Peru 19 - Dance of the Yellow Fever

Nov 20, Playa Hermosa, Costa Rica

We have discovered how to get completely painless yellow fever shots. A couple of days ago, at the Taca airlines counter in Lima, Peru, we have checked in our luggage for Costa Rica and the ticket counter girl is wavering our boarding passes in front of our eyes, but asks for our yellow fever shot certificates before she will hand them over. Annie and I are speechless. We don't have them, since Costa Rica doesn't require them from people travelling from US or Canada. Unless they first stop over in Peru. This last tidbit of info was lacking for us, and suddenly we were “trapped” in Lima. The ticket agent points to the local health office at the end of the terminal – perhaps they could help us? But even if we get a yellow fever shot now, you still cannot leave the country for another 10 days – for it to take effect I presume. I envision another 10 days at Eco Truly Park with a sore shoulder. And in 10 days Annies flight from Costa Rica back to the USA leaves.
We leave the secure area of checkin and wander into the airport Health Office. The lady says we can get our shots dated today, but each airline has the right to refuse boarding if we don't have the correct health documents – that is, yellow fever dated at least 10 days ago. Hmm, perhaps we could sneak into Costa Rica on another airline. I head back to check with another airline to see if they require the same health documentation (I am a naive traveller), but before I can get there I am bombarded with the usual “Taxi?” chorus from a billion taxi drivers. I lower my head and charge thru them like a bull let loose in the Madrid streets. But somehow above the taxi cacophony two words penetrate my shields: yellow fever. Huh? I turn around and a well dressed stranger with ID around his neck is asking me about yellow fever documents. How did he know about my lack of health documents? Turns out the Taca girl has surreptitiously called him on his cell to “bump” into me as I cross the unsecured area of the airport. He tells me he can get me the necessary health certificates for Costa Rica entry in 10 minutes. All I need to do is give him our names, birth dates and passport numbers. Oh, and pay a “fee” for his somewhat unorthodox health services. I smell a scam. I double-check with another airline – yes, you need yellow fever documentation to get to Costa Rica from Peru – its the CR government requirement you ignorant stupid gringo.
So we take the plunge – we give our ID to this man – in about 5 minutes we are holding Peruvian stamped health documents that state we both got yellow fever shots two weeks ago. We hand them over to a new Taca girl – she is young and confused (ie innocent and new at her post) about the already printed boarding passes – something is fishy here, but her co-worker sly tells her its all ok and soon we are jetting to Costa Rica, having danced the Yellow Fever Dance. Not only were these yellow fever shots painless (and much cheaper than US prices), but our new health documents are good for another 10 years. Life is Good!