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Read the language under “Important Information” in your passport.
“Under certain circumstances you may lose your U.S. citizenship by performing any of the following acts: (1) being naturalized in a foreign state, (2) taking an oath or making a declaration to a foreign state; (3) serving in the armed forces of a foreign state; (4) accepting employment with a foreign government, or (5) formally renouncing U.S. citizenship before a U.S. Consular office overseas.”
As I said, it’s not enforced. My wife and kids are all dual citizens as well.
Technically speaking, having dual citizenship is illegal for US citizens. According to the US State Department, anyone who “swears an oath” to a foreign government risks loosing his or her US citizenship. However, it is not enforced or obvious reasons.
For more info on residency, read through this forum. To get it all right from the horse’s mouth (this horse speaks Spanish though), go to: http://www.migracion.go.cr/
No problems giving birth there, although they don’t permit the father to be present, and the before and after are spent in a common room with a whole load of other women about to bust, with all the associated oaths being sworn against their respective inseminators.
By the way, upon birth the child will automatically be a citizen of Costa Rica, However, US citizenship is not automatic. You’ll have to apply for that.
I recommend Hospital México.
I don’t know if judging schools in Costa Rica based on their internet presence is the best way to choose an education for your children. You really need to visit potential schools to get a real feel for them.
There’s no question that San Jose does have the best private schools, and a good number of them as well. As my kids are high school age, if we were living there now that’s where I’d like them to be. These schools offer them their best chance to get into college upon graduation.
However, my feeling is that younger kids do just fine, and get a good education as well, in the MANY smaller, and much less expensive private schools around and outside of San Jose. These smaller schools may not have any internet presence, but that is not a reflection on their quality.
Editer,
You may find this phenomenon still exists in rural communities, but not in the more “cosmopolitan” Central Valley.
Nasser,
As already stated, there’s only one source for telecommunications and internet access in CR – the government. Until this changes (and it may soon if Arias has his way and CAFTA goes through – but will it in the US now with a Democratic congress???), I wouldn’t put much thought into it.
I still don’t quite understand how Arias intends to pull it off. I was under the impression that there would have to be a constitutional amendment to open up the government monopolies in telecommunications, energy and insurance. Like in the US, I think that takes a two thirds majority. Fat chance of that happening. ICE, RECOPE and INS still have a lot of fans.
I’ve been to pretty much all the movie theaters in San Jose, and I can’t think of any that are in the old lavish style that I think you’re talking about. They’re all pretty plain jane. I don’t really know which one is the oldest, but Cine Rex across the street from the Central Plaza is probably pretty close. It’s large and has a balcony, but as I said, not ornate.
For that, just check out the National Theater. Nothing can compare.
As far as Tico vs Expat theaters, I don’t think any such thing exists. The ads in the paper for movies do specify, however, whether the film is in Spanish or English, and whether it’s dubbed or has subtitles.
If you want a real Tico movie experience, rent a movie from a video rental store. Get the newest Gringo movie out that’s subtitled in Spanish. If you’re lucky, it’ll be an illegal knock-off, and the worse the better. The worst (best) ones were produced by a guy with a video camera in the audience, so you can see people getting up to go to the bathroom. These are also horribly translated of course, so if you’re bilingual, the translation gaffs add to the hilarity.
Many of the legal copies are subtitled in Mexico. You can always tell, because if they’re translating “hamburger”, it comes up as “taco”.
Really, I’d skip the movie houses and go directly to the theaters. There are lots of great concerts at the National Theater and the Melico Salazar Theater 100 meters west (very large, but basically like an auditorium), and there is a thriving thespian community staging a surprising number of theatrical performances in small theaters as well. These you can’t get at home.
There are at least 6 ways to get from Alajuela to Cartago, all bad. Forget the extreme southern & northern routes. They’re much longer, very complicated, and won’t save time. Forget also the circunvalación (beltways), they’re also longer, and just as thick with cars. That leaves straight through downtown (Avenida 2), which is the most crowded, and Avenida 12, which is my best pick for you. This route parallels the straight downtown route a few blocks to the south, but goes quite a bit quicker.
When you get to the stop light right in front of Parque La Sabana where you would normally turn left onto Avenida 2, go straight through without turning. Stay in the left lane, and in 3 blocks where La Sabana ends there will be another major opportunity to turn left, right before the railroad tracks.
Turn left with everyone else, and stay on this main street, following all the other cars. This will take you all the way to 1 block before the fountain in San Pedro where you again link up with the more central route. Right after the fountain, you can again go a block or two to the south of the main drag, avoiding the worst traffic of San Pedro. That’ll get you all the way to Curridabat before you have to again join up with the central route to Cartago.
Like all such routes, there are a few jogs 1 block to the left or right to stay on the route. Just follow the other cars.
If you still want to try the south beltway, it’s called the Circunvalación Sur, and the exit is after the Puente Juan Pablo II.
If it’s morning rush hour, or December 15th, bring along several days of food and water…
Here’s the Costa Rican Lutheran Church website:
http://www.lutheranworld.org/Directory/SAM/LutheranCostaricanChurch.EN.html
Also, the print edition of the Tico Times has listings of religious services and community happenings.
Scott T,
You may be a good candidate for employment at a resort or hotel that has a restaurant. Owners of remote hotels may be interested in you for a general management position as well, although their very remoteness demands quite a change in lifestyle. As a Gringo you have an edge in the tourism industry, because you’ll understand your clients better than a Tico. Prospective employers will recognize this. However, Spanish will also be required to enable you to supervise your Tico staff.
On the side, Costa Rica is a nature photographer’s wet dream.
