I'm a little confused by this. The exchange value for 1 USD to 1 Costa Rican Colon is 1:621. But I'm even more confused why this is a problem for you. It's the purchasing power that is important, and Costa Rica is significantly less expensive that the United States for someone holding US Dollars.
> the people were rude
All 4 million of them? If you've written off an entire country as rude, it might be on you.
To quote thomas jefferson out of context, “uhhh, France?”
Kidding, but more substantially… you’re being a bit pedantic to the poster. When talking about places to possibly live for a while, anecdotes are helpful. And saying, “There people were rude” is a perfectly legit anecdote that clearly isn’t meant to imply the entire population was assessed.
If you change your money, then you'll obviously get a better rate.
When I said "holding US dollars," I didn't mean literally holding US dollars. I meant Costa Rica is generally cheaper than the United States for people whose primary income, or wealth is in US dollars.