After just returning from Nicaragua and Guatemala, I learned that the shiny hair was not a male Latin thing. It was clearly a male Costa Rican thing.
Yesterday, I was standing on the bus aisle keeping my balance by holding onto one of the bars attached to the top of the bus seats. Something pricked my fingers. "Ow," I thought. "What is that?" I'll tell you what it was:
Too much hair gel in some guy's hair.
Men here go through a bottle of the hair gel per week; at least, it seems like it must be that way. All of the evidence is there: you can smell the gel from about 50m away (although, that can also be attributed to the cologne baths they take); their hair does not move when strong winds hit it; the hair shine blinds you when a light hits it; and I've watched men apply it, glob after glob, on the bus in the morning on their way to work or school.
"The Tico Ken Doll" look can be overwhelming to the senses, but it is definitely appreciated company after spending most of my days around instructors and students who haven't given themselves a decent shower for weeks. No, thanks. I prefer the prickly, blinding shine.
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