www.CostaRicaTicas.com

PR, having met you last year and having shared a couple of drinks before the Labor Day Party(at the Monkey Bar), I was somewhat "put off" by your seemingly patronizing comments.
Seemed a little out of character for the guy I met.
With that I will pass on telling you what I really think about your comments, and especially what I feel you can do with your recommendations!

I will again say that I personally have seen CRAZINESS on the road to Arenal. I witnessed driving behaviors that left me with very few evasive options to avoid head on collisions. By luck, and by utilizing the extreme shoulder of the road I was able to avoid disasterous collisions,,, more than once.
I shared my thoughts in a gesture of passing on safety tips for the possibilities that do exist. There are some areas of the roadway that have no usable shoulder areas.. I am just plain lucky that the near collisions I experienced did not occur on those areas of the road.
I speak only of these situations from a first person, behind the wheel perspective related specifically to one trip to Arenal by way of San Ramon.
That is all.
El BB

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Lifes already too short, Enjoy it while you can!!

You are mistaken. We have never met. But you will get your chance on Sunday.



Well maybe you just had a particularly bad trip. I drove that road last month and like I said it has its challenges. I remember a tractor trailer negotiating a curve that came over into my lane and sent me off into some gravel on the side of the road. Can happen anywhere. I took a breath and moved on. I can tell you that the mountain road to Jaco is even more challenging. But having said that I don't think anyone should be frightenend to the point of not exploring this paradise of a country by road. Yeah this is no leisurely drive - you need to pay attention. Yeah the roads suck. Yeah, there are twists and turns through mountains - (it's not the desert is it??) Yeah, the ticos drive without the "safety first" priority some(only some) do in the US. Yeah, if something bad happens like an accident it can be more of hassle than in the US. Yeah, center dividers, shoulders and guardrails are virtually non existent. Yeah yeah yeah. I just don't see it's all that big of a deal. For me, having a wheel in my hand and four below me is the best way to soak in this country. It is what it is. Rise up to the challenge or not.

PHX

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Why settle for just one woman when you can enjoy them all?

Hey Phoenix Rising.............

WHATEVER

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Lifes already too short, Enjoy it while you can!!

I've rented from Toyota Rental (they have a location in the city right next to the Toyota dealership and at the Airport). No problems except they didn't want to let me note the nicks and scratches on their damage form before I took the car. I did it anyway but don't think they cared when I returned the car. Nice part was I rented it in the city and returned it at the airport.