How old are your kids, and where does your wife’s family live? If you want to live close to your in-laws, this will impact your employment prospects. If your kids are older (coming up on high school age), the availability of good schools will be another factor.
If your lifestyle is lavish, you’ll be disappointed. The pay will barely get you by. Also, it may take a while to land a job, so you’ll need money to live on in the meantime.
Truth be told, with a wife and 3 kids depending on you, you’re taking a big risk. Unless you have some substantial savings or revenue flow in dollars from the US, your economic situation in CR, even with gainful employment, will probably be precarious. If you and your kids are still young, it might be a great adventure, after which you’ll still have the opportunity to make your way back to the States in time to gather up your nest egg for the kids’ college and your own retirement. That’s basically where I’m at now.
It seems to me that most people visiting this site are either retiring or have older kids that they’ll leave behind when they make the move to CR. Moving with kids opens up a whole new can of worms. As I said, when they’re young, it’s easier. But as they grow, new concerns arise. These are primarily:
1. Am I limiting my children’s professional potential by remaining in CR?
2. Am I limiting my ability to successfully retire by remaining in CR?
Unfortunately, the answer to both questions, at least for me and my Tica wife, was YES.
As such, we’ve since moved back to the States. When I feel we have enough to make a go of it again down there (as a retiree), we’ll once again confront concern #1.
From http://www.iglesiacr.org/content/view/1/4/
CONFERENCIA EPISCOPAL DE COSTA RICA
DIRECCIÓN
Sede de la Conferencia Episcopal de Costa Rica
Avenidas 3ª y 5ª, Calle 22, Barrio México, San José
Apartado postal: 7288 – 1000
Teléfonos: (506) 221 3053 (506) 222 0486
Fax: (506) 221 6662
E – mail: seccecor@cecor.orgEsta dirección de correo electrónico está protegida contra los robots de spam, necesita tener Javascript activado para poder verlaPágina Web: http://www.iglesiacr.org/ o http://www.cecor.org/
ASAMBLEA EPISCOPAL
Monseñor José Francisco Ulloa Rojas,
Obispo Diocesano de Cartago
Teléfono (506) 5533050 y 5532969 Fax: (506) 5533050
E-mail: curiacartago@ice.crEsta dirección de correo electrónico está protegida contra los robots de spam, necesita tener Javascript activado para poder verla ; mulloa@cecor.orgEsta dirección de correo electrónico está protegida contra los robots de spam, necesita tener Javascript activado para poder verlaI recently rode in a taxi with both a conventional and propane fuel source. I believe it was a Hyundai, and the cabby said it came that way from the factory. There was a switch on the dash to select the source, and the propane tank was in the trunk. He told me lots of taxis are going the propane route, as it’s close to half the cost of gas.
I was really surprised that it wasn’t an after-market modification. It sure seems like non-American car manufacturers are so much better at developing specific vehicles for specific markets. It’s hard to feel sorry for the big three when the only time you see an American car in a foreign country is in pictures from Cuba. Are they completely ignoring the rest of the world?
Ticos celebrate Christmas primarily by building an extravagant “portal” (nativity scene), usually inside their home, going to church, eating apples and grapes, and gathering up the family for the marathon tamal preparation event. On Christmas day the tradition is for everyone to stop in and visit with everyone else. There may be small presents exchanged, but nothing like the massive gift mania in the States. The first Santa representation I ever saw there was back in the 80’s when they dressed up the Michelin Man atop the tire store.
The emphasis is squarely on family and religion, rather than consumerism.
Marcia,
I’ve slept out in the open air in the middle of the rainforest in CR and got no bug bites. Screens are just not needed. Oh sure, there are lots of bugs, but few pests. There is a month or so out of each year, I forget when, that the flies come out in masses though.
Very few houses have water heaters. Instead they have electric gizmos attached to the shower head that warms the water. Works just fine. Not as good as a steaming hot shower, but who needs that 10 degrees north of the equator?
Your price range should get you a very nice abode. Just make sure you look around, as the price may not reflect the quality. The Tico Times is a great newspaper down there (www.ticotimes.net), but when it comes to the classified ads, I prefer to look at La Nación (www.nacion.com), as it is not uncommon for people to try to get a higher price from foreigners.
BTW, you won’t find “classified ads” in La Nación, they’re called “económicos”.
And by the way, there is no sign at the Coca Cola that says “Coca Cola”. It’s a market and bus station that used to have a Coca Cola billboard, but it was removed over 25 years ago. Nonetheless, everyone still calls it that. Ya’ gotta love it.
Idordal,
When I first read your post, I didn’t respond because your question is already answered 10 times over in this forum. All you have to do is read it.
Scott was kinder than me, and took time out to explain, again, how things work down there. For not giving you the answer you were looking for, you are offended. Sound like you’re the one who needs to cut back on the caffeine.
It’s great that you want to spend two years in CR, but don’t think you’ll be able to find employment. Sponsorship by an American company in the telecommunications field? Highly doubtful. American telecommunications companies aren’t operating in CR, as this industry is currently a government monopoly there. Furthermore, as Scott pointed out, there are many, many highly qualified Ticos to fill those jobs that do exist, at a fourth of the salary a Gringo would accept.
Finally, have you seen the new labor requirements for American companies that send their employees abroad? I understand that they’re required to provide these employees with the same benefits as their stateside counterparts. Given the availability of eager, well-educated English speakers in many countries like Costa Rica who will work for pennies on the dollar, your question is is really a pipe dream.
Make your money in the US, then come to CR to spend it. And don’t get offended by people who are willing to tell it like it is. They’re your best allies.
