For the past couple of weeks, The Daily has been full of Halloween. We’ve shared stories about the Halloween Party in Town, the Trick or Trail run, the costumes, and everything in between, but there is still one story left to tell, and with it we close the chapter on this season.
As the date approached, La Estancia was busy planning a special activity for guests and Las Catalinas Doorway members. Since October 31 is also Costa Rica’s Día Nacional de la Mascarada Tradicional Costarricense, the Athletics and Activities team created “Spooky Jícaras,” an edition of Artful Escape that brought the country’s local roots and culture together with this international celebration.
The mascarada itself has been part of Costa Rican celebrations for generations, with its oversized masks, characters like la giganta and el diablo, and the music of the cimarrona leading the way. The country set aside October 31 to honor it by executive decree in 1996, and in 2022 the mascarada was declared a national symbol.
Jícaras, on the other hand, are the fruit of the jícaro tree (Crescentia alata), which grows in the dry forests of the Pacific slope, from Mexico down to Guanacaste. Long before YETIs and Tupperware were a thing, the jícara was the perfect plate, bowl, and container for food and liquids. Once picked, the fruit was opened, its pulp and seeds were scooped out, and the shell was left to dry until it became hard and durable, ready to be put to good use in countless ways. People also used them to scoop water from wells and rivers, to pour it over clothes while washing them by hand, and to serve traditional drinks such as cacao and chicha. A sustainable bucket and reusable cup, you might say.
But jícaras were never only practical. Artisans also carved them using a technique called esgrafiado, etching everything from geometric patterns to animals into the hardened shell. Jícaro carving is considered a living craft of pre-Columbian origin, and in Costa Rica, Indigenous peoples such as the Maleku, Brunca, Bribri, and Cabécar, along with artisans in Guanacaste, where Chorotega heritage runs deep, have passed it down from generation to generation.
The Athletics and Activities Team was brilliant at connecting all these dots, creating an experience that embraced the history and traditions of Costa Rica while making room for a celebration that feels current and brings plenty of fun to the table. Kids painted their jícaras and created and customized their own masks, while some of the parents joined the team to make tortillas palmeadas, the hand-patted corn tortillas that are a staple of Costa Rican kitchens.
Once their art was done, the kids joined the tortilla-making too.
All in all, it was another successful week at La Estancia, and with this small story, the chapter on Halloween is officially closed. We’re already looking forward to next year’s edition. For now, our eyes are on the holidays ahead: good food at Thanksgiving, time together, and the December breezes that already feel close.
If you’d like to take part in activities like these, Las Catalinas Doorway guests, and owners whose homes are part of the Doorway rental program, can join the daily activities on offer. And if you don’t tick either of these boxes, you can still join or request more information by reaching out to the team at activitiesathleticsteam@lascatalinascr.com or on WhatsApp at +506 6300 5120.