Our new life in Costa Rica

Would love to visit there one day.

Can you talk more about life there? Are you in the mountains or near the water?

We are renting this casita on a mountain near Tilaran. We over look Lake Arenal and the Arenal volcano.

Don’t believe anything you read in books.
Not as many speak English as we thought. The people here are nice. It’s a socialist country so the State owns all the utilities. There are over a hundred wind turbines on the mountain across the lake. There are not piles of dead birds under them.

Food is great and definitely not Mexican.
Pizza is the states second favorite food.

Where we live has international wind surfing events and we can see them practice from our window.

Being in the mountains it’s windy and cooler and few have AC. Over by the Pacific coast it’s usually ten degrees hotter and humid. We have not been to the gulf coast.

Bureaucracy, both American and Costa Rican make it hard to open bank accounts, buy a car or house, or do just about anything legal.

There is a no kill any animal policy. Dogs run free everywhere. Many starve. We adopted a boy from the streets.

We love every minute of everyday.



[url=https://postimg.cc/HVLJGCmr][img][/img][/url]

[url=https://postimg.cc/TLXyBL2x][img][/img][/url]

[url=https://postimg.cc/K4xkNMsr][img][/img][/url]

We are amazed at everything and how easy life is here once you get here.
We have breakfast with expats twice a week. We are taking Spanish lessons for free. We have lived in three totally cool houses. We adopted a street dog. There is a local farmers market twice a month.
Our View is fantastic. We love it.

happy with seeing so many stray animals...daily heartbreak for me. Thank you for adopting!!

That is one thing that many expats volunteer for.

We just had a free clinic last week.

Sounds wonderful down there. We have a friend who’s made several trips to Costa Rica. She’s loved it every time.

and THANKS!

In addition to such dramatic daily happenings, please let us know how day to day life is, including finding necessities and economic matters.

Thanks

Always can ask me more. 😉

happy to stop by to eat from your hand or table!

the boa not so much.

Thanks for sharing LakeArenal.

Also, what was it like buying a car? Shipping household goods from the States?

How is the crime rate? Medical care?

It sounds like a wonderful place to live. I need to check out issues of International Living magazine (free online) which discuss Costa Rica.

The rule is you needs verified income of $1000.
Buying a car is a nightmare. So much so that we shipped our old car. Long... story...
Cars here may be flood damaged vehicles from the U S. Car here are three times the cost here. Our blue book value is $5000.
It cost $11000 to ship here. The state values it at $15000. There are tariffs and taxes and to renew plates slides with value of car. Ours is $600 for the year. If you buy anything big here you need a lawyer.

If you ship personal property be sure to make your inventory complete. If it isn’t clearly stated in the manifest, it may be stolen. Somewhere along the way every box is opened and rifled. Who knows who took my costume jewelry and my mother’s Pyrex mixing bowls. But all I listed was bowls and dishes. And just jewelry. So they leave a few pieces and steal the rest.

There’s no crime here in the mountains. There are crimes of opportunity. If you leave your purse unattended it might get stolen. The real crime is businesses will rip you off if you aren’t careful. I bought a piece of furniture only to see it advertised on a flyer at a discounted price. Things like that.
You have to get residency to get the socialized medicine. Residency application requires a lawyer about $3000 for two and 15 months to three years to get. But lots of folks come here on medical vacations because services are often cheaper than deductibles in U S.
Meds are cheap and for most things don’t need a prescription.

We advise to only half believe what you read in articles and books. Every single person’s experience is their own.

Living here is way different than visiting here. If you come to live make sure you clear your current bank’s position on international living. My Wisconsin bank has been a nightmare of not being told anything when I went in to the bank to inform them of our move. They freeze our accounts, locked our debit cards. Not allowed to wire money to our Costa Rican landlord. It’s been hell and mucho dinero in international calls to get some access to our money.
We opened a new American account in the south so it’s only a couple hour flight if we have to go in person to a bank. Expats are advised to keep an active American account as who knows when trump may get us thrown out of somewhere.

It’s been so hard money and red tape wise that we say if it’s this hard to go back we aren’t ever leaving.

....you may have more neighbors. I could do without the 6ft snake..

Enjoy!

The rain forest where we are is not for everybody.

Just for us. We planned this move for 13 years. We knew exactly where we wanted to be. And bless our heart, we are amazed at how close the actuality is to the dream we planned. 🤞🏼👍🏻👊🏻

I have a bug phobia that goes back to childhood in Hawaii.

Big bugs are a big problem for me. I would honestly rather someone pointed a gun at my head than showed me a giant bug. They terrify me.

The reality is the big bugs are not really a problem. It’s the ants. Bitey ants. There is one kind of ant that waits till about twenty are on you then sends some pheromone and they bite at the same time. You can’t go bare foot and you can never picnic on a blanket or sit in the grass

I hear you about the bugs in Hawaii. Lived in South Kona for several years. Centipedes are the creepiest bugs on the planet, especially when the crawl in bed and bite you.

As well, the constant chirp of the coqui frog can actually reach a decibel level the causes physical pain.

We did see them though.

No it was the giant bugs that we could not keep out of the house. The ones that would crawl into our shoes.

My brother wasn't afraid of them. Used to fling them at us on the lanai.

In Florida we have the same kind of bugs but nowadays there are exterminators that manage to keep them out of the house for the most part.

Anything bigger than what I've already seen is just unacceptable. Some giant bug ever landed on me they would have to put me away.

Our paradise is in Mexico... been here going on five years and still love it.

has for years. They pulled up roots from Mission Viejo, had a house built, and living la vida loca.

