Who would have guessed that we have Black Friday in Costa Rica now too? Black Friday in Spanish is Viernes Negro, but almost nobody uses that. Last Friday, I saw no Black Friday signs on any Costa Rica real estate offices. I have asked a couple of sellers but they didn’t think I was serious.…
Estimated Reading Time: 6 Minutes Moving to Costa Rica? Be smart and first take Christopher Howard’s famous Live in Costa Rica tours. Too many property buyers end up running all over the country without having a clue where to purchase or rent a vacation home or retirement home in Costa Rica. You have heard friends…
Sidewalks in Costa Rica? What’s that, a sidewalk? Who needs sidewalks anyway? Costa Ricans don’t use sidewalks, even if they have one. Costa Ricans walk on the road, mostly for lack of sidewalks or there are too many obstacles. A few weeks ago, I wrote about obstacles on the roads of Costa Rica. This blog…
Do you like bife de chorizo? I had never heard of this Argentinian restaurant in San Jose, though I had driven past it many times. I don’t go to San Jose that often anymore, but it looks like the city is becoming a good place for great restaurants again. Once in a while, when I…
Be careful when driving in Costa Rica, there are lots of road obstacles. Driving in Costa Rica can be overwhelming when you first arrive. I compare it to driving in Paris, Rome or Madrid, any Latin American city in Europe. It’s mainly the lack of discipline that turns roads into a madhouse, especial at peak…
Most people know a chorizo as a sausage made of minced meat and spices, usually dark red or brown and of elongated cylindrical shape. In Costa Rica, we have two types of chorizo, a legal one and an illegal one. Most butchers in Costa Rica make their own chorizo or sausage, some good and some…
Estimated Reading Time: 4 Minutes You are living in Costa Rica and need a new mailing address, which seems like a simple task. It can be a very simple task, depending on how easy you want to make it yourself. When ordering online, you’ll find that the space for the address is very small. Some…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes Do Ticos love or hate gringos? You can read some nice and some not so nice comments on this same issue on Costa Rica Living Forum, where some tend to be a little blunt. Please leave your comments at the end of this blog, it will be appreciated very much.…
Did you know that water can be an issue when you request a building permit in an agricultural subdivision? Do you have a building lot in an agricultural subdivision in Costa Rica? Or maybe you are planning to buy one? If so, you better read this blog, so you can save yourself a lot of…
Do you like my hairdo and tattoos? I try not to discriminate, quite the opposite. My parents have educated me very liberally, like good and open-minded Dutch. In other blogs, I have been quite outspoken about gay issues and racism. How important is it for a real estate agent in Costa Rica to dress well,…
Estimated Reading Time: 3 Minutes Que Pasa, the free-membership Grecia & Sarchi community information website started in 2014. This incredibly informative website serves the English-speaking residents and ex-pats who plan to live in Grecia and Sarchi. Debi Gedling, former Que Pasa editor, and co-founder said: “We felt that as a no-cost community information website serving…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes Did you know that Costa Ricans never say no? There are many reasons for moving to Costa Rica. But the most attractive one is that Costa Ricans are nice people. They never say no. If you compare the Ticos, with their neighbors, the Panamanians and the Nicaraguans (Nicas), they come…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes Nobody Stands Alone is one of InterNations’ slogans and the expat community in Costa Rica is no exception. Costa Rica has well-established expat communities in many of its towns and cities. For instance, as an InterNations member, you are able to connect with fellow expatriates and share the wonderful experiences…
Will the new visa fines stop or control perpetual tourism? In 2011, a new article of the immigration law was approved. The law came in effect on August 1st, 2014. This article fines tourists $100 per month after their tourist visa expires. Those who cannot pay or are unwilling to do so, will not be…
Estimated Reading Time: 3 Minutes Are you ready to retire but you’re worried about your kids? and you are dreaming to do so in Costa Rica. You see yourself already walking the beach or sitting on your terrace at your pool, enjoying the views, while having piña coladas. But, there is one but……. Your kids.…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes Last week, in my blog on Machismo in Costa Rica, I told you a bit about piropos or catcalling. They are like pick-up lines in English. A piropo is the Latin American way of giving another person a compliment and they are a tradition in Costa Rica, like it or…