My wife and I visited Costa Rica for one month this past February
We stayed for almost a week in each location…Arenal, Quepos(2 days), Osa, Uvita, and Tamarindo.
We went for the warmth and sunshine. CR did not disappoint us with the weather.
The food was good and at times great…although at USA prices. In fact, it seems like the US has exported its inflation to CR. Values for the dollar are few.
The CR people seemed genuinely friendly, but here’s the rub. Everywhere we went the sense of possible theft was disconcerting. It kept a “chill” on the whole trip. For example, many homes had bars on the windows and barbed wire fencing.
Walmart had barbed wire fencing and armed guards with machine guns or rifles. So did the mall at Escazu.
In fact, many stores and places had security guards, gates, guards with guns, and signs warning of possible theft.
It seemed like visitors are welcome targets to scam, steal or take ‘ unsuspecting advantage of ‘…and CR wants to let you know. Police presence is light and seemingly, ineffectual.
We were told by a local expat in Playa Grande that Costa Rica is not the place that it used to be. All the reasons that you might come to expect in Costa Rica have now gone.
It’s now an unfriendly place and if you own a home you can expect a home invasion for sure.
IMO, there is a such a disparity of income between a large lower-middle class and the rich, that the majority of the internet-savvy, young people are discontent and vindictive. I would also include young, street-savvy foreigners who visit and live here as well.
The government may have misguided policies that exacerbate these problems.
This is a developing country with much natural beauty but is far from the paradise that the sound bite “pura vida” attempts to capture. Pura vida is being reduced to a stale marketing concept that has less and less reality to back it up.
We sincerely hope that CR can improve its economy and enact rules of law that will welcome it into the world of civil and healthy societies.
| My wife and I visited Costa Rica for one month this past February. |
We stayed for almost a week in each location…Arenal, Quepos(2 days), Osa, Uvita, and Tamarindo.
We went for the warmth and sunshine. CR did not disappoint us with the weather.
The food was good and at times great…although at USA prices. In fact, it seems like the US has exported its inflation to CR. Values for the dollar are few.
The CR people seemed genuinely friendly, but here’s the rub. Everywhere we went the sense of possible theft was disconcerting. It kept a “chill” on the whole trip. For example, many homes had bars on the windows and barbed wire fencing.
Walmart had barbed wire fencing and armed guards with machine guns or rifles. So did the mall at Escazu.
In fact, many stores and places had security guards, gates, guards with guns, and signs warning of possible theft.
It seemed like visitors are welcome targets to scam, steal or take ‘ unsuspecting advantage of ‘…and CR wants to let you know. Police presence is light and seemingly, ineffectual.
We were told by a local expat in Playa Grande that Costa Rica is not the place that it used to be. All the reasons that you might come to expect in Costa Rica have now gone.
It’s now an unfriendly place and if you own a home you can expect a home invasion for sure.
IMO, there is a such a disparity of income between a large lower-middle class and the rich, that the majority of the internet-savvy, young people are discontent and vindictive. I would also include young, street-savvy foreigners who visit and live here as well.
The government may have misguided policies that exacerbate these problems.
This is a developing country with much natural beauty but is far from the paradise that the sound bite “pura vida” attempts to capture. Pura vida is being reduced to a stale marketing concept that has less and less reality to back it up.
We sincerely hope that CR can improve its economy and enact rules of law that will welcome it into the world of civil and healthy societies.
| My wife and I visited Costa Rica for one month this past February. |
We stayed for almost a week in each location…Arenal, Quepos(2 days), Osa, Uvita, and Tamarindo.
We went for the warmth and sunshine. CR did not disappoint us with the weather.
The food was good and at times great…although at USA prices. In fact, it seems like the US has exported its inflation to CR. Values for the dollar are few.
The CR people seemed genuinely friendly, but here’s the rub. Everywhere we went the sense of possible theft was disconcerting. It kept a “chill” on the whole trip. For example, many homes had bars on the windows and barbed wire fencing.
Walmart had barbed wire fencing and armed guards with machine guns or rifles. So did the mall at Escazu.
In fact, many stores and places had security guards, gates, guards with guns, and signs warning of possible theft.
It seemed like visitors are welcome targets to scam, steal or take ‘ unsuspecting advantage of ‘…and CR wants to let you know. Police presence is light and seemingly, ineffectual.
We were told by a local expat in Playa Grande that Costa Rica is not the place that it used to be. All the reasons that you might come to expect in Costa Rica have now gone.
It’s now an unfriendly place and if you own a home you can expect a home invasion for sure.
IMO, there is a such a disparity of income between a large lower-middle class and the rich, that the majority of the internet-savvy, young people are discontent and vindictive. I would also include young, street-savvy foreigners who visit and live here as well.
The government may have misguided policies that exacerbate these problems.
This is a developing country with much natural beauty but is far from the paradise that the sound bite “pura vida” attempts to capture. Pura vida is being reduced to a stale marketing concept that has less and less reality to back it up.
We sincerely hope that CR can improve its economy and enact rules of law that will welcome it into the world of civil and healthy societies.
| My wife and I visited Costa Rica for one month this past February. |
We stayed for almost a week in each location…Arenal, Quepos(2 days), Osa, Uvita, and Tamarindo.
We went for the warmth and sunshine. CR did not disappoint us with the weather.
The food was good and at times great…although at USA prices. In fact, it seems like the US has exported its inflation to CR. Values for the dollar are few.
The CR people seemed genuinely friendly, but here’s the rub. Everywhere we went the sense of possible theft was disconcerting. It kept a “chill” on the whole trip. For example, many homes had bars on the windows and barbed wire fencing.
Walmart had barbed wire fencing and armed guards with machine guns or rifles. So did the mall at Escazu.
In fact, many stores and places had security guards, gates, guards with guns, and signs warning of possible theft.
It seemed like visitors are welcome targets to scam, steal or take ‘ unsuspecting advantage of ‘…and CR wants to let you know. Police presence is light and seemingly, ineffectual.
We were told by a local expat in Playa Grande that Costa Rica is not the place that it used to be. All the reasons that you might come to expect in Costa Rica have now gone.
It’s now an unfriendly place and if you own a home you can expect a home invasion for sure.
IMO, there is a such a disparity of income between a large lower-middle class and the rich, that the majority of the internet-savvy, young people are discontent and vindictive. I would also include young, street-savvy foreigners who visit and live here as well.
The government may have misguided policies that exacerbate these problems.
This is a developing country with much natural beauty but is far from the paradise that the sound bite “pura vida” attempts to capture. Pura vida is being reduced to a stale marketing concept that has less and less reality to back it up.
We sincerely hope that CR can improve its economy and enact rules of law that will welcome it into the world of civil and healthy societies.
