www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Hello all, just wanted to share some of my experiences and see if anyone else has had similar observations.

I was in San Jose a few weeks back and stayed 2 nights at the HDR. It was my first stay at the Del Rey, having stayed at the Presidente and Hotel Colonial on previous visits. Nice Hotel! and the food downstairs is good and reasonably priced.

I planned my trip so that I'd be able to partake in strictly "gulch" activities for 2 days and then I was off to Manuel Antonio with my main Tica squeeze. I have to say that I was very disappointed!!

This was definitely not the same experience I had back 1 1/2 - 2 years ago! The girls were very unenthusiastic, mainly business only and were not as outgoing as on my last trip.

Case in point: Zona Blue. This is no lie: 9 out of 10 girls there looked like they just lost their best friend and could use some Prozac! The VAST majority looked like they were chained there against their will and looked depressed. It was a sad sight!!
I had a bad experience with one of the Ticas who even though she started off with a BBBJ she had to finish me off with a plain old "hand release" because she was so robotic and unemotional that I just could not get excited about it. I would have been better off staying at the HDR and servicing myself!! She deserved no tip and did not get one! She was more concerned with getting out of the room to eat her Chinese food.
I even gave ZB a 2nd chance the following day and was greeted with fresh faces but the same bad attitudes. Girls who looked like they did not want to be there and gave the appearance that they were forced into working there. That is not sexy! My last trip was nothing like this. Almost all the girls were energetic, friendly, and engaging, and I had nothing but great experiences!! I actually met my Tica main squeeze there!
Maybe these girls are overworked... Whatever the reason, something needs to change or they are going to lose a lot of business. Nobody wants a bunch of depressed looking, unenthusiastic ticas to choose from!

I had an even worse experience at New Fantasy. 15-20 chanchas gorditas (fat pigs) sitting around a TV with blank stares, also looking as depressed as hell! I walked out feeling disappointed. I was not going to choose one of these girls who did not want to be there in the first place. It is a guaranteed poor experience waiting to happen.

Even Del Rey was not the same. The girls I experienced seemed enthusiastic at first, but once their clothes were off they became robotic and I could easily see through their act, which was to perform quickly and get their money. I had a 2 girl experience and despite that, they had to finish me off by hand also! By the way, this never happens to me! My last visit I scored about a dozen Ticas and 10 were GREAT experiences! 2 were so-so and NONE were bad.
This trip I was 0 for 4! Very disappointing. Needless to say I will not be returning to C.R. for "gulch activities" anytime soon!

Costa Rica is a great country with a lot to offer and to me, the Gulch has completely lost it's appeal and allure... My next mongering activities will be elsewhere, maybe So. America.

I can't be the only one who noticed these changes!! I want to hear about other guys experiences here!

To me this is a distinct, noticeable change in the mood/atmosphere especially at the M.P.'s. Maybe the ticas have had enough of rude, unappreciative, dirty gringos, because that is certainly the way they made me feel.

I've made about 10 month long trips to San Jose over the past 5 years. On each trip, there have been good experiences and there have been bad experiences. I can't honestly say that anything has really changed, except possibly me.....after each trip, I'm a little wiser and know how to avoid a lot of the pitfalls.....which comes in handy during future trips.

Zebra

Guess I should have read your post before voting since I do agree that some MP experiences are not what they used to be, for whatever reasons. However ZB and NF are not the entire "gulch" experience and my pulling from HDR is no worse than a few years ago in fact it's better, probably since I've gotten better at following my instinct, negotiating, keeping contacts with some regulars and learning to spot & pick the gems.
Somebody's always complaining about bad attitudes, lousy selection and prices going up but other than being noticable at a few gulch mp's I've yet to have a lousy time or pay much more than I was a few years ago. ymmv.

_________________

Living well is the best revenge
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwUtj_YnNoY

Or MAYBE just maybe it isn't the Gulch that is changing so much as your perception of it. Sure, the Gulch has changed somewhat in the half dozen or so plus years that I have been going to it. For one thing, ZB and NF weren't even around when I started going there. However, I think it is a somewhat harder stretch to suggest that things have changed THAT much in just a little over the past year. I think a lot of what you're describing has been around for quite some time and, though it MAY have gotten a little worse during the past year, more likely you're just starting to notice things you didn't before, now that the novelty has worn off for you and you're seeing things more clearly.

Despite all that being said, I'm with you Bro! I think you should check out Paco's "Get out of the Gulch..." post and my response to it. He was saying the exact OPPOSITE of what you and I are saying. That the country ITSELF now bores him, and the more he goes to CR the more he focuses JUST on mongering in the Gulch (and its immediate environs). I may be unusual (shit, I'm definitely a bit strange, but that is another story), but it has never been all about mongering that has drawn me to CR. If all you want to do is monger there are DEFINITELY much better countries for that if you're willing to open your horizons. Like many fellow mongers, I enjoy (and still enjoy) everything ELSE that CR has to offer. For me the mongering is just icing on the cake. If I WERE to get tired of ALL that other stuff, then the mongering in the Gulch by itself would certainly not be enough to keep me coming back. The Gulch is a great "sandbox" for beginning international mongerers or for those who enjoy other aspects of the country. Most EXPERIENCED mongers that I know have moved on to greener better pastures.

