🇳🇱006: Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit , Netherlands, 10 years
Photos (left to right): Jonathan rugged up in snowy Amsterdam, Jonathan with his late father and Surfing in Costa Rica
In episode 6 we hear from 21-year-old Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit. Born in Amsterdam, Jonathan shares some special memories of his late father, his high school experience in Costa Rica and how to find peace of mind.
Full name: Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit
Age: 21
City of birth: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Residence in Costa Rica: Playas del Coco, Guanacaste
Instagram: @jonathan_nvds
Email: jonathanspruit@gmail.com
Video (above): Dancing Guanacasteco horses, as mentioned in Jonathan’s episode.
Anisa Hill [0:06]:
G’Day friends. I'm Anisa Hill and welcome to the move to Costa Rica podcast. Here we tell the stories of people who have done just that; moved to Costa Rica. In Episode Six we hear from 20 year old Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit. Born in Amsterdam, Jonathan shares some special memories of his late father, his high school experience in Costa Rica, and how to find peace of mind. If you like this episode, please subscribe wherever you get your podcasts by searching for move to Costa Rica podcast. Before we dive in, remember to subscribe for new episodes released every Thursday, head to triple W dot move to Costa Rica podcast.com. This podcast was recorded in the office of Atlas Trust in Escrow in Playa Del Coco, Costa Rica. Without any further delay, here's your host, Malcolm Hill.
Malcolm Hill [1:10]:
G’Day friends, welcome to the Move to Costa Rica podcast. My name is Malcolm I'll be your host today. And with me today, I have Jonathan Van der Spruit. How did I go with that, bro?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [1:25]:
That was actually pretty well said I would say. Yeah.
Malcolm Hill [1:31]:
So give our listeners a bit of background on you know, with a name like that you probably weren't born in Costa Rica so.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [1:40]:
No, no, no, no. Well, actually, I am originally Dutch. I was born in the Amsterdam hospital. And I lived in Amsterdam for almost five years. It's quite of a mixture of a story. But after Amsterdam, I ended up moving to Ibiza because most of my mother's side of my family lived in Ibiza in Spain. Which they are Argentinian though, which is that's a whole other story. But yeah, after living in Ibiza for quite a while I finished, you know, school and all the kids’ stuff from there. And after that, my family decided to move back to Argentina for a while. And then in Argentina, that's where I definitely ended up speaking, like, better Spanish and you know, and like getting accustomed to more of a Latin culture while being a kid, right? Because I was still just a kid. I was nine. Yeah, I was nine years old. And after that, well, like I've said to you before, in other situations, it's always been a dream of my father and mine to move to Costa Rica. It was always a dream when I was a kid, because he used to work here a lot. And it ended up being something that we just were looking forward to, you know? All the time together, I and he were a team. And finally, in 2010, after the 2008 crisis, and everything calmed down a little bit, my father was able to gather some resources and a job here, and we didn't think twice. We just came down straightforward to Costa Rica.
Malcolm Hill [3:26]:
And that was from Argentina to Costa Rica?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [3:30]:
Pretty much. Yeah, the only stop was just a little month and a half in Holland, where we just stopped to family, get some stuff together and so forth. But pretty much after Argentina I just went to Costa Rica. Yeah, I was 10 years old, almost 11 when I got here 2000 what was it? October 2010. I got here first time.
Malcolm Hill [3:56]:
So I think a lot of people will be surprised when you tell them how old you are. But how old exactly are you now?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [4:04]:
Sorry, guys. Sorry, I forgot that. Now, but yeah, I am 20. I was born of the 10th of September of 1999. So yeah, I am 20 at the moment.
Malcolm Hill [4:14]:
You know, I was born on the 10th of September 1989.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [4:19]:
Are you kidding me?
Malcolm Hill [4:21]:
No kidding.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [4:23]:
That is hilarious man. That is hilarious. That could have been more...
Malcolm Hill [4:30]:
Yeah, we didn't know that.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [4:32]:
I didn't know that. I had been selling my birthday before. So yeah, that's funny. Yeah. That's my birthday.
Malcolm Hill [4:41]:
Very cool. Very cool. Okay, so you know, you're 9, 10 years old. You've had some time living like, did you live any time in Holland or how young were you when you went to Ibiza?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [4:53]:
I was about five. So I do remember some things but of course I was just a boy, you know, I didn't remember everything. But I do remember obviously specific things that I did learn from Dutch culture, being a kid, you know, and Dutch culture is pretty strong, I would say. And to any Dutch listeners, maybe who are out there, they pretty much agree with me and they know that, you know, it's a nice culture and people are nice to each other. But it's strict, you know, it's very, two steps and that's the way to do it. And you don't, you know, start to make other ways.
