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PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2012 1:07 pm 
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Location: Sabana Oeste , Costa Rica
It has become very common on this board to tell stories of how Ticos are out to screw the gringo and how dishonest the entire population of the country. What's forgotten is most of the posters here have never been more then a couple of kilometers outside of the gulch. Well the gulch is no different then the red zone of any city in the world. You are not going to meet many upstanding citizens but rather a group of characters and con men who will screw you anyway they can.

This is a posting from the Yahoo group "Costa Rica Living". Is is not an unusual one there have been many others that relate to the honesty and helpfulness of Ticos to gringos. The point here is do not judge the country by what you observe in the zona roja.

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So, my family and I are currently in Costa Rica. Been here a week--attended the ARCR seminar and leave next Wednesday. This is not our first trip to Costa Rica. Our plan was to turn in our residency documents this trip, and wait stateside for our application to be processed. We're in no particular hurry.

We have spent all Summer gathering documents from two continents and various states. Police reports, birth certificates, yada yada. We made careful plans so that our trip coincided with the ARCR seminar, which is held the last Thursday and Friday of every month (except December).

We have been working with a CR Lawyer for the past year on gathering our documents, and such because our situation is a little different from most. Anyway, documents gathered, we traveled a week ago Wednesday, my husband, myself and our two little girls, ages 6 and 8 (we are late in life parents). Trip went fine. We attended the seminar, that went fine...except that my husband...who is a little, shall we say "absent minded" kept leaving his wallet/bag in places (once in the hotel room after we had checked out, once in a guides car). He would get completely panicked about it and eventually it would turn up.

We have done all the things we needed to do (application stamps and Banco National, American Embassy Notary, and today, total fiasco for finger prints at the police station).

During the fiasco, from car to building (50 yards--maybe?) he must have dropped his bag..and not noticed it for about 5 minutes. He walked back to the car...no bag. Completely panicked...I thought he was going to have a heart attack...literally...but because of the fiasco at the Police Station, we could not leave. Eventually, we finished with finger printing and our guide drove us back to Heredia to our hotel. We spent several hours cancelling his credit cards and figuring out financial arrangements.

After that was done we went to the Attorney's office to sign a power of attorney and turn in our documents (we got an A+ on document gathering and Apostille application). We then returned to Heredia...it was about 4pm and I thought that I would write an email to the US consulate, just in case (Yeah right) the wallet was turned in to the embassy. His Idaho Driver's license would identify him as a possible US citizen.

I had very little hope that I would even get a return email. We took the K*ds to dinner and returned just after 9 tonight. I checked my email for work related issues, and there was an email from the consulate. One Line: "Your wallet was turned in to the consulate." Yahooo! No matter what anyone says about this country, no matter if the few colones in the wallet are there or not, no matter we cancelled the credit cards already, I LOVE THIS COUNTRY. We probably will never know the path the wallet took to get there...or maybe we will...we will pick it up on Monday. But someone found it...probably took it to the police station and they probably sent it to the consulate. That would never happen in the US state in which we live.
I am sure there will be much that will frustrate and challenge us here...if anyone wants to hear my finger print story, I'll be happy to share...but my faith in humanity has been bolstered by this event.


While this story is not unusual there are off course situations were Ticos will not be so honest. Costa Rica is no different then any country in the world. There are good people and there are bad people just do not let your impression of the country be set by what you observe in the gulch.

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PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2012 9:51 pm 
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You just KNOW it is bad when people have to post something when something good or let's call it normal happens. This is a story just because it doesn't happen much here.


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PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2012 9:56 pm 
PHD From Del Rey University!
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Devocr wrote:
You just KNOW it is bad when people have to post something when something good or let's call it normal happens. This is a story just because it doesn't happen much here.


Guess you are to use to political advertising and most likely really believe it is accurate. :roll:

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PostPosted: Sun Sep 09, 2012 12:16 am 
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http://youtu.be/lMLgOyPyGak


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PostPosted: Sun Sep 09, 2012 7:16 pm 
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Greengo, with that little serenade we gotta meet ya, you name the time and place, hopefully in this time warp. :shock:
Regards, 911 Driver

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PostPosted: Sun Sep 09, 2012 8:07 pm 
PHD From Del Rey University!

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And you get out of the city completely and the people are really different. I like to get away when I can to Atenas, was just there this weekend. Folks there are much like they are in a small town like where I come from. Very nice and helpful, basically good neighbors. I find this a lot in many rural areas here. And as ID said, outside the gulch is a lot more normalcy than one would think when the gulch is their point of reference. Then again I'm a prejudiced person. In that I don't like gringos so much. :D


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PostPosted: Sun Sep 09, 2012 8:13 pm 
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911 Driver wrote:
Greengo, with that little serenade we gotta meet ya, you name the time and place, hopefully in this time warp. :shock:
Regards, 911 Driver



Post if you do meet him - this is a guy who never responds to posts, so I would not hold my breath waiting to meet him - in fact, has anyone ever met - or even seen the guy???? I'd honestly be curious.

As to the theme of the thread.....since I live in S FL, the scam capital of the world, I'll admit my bar is set a little low as to the honesty and courtesy of others :roll: :shock: :roll: - but as a visitor, for 15 years, I find the ticos some of the nicest, honest, most polite people (as a general rule; some cab drivers don't fit that profile :lol: :roll: :lol: ) I have ever encountered - OTOH, I've heard many horror stories of gringos being screwed by other gringos in CR.