They love it 😊 I read the Rosarito Town Crier once in a while. Been decades, but still dream about it.

They go to the US weekly to shop and get their mail so it's close, but not too.

Staying six weeks. Can't wait. Will be quite an experience.

Sounds like you are enjoying Mexico! My friend winters there, stays six months.

how do you manage this situation when you need to pass through the gate?

those boas are probably all around.

The snake slithers away...or not, if it doesn't want to.

People keep them as pets.

I've only been in Costa Rica for a few hours on a stop from a cruise ship and fell in love with it. Hope to get back there some day for real.

The rainforest is not for me. Not a big fan of the tropics.

😁

We made a move to Hawaii Island 6 years ago from the very congested SF Bay Area .

living in the jungle is awesome .. I am really glad to hear you are having a fun Adventure too.

I found out by chance while reading something about a woman who turned out to be their daughter. Not only was I surprised they lived in Costa Rica but that they were still married.

When I was in their classes, she'd recently had her daughter and she and her husband were going through something. Glowering looks across the room, sighs, innuendos dropped like large boots on a wooden floor. She was so beautiful and glamorous in the classroom, and then you saw her in regular clothes and she'd wear hideous polyester pantsuits. It was like she hadn't bothered to shop since the sixties.

I wouldn't like to like in a warm place with large snakes and spiders and things, it would make me too nervous!

Are there red tape issues for a one month rental.

Are there places to avoid? Best places to rent?

Asking for a friend.

Thank you for sharing. Any info will be passed to my friend

But our three places are great.

I think one three bed three bath rents for $1400 a week.

Our second was a two and a half bed three bath. More funky than chic is $700 a week for two.

Our years lease is quite expensive because wanted to settle quickly. It’s $900 for the month. One bedroom one bath. Laundry and my dream veranda or porch. An great Mountain View of the lake. We think next year we might find a two bedroom at more like $650 to $750. We have a dog. Costa Rican’s aren’t much on dogs in the house.

For sharing your experience with all of us. It’s fascinating to hear about your new life.

Your home is amazing and beautiful, but I would not like boa constrictors or huge insects. I freak out if I see a mouse.

I think you two are very brave to do this! May I ask how you decided on Lake Arenal ? Did you vacation there and fall n love with it?

So we started researching. I remembered that anyone who had been here loved it and wanted to stay. So we read books, YouTubed, googled lots about it.
Things that struck us
Mountains view, lake, remote, more birds than anywhere on earth. Mr Lake has a thing for volcanoes.
There was a passage in a book about the variety of ecology in CR. It said something like: “ Or perhaps you would prefer an emerald green spot on a mountain with a view of an active volcano and amazing wildlife all around” I read that to Mr Lake and both of us knew that’s where we would go. In the 13 years of dreaming, the volcano has gone to sleep. Otherwise everything is as we dreamed.

Oh and never take for granted how fortunate we are that both of us have been on the same page since the first idea came to us.

And no. We auctioned off most of our possessions and hoboed it here sight unseen. As Billy Joel’s says “a matter of faith”.

Miss you! 🥰😘😚

Pura Vida, baby❣️ ✌️🦜 ☺️ 🐍 😄 🐕‍🦺 😎 🤗

I took my family last year. Spent time in La Fortuna. We absolutely loved it.

We’ve been a few times. It’s very touristy.
The volcano and thermal springs are awesome.

Grapes, papaya, avocado, apples, oranges...sunflower seeds. Just a bit ago we found out he’s begging from our neighbor too.

The things you learn along the way.

I’m thinking more like Portugal.

The bugs and the snakes aren’t nearly as big.

I'm all for leaving the cold winters.

[link:http://thecrpost.com/2017/10/18/costa-rican-creatures-will-give-nightmares/|

I think the most important thing you said is that you guys spent 13 years planning.

Moving permanently to another country is not to be taken lightly.

I have an acquaintance who moved several years ago to Panama and is very happy there.

Here's what I want to ask. Do you have family back here? Especially children or grandchildren? How often do you expect to get back for a visit?

The friend in Panama is divorced, no kids, and I don't even know if she has living siblings. She's about 75 now. A while back she shared what she paid for a house (I think it's inside a gated community) there, and I was shocked as it was something over $300k, which is significantly more than my modest home in supposedly expensive Santa Fe, and much more than I'll ever be able to afford anywhere. Just as the above rents you quoted struck me as very high.

But the real and probably only thing that matters is that you are very happy there.

My retired brother managed a wind farm. He has assured me that this is just another figment of our resident bird brain in the WH.

Thanks for the thread, great photos, I've been taking a look at Puerto Rico for that age reversal.

I love your post and the thread is great. I'm curious, what do you do for healthcare, especially for accidents or emergency room visit? Did you buy travel insurance until you get residency or some other way?

From what little I saw of the country (when I was sober) it looked pretty impressive.

I'm so Happy for you!

Happy 2020. Next year we will be having quite the celebration.

Two presidents down. How many more will we elect in our life?

amor y abrazos, Chica!

I know the Arenal area fairly well. We are very tempted to move there too. The parrot is a Red-lored and is one of so many parrots species in the area. You will enjoy your new life in CR it's hard not to when the national saying is
Pura Vida! By the way, I grew up with Pizza Ranch and I could never figure out if the one in La Fortuna is a real franchise or a imitation-good either way!

Quite a few are reaching the conclusion that it is time to bail.

It sounds lovely in Costa Rica, and I really enjoyed your sharing a taste of a different life.

I unfortunately missed the financial lifeboat, and it looks like many like myself are doomed to go down with the Trumptanic.