www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Good luck Pops. Hope you have a speedy recovery! I'm sure you'll have no problem finding a pretty chica to take care of you and give you the obligatory "sponge bath" every day! See ya on my next trip!

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You ALWAYS have an option ....... "NEXT" !!!

I'm glad to hear that he's going to be ok! Get well soon Pops!

noticed that the very first day i walked from SL to ZB. even when you know how to read the lights that really doesn't mean a thing. especially if you follow the foot traffic. its more frightening in europe when the traffic drives on opposite sides of the road but this is still pretty chilling.
i have been in taxis twice when they have zipped by peds and hit them with their mirrors. thats a fraction away from being sent airborne.

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im way deep into nothing special
riding the crest of a wave breaking just west of hollywood

que te mejores pronto, Pops-aqua

UPDATE - Pops was operated on last night - the operation was a success but he's still in recovery under observation.

The following was posted by Orange, LaDiablo and SantasBro in rover's "Pops Report" thread - I'm reposting it here:



mh

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mh

Pops is one tough MF.
He can be my wingman anytime!
Get well soon pops.

It's open season on pedestrians here. It's not discriminatory either, drivers are just as prone to run down or almost run down ticos as gringos. I look both ways on one way streets, and look over my shoulder when crossing a street in case someone is making a Grand Prix style turn while they burn rubber. This is why I don't like to walk at night since it's even worse at night. Today I was on a bus and I swear it seemed like he would haul ass whenever he saw pedestrians crossing the street.

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Man I'm living life like a great white shark swimming with minnows! It's all about panocha, great scotch, fine cigars, loud-ass rock music and speed, speed, speed - plus spending as much time as possible in paradise on earth, Costa Rica!

Good luck Pops, wishing you a speedy and complete recovery.

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"Buy the ticket, take the ride." --Hunter S. Thompson

My CR veteran friend had told me that he learned from 'watching the dogs'......to cross the street in the middle area, between intersections.

I've had several real close calls. Be extra vigilant when crossing a street where traffic is backed up and not moving. You could make it to the center of the two lane street and encounter a motorcycle speeding down thru the middle between the two rows of cars that are not moving.

UPDATE: Pops is out of recovery. Operation was a success, he's already getting physical theraphy, and they tell him he'll be home by Tuesday or Wednesday.

Orange, Pops was very touched when he heard about your collection. "It's good to know I have friends who care about me", he said.

mh

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mh

Get Well Soon Pops!

It is the same challenge in Medellin to avoid getting run over. I was actually run over by a motorcycle in the end of August while crossing the street at 11:30 in the morning. I was knocked unconscious & woke up on the side of the street with 20 people staring down at me. My good friend Felipe was apparently trying to wake me for 15 minutes but I was out cold. At one point someone was screaming that EL GRINGO is DEAD......

I ended up being taken to the hospital by ambulance. Lost some teeth have a lot of scars on my hands, knees, and feet to show for the incident but luckily I received excellent care at a local Medellin Hospital & all my bills were covered by SOAT (Insurance for Drivers in Colombia).

Obviously I am super vigilant crossing the street in Medellin & I even look in both directions when I cross a one-way street because you just never know!!

At first I was doing like the ticos and crossing between intersections when traffic was backed up. After only one close call with a motorcycle flying like a bat out of hell between the lanes while traffic was backed up convinced me to cross at intersections when the light is RED RED RED!

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Man I'm living life like a great white shark swimming with minnows! It's all about panocha, great scotch, fine cigars, loud-ass rock music and speed, speed, speed - plus spending as much time as possible in paradise on earth, Costa Rica!

I don't have an experience like yours, however, I was clipped by a mirror while walking down the hill to Parque Principal last week. A one-way street runs down the hill with two lanes... one for traffic and one for parking. I was walking hand-in-hand with la senora in the parking lane. When I was struck, it didn't hurt, or even leave a mark, but it was a wake-up call. The young girl driving the SUV stopped to see if I was OK... and then offered an apology. I didn't fly off the handle, but I let her know I was pissed.

Three years ago, I witnessed an unbelievable pedestrian accident in the Santa Monica neighborhood of Medellin. While sitting on the second-floor balcony of a friend's house, I watched a guy, dressed in motorcycle garb, crossing the street at a four-way stop intersection. As he approached the middle of the street, a car ran the stop sign and plowed right over him. When the car finally came to a halt, all we could see were two legs sticking out from under the front-end. We were sure he was dead. A handful of bystanders immediately gathered around the car... and 30 seconds later there was a collective expression of shock. The pedestrian was moving his legs and talking. Two guys helped him out from under the car, and within a minute or two, the guy was back on his feet. He was pretty shaken up, scraped and bruised, but otherwise OK. I bet he went to church right after he got home and cleaned himself up. This guy definitely escaped the dark side of fate.

It sounds like you cheated the grim reaper as well, MP.

Yeah.....it's dangerous no matter what you do. You have to use extreme caution.

I've walked across non-moving traffic in the street, and had the ticos rev up their engines as I passed in front of their cars. Must be some kind of a 'gringo hater' type thing.

Here is my tip of the day and I use it all the time in Costa Rica. When waiting to cross an intersection position yourself beside a Tica or Tico so that they are between you and the traffic. Cross when they do if you feel it is OK so if anyone gets hit it will be them instead of you. I have been doing this for years. Also be careful on parade days because they sometimes reverse one way streets. I believe Chris the tennis pro was hit by a bus that was going the wrong way on a parade day. He had no reason to look in the bus direction. Lucky the driver did not hit him hard. OK Thats my tip of the day.Uncle , H.