Malcolm Hill [5:30]:
Can you give me an example of something that would be out of character, in Dutch culture?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [5:37]:
Well, in my opinion, you know, something that for moving back from Costa Rica to Europe, and you know, more in later to, I definitely got the feeling for example, when I got to Holland, I wanted, for example, I saw a mother walking with his child, and I believe the child is looking like nice, and is very nice looking. And, I just wanted to say hi, you know, be nice, and people will look strange to you, they'll start to look at you with a different look. And they'll think you're some kind of weirdo or something in that way. Where a more in Latin culture where you meet, and you see a mother walking with a baby and you just go oh, what a nice baby and you get up to her, she'll probably be thankful or nice, or she'll like the comment. And she'd be like, hey, say hi to the baby or something like that. That is a pretty big shock of difference. You know that? Yeah, that you get I know, it's a very specific point but still, you see that difference very big in those two cultures, for sure.
Malcolm Hill [6:41]:
It's huge. Just yesterday, I was chatting to another guest on the show who said the exact same thing and yeah, they certainly feel that here all the time that people love kids. Just…
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [6:56]:
That's true. There’s just more of a warmth, you know, in the culture, and more of a warmth in the basics of it, I would say, you know.
Malcolm Hill [7:07]:
For sure. So let's take it back to you move here with dad when you're 10 years old.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [7:12]:
Yeah.
Malcolm Hill [7:13]:
And whereabouts in Costa Rica did you guys end up?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [7:18]:
Alright. So when we got here, the first thing that my father wanted to do for me was he wanted to take me surfing. So it was crazy, because I've never surfed. I mean, I love the water. But I've you know, and I did skate when I was a kid. But it's never like, you know, I got close to the water. And then the first thing we did, the first week we got to Costa Rica first two days, I remember just having terrible jet lag in a hotel in San Jose, looking at my father being like, Dad, where did you take me, what is this place? You know, the center of San Jose, which is a pretty big cultural shock between seeing cities from Europe to seeing a city of like San Jose. So I was scared. I was like, dad, where did you take me? What is this place? But I was just ready for the adventure though. And he took me on the third day down to Xaco. He took me to Xaco in the central part of Costa Rica. And he just threw me into the water. I just don't have any other explanation. He took me down to the beach, he rented a board out from some people that were having a surf school on the beach, you know, typical tent. And he didn't even know how to surf. I didn't know how to surf. But all he just knew he didn't have to throw me on the wave. And that's how it started. And that's the beginning of me in Costa Rica you know, that's definitely a big part of it. Because like I said, it was funny because neither of us knew what the heck we were doing, but he just gave it all and that's how it started. Yeah, then from there, we moved to Iberia to Guanacaste. But we moved to Iberia because of a work situation of my father, because it was positive and good for him to be driving back and forth from the Iberia. And yeah, that was definitely a big shock right there to Iberia. I liked it a lot. But you know, at the beginning, I did feel a little bit excluded as a European, you know, I did feel that people were opening and nice to me and everything. But at the same time there was just so many differences, you know, just so many things that were different between me and their way of growing up, for example.
Malcolm Hill [9:38]:
So as a kid then, what happened with schooling? Did you start attending a local school or a private school or an international school?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [9:50]:
All right, so when I left Spain, I just finished fifth grade of school. So fifth grade, barely and I got here late, but when I got here, we were looking around all the schools and different things. And we found a school here near the area, and a private school. And that definitely helped me out. Because once I got into there, I got to meet some friends that are still my friends to this day, you know, that's something I'll never take back from that. But at the same time, it was quite a shock. Like, to be honest, like, it was like, wow, you know, coming from, you know, public school in Spain, where, you know, everything's just organized. And it's just the school, like, I guess most of us just know, to getting to a private school, which was nice on its level of education, but still was private school, you know? So no infrastructure, no, you know, buses coming to pick people up or you know, like big classes or stuff like that. And when I got here, the good thing was that the level of schooling that I had a year of was a bit higher than the level that they were at when I got here. So they just move me straight into the first grade of high school. So seventh grade, is how you call it here. And yeah, and that’s where I stayed. I did all of my high school.
Malcolm Hill [11:23]:
So integrating into like school here, how was your Spanish when you arrived?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [11:32]:
It was good. My Spanish was just almost perfect I would say you know? Like I've said, I've always spoken Spanish but after being in Argentina for quite a while, I started to really just speak Spanish naturally. And you know, just came out of me as English or as is Dutch, I would say you know.
Malcolm Hill [11:52]:
That's so cool. So yeah, so let's talk about the years like I guess the years from say 10 years old to 1516, which I know it is like a cool chapter.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [12:05]:
It is.
