Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
First let me say that I admire people like you that are willing to take the time to help people in need. I do not know of any shelters where one can get food but that doesn’t mean they don’t exist.
There are probably culture differences that exist between the situation in Costa Rica and what you may be used to. Beggers on the streets are welcomed (I can’t find the right way to say it) by many Costa Ricans. They take the time to dig into their pockets and share a bit of change and go about their way as in “that’s that, it could be me some day” sort of attitude. It’s sort of taken as the norm and many, by that I mean a lot more than in North America, are willing to give a little on the spot. In North America, my impression is that people turn their heads, more so than they do in Costa Rica.
Maybe we should distinguish between the truly homeless and the many thousands of people who still “lay claim” to a piece of land and build their shelter from scrap materials. These places exist along nearly every river that goes through San Jose and there are many rivers like that. When Scott said that some people do not want any help, I thought of these people who suffer damages from Mother Nature be it floods or landslides and refuse to leave. I have seen a few television interviews to this effect. They have established communities and some do not want to give this up, leaving their friends behind.
Speaking of different cultures, I think North Americans move house an average of 30 or 40 times in their lifetimes. I don’t know exactly, but I if I had to guess what it would be for Costa Ricans, I would say less than 10. How is this relevant? Not sure but I’m leaving it in anyway.
All of this is coming from someone just looking from the outside in, although quite of few years of it, so take it for what it’s worth.
You might try googling Gail Nystrom and see what sort of work she has done and is still doing.
Jon
Part of the problem with the inefficiency is that the government hasn’t had the money. Without money, it’s hard to plan things into the future. If this loan gets approval, the article says it will allow planning for the next 20 years.
I’ve been coming/living in Costa Rica for 20 years, well before there was any talk of a new international airport in Liberia, which has now been operating as a success for a number of years now. I really don’t understand the differences between the success of the second large international airport and the impossibilities conveyed here of a third.
Jon
I haven’t read the Spanish press today, internet connection is very intermittent at the moment, but $1 billion goes a long way. No other countries in Latin America have been granted a loan this large from the bank’s in it’s 50 year history apart from Argentina and Brazil.
Jon
Don’t know about outside of San Jose, but within the city and all it’s outlying suburbs (say within a 30 minute bus ride to downtown) it is very difficult to find a small lot say 100 or 200 sq. m. for less than $75/m. Most prices are in the $100-$150 range. I’m talking about normal middle and upper class areas. A neighborhood in poverty or land adjacent to a river would of course be a lot cheaper – all the way down to nothing at all which is the way many live. However, I think many would be surprised at the appearance of the neighborhoods with land prices around $100 sq/m. They’re the very typical ones with nothing in the way of what people from the US would consider attractive.
Jon
There’s mention of it in today’s edition of AMCostaRica.com. Costa Rica has been granted a $1 billion loan from the Inter-American Development Bank and it just needs to be approved by the Asamblea Legislativa. The plans are for the money to be spent on new higways, existing roads, bridges and airports.
Here’s a quote, “The loan is also meant to help airports. Ms. González said that would mainly go to the new international airport in the southern region near Palmar since the airport in Libería already is receiving funds from other sources.”
Jon
Hmmm… Doubling your exclusion if married filing jointly? That was a new one on me, but worth checking into. Turns out that your spouse must be a US citizen or resident alien and meet the tests as you describe Scott. The resident alien part is pretty much Catch-22 because it would be very difficult to satisfy both the resident alien status AND either the physical presence test or bona-fide resident test. I should have married a gringa… No, just kidding. So, being married to a Tica and living in Costa Rica, I’m only able to exclude the $87,600, not the $175,200.
Thanks for bringing it up though.
Jon
Perhaps you are referring to the concession taxes in the province of Puntarenas? The news of these huge increase in taxes, up to 1600% is a few months old now, but there is an article in today’s AMCostaRica about the occupants trying to fight back.
