Earning power

Our new friend Luis, a Costa Rican guide who helped us fly across the jungle canopy on zip lines, says he has a great job. He earns $1,000 each month, plus tips.

Our chef for the week, whose skills are amazing and delicious, earns $1200 each month–enough to own a home and send his children to private school.

We’re told government jobs are easier to get, and more stable. Luis’s friends, with similar experience and skills, earn $380 each month working in government jobs on palm plantations.