Malcolm Hill [12:08]:
How did day to day life look when you and your dad had moved here into this part of Costa Rica up in the north of Guanacaste?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [12:16]:
Well, firstly, when I got here, we were in Iberia like I was saying, and Iberia day to day life was just a cool routine, I would say, you know. Like the big difference for me was that in that routine of school, and you know, and different things, or my dad's work, for example, we always did fine to have some time for us. It was never, like, we just have so much things to do that we cannot, like afford to have some time for us. Even when I was in high school doing things, you know, I've always remember that my dad would take me to surf or to do things, which is, you know, have fun between us two. Because, I think that's a liberty that we can have here in Costa Rica much more than in other places, you know. There's more respect for your time, I would say sometimes, yeah. And in that period of when I'm got here to around 15, 16 I just have a lot of really good friendships. And I developed in my opinion, a lot of character from surfing too. From being out there, and you know, seeing the typical surf culture, as you could say, and that whole process, I love it, to be honest, you know. At the same time, I missed some stuff from Europe that was just comfortable. And, you know, like, comfortable foods, and you know, comfort foods, I'm sorry, that you call it and those sort of things. But eventually, just every year, I got more accustomed to the typical way of living if you call it like that, you know, because I definitely liked it. My dad and I loved it. And we definitely wanted to stay here and see what we could keep on doing because when we got here, it was more of a project. It was more of a let's see what we're gonna do. Let's see if we're gonna like this. And and we ended up loving it. And here I am to this day for sure. Yeah, no, it was quite some big steps. Doing high school here in Costa Rica I would say is nice. It has some benefits to it. And at the same time, it has some like faults, you know, that you could say, for sure.
Malcolm Hill [14:40]:
Can you go into the like yeah, one of the best things about doing your education here.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [14:47]:
I would say that the best part is that you are very in touch with what you're studying. At least in my school I was really, you know, for example, where we study biology, we really have the chances to take tours out and go do snorkeling tours where we'd see the marine life, you know, and we'd see the things up close, you know, and that was really cool, for example. But at the same time, for example, the level and some in some points, for example, in English or in some other courses or mathematics, were a bit lower, you know, so you definitely feel the difference if you had to move, for example, to another university, outside of the country, or higher University here in Costa Rica for itself. You definitely have to put some hours of study again, you know, more than just your normal schooling. Because yeah, some of the levels were lower, but like I said, it was, you know, both and both. You could definitely be up close with it, but at the same time, some levels of it, which is a little bit lower.
Malcolm Hill [15:55]:
And then culturally, well, you're a teenager, I imagine you went back to Europe a few times.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [16:01]:
Yeah.
Malcolm Hill [16:01]:
And visited family and whatnot.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [16:04]:
It’s crazy.
Malcolm Hill [16:05]:
When you got back to Europe, and you were visiting family, and then yeah, well, what were the big things that you thought, wow, this is really different to Costa Rica in this way.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [16:19]:
All right. So first of all, and I'm sure you'll agree on me with this one, the roads. The roads are definitely a big different thing, you know, for there and here.
Malcolm Hill [16:32]:
Absolutely.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [16:33]:
Yeah. But then at the same time, the level of how easy or difficult it is to, for example, bring up a project or bring up an idea or something that you'd like to do. I believe here in Costa Rica, you do have some more advantages, you know? Because I do believe that here, it's very much more open to some new ideas, you know, it's very virgin, if you call it like that you know, the whole area. And in Europe, the big difference that I always felt when I got there was that I felt that everything had been done already. You know, what I mean? Like, I always had that feeling inside me thinking, you know, like, oh, what would I like to do? Or what projects would I like to embark on? And I always felt that being in Europe, you know, I know, there's lots of opportunities and lots of things to do. But at the same time, I felt like, you know, it wasn't going to be something unique. And I feel that you can definitely create unique things here. And, yeah.
Malcolm Hill [17:43]:
I absolutely know what you mean mate. And, I think that sometimes here in Costa Rica, people overlook the commercial needs. Like there's a lot of things that already exist in places like the US and Europe, like a lot of customer service norms, for example, which perhaps aren't as integrated into the culture here yet. And in a way, yeah, anybody with expertise in almost any field is probably going to find ways to collaborate and use that expertise within like, the national economy here in Costa Rica. Because, there's opportunities, which is great.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [18:29]:
For sure. Then another big difference I would say for sure, is public transportation. For example, you know, being used to being able to you know, grab a bus and just say, Hey, I got to go here and I just got to go grab the bus or the we're in for example, in Holland, it's very normal that you have the trams like you saying that you know, which are the trains that go all around the city not like a metro under on the ground but like up and like those commodities that for me, you miss them a little bit. But at the same time, you know, with all the things that you do have here, I think it's all worth it for sure.
Malcolm Hill [19:12]:
Yeah.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [19:13]:
You know, even in those years when I was growing up you know, and at the beginning it was a little bit harder to just get accustomed to it and you know, actually like it and be like, oh, like this is where I want to stay you know. Eventually I just got to see and feel more of the Costa Rican culture and I guess I just ended up falling in love with it, literally.
Malcolm Hill [19:37]:
Man, I totally understand because I feel the same way. So let's talk about as time moved forward, I know yeah, I mean life went through a really rough time.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [19:52]:
Life went through a big breaking point when I turned 16. I remember it's pretty crazy because I turned 16, October came in 2016. And this has to do with my father, of course. My father left the country for about two months, I stayed here alone, pretty much, which was pretty big. First time alone, you know.
