

Between flowers and a good read, I may never go hungry.