[Cancertomnpdx]

Whatever you if you open an account with Banco Nacional is not leave Costa Rica without a ficha (token). I spent two days getting my account setup so when I was asked if I wanted a ficha I thought they were talking about a token for the Madrid streetcars! Dumb Tom! If you leave Costa Rica without a ficha you will not be able to add accounts for bill payment without one outside of Costa Rica. Every time I pay my gardener or put money into my personal account I get hit $30 a pop from my credit union when for about 6,000 and a “yes” to the question, I would have cough up $30 every time I pay my gardener!

Now I must wait until June before I can get my ficha!

Later,
Tom

[Cancertomnpdx]

Dear Scott:

Thank you for sharing your moving story of “pristine awareness” in action. Sometimes the so little we have is able to help someone so very much. It doesn’t take million$ or the wisdom of King David to help, it only takes a willingness to try. The trying is so very important these days, again for sharing it with us!

Tom in Portland

[Cancertomnpdx]

I made a huge mistake last year when I opened my dollar account BCR in Orosi. They asked me if I wanted a “token” and I said unfortunately I didn’t have a clue if I needed one or not. They offered no advice and my Tica teacher friend helping out with this project didn’t have a clue either. If you plant to live in the US for a while after opening your account you need a $6 “token!!!!!!!” Otherwise, from outside Costa Rica you can’t setup accounts to pay online from your personal account. My tutor went to San Jose for Christmas with his wife last December he was able to buy one. I asked him if he could ask the bank manager, since his family knows the manager well, if he could buy me one because of my huge mistake. No dice on that one. Shipping cash to pay bills $30 a pop from my credit union is not something I wanted to do, but it works when you are very tired and spent a day and half getting your account setup.

Tom on a budget in Portland, Oregon

[Cancertomnpdx]

Thanks for the feedback, I appreciate the feedback. I can see how SIPs might be overkill in Costa Rica, just thought I would ask for thoughts on the idea.

Again thanks,
Tom in Portland, Oregon

[Cancertomnpdx]

[quote=”tiffen”]A big concern for me in contemplating a move to Costa Rica is learning to speak Spanish. I have never taken any language courses and although I always try to know the basic words for any country that I visit it doesn’t come easy.

How did this go for you?
What is the best way to learn – classes, tutors, etc?

My second question deals with the first – how do you hire a translator when you need to do something that requires complete understanding of oral and written Spanish? A lawyer is my first guess but are there other options when they are not available?

muchas gracias[/quote]

I am having fun with this website, both of my instructors are excelente! http://www.nulengua.com/ and the price is very reasonable. The two instructors are willing to take the verbs and vocabulary I have already studied and help me use my current knowledge into speaking action. Right now I am stuck in present tense but that is fine. One of the teachers wants to work with me on farming and housebuilding vocabulary and verbs which I think I move into in the next month or so. Personally, I am trying to construct a program where I have a Spanish lesson every day or two in order to keep it active in my mind. Also I like the construct of the program from Visual Link Spanish. The way this program is organized really appeals to my artist’s mind. Sentence construction in the program is the best for the way I think of language and learn a language. You need to figure out this point for yourself. I use Rosetta Stone for mindless drill which is also important. Good luck and you will find it exciting like I did when you can order your tacos from a taco wagon here in Portland Oregon. Soap operas on Spanish tv are mostly boring but one day your will find you understood pretty much of the conversation without translating it into English. It starts with individual words and verbs your recognize, then it grows bit by bit.

[Cancertomnpdx]

Does anyone order bread flour and spices through Amazon.com or any other US company for delivery in Costa Rica?

[Cancertomnpdx]

I was wondering if anyone has brought a Overstock.com generic memory foam in it’s original vacuum-reduced shipping package into Costa Rica in their household goods?

Thanks,
Tom on a budget in Portland, OR

[Cancertomnpdx]

[quote=”arce”]hola todos

anyone had experience with

http://www.renta4x4incostarica.com ?

they look more affordable

thanks[/quote]

I have used renta4x4incostrarica twice on my most recent trip. I have never had a problem with either vehicle. They are a good company. I generally have them deliver the car to a little b&b I stay in Alaujela.
Tom
Portland, Oregon

[Cancertomnpdx]

Scott:

Steve Riley showed us an orange farm in Orosi, on the river edge that was five acres when I was on George’s tour last year in May. It had a nice house, a caretaker who took care of the oranges, along with a house for the man that was employed. I understood the figures were, I didn’t see the books, that the oranges went to a coop for processing and after paying the caretaker, the current owner was netting about $1000 a month.

I don’t much more about the details, or even if the figures were true or not, but it seemed an reasonable explanation at the time. I think the most successful farms maybe be selling their product to coops. I know Portland Roasting, here in Portland, Oregon, has formed a growers coop in Costa Rica. I buy their coffee when I my favorite stash I bring home is gone. They have done a lot for the neighborhood where they are getting their beans according to their website.