Malcolm Hill [20:21]:
For a 16 year old, for sure.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [20:23]:
For a 16 year old in my house and everything. And he left with the car even so imagine. And at that point it was pretty crazy like I was saying, because I felt that point of a little bit of independence. And then my dad came back to be with me. And we spent about two weeks together, doing lots of fun things. Because I had vacation, I was having a sabbatical year 2016, because I finished high school when I was 15 years old. So my dad gave me a year to try surfing, for example, or a couple other things. And in that period, I remember specifically, because the last day that we were together, we went on a surf contest in legitimate endo [Unsure word 21:14]. And it was fun, because I ended up third or second, I don't really remember anymore. But my dad was super proud of me, he was happy. And I was super happy too. And it was just one of those moments that you know, you really end up remembering, I guess. And he brought me back to my girlfriend's house at the time. And I stayed there with her for one night and that was it. That was all of it. And my dad, unfortunately passed away from heart attack, which was just really rough, just terrible. And it just change the perspective of life in instants. And I'm sure that anybody who's out there listening, who's had something similar happened to them, they can probably relate to what I mean, when I say that your life changes in split seconds, you know. Like you definitely don't feel it until you know, it's happened. And then it's like, Okay, so, you know, a big circle of happenings. And just, you know, a big part of your life, if you call it like that just fades away. And the tough part is that you have to try to find a way to fill that hole back in. And that is tough, that is very, very tough. Especially for me in that time, it was just me and my dad, you know, and he was my brother, he was my father, first and foremost. But, he also take care of me as his friend too you know, we had a good connection together, always since I was a kid. And he definitely left me a big, big legacy of knowledge for sure. And I’ll always be thankful for that. Because if it wasn't for all the knowledge that I've gained for him, I wouldn't have been able to stay independent. Because after that, of course, I decided to move back to Europe for a little bit and just started working, you know, to earn some money. But my goal was always just to come back here. That was my goal, while I was there to just be able to get myself into a position where I wouldn't be extremely comfortable, but I'll be able to have my own living situation and my own house and everything, which is been great and it's worked out. First and foremost, because we put a lot of energy and strength into it. But also because you know a lot of things in Costa Rica do workout if you put some love into it, I would say yeah.
Malcolm Hill [23:51]:
If you don't mind me asking…
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [23:54]:
No, no.
Malcolm Hill [23:56]:
Was there any pre warning with dad's passing?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [24:00]:
No, nothing. Nothing. It was just out of the blue. I mean, my dad had had some problems with anemia. I forget how he called it in the moment right now, but it's that you have a deficiency in iron in your blood. You have an iron deficiency.
Malcolm Hill [24:24]:
Anemia.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [24:25]:
Anemia. There you go. Yeah, my dad did have anemia for a year. But we did a lot of things. He did a lot of medicines and things that worked out and helped him out. But to this day, not even in getting really personal not even in the autopsies or anything. There's any sign of any reason, real reason why that could have happened. Doctors tell me my dad did have the terrible vice of smoking cigarettes. So don't smoke cigarettes, please. So, it’s terrible for you on the long run on the short run on everyone. So don't smoke cigarettes. And yeah, that was tough. That's exactly one of the reasons why it became such a tough situation too because we didn't have anything planned, I had no idea what was going to happen.
Malcolm Hill [25:22]:
So who, immediately…
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [25:28]:
Came over?
Malcolm Hill [25:29]:
Yeah, I mean, who immediately kind of took? I know you're a 16. And you're somewhat independent by that stage. But there must have been kind of an adult who.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [25:38]:
Of course. Well, I mean, first of all, before getting there it was tough because I was at my girlfriend's house. And, my father and I always had a thing where if he told me, he'd be there at 6:30, he'd be there at 6:30, you know, to pick me up. Or if he told me to be there at eight, he be there, you know, like, no questions asked.
Malcolm Hill [26:00]:
He’s punctual.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [26:03]:
No questions asked, no, nothing, he's just gonna be there. And that morning, he wasn't there. So that's why I really got into that feeling of Wow, okay, this is weird. This is not something normal, I would say. And I started to call, call, call, nobody answered, nobody answered. And eventually, I got the mother of my ex-girlfriend to bring me to my house in their car. So as we were pulling up, a very good friend of my father he’s Ryan Sawaki, a Venezuelan guy that lives in Iberia with his family, very, very nice guy owns a restaurant over there. He was there waiting for me. Because I guess he just didn't know what to say. And he just was waiting for me to get there. And I got there eventually. And, he was there to help me out through the first two stages, I would say. But the most difficult parts I definitely had to do alone. Because I mean, those sorts of situations where I didn't want anybody else that wasn't, you know, just directly connected to me and my father in there, you know, in my house in that moment. You know, it was tough. You know, and like I said, before, people who've maybe had this experience will know that, you know, it's also crazy how a lot of people out of the blue start to contact you, call you, try to come and say hi, and so, I understand people just mean their best by being nice to you. But at the same time, you have to understand that when someone is in such a tough situation, you can't just over bomb them with, you know, you trying to tell them oh, I'm so sorry and blah, blah, and, you know, because at that time, you just don't really want to hear anything. And that was part of that moment. And I won't forget it, I wouldn't change it either. Because that definitely made me stronger first thing I would say for sure, for sure, for sure.