Alberto, just curious because this is new to me (I don’t doubt you though). Does the INS policy apply as well when someone drives across the border into Costa Rica, as a tourist that is? Surely it’s just if you are shipping it? What about someone with Tico plates driving to Panama for a few days, do they need Panama insurance or are their laws different? Just wondering, might consider doing it sometime.
Thanks,
JonThere aren’t too many places that I drive where I would feel comfortable exceeding the speed limit. A few flat highways out in the country come to mind. However, in regards to your 40kph question, ironically this is the speed limit on arguably the nicest and best constructed new road in the country, the 5 lane stretch (4 lane with a proper turning lane in the middle) that runs through Perez Zeledon. Anybody driving 40kph along this stretch is a hazard to themselves and everyone else. Yet even more ironic is that just a few kilometres away, up in the mountains, the speed limit is 60kph. This is the stretch that passes through Cerro de Muerte is well known as the most dangerous in the country.
Jon
Jiron is the best known mattress store in Costa Rica. They have stores all over the central valley and probably in some towns on the coasts as well. They have box springs too.
http://lin.navegalo.com/clientes/jiron/who_are_we.html
Jon
Apparently it is set in stone now. AMCostaRica reports of a decree in todays edition for what you are talking about, Mediatica. There are restrictions on heights for all buildings not just 2km, but 4km inland for the entire northwest coast.
Edited on Apr 10, 2008 05:37
I was just in Golfito last month shopping for about the 6th or 7th time. They now have LCD televisions up to 32″. Like you say, every item must be $1000 or less. It’s too bad you haven’t had much luck there. We have never had a problem. Most stores honor the guarantee and all you need to do is take it to one of their stores anywhere in the country. If you are shipping the item, the shippers inspect the item before it even leaves the store because as soon as it does, they are responsible for damage. Use one of the recommended three shipping companies. You will see signs all over indicating which three they are. Delgado is the one we use.
Jon
I belong to the CVGA (Central Valley Golf Association) and the membership is free!
We have weekly tournaments every Tuesday at Valle Del Sol. Show up before 6:45AM and you can play. Cost is $8 to the association, which automatically enters you in the hole-in-one competition and the prize money, plus your greens fee which is very reasonable, especially for a public course of that quality.
Once a month they organize weekend trips to Los Sueños where they get unlimited golf with cart and lunch included for $85/day.
Jon
By this I mean when someone wants to slide their SIM chip into your phone, or to be more realistic, sell your phone to someone else that wants to slide their chip into it. This is usually done with a gun pointed in your face. Those who refuse are usually shot. Deaths from cell phone robberies are on the order of 10-12 per year, or once a month. I can give references if you’d like.
Shame that there was a 17 year-old who died last night just hours after I posted that because he refused to hand over his backpack (rucksack for the brits) because his cell phone was inside.
I am hoping ICE will make the “interchangeability” more difficult. It doesn’t have to be this way.
Edited on Apr 09, 2008 16:12
Your question is a little confusing the way you have worded it. ICE will be installing a new 3G network (third generation, i.e. internet, data, video, multimedia, etc.) in 2009 with the capacity for 1.5 million lines (cell phone numbers). There is nothing special about the SIM cards or the compatibility with US phones. The new 3G network is just more technologically advanced, offering more services.
Any GSM phone on the market that is unlocked (meaning not tied to a certain provider like AT&T) will work in Costa Rica as long as it operates on ICE’s frequency – remember, they are the only game in town. This is the case today, as we speak, so I’m not sure I understand when you say that your US phones will be interchangeable to plug into the CR system. Unlocked GSM phones are widely available on the internet. If you already have an ICE SIM card (a line) then all you do is pop that chip into your new phone. If you don’t have a line with ICE yet, then you need to be a resident, have a corporation or rent one from somebody. If you are going after new line, you will need an ICE recommended phone with a sales receipt or a receipt showing that you paid taxes on it when you brought it into the country. A way around this is to buy a cheap local phone, use it to get your line, then put the SIM card into your expensive phone you smuggled in. People die for this “interchangeability” and I mean that literally. It’s been happening for years.
