I’m back in sunny Costa Rica and I am sure glad to be here! While I enjoy visiting the United States, even if it is primarily for my surgeries (one more left and hopefully that’s it!), I think I enjoy it less and less each time. This time was particularly interesting considering during my time in the states President Ford died, Saddam was executed and most sadly, my good friend/Godson’s brother died. I think I’ll stay away for a while. I definitely don’t miss the hustle and bustle of the U.S. I actually tired very quickly of so many people where [View Full Entry]

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I am visiting New York again and will be in the area for one month. Last time I was in New York for an extended period of time—this past February—I got a bit of criticism from anonymous commentors (why not post your name?!) asking me how I could be away from the B&B for a month, particularly during the high season? It is a good question (though really not anyone’s business but mine) so I wanted to answer this question here and set the record straight. Since I moved to Costa Rica, I’ve been back in the U.S. three times, and [View Full Entry]

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I’d like to think I’m right about a lot of things but the weather isn’t one of them. In my last blog entry I confidently stated that I thought the dry season was here because some strong winds had blown away the rain and it was sunny for a few days. Well, was I wrong about that. Before my dirt road could even dry the clouds rolled back in along with mist and light rain—and it’s been that way for several days now. I know the dry season will come, I’m just not sure when! Perhaps early December? Maybe around Christmas [View Full Entry]

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Summer is in the air in Central America Spring is in full swing here meaning its raining less and summer is just around the corner. After a full onslaught of guests in recent weeks, things have quieted down a little in the last two weeks and that has enabled us to do some spring cleaning and to spruce up the B&B. It didn’t need much work, but change isn’t bad in this case. Terry, our new manager, has painted many of the rooms in uniquely tropical colors and reorganized the living area. His re-do definitely opened up the living space a [View Full Entry]

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It’s that time of year again. In a few weeks, the rainy season should be just a memory and the next six or seven months will be filled with bright sunshine and few clouds. The bumpy dirt road leading to the B&B will become nearly dusty, the green fields surrounding us will eventually turn from a vivid, deep green to something approaching a yellowish brown, and the days will get a bit warmer. As my friends and family in the northeastern U.S. begin to settle in for winter, here we’re getting ready summer. While it wasn’t a particularly bad rainy season, [View Full Entry]

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What a busy time over the past three weeks! I’ve had scarely any time to update my blog let alone take of care of many personal items that I keep putting off. As I mentioned in my last blog, we’ve been having a lot of fun here this month. Terrific guests, a lot of laughs, and great food are a terrific combination for making the month enjoyable, even during this rainy season. Humming along….. The B&B has been humming with activity and it seems lately at least, that when we’ve just finished one meal, it’s time to prepare for the next [View Full Entry]

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Food, food and more food…. I must admit I do love it when I have guests of the B&B who love food, and love to cook! I do fairly well preparing breakfast, but dinner is still beyond my modest talents. This month is definitely a fun one at the B&B! We have some terrific long-term guests including Deb & Bob who are considering moving here, Renee (from my former home of Washington, DC), an architect who is here for a month working on on a land development project, and Jake, who is also considering moving here. They’re all very fun and [View Full Entry]

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Zarcero and around…. This past weekend Jake (a long term guest of the B&B) and I did a one-day road trip up to Zarcero, a neat little town about 20 minutes north of me. We were both curious about the towns surrounding Zarcero as we had both been there before. For both of us, we wondered if any gringos lived in the area and if there were any good real estate deals. From prior knowledge, it was our sense that the Zarcero area was a little remote, and perhaps at little cool for most people. It reminds of the Pacific Northwest [View Full Entry]

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I decided I would head to the beach this weekend to get a little R&R because things are definitely getting busy again, starting in October for the “high season” in Costa Rica and I didn’t know when I would be able to get away again. The bookings just seem to rolling in now for the U.S. winter (which I’m thrilled about). So, I headed to my favorite beach area Quepos/Manuel Antonio. All was going well at first: the weather was beautiful when I arrived on Friday and my favorite hotel, “Hotel Manuel Antonio” (right on the beach near the national park), [View Full Entry]

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It is weird! In the past two weeks, I have had two dogs try to bite me! This occurred while looking at properties in the Central Valley. The first time, I was leaving a house in Escazu, high above San Jose, and I was petting a seemingly friendly dog, and then all of a sudden, he just tried to take away a piece of my flesh on my arm. Luckily, he missed my arm. The second time, I was at my friend George’s house in Puriscal. His dog was on a leash but he just came up behind me and tired [View Full Entry]

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