I am not an MP type of guy. I do independents almost exclusively. That being said, I saw the same attitude at the MPs a year ago. It seems to me that often, the girls sitting in the bar at ZB are the "leftovers". The lively performers are busy.

I also think that a lot of the chicas attitude is a mirror of our own: If we are expecting bored girls, and look bored ourselves, that is what we are going to get! Case in point: I took a few guys who had never been to ZB. The place was full enough that we had to go upstairs to find a place where we could sit. The guys were complaining that they had seen a more lively crowd at a wake! This was not just the girls, the guys that were there looked like a hangover convention as well.

There were probably a dozen girls there but they were content to sit and stare or talk amongst themselves. Just to see if I could livin the place up, I took out a $1000 colone note and fluttered it down to the girls. Bedlam! Unbelievable! The girls started dancing and making all kinds of noise and flashing their stuff as we slowly rained pinks down from above.

For guys that were used to putting a dollar on the rail while sitting at the meat rack back home, this was some very cheap entertainment. The difference that a few dollars and some encouragement made was phenomenal.

Another case in point: I was sitting in SL having dinner one night when a guy I had mete earlier in the week sat down and started complaining about the attitude and quality he was seeing at the Del Rey. He said mopst of the girls were acting like zombies, just making the stroll. I was headed to the Del Rey later so I invited him to join me.

We got to the Del Rey and found a seat in the Lobby bar for a cappuccino and to scope out the scene. I have sessions with several of the upper tier girls in the DR and soon we were welcomed by one after another of "my girls". Soon, we were joking around with them and were really enjoying ourselves, flirting with the girls. Soon, my buddy made a selection and vanished for the evening.

The next day I saw him at breakfast. He said he was amazed at the difference in the girl's attitude as compared with his previous visit. He was quick enough that he realized the difference was caused by our attitudes: we were there to have fun and were smiling and flirting, not sitting over our drinks with long faces, watching the bored girls make their stroll.

I really think it is what you make it. If you are in a good mood and are ready to party, there are plenty of girls who are anxious to play. If you look like you stepped on your favorite puppy they pick up on that and reflect your attitude back at you. Just my opinion...

_________________
"Your love gives me such a thrill
but your love don't pay my bills,
I NEED THE MONEY!" - John Lee Hooker

Disclaimer: The above is merely the opinion of the author unless specific scientific data is included.
Your mileage may vary. https://costaricaticas.com/phpBB2/viewto ... 978#206978

My vote was NO!

Without rereading the first post, it seems that it was about the big three Gringo haunts HDR, ZB, and NF. Just as there is much more to CR than the gulch, there is much more to the gulch than these three Gringo haunts. It does not surprise me that if one only took these three places as examples that CR would seem to be less than it was before.

Attitude, as always, will guide your experiences. You are always only one thought away from being whatever you choose to think that you are. If the thought you are thinking now is not serving your highest thought about self, change that thought immediately.

_________________
It's not the size of the wand that put the rabbit in the hat, it's the magic in it!!!

Pac55,

I could not agree more with you. Or as they say, "No matter where you go, there you are."

It's all about attitude. While no doubt, there are things, people and situations I can't control, I can usually exercise some control over how I choose to feel about them. This is true of life, generally.

Consequently, when I am in the Gulch, I'm there to enjoy myself, and I almost always do so. Now Pac, if you will just throw some of that cash my way.....


Ciaociao

Cash...what cash? I am sitting here in the USA with a house, three boats and a truck on the market and no takers. Cash is what I ain't got...

_________________
"Your love gives me such a thrill
but your love don't pay my bills,
I NEED THE MONEY!" - John Lee Hooker

Disclaimer: The above is merely the opinion of the author unless specific scientific data is included.
Your mileage may vary. https://costaricaticas.com/phpBB2/viewto ... 978#206978

I could not agree with this more. As have also posted about this phenomenon. I have been to ZB multiple times when it was sleepy. Spreading a few colones around really does wake the girls up and make the place lively and fun. Once time I was standing at the end of the bar talking to Daisy late in the day....she seemed tired and listless. Once of the girls who I have massed before said that Daisy needed a massage. I rubbed her neck, shoulders, and back, and she melted at first and then started moaning like she was having an orgasm. The girls sprang to live and within maybe a minute or two, the place went for dull to a lively party atmosphere with the chicas cheering, laughing, and playing with each other.

I think it was MG who responded to a post in which I encouraged people to make some effort to change the mood at ZB, and he said that the customer should not have to create the mood. I agree, but if you walk into such a place, get pissed that the chicas are bored, and then you leave, you are still in CR and not in Rio. Even if it is not the customer's responsibility to liven the place up, the customer does have that ability if he takes it, and that little bit of effort will go a long way.

