Carnival in Costa Rica

Luisa comes back from the United States to Costa Rica and learns her parents have arranged for her to marry Pepe Castro. Pepe has just returned from the States with his girlfriend Celeste, who plans to meet the family. The revelation sets up a clash between duty, tradition, and Luisa's own feelings.

The Castros come to visit for the formal introduction. Pepe arrives wearing dark glasses and fakes a bad cold, while Celeste grows suspicious of the ruse. The staged illness underscores the deception surrounding the engagement.

Jeff Stephens, the American coffee buyer, meets Luisa in the Gran Hotel Estrada area after learning his flight is canceled. He escorts her to the El Sestéo nightclub, and a dangerous attraction begins to bloom between them. The encounter kicks off a forbidden romance that crosses the couple's arranged engagements.

During fiesta-time, Luisa spots Pepe dancing with Celeste, heightening the stakes. In a moment of thrill on a Ferris wheel ride, Luisa and Jeff realize they are falling in love despite the social constraints.

The next morning Jeff serenades Luisa at breakfast and sends her flowers, asking to meet him at his hotel by noon. Luisa rides the emotional wave of their new romance but is wary of Pepe's looming influence. The scene marks the romance becoming a real, conflicting choice.

As Pepe and his parents approach from different directions, Luisa escapes by jumping onto a carnival float where Celeste is performing as the Spirit of the Melon. The escape relocates their drama to the public space of the plaza and the festive crowd. It also deepens Luisa's resolve to pursue her feelings despite looming consequences.

Pepe resumes feigning illness and takes Luisa dancing, while Jeff pretends he doesn't know Luisa to avoid exposing their affair. Celeste discovers that Luisa is Pepe's intended, intensifying the pressure on Pepe to tell his father the truth. The tangled loyalties push the situation toward a confrontation.

Jeff reveals to Luisa's American-born mother that he is from Kansas, sharing his background with the Costa Rican family. Celeste pushes Pepe to tell his father the truth and end the charade before the wedding plans collapse. The revelation raises the stakes as cross-cultural differences and honesty collide.

At the New Year's Eve party, Jeff begins to doubt the viability of a cross-cultural romance due to their different backgrounds. Father Rafael voices caution about Costa Rican courtship traditions and the need for a proper match. The scene crystallizes the cultural tension at the heart of the story.

During the party, Pepe tells Luisa that Jeff is leaving town, and Luisa disappears, leaving both families anxious. The sudden disappearance heightens the sense that something irreversible may be happening between Jeff and Luisa. The holiday celebration becomes a turning point in their choices.

The two fathers rush to the hotel, then to Luisa's home, expecting that Pepe and Luisa have eloped. Instead, Pepe reveals that he has married Celeste, while Jeff and Luisa are indeed in love and may have left together. The adults confront the reality of the couples' choices and their own roles in them.

Mrs. Molina calmly states that she and Luisa's father have given consent for the Kansas-born Jeff to marry the Costa Rican Luisa. The revelation resolves the central tension between family duty and personal desire. The film closes on a cautious, hopeful note that love can prevail with family approval.