After 10 years of extended visits to Costa Rica I moved here with my eyes wide-open as to what Costa Rica is and what I liked about it. Still, as mentioned on Costa Rica Blogger entry, "[url=http://costaricablogger.com/2008/02/24/moving-day--chicago-to-costa-rica-a-real-reality-check.aspx] Moving Day - Chicago to Costa Rica (a REAL reality check!) ": "there is absolutely no adequate preparation for moving to a new country" ... "the panic was not so much acute as it was; what the hell have I just done to myself" ... "Where was my safety net?!" With all [View Full Entry]

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Whether you are visiting or live in Costa Rica, most people spend at least some time in the capital city of San Jose in the Central Valley area. Many visit the San Jose downtown sites and are then looking for nearby places to visit for half or full-day trips. Most popularly mentioned ideas based on their relatively close geographic proximity to San Jose can still be several hours in travel time due to Costa Rica's terrain, roads and traffic. Examples: Poás Volcano is 1.5 hours away, Arenal Volcano is 4 hours away, La Paz Waterfall is 1.5 hours, etc., etc. A [View Full Entry]

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Costa Rica’s new immigration law (nueva ley migratoria) was published in the official government publication La Gaceta on September 1, 2009 ... meaning the new "Ley General de Migración y Extranjería" will be the Costa Rica immigration law of the land starting March 1, 2010. Costa Rica is a world-wide destination for vacationers, travelers, those seeking investment opportunities and for persons considering second homes, a place to relocate and/or retire. Costa Rica is also desirable to many seeking better living conditions, improved work opportunities, asylum and/or refugee status [View Full Entry]

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Four years ago this September, Maggie and Steve Jacobus dropped everything, sold their house in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin and packed their three sons for a one-way trip to Costa Rica. Leaving Milwaukee and everything familiar: Scary. Educating your children about the world: Priceless. "The American dream is to give your child a 'better life,' " Maggie Jacobus said. "For most people, that has had a more materialistic meaning. We wanted to give them the world. We wanted them to understand and be able to move easily in other cultures, w [View Full Entry]

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Another morning taking my son to school, another Costa Rica school bus crash. Unfortunately, this is a daily occurrence in Costa Rica where too many private school bus drivers run the roads in a reckless manner - unchecked. In the following situation the school bus driver illegally passed a stopped vehicle on the right in a busy intersection. The vehicle the school bus was passing without regard for safety was stopped for a reason ... they were trying to allow a taxi to pass in front of them through an extremely busy intersection. The attached pictures are the result of this [View Full Entry]

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Costa Rica Blogger has made no secret as to what driving in Costa Rica is like; "dangerous", "insane", "crazy", etc., etc., etc. It appears even Costa Rica's President agrees as he is quoted as likening Costa Ricans to 'Dr. Jekyl and Mr .Hyde', in reference to the widespread recklessness encountered on the roadways of a nation recognized for peace and natural beauty. It came as no surprise then, when Presidente Oscar Arias supported the passage of a sweeping reform to the Costa Rica traffic laws (Ley de Transito) that intends to rectify the situ [View Full Entry]

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A July 2009 non-scientific poll by online English speaking forum Costa Rica Central Valley Living resulted in the following for the question "Where do you actually live?" CHOICES AND RESULTS - Alajuela : Grecia, Sarchi Poas, 7 votes, 4.52% - Cartago, all areas plus . Santa Maria de Dota, San Marcos, 1 votes, 0.65% - Guanacaste all areas, 1 votes, 0.65% - Puntarenas all areas, 2 votes, 1.29% - Limon all areas, 1 votes, 0.65% - USA, 39 votes, 25.16% - Canada, 3 votes, 1.94% - Mexico, Central America & Panama, 0 votes, 0.00% - South America &, 0 votes, 0.00% [View Full Entry]

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Crocodile makes a lunge for German tourist A crocodile lunged out of the water at a terrified German tourist on the Tempiski River in Costa Rica with its jaws open to expose its razor-sharp teeth. With her camera in hand, the unnamed holidaymaker was poised to capture a close encounter with the reptile during a boat trip in the Central American country. However, when a tour guide banged a stick against the side of the boat to attract the crocodile, the creature leapt out of the water just inches from the woman's face. While the woman was left in shock by [View Full Entry]

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Reuters (London) - published July 02, 2009 Costa Rica is very nearly paradise, not just for holiday-makers lounging on its beaches, but for its citizens who are extremely satisfied with their lot and also have a tiny carbon footprint. The combination has earned the central American country first place in a new Happy Planet Index (HPI) published on Monday. While leaders of the developed world attending G8 talks in Italy worry away at economic indicators like Gross Domestic Product (GDP), deflation and their implications for economic recovery, the second edition of the HPI lauds alter [View Full Entry]

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NatureAir Announces Costa Rica Kids Fly Free Summer Program SAN JOSE, Costa Rica, June 16 -- Today NatureAir, the world's first voluntary carbon neutral airline, announced that families in pursuit of a great summer deal are getting their wish with the airline's kids fly free summer savings program. From June 15 through August 30, 2009 NatureAir is opening up its skies for children up to 11 years old to all destinations NatureAir flies IN Costa Rica with the purchase of two adult round trip tickets (all travel is within Costa Rica). "With the struggling economy we felt it was time to [View Full Entry]

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