Here is a side question, I just found out on my last trip in September that I have at least three if not more banana trees on my place. Is it true that one banana tree can produce 200 pounds of bananas in a growing season?? I only have two squirrels on my property, I may have to employ more or I will be eating a lot on banana bread!

Thanks,
Tom in Portland, Oregon

[Cancertomnpdx]

Dear caliskatari:

The future belongs now to your generation. I can only hope one thing for the younger people is simply this pay attention to what is going on around you! My generation got hooked on the “greed” that our system is able to generate. Yours needs to take your bright young minds and change this world, make it more green. I was shocked last year to learn that in Secretary of Energy Chu’s energy lab at Berkley, some of his people who looked very young, have actually turned sunlight into a liquid! Now they may not be able to make that viable for production now, but you younger people will figure that out. Last night on PBS the Danes, as in Denmark, are having a problem with their wind as well as their still dependence on oil. So some their younger people (I am talking 55 and younger) have figured make the solution maybe be to use wind, because it is so infrequent and therefore not always electric grid reliable, to charge batters to run electric cars. Getting gas would be like going to the 7-11 to exchange your propane tank before you fire up the grill to cook you evening meal. We are living on the end of an era, you are the next generation. You will be able to do more because of much technology changes you now enjoy we the elders are only getting a small glimpse in our remaining year! Yet the hard news is that you will leave much for your children, our grandchildren, to solve, but Brian that is human history. Is is human conceit for us to think we already know the answers for our generation, we don’t!

I am glad you are able to get you start in Costa Rica so early in your life. When I first came up with the idea in 1984, I didn’t have the Internet to help me research this project. Now I am an old “fart” that tries to take advantage of many of you young people can take for granted during you working day! Today I was working on trying to figure becoming familiar with my bank account in Costa Rica through Spanish. It was slow going, but I will figure it!

You will do a lot in your life like we have, but in the end, you will leave a lot undone, every generation does. The leaving undone always seems to leave each member of the older generation with a bit of sadness maybe angry about the unfinished work. This includes our many mistakes we made in our time because we were simply trying to figure out to live with our families, our friends, our country, our time in history.

Good luck on your “green” adventure, I wish I would be able to see it in 50 years!

No matter who we are, we make a mark on human history! Sometimes human history knows who we were after we are dead, and sometimes we only become dust. But the important thing to remember is that everything you try, everything you fail at, everything you succeed with will impact you, your family, your neighborhood and the country you end up dying in–nothing is every lost!

Thanks for you writings, make sure you put them in your journal!

Tom in Portland, Oregon

Edited on Oct 31, 2009 22:30

[Cancertomnpdx]

Dean and his crew are the greatest. I have rented twice from them and they always have been willing to meet up with in the San Jose area. Both times I have had they come to my favorite little bed and breakfast in Alajuela, the Hotel Villa Bonita. The exit at the airport is to crazy for me to deal with hunting down my rental car, also I have flown over night and don’t want to drive into town! So I have the Bonita send a taxi, I go and check in, take a nap and have Dean’s crew delivered by Tracker by 5 PM. Normally I can park off the street in the evenings and the next morning after my Pinto Gallo and eggs, I head out for Orosi! They are a great group and I love the Tracker I get to drive!

Tom in Portland Oregon!

[Cancertomnpdx]

If you are taking George’s tour, he will probably introduce you to a immigration lawyer. At least he did that on my tour in May 2008. The lawyer for my tour answered a lot of questions, so your should be interesting for your group. I would bring copies of your original birth certificate or whatever you have from the British air force base, and what the Canadian government gave you when you finished dealing with them over this issue.

If you want, you can ask George if you will meet up with an immigration lawyer on your tour or not.

Thanks,
Tom in Portland, Oregon

[Cancertomnpdx]

Diane, I second David’s suggestion about contacting either SSA or your congressperson’s office. I recently used my congressman’s office to ask questions both about the Social Security Administration or the VA about their how the might handle some of my questions I need to ask. You will find that generally speaking that most congressperson’s have experts on their staff who deal Social Security. So if you want to run the your situation by that person first, I think it might help give you some confidence before you to Social Security. In the past year, I have had to deal with Social Security for both Medicare sign up and Social Security benefits to start and my caseworker was a generous person. You should have a good experience if you call their 1-800 number since it will ring into your local SSA office.

Good luck!

Thanks,
Tom in Portland, Oregon

[Cancertomnpdx]

No, you can not! You will need to return to the US for treatment or maybe somewhere you can find a VA hospital like the possibility of Puerto Rico. I think you will find that if you check the VA website that they are very clear that they do not pay for treatment outside of VA facilities in foreign countries. If you need a VA hospital quickly I would think a quick flight to either Houston, Miami or Atlanta would be your only resource from Costa Rica.

If you are still in doubt, call your congressional representative office and ask to speak with the office authority on VA benefits. Such a person is always a good source of VA benefit information I have discovered over the years.

Thanks
Tom in Portland on a budget.

[Cancertomnpdx]

Thanks you Scott! I will get these names into my contact list for Costa Rica. I am gather a large collection of names of worth while individuals providing services in Costa Rica.

Tom on a budget in Portland.

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