www.CostaRicaTicas.com

El Viejo,
Plans already in place. Bringing nothing but clothes. House is up for sale. Storing enough furniture and household goods in case I change my mind. Plan on doing 90 days first time. If everything O.K. I'll sell what I have stored. and my car. Like you said , if I want to later on I can try Colombia or other places. Will use my 90 day Visa Vacation to visit family in the states or check out new sites. Have a friend who has offered me a place to stay for the first 90 days. Split the expenses and then I'll have a chance to make up my mind. It can't come too soon.

Gris Lobo
hold on to your home base in the states you will need it for several years even if you move
Have you ever been through the rain season mucho lluvia

Never mind the rainy season in CR. Having a home base however small is worth it's weight in gold. Never give up a small escape pad at home in case paradise turns out not to be paradise.

_________________
Providing humanitarian assistance to self employed chicas, one cash grant at a time.

The functional definition of "addiction" is any substance (drugs, alcohol) or activity (sex, gambling) that has a negative impact on any of the following: Liver, lover, livelihood or the law.

If your C.R. activities harm your health ("liver") or cause problems with a spouse ("lover), if you're going into debt or risking loss of your job ("livelihood") or if you get caught stealing/embezzling to get the money you need to get to C.R. (the law"), you have a problem. All kidding aside. I in fact have pissed off my S.O. and have gone into debt to get down to San Jose to partake. I guess that means that functionally, I have a C.R. addiction.

OTOH, if you're just way into it, enthusiastic about your trips etc. it might just be a habit. Aside from the four L's above, ask yourself the following:

1. Does post-trip depression/longing cause loss of sleep, appetite or causes mood changes?

2. Are you having trouble sleeping? BTW, this may be because of a persistent hard-on, which leaves no extra skin for eyelids...thus the eyes stay wide open.

3. Do you find yourself keying in on Spanish conversations around you? Do you watch Telemundo or Univision even if you don't speak Spanish, just to see some latina cleavage?

4. Have you renamed your savings account "my Costa Rica fund?"

5. Do you visit CRT, Club Hombre or any other mongering sites more than once per day?

6. Do you buy clothing with C.R. trips in mind, rather than choosing clothing suitable for your work?

7. Do you secretly envy Pacifica55, Bang Bang 57, BKTuna, Chi Trekker, LivinCR or any of the other guys who are now residents of SJ? More importantly, are you buying voodoo dolls of these gentlemen and then sticking the pins....well, you know where?

8. Have you added rice and black beans to your diet? Rice and red beans? Ceviche? Salsa Lisano?

9. Do gringas suddenly appear as hallucinations of flesh-colored Barney the Dinosaur? Or worse, Fred Flintstone? Or worse, Hilary Clinton?


10. Have you decided that the smells of high-sulphur diesel fuel and good cigars are very pleasant smells when inhaled in combination with cheap perfume?

If the answer to any of the Four L. questions, or any of the ten other points above is "yes," you may have a problem.

The only cure for this addiction is either castration (rather extreme, don't you think?) or better, buying a ticket back to C.R. as quickly as is humanly possible!

_________________
Pura Vulva! Wandering through the dark, I am El Ciego.

I answered yes to 6-7 of the above. Oh well...

_________________
Providing humanitarian assistance to self employed chicas, one cash grant at a time.

Hey, thanks, El C. The voodoo doll sales are skyrocketing!

_________________
"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

guys, I'm not completely crazy. I've got less than 3 mos to retirement. no significant other. Been divorced for 37 yrs. I've been checking out places for several years, trying to find out where my retirement will go the farthest. My adult Ch*ldren live far away. One 500 miles, one 1200 miles. Nothing to tie me down. My oldest knows I love to travel and wants me to use her place as a base. Costa Rica meets most of my requirements. Figure I have nothing to loose. Can't see paying for one place in the States and one somewhere else. If I give up on CR I can always buy something new back here. I had no intention of staying where I was anyway.

Man I got to love you
All the ducks in a row
Who would not like to get out of Ohio or anywhere for that matter
Plus you got an exit plan and a US address
Read all the girlfriend section front to back
Pura Vida

Blending in, Ya right.
But that said what about buying shirts and pants that would be more "tico"
Like I can blend as a 50 yrs freckled (pecas ? ) american.
Ideas, ???? costs ??
Tampa

Learn Spanish and you won't have to blend in. We can change looking like gringos but if we can speak their language it won't make us feel like one.


Cujo

_________________
"Pain is the fuel that fans the flames of my pyre. A battle plan is only as good as the general carrying it out on the field. This is my war son, and I have the biggest bombs and the smallest conscience"...

it had to go

I answered yes to only two. Guess I'm not addicted.

_________________
[url=http://www.amishrakefight.org/gfy/]

don't call me Ted

Greywolf, since you will soon be free to be a citizen of the world, don't tie yourself to just one place. Try CR for the duration of your 90 vis stamp and then leave for a while to try some other place. Lima is interesting as are other places.

_________________
Providing humanitarian assistance to self employed chicas, one cash grant at a time.

Yes EV, absolutely! I strongly agree. If I were free and unencumbered, and had the financial ability to do so, I'd surely explore other options beyond C.R. On my "bucket list:"

* Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia

* San Miguel de Allende, Mexico

* Ghana (Africa)

* Small cities all over Latin America.

* Fukit, Pataya and northern Thailand, Chiang Mai

* Rural Spain

* Moldova

* The Vatican (just kidding).


There are many places where a guy could retire less expensively than C.R., and many of them have prostitutes.

I've said this before: Availability of paid sexual partners is a lousy reason to solely make your decision. Climate, crime, quality and cost of living, ease of access to the modern world and/or to home if you get stuck are all important. Mexico gets a bad rap from some guys who only know the border towns, but gusy who have traveled more frequently to Mexico's interior often have quite a different view. Stretch out, explore! And Lobo Gris.... buena suerte con tu jubilacion (retirement).

_________________
Pura Vulva! Wandering through the dark, I am El Ciego.