Malcolm Hill [28:08]:
How wonderful but you had the years you did with your dad, and then he taught you what he did. And now you've got that, you know, to guide you for the rest of your honor.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [28:21]:
Thank you, man. Thank you. It’s something that I feel proud of with my dad for sure.
Malcolm Hill [28:29]:
I know, life then took you back to Europe, as you said.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [28:33]:
Yeah.
Malcolm Hill [28:34]:
And I guess from my understanding, you went back to Europe and now you're back here in Costa Rica. And there's obviously a journey between there. And I am curious as to what was it that really drew you back here. You're a guy with your trilingual or how many languages do you speak?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [28:56]:
I speak Catalan too, get the Catalan but that's yeah.
Malcolm Hill [29:03]:
That's another one.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [29:06]:
I did learn that from school in Spain. In Ibiza, you have to learn that in school, they teach you math, and everything in Catalan, right. They don't teach you in Spanish. It's Catalan.
Malcolm Hill [29:21]:
So, I look at you as like a, you know, an extremely independent 20 year old guy who, you know, you look after your own staff, and you've achieved all those things that you said you wanted, you know. And I sometimes think though, a guy with your range of skills and range of talents with the languages and then, you know, you've got different business projects here in Costa Rica. I mean, your value in the marketplace in Europe could be perhaps much higher than it is here in Costa Rica.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [29:55]:
I understand. Yeah.
Malcolm Hill [29:57:
And yeah, I mean, I'm sure yeah you understand it. So, what is it about here that makes you go?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [30:05]:
Well, first of all, like I was saying before, in that process where my father passed away, and I moved back to Europe to get my things straight, I got back to Europe, I got to feel a bit of what my future could be like. And with that, I mean, the Dutch way. So the Dutch way is, in this was literally planned for me. And I am not saying this out of the blue, this was literally planned for me. I was supposed to go back to Europe, get a student loan from the bank, which is around 60,000 euros, and with those 60,000 euros, pay an apartment, get into a Dutch University, do a Dutch title, get a nice work job, and then maybe retire and come back to Costa Rica. That was told to me by my family, by my grandparents, by my uncle, that that was probably the best way to do it. But they're talking about 30 or 40 years into the future. And I just am not like that. I just can't see my life, so far ahead of me. And just knowing you know that that might just not make me not happy, but content, you know, fulfilled because that's one of the things that I'll go back to why I came here. Because, as I was there and just working, and it was going whoa, I mean, I start working in Ibiza in a hotel, I started as a bellboy and in less than a year I was already like in the sales management team. So it went pretty well it went quickly. And, I just didn't have the same warmth and the same feeling of growing up that I had here, you know, because I knew that I wouldn't have the same easy work opportunities or the same market value that I had in Europe. But I definitely did feel that I have a big thing to pour and bring it to Costa Rica, you know. And I don't know, man. It’s kind of not something you can really put too much into words, but you can put it more into you wake up at 5am with a good cup of coffee. You're looking outside, you hear the monkeys go crazy. You see the sunshine coming up. You see your wife, girlfriend, person you love smile, and you just feel trumping.
Malcolm Hill [32:45]:
Yeah, what you feel that you're gonna have a good day. And I mean, you're having a feeling at the beginning of the day that you're gonna have a good day. I mean, usually sets you up for a pretty good one.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [33:02]:
So yeah, I definitely say that one of the main reasons why I decided to come back here is because I grew up here. I got to love what I have here. And I wouldn't change it for anything in the world. That's simple.
Malcolm Hill [33:18]:
So you transitioned back here to Costa Rica, when?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [33:24]:
2018. I came back when there was similar dates, actually, it was like the 11th of October, but to 2018. And so it was pretty similar to the time when I came here for the first time with my dad. So that was quite something.
Malcolm Hill [33:45]:
And tell me about that trip, that transition back with obviously a few more years of experience and the about living in work in Europe.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [33:55]:
Well, first of all I would say that when I got here, I felt that some doors were definitely more open for me, since I did have a bit more of experience, especially in that moment where this whole situation with COVID-19 wasn't really going on. So I mean, hotels were interested, other businesses were interested, and I felt that doors were more open because obviously I had been more of a rescue male Swami. But besides that, it's just I forgot to tell you this one part. When I came back, I decided to bring my mother and my sister with me. So they came to live with me and I rented out a house here in the similar area where I live in a spa.
Malcolm Hill [34:38]:
This is in 2018 or?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [34:41]:
This was in 2018. Yeah. I bring my mother and my sister with me. And they loved it for the first two months, I would say but it wasn't for them. I would say you know like, especially for my sister. She could have grown up here, everything would have been the same. But for my mother it wasn't definitely the place. You know, someone who's being used to having the life you have in somewhere as Amsterdam or you know different places of Europe. It was definitely a big shock to her coming in here and, you know, doing everything all over again, you know. Like trying to do a whole new life, which something that I'm really accustomed to that you know, I've done my whole life. But she had never done that all the time. So for her, it was something that lasted two months, or three months and they went back to Europe. And I stayed here, because I was gonna stay here. Yes. That was the plan.