I'm 100% against "blaming the victim" - but some just beg to be screwed; either by not doing their homework, ot being naieve (sp??) - or just dumb.

Also agree completely w/ Thirdworld, ID, and others who post that the Gulch is a jaded picture of an otherwise beautiful, safe country - sad thing is there are many "experts" (so called :o :shock: :lol: - some even on this board :shock: ) who's perspective, knowledge, and experience is based on a few block radius of the Del Rey :)


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PostPosted: Sun Sep 09, 2012 9:08 pm 
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You are absolutely right Scuba1, don't blame the majority for the actions of a few rotten apples.

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PostPosted: Sun Sep 09, 2012 9:17 pm 
PHD From Del Rey University!
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Really, are we gonna have to go with unfinished cognac and roses. :?: :?: :lol: :lol:
Regards, 911 Driver

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PostPosted: Wed Sep 12, 2012 1:29 pm 
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Location: NFM--Geezers, cowpokes and the working poor--yeeha!
Greengo wrote:
is this it? is this all there is? :lol:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCRZZC-DH7M << Peggy Lee
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEVawR2VtDM << Los Lobos

These folks are going up the country
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxW3Ed7GrhQ << Kitty Daisy & Lewis

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PostPosted: Wed Sep 12, 2012 1:57 pm 
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Greengo wrote:
saw the heat at the new filmore in sf...goin down to the country was the biggie.melanie lost her key ..and carlos was just playing a few simple chord solos...these were pre mesa boogie gigs..credence was playing debutante balls ..janis was rapier thin ..jimi was playing a white les paul in the tiny matrix basement..with lonnie youngblood...bear reminds me of big emily(really big)...leon russels main squeeze... dancing and rolling biscuits.. in the kitchen ..in macon...in the 70s..he probly weighed 150 soaking wet and way old aready ..she was at least 280 without a stitch...laying around the studio while alex taylor..james brother is recording an old blues ..im gonna burn down the cornfield..over and over ..for hours...im jamming with albert in mobile in bullshead...at the unpainted tin roof concrete block ..harlem duke social club..later that night ..i drive the bus nonstop to iuka..my bud following us in my bora... sat with skippy in the 60s .. showed me the variation for washington dc blues.. sitting with a plate of grapes and cheese in the buffet room in mobile while the stones and stevey wonder are playing..you know who comes in ..is doing some stretching and warming up..adjusting the sock he just put in his pants..looks over at us and asks his security to tell us to leave..i stand up .... .both lookupatme .both turn red...ask them to please leave..yes amigos ..that historic bulge is 100 per cent pure cotton..im standing outside grants lounge..a hyper slim greg walks out..jeans tailored skin tight on what looks like a couple of ounces of meat on a set of femurs ..kicks over a triumph chopper ..had to have at least 12 to one compression..warms it up for like 3 seconds..peels off the sidewalk onto the street wide open..sidways ..still wide open ..its three fouths of a block to the light..hes still wide open no helmet ..goes thru the red light at least 90... ..a microsecond later two taxis slide thru the intersection sideways.. watching santana in byron and wondering where he got all those licks in a year and a half.. :lol:next thing i know ..im pulling a fish i bought at the mercado out of the morass of plastic bags and mile high suds at the river behind my hovel in santa ana ..my neighbors shitfaced with wonder and admiration..bam.. im in a fuckin plane 60 hours a week ....wondering how the economic system my great grandfather designed could become so bastardized (not unlike myself) by the howling contagion of cumdrunk socialist democratic psychosexual dysmorphia ... :)wtf :shock: ..is this it? is this all there is? :lol:


one by one, they leave us all...till all that's left is the lone noble savage...twisting, twisting....send not to know for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee.


PRICHARD, Alabama --

An abandoned building that most locals know as the Harlem Duke Social Club was completely destroyed by a fire Thursday night in Prichard.

The building, which is located off of Highway 65 and Highway 45, was completely engulfed in flames by the time crews arrived around 8:30pm.

Fire Chief Mark Trenier says they don't know how the fire started, or even if anyone was inside at the time. As of 10:30pm Thursday they had not recovered any victims.

Power was cut off to the entire block for about two hours, but is expected to return before midnight. Police blocked off the street and redirected traffic.

Chief Trenier estimated about 15 of his firemen were on scene, using three trucks to extinguish the flames. He expects them to be working the whole night and into the morning.

While News 5 was on scene around 9:45pm the roof of the building and exterior walls completely collapsed.

The fire appeared to be isolated, and had not spread to surrounding areas.

The Harlem Duke Social Club had been closed for years. Neighbors on scene tell News 5 the building is now owned by the Friendship Baptist Church across the street, but was not being used for anything.

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PostPosted: Wed Sep 12, 2012 2:30 pm 
Masters Degree in Mongering!

Joined: Thu Nov 11, 2010 7:44 am
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Location: Costa Rica
Thirdworld wrote:
And you get out of the city completely and the people are really different. I like to get away when I can to Atenas, was just there this weekend. Folks there are much like they are in a small town like where I come from. Very nice and helpful, basically good neighbors. I find this a lot in many rural areas here. And as ID said, outside the gulch is a lot more normalcy than one would think when the gulch is their point of reference. Then again I'm a prejudiced person. In that I don't like gringos so much. :D


^^^This. Go to Atenas, