[lceide]

Well put. My daughter said it best….at least none of us were hurt.

Unfortunately, we were on the main highway at 2pm….we had to pull up a driveway to get off the road to change the tire-not much choice involved in that scenario. They were waiting for us. I am sure they had followed us from the gas station where I am assuming one of them had knived the tire (there was a slit in the sidewall-we had not run over any thing.) My husband had read about a number of happenings on that stretch of road, but it’s not like CR is loaded with a plethora of road options to get from one point to another.

Ironically, I am 41 years old, have traveled to probably 10 different countries, and have only been robbed twice in my life-both times in CR.

The government needs to take a tough stance on this though as it has the potentional to damage tourism which (last I checked) was a large percentage of the GDP. Nobody wants to go on vacation and go thought the hassle and expense of being robbed. Since we had this happen, we have heard more and more stories about these type of things happening to others (there were 2 others on our flight-and that was just the few people I spoke with…the embassy was loaded with them.

Funny story….I have a plastic watch that I bought to wear to CR that actually cost more than the gold-colored one I usually wear, but I kid you not when I say we go to great lengths to avoid being flashy.

[lceide]

Thanks for your comments. I knew someone couldn’t resist saying”yeah, its bad-but it is worse in the U.S.”. ~smile
I moved to CR in the early 70’s and our car was broken into from the hotel parking lot (and all of our possessions stolen) the FIST NIGHT WE WERE IN TOWN-and that was over 30 years ago. What is so scary is the escalation in violence from petty to downright fatal. Yes, it happens all the time in the U.S., but usually in the U.S. the police are not powerless to stop it and the criminals are most eventually caught (and if punished severely) possibly discouraging others. I agree with the post that something needs to be done to control this. If not, CR will start to develop the “lawlessness” reputation of Mexico, Nicaragua, and the like. We are in the process of looking to buy a part-time residence there again, but I have to say…this really did make me feel a little nervous. Another problem I heard of was the youth…that it was very hard to stop them because even if they are caught there is little punishment-and if you (as an adult) try to harm them (i.e. trying to get your stuff back when you know who did it) …YOU can face prosecution. We have been to CR 6 times in the last 2 1/2 years and were robbed for the first time last May. We stopped for gas in Cartago on our way to Dominical and apparently someone knifed our tire at the station. About 10 minutes into our trip thru the mountains, we got a flat and when we stopped to change the tire we were robbed. Keep in mind we were FAR from flashy…NO jewelry, wearing T-shirts & shorts etc. They took my bag (which had all 4 passports, money, credit cards, etc). It more a hassle than the monetary loss (having to re-route our whole trip to go back to the embassy 2 days later) but the biggest loss I felt was the sense of security I had always felt. When we got to Dominical we reported it. The policeman (who was all of about 13) said they had never heard of that happening. The locals however, said it has been happening ALL THE TIME with increased frequency. We have our next trip already scheduled, but needless to say, I don’t know if an 8th trip or a home purchase would occur if the same thing happened again.

[lceide]

Thank you for your prompt reply. I read the following information on an attorney’s website and based on my marital status (and I beleive age), through my brother, I would indeed be ineligible. I am not sure if the following is an accurate interpretation of the law, but if it is, would I still be ineligible even once my parents were granted citizenship? It does mention parents….

RESIDENCY BASED ON DIRECT FAMILY RELATIONSHIP WITH A COSTA RICAN CITIZEN

This regime grants a permanent resident status for individuals with direct family ties to a Costa Rican citizen.

For this regime to be applicable, one of the following relatives is required to be Costa Rican:

Spouse;
Son or daughter;
Mother or father;
Brother or sister (in this particular case, the applicant must be single)

Thank you in advance for your continued expertise.

The reason for my asking…I am not ready at this juncture to relocate, however, although I can thankfully qualify under the pensionista or rentista (assets-wise) I am not relocating now and would not want to transfer those assets and apply at this time (plus, I won’t be there enough) I am worried that maybe by the time I am ready to make a move the laws may have changed.

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