Malcolm Hill [35:42]:
That’s so cool. Right. That's so cool. So I want to talk a little bit about your social structure as a 20 year old living in Costa Rica. Your girlfriend's great, me and my wife would love seeing you guys. And you guys have a yeah, I mean, what is a social life look like for a 20 year old?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [36:10]:
Well, of course. I mean the social life I would say here in general is just really fun once you get to meet a couple friends, and you get to see a bit of, you know, what the plans are around here, what you can do with your friends. And it's just really fun, you know in my opinion. You know, like I said, I mean, I grew up hear a bit so I do have some friends from childhood and everything. And it's always fun that, you know, every weekend, it's just the plan, or every week, one day, at least, it's just like, hey, let's go do this, you know, and we make a cool plan. And you get out there and go surfing, or you go to a waterfall, or you just go out and explore nature, which Costa Rica is just too much to offer, you know. Or, even just you know for example one of my favorite things to do with my friends here is like to go out fishing, for example a bit. And then the same day, the afternoon, come back and just make sushi, for example, or make a big barbecue with you know, and like just fresh and tasty. And I think those things are very unique from here, you know, like, those things are really just a part of here. And I would say the social structure too is just very diverse, you know? Especially here, there's a lot of people from different places of the world, not just from Costa Rica, not just from the States, you know, there's a lot of people that have been driven into Costa Rica by either their work or by passion. And I believe it's fun, you know. For a 20 year old, there's just a lot to do if you go out there and do it, right. Because, you know, you just can't be sitting in your house waiting for people to call you or for things to happen, you actually have to go out there and go explore for yourself. And you'll find everything, in my opinion.
Malcolm Hill [38:05]:
It's really cool. One thing I've noticed here that is perhaps a little different to when I was 20 years old, living on the Gold Coast in Australia, back then it was all about, you know, on the weekend, you were gonna drink as much as you could on Friday night and Saturday night just hit it hard, you know all night and you feel horrible on Sunday and try scrape it together by Monday. And one thing I notice here is, and obviously I'm in a bit of 30 now is a different generation. But even like your generation, you guys are all about making the most out of the day, you know, of getting out during the day. And, that's something I really realize here is a lot of the socializing is done during the day. Because everybody wants to sleep at night and have it.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [39:05]:
Also, I think something very important for viewers to understand too, is that Costa Rica, it becomes nighttime at 6:30, 7pm. It's like complete dark night and it's daylight at pretty much 5am you know, so it's just a different structure of day, in my opinion, you know? The day starts early here, you know, it really starts early. And also it gets really hot out here, you know.
Malcolm Hill [39:30]:
Like early.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [39:32]:
It gets hot out here. So like go through your stuff, you know, enjoy your day, and then just try to get yourself into a pool or into the ocean or you know, like that's part of the routine I would say here, you know, for most of the people that are around here in Guanacaste. If we move to the center of the country, of course it's a bit colder, and it's more of a city, but still it's an early day, you know culture. Like people wake up here at 5am, 4:30 like, you know, people do have a big drinking culture here, especially with the whole cowboy scene if you'd like to call it that here. Because there's a big like, cowboy scene but they called soraneros here, right? Soraneros.
Malcolm Hill [40:15]:
It’s so not what you're expecting when you come here. You see all these guys like Cowboys, and you're just like…
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [40:23]:
Riding horses like doing the steps, you know, like they have this special thing with the steps. Yeah, it's crazy to see that like, first.
Malcolm Hill [40:35]:
That's so good. I'll put a video of some dancing Guanacaste holes in the show notes to this episode. So people can see what we're talking about.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [440:44]:
That'd be fun.
Malcolm Hill [40:46]:
That'd be so good.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [40:47]:
Yeah.
Malcolm Hill [40:48]:
I think this might be a strange thing to bring up. But I think that where you live, you're very close to the beach. And give people an example. Like within walking distance, what are all the services you can get access to within a 10 minute walk?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [41:06]:
To go to the beach? For example, first of all, I have my coffee place my favorite coffee place Java, Java coffee, very good place right down there. On the way to the beach, less than five minutes away. I have the supermarket right next to it, which is very grateful for you know, smaller things. It's a small supermarket, but anything you need for the house. I mean, for your phone, you know, normal things that you need to have, are just right there. You know, and on the way. And besides that I mean, you do have a great selection of restaurants. It's just that at the moment, of course, we're being a bit on lockdown, and so forth. But you do have a big selection of restaurants, and…
Malcolm Hill [41:53]:
And high quality restaurants too.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [41:57]:
Yeah, and high quality restaurants too. Yeah, for sure. Not just an eating out sort of place just more of a sit down and actually have dinner place for sure. And once you get on the beach, I'd say, you know, like the takeaway of things is, you know, you always see also people selling things on the beach, but not so much as clothes and those sort of things, but more like refreshments. And like ice creams, but typical Costa Rican ice creams that are called Coposts that are crazy in sugar, but are really nice and tasty. And the coconuts you know, like all these sort of things that you do expect to get on a country like this, you do see on the beach, you know. But for me being so close to the beach, I do have a lot of amenities that I can get to just by, you know, walking 10 minutes, you know, like.