Thanks for the response Prolijo, and also thank you to everyone else who has shared their thoughts and experiences.
You are right, I believe that my perception has changed and that I am noticing things that I didn't notice before. Also, I know that there are other MP's, Bars than the most popular DR, ZB, and NF, but they are just more of the same; only that the gringo haunts are supposed to offer the best quality which is why I went there.

I agree with what has been said about your own attitude reflecting back on you, I am acutely aware of that. I also appreciate the story of dropping 1K colones bills down from the balcony at ZB. Sure, attitude can change in an instant, and maybe these girls just need someone to liven up the atmosphere a bit, but I'm an easy going, fun guy anyway and I shouldn't have to figure out a way to "liven up the party"! It is their job to be lively because the more playful and happy they are, the more business they will get. That is what I don't understand. It was as if they didn't want guys to approach them.

Whatever, it is all water under the bridge. Like Prolijo said earlier, I agree that the gulch is just "icing on the cake" of what the entire country of C.R. has to offer. Anyone who appreciates nature and wildlife cannot deny this. There is so much natural beauty to be seen there and you could take 3 trips a year for the next 10 years and not have seen all there is to see!

I'm not trying to spoil the C.R. mongering experience for anyone because it is a great place and I have experienced great times there (the gulch) myself, but I believe as with anything, that it gets stale with time and one needs to broaden their horizons. To me that's what life is all about anyway: New experiences and broadening horizons.

That's all very true, but I think the difference you see is that between the "party" girls who are lively and flirtatious and either newer/shy girls and those who rarely get work. When I have been in ZB, and when one of the popular girls gets back from a customer, she often interacts, flirts, etc. with the customers but is gone soon - so her attitude does not stick with the other girls. I can see where the bored girls might feel like since they don't get picked much, why bother trying to put on a party act all day...one the other hand, if they don't put on the act, they won't get picked much....so there is also very much the "chicken and the egg" syndrome here.....and like we have observed with this chicas in so many other ways, they don't seem to have very good business sense with regard to treating customers and potential customers well in order to secure repeat business. Chicas failing to be bubbly in the bar is much like chicas in the room trying to get the session over with as soon as possible of the independents trying to grub as much money as possible with no eye for the future...

While that may be true of any locale, the interaction of men and women never gets old to me.

_________________
"Your love gives me such a thrill
but your love don't pay my bills,
I NEED THE MONEY!" - John Lee Hooker

Disclaimer: The above is merely the opinion of the author unless specific scientific data is included.
Your mileage may vary. https://costaricaticas.com/phpBB2/viewto ... 978#206978

I like your logic Pac. You have to pace yourself to really enjoy yourself and have the energy to have the fun. Seen many posters who go hog wild non stop for 24 hrs. + with all the girls, booze, smokes, drugs, gambling etc. and it really is sensory overload. Even if only you are only there for 2 days better to have 2 good days than one totally high day with downer 2nd day. Is very similar to drugs habit.

I think these girls would totally love even 75+ y/o man if he could perform. To do that he has to have balance in life and not take in to harsh of substances too often and work out.

I absolutely hate it when I'm so tired I can't perform. And is mostly my fault from doing to much touristy crap and/or discoteca/drinkie til late.

I visited San Jose last March, my 7th trip since 2005.

I was in the Zona and I liked it. I'm an older guy in my 50's but bought drinks flirted and chatted with all the young chicas. They were all smiles , joking. It was quite relaxing and pleasant even though I didn't take one of them up. My old friend ( 26) showed up and we left together.

If you want even more lively animo try the Key Largo.


Wayne

YO Anderil:

I do not think that because you had this bad experience on your last trip qualifies the view that the gulch, i.e. CR is no longer an attractive mongering destination. It's been my experience as well as others here that not every trip is great and the talent and mood changes periodically....shit, sometimes daily. You definite need a few more trips under your belt before you write CR off of your agenda. Besides, you have had a very short history of travel to this place some have termed "OZ." Remember this.....the less history you have here the more your will find it inviting. And above everything else....look for the positives and don't let one trip or two screw with our mind.

With that being said.....you have encountered what perhaps a number of frequent and longer time mongers have found. In general, the women and their attitudes have definitely changed. There are many reasons but primarily it is due to the influx of other nationalities in the sex trade and also due to the increase of men seeking sex in CR. Crime has followed and flourished making things a bit more dicey in the street and shadows of the gulch.

A number of the well known members here have a history of at least seven or eight years experience in CR and they have certainly seen the changes in this once little gem south of the border. Then there are those who go back into the nineties that definitely have seen a radical change. And then there are a hand full like myself that have several decades of of visiting CR and no longer recognize the darnn place. We just make due with what we have.

Then again, my sperm count back in 71' was in the millions. Unfortunately, now I would I would be hard pressed to throw a block party. Things change, we change and time goes on.......Shit, now I'm depressed at 8 am on a Sunday morning. I need a drink.

_________________
Damn if I'm going to repeat this shit again. I need a drink.
I've been drinking vodka every day for 45 years and I have certainly never found it to be habit forming.