On Jan. 14, a group of Costa Rican students arrived in Portland and immediately surprised their temporary American hosts by greeting them with kisses and hugs.

To an outside observer, the scene could have looked like a reunion, but it wasn’t. The students had never met their hosts before; they were strangers. It was just their standard greeting. It was a traditional custom, a cultural norm, and one their American hosts had not expected.

It was the first of many surprises for Cape Elizabeth High School Spanish students acting as hosts for the 15 exchange students from Costa Rica.

This custom initially surprised Cape’s Michael Mahoney, who said he was “thrown off” by the unusual display of affection. It didn’t take long for him to realize it was merely a cultural difference, a shade of the same color. “To them it’s an everyday practice,” he said, “It’s like saying hi.”

Costa Rican student Sergio Carranza shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly and said, “We kiss all the time, family and friends.” However, it initially got him in trouble. Carranzo’s host Cape student Blake Kast warned Carranzo that the friendly gestures might not be welcomed. “I made little mistakes when I came, like kissing girls,” said Carranza laughingly.

Costa Rica, a Central American country, lies between Nicaragua and Panama and borders the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean. The visiting students live in Guapiles and Alajuela, located in the Northeastern region of Costa Rica. Cape students will visit this region when they return the exchange in early April.

Mahoney, a senior at Cape High School, considers Americans more reserved in comparison to the Costa Rican students he’s met. Libby Bump, also a senior, agrees. “We tend to not be as open and friendly,” she said.

For Mahoney, the overall attitude and lifestyle seems more casual and relaxed. “There’s not as huge of an emphasis on getting (things) done now,” he said.

This observation has brought him some relief and maybe a bit of a shift in perspective. He’s beginning to adopt the Costa Rican attitude that, “things will get done in time,” he said.

Bump noted that though the Costa Rican kids are more affectionate and seem to smile more, Mainers might have a valid excuse for their less than warming demeanor. “I think it’s because we’re so cold from the weather,” she said. Costa Rican weather hovers between 60 and 80 degrees year-round.

Costa Rican student Kenneth Camacho, Mahoney’s guest, noticed a difference in speed, and agreed that it could be the weather. “They work faster and eat faster,” he said, “maybe it’s because it’s colder.”

The foreign students have acted as magnets since they’ve arrived, pulling together a group of kids who might otherwise not spend time together.

Host parent Malora Gregory said she was delighted when Cape kids she hadn’t seen for years arrived on her doorstep with their exchange student and had a dance party in her home. Her daughter Aschel Gregory said the exchange program has been the common denominator connecting the kids. “A lot of people didn’t really hang out and we’re all realizing everybody’s really nice,” she said.

While the students enjoyed many planned activities like sledding, skiing, bowling and shopping, they also brought a taste of their own culture to their American cohorts by introducing them to salsa dancing. It was another source of surprise for some American students.

The dancing usually happens organically in a home environment, or anywhere there’s a good beat. Bump said it’s primarily the girls who are interested in the dancing. The boys, she said, “are usually too involved in a movie (Spanish with subtitles) or ping-pong.”

Michael Mahoney’s mother Dana Porter watched one night as a salsa lesson erupted in her kitchen. “I have a pretty small kitchen,” she said, but nonetheless 20 students or more were learning the art of salsa.

Bump said dancing is just “part of growing up in Costa Rica.” Like the hugging.

Cape Elizabeth Spanish teacher Mark Pendarvis organized the program. He said one of its primary goals it to introduce diversity into student’s lives. Cape Elizabeth is “a pretty homogeneous community,” he said. This program should urge students toward the realization that though there are identifiable superficial differences, the exchange kids “are still kids, they’re just like them.”

Costa Ricans spread the warmth