Malcolm Hill [42:49]:
It's amazing, bro, I look at where your apartment is here. And we live in this town, Playa Del Coco. And it's not, don't take this the wrong way. But it's not a unique apartment. There's a lot of apartments like that in Iberia. However, the closeness that they have to all of this stuff is so cool. And I think when I was 20, if I could live that close to the beach and not have to drive anywhere to kind of do all of these things I have to do each day, it would be so awesome. And the area you live really ticks that box you know.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [43:22]:
Ticks that box. Yeah, for sure. Yeah, no. I mean, you can really surf here in Playas Del Coco around here, you can surf here couple times a year if you get lucky. But the one thing that we do have is that we have all the tours for Witch's rock and the most premium surf spots of the north side of Costa Rica literally on our you know, front yard, you know. You go to the beach, you plan it out with a good Captain or a good buddy and you got yourself a nice tour out there you know? Which is something that for most people I have seen is something that takes weeks of planning and you know, like it's just something where we're like, hey, let's go this Friday to Witch's rock or to this other spot, you know, and just enjoy yourselves. You know, I don't see that happening in many other places, you know, because at the same time, you know, I could have moved to more surf towns; Santa Teresa, Xaco, Tamarindo, you know that are around here. But in my opinion, they don't have the same connections as a place in general. And just the beach in the style of being here is just I love it.
Malcolm Hill [44:38]:
It's pretty chill. And I think that there's, like you say we're very close to surfing right? Like surf breaks like which is rocking all this point. And it's so epic when we do get to just plan a quick day to get out there as friends and we can surf very high quality waves with very few people and sometimes on our own. Even if you're only getting one experience like that every two weeks or once a week, for example, sometimes that can be better than surfing at normal beach, right that you live next to, you know, four or five days a week. Where because of the crowd.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [45:18]:
Yeah, we have 80 people in the water. Exactly. Yeah, that's definitely a big thing. Because for sure you have maybe a three hour session in somewhere like playground day, you'll catch 12 waves or something, you know, you have a couple good waves, but you'll be tired and happy. But it won't be the same as going out to witches and surfing an hour, you know, straight you with the all perfect waves. For sure. For sure. Yeah, so we have it good over here. If you get your things together, and you get your your priorities and a good budget I would say, you can definitely, and not just a big budget, I would say just an organized budget, you can definitely get yourself a comfortable life here. You can definitely put yourself in a position where you'll be comfortable, and you know, nothing's really going to miss, you know. It's not like, you know. There's fruit trees all over also, you know, if you like fruit, like you just go find it.
Malcolm Hill [46:23]:
This is your opinion about like, would you say that the Costa Rican culture is less concerned about money and is more concerned about quality of life?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [46:40]:
I believe that that question for a tico is hard to understand. Because they mix those two things together, you know? They mix their quality of life with the way that they have to do things. So they'll never sacrifice their quality of life, in many instances, for their job for example. So they'll work, they will do their work, and so forth. If they get a good incentive to do it they'll be wonderful, but they won't really sacrifice their life quality, just for, you know.
Malcolm Hill [47:15]:
For a job.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [47:17]:
And just having a couple extra bucks or to be able to buy a new car, you know.
Malcolm Hill [47:20]:
In a lot of ways. I respect that so much. And that's one thing here in the culture that I feel as though I've been able to pick up a little more and obviously, you know, we're all at different stages of our perspectives. But for me realizing that like, if you hang around people all day long, whose main priority is trying to have the best day they can and just be happy and have a good time. Yeah, it rubs off on you. And you realize, like, you don't really need a whole lot of money to be doing things to be really like, getting to enjoy this place. You know, there's things yeah, sure, same way.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [48:09]:
But sure I mean, yeah. Tell me.
Malcolm Hill [48:11:
No, I was gonna say, is there anything you know, a few foreigners who have moved here, I'm guessing.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [48:19]:
I do know a couple foreigners that have moved here. And in general, I would say their main reason to move down here is usually just looking for peace. They're just looking for peace of mind. A lot of people might have had very stressful businesses in their home countries. They might have had successful businesses, but that is just going too much on their backs and they just can't handle the same situations. So I know a lot of people that end up moving down here, just get themselves to a nice comfortable house without you know, anything special. Just to be able to get into a rhythm of being peaceful. Because it’s true. You do get into a rhythm where you don't feel that knot in your stomach all day long. Because you know, you have deadlines, you know, you have this you know, you have whatever else and you have to get done. You know, and I've seen that in a lot of people here for sure. In Canadian people that I've met here and people from the United States and people from a lot of places for sure. From Spain from you know this, you'll find multicultural people here for sure in Costa Rica. Yeah.
