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I don’t Think “God” would be a supporter of “free enterprise”. Survival of the fittest may be alright for the flora & fauna, but compasion is a far greater thing for humanity. I would suggest reading “The peoples history of the united states” and also consider we were nothing more than terrorists and illegal aliens when we raped and robbed our way across north america eliminateing an entire indigenous population….is this democracy?? Happy Thanksgiving.
when people have been exploited and brutalized by there government or foreign governments(think U.S. in central America) it’s not so easy to just make your country more habitable. Not when you can not work or eat or are under threat of harm for having a contrary opinion.Can you imagine the stress someone is under to leave there home and all they know and love and drag there family with them through the muck? Do really think your speech about staying and making your country better is really relative??? These are desperate people, not Americans looking for a cheaper home with a pool and ocean view. The U.S. and the rest of the “industrialized nations” needs to offer more than the world bank or W.T.O, our “help” only comes when there is something in it for us and that needs to stop. Through colonialism and greed we have wrecked and continue to wreck countries and along with that peoples lives. And if you believe it’s in the name of democracy my opinion is your fooling yourself.
It’s sort of like reading a piece by Noam Chomsky…A lot of truth and scary predictions. Lets hope he’s wrong and the Ticos and the the poorest among them will not be getting the short end of the stick as we scurry to put our money down on the next condo project and further and un-naturaly toy with there delicate economy. Yes it does sound like the U.S., as our government piles money into keeping the rich in the green, fund wars at unheard of costs…the average “joe” has no health care and there is no money for educational programs and in my home city(NYC) apartments average $1000 per sguare foot!!. Go figure?
You can stop and change a tire just try and do it at a gas station or the like. If you get a blow out on the costa nera just use the same pre cautions you would anywhere else. Don’t leave anything in your car, even when checking into a hotel. Last time I was there two guys checking into a place in playa hermosa left all there stuff in the car while they checked in. 15 minutes later it was gone. The citys are where most of the crimes take place, just use common sense and enjoy yourself.
If you want to make the last or first night something special try Xandari, about 15 minutes from the airport. http://www.xandari.com
We are planning on building there as well and have spent quite a bit of time all over the country over the last 4-5 years. At first all the bars are a bit disconcerting(and just ugly!).It seems there is mostly petty crimes that are preventable with common sense, we have only had one situation arise. Very textbook as we were slowly moving in traffic out of Aluela towards the airport a young boy came up behind us and punctured our tire, I saw him pass a few times but was concentrating on the traffic. Then my girlfriend heard the air hissing out and we knew right away what had happened. We drove into a gas station a few blocks away and a very nice employee changed our tire while we watched out for the “gang”. I am amused when people I know get concerned about us traveling/buying in C.R. a “third world” nation, we live in NYC and here the level and degrees of crime committed every day would make your hair stand on end!! As well lots of petty theft with car radios, recently my golf cubs stolen out of my truck in a very posh downtown neighborhood!!! Don’t leave items in your car, and lock away your money and valuables in a safe box at your hotel/home and just enjoy.
Consider staying in playa hermosa just about 5 kms south and much, much nicer. Lots of cheap options Rancho grande is a total surf crash pad rooms start at $10 a night, shared bath and maybe shared room but run by a great guy and on the beach.Costa neratel. 643-1942? is run by an Italian couple on the beach clean and friendly ocean view private room from $25-30 per night. The perennial surf hotel is Las Olas http://www.lasolashotel.com/ onthe beach best breakfast in town, rooms from $30 a night(duplex a frames or ask for the sky box:sits on top of the main building sit on your couch and watch the break!! They also offer day trips to dominical and surf lessons, those can be a little pricey but it’s a great crew!…or http://www.casapuravida.com mediterranian compound,tv,ac and great pool from $40 a night, owls nest is the best ocean view room. Can get surf lessons there from a 30 year vet. Tell milacent and wayne Keith sent you. Google the others for phone numbers. Avoid Jaco if you can unless…you like that sort of thing. Jaco is great to go out on the town one night or take advantage of it’s ammenities; restaurants,bank, doctors etc…but not very pretty…drugs, hookers and salty gringos looking for the latter. Check http://www.surfline.com for info on Dominical. Also if you stay in Hermosa it’s onlabout $5 bucks/5minutes for a taxi into Jaco.
click the link in his text then go to forums, he left out the dash between american-european in the direct link.
Lipskm,
Keep in mind you can pay someone about $100-$150 per month to take care of your property, we won’t manicure the entire 1.25 acres but do want a nice garden area aound the house. But I understand your point. We live in the city so our prioritys are a little different, we want fruit trees, a pool and some privacy.We have been going to this area for a few years now and have many friends both tico and expats. We also want to build and design our own house and were not too impressed with what Bob was building. I would keep this in mind though since in this project you are in very close proximity to your neighbors, If you get a rowdy group of surfers next door or someone who is renting out to a very young crowd it can be a problem.Not a lot of surf fishing going on, but probaly rooster fish, maybe barracuda. I fished inshore about a kilometer off the coast and caught a large dorado. I can tell you as a surfer I have encountered many large fish jumping near me. I also enjoy fishing but found it difficult to find a tackle shop, so bring your gear. Check the tico times, http://www.ticotimes.net there is a very good fishing article in each issue.