Malcolm Hill [49:41]:
So this is a very strange analogy about surfing but I'll see if I can have it make sense but.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [49:47]:
Tell me tell me.
Malcolm Hill [49:50]:
When you're coaching surfing and I'm obviously a surf coach, that's my main profession.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [49:55]:
Yeah.
Malcolm Hill [49:56]:
When you helping people understand how to surf a wave, every wave comes in at a different speed. And the goal is not to go as fast as possible on the wave, the goal is to surf the wave at the speed that the wave is breaking. So that you can be in sync with that wave and make your maneuvers that look is smooth and fitting as possible with that wave. And I feel as though with the Costa Rican culture, as well as any other culture, if you want to enjoy the benefits of that culture, you kind of need to go the speed that culture is happy to go at to get the most out of it.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [50:40]:
Of course, I feel that that analogy makes complete sense, especially in the day to day lifestyle, for sure. Like in the day to day lifestyle, you need to move on the rhythm that the waves are breaking in Costa Rica. You can't be running and going somewhere like it has to be like that. But at the same time, I believe that if you do have the expertise, and you do have the knowledge enough to, for example, get some things done quicker in the sense of maybe a project that you're getting on to, or you know, some bureaucratic stuff that you have to get done, I do believe that if you do have the expertise, and you know how to handle the situations a little bit quicker, that you put your effort in it. because that's what the other side of it, you know, there is that definitely peaceful side of it, but you need to be able, if you're coming into here looking maybe for a future investment or some future, you know, job, you definitely have to, you know, put your strength into, you know, holding on to the bureaucracy. Because it can be a little bit overwhelming if you are not willing, like you said, to move on the speed that things move here. You know, I think that's a very important part for people to know. So they know that, you know, we're telling them how it is for real.
Malcolm Hill [52:05]:
Absolutely broad. So a question for you. The next 5, 10 years what do you see for yourself? Is it here in Costa Rica?
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [52:13]:
Well, I see myself in the next five years, being stationed here Costa Rica, Costa Rica headquarters, for sure. Like be able to stay here with my current girlfriend and, you know, get our things together and piece everything so that, you know, I can slowly start forming what I want, which is a family. And besides that, I just like to give myself a bit of travel, you know. When I get enough funds down, I'd love to go out and meet Bali or meet a couple other places that I haven't been out there yet. But definitely would like to keep on working hard on my real estate projects here in Costa Rica, so that I can form a solid foundation for the years to come for sure.
Malcolm Hill [53:07]:
Unreal, unreal. So we are about to wrap up. But I would love you to let our listeners know where they can find you online if they want to connect with you.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [53:17]:
For sure. Yeah, for sure. You can write me on my personal email, which is Jonathan Spruit Ra gmail.com, which Spruit it's spelled S-P-R-U-I-T. And you can just find me on my Instagram too if you'd like to contact me in there. It's Jonathannvds, which is N-V-D-S. Just for my last name Van Der Spruit. If you'd like to look me on there too, I’d be more than grateful to answer any questions, or whatever.
Malcolm Hill [53:50]:
Bro, it's been such a pleasure getting some more detail on your story today and putting more of the pieces together. And I think they're connecting the dots. It's really extraordinary the amount of life you've lived in 20 years.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [54:08]:
Oh, thank you. It's been quite a journey. It's been a tough one. It's been one where I could have given up various times in different situations. But I decided that the future I want for myself in this country is bigger than any pain or than any sorrow that might hold you down. For sure.
Malcolm Hill [54:37]:
That's really, really good. Well, yeah, my thanks again. And this has been the Move to Costa Rica podcast guys.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [54:46]:
Perfect.
Malcolm Hill [54:48]:
All the information about Jonathan is going to be in the show notes on our website so you can access more information there. And until next time.
Jonathan Nils Van der Spruit [55:00]:
Until next time, por la Vida. Big hugs and lots of love to all you guys from Costa Rica.
Anisa Hill [55:09]:
Here's a sneak peek of the next episode. In Episode seven we sit down with Angela Pozuelo. A 26 year old woman, Oklahoma, USA. Hear about Angela's upbringing in a military family, her experience giving birth in a Costa Rican public hospital, and access to fresh versus processed food.
Angela Pozuelo [55:28]:
For me personally, being on the backside of a military experience, a military family and suffering through my brothers being gone, seeing what it's done to my family. I would choose for my children to grow up in a place where that's not an option.
Anisa Hill [55:49]:
If you enjoyed this conversation, please rate, review, and share it with your friends on social media. For a full list of show notes, episodes to your inbox, information on becoming a guest on the show, and how to support the show on Patreon, head to triple W dot move to Costa Rica podcast.com. Remember new episodes are released every Thursday by 6am Costa Rica time. Thanks so much for joining us. Until next time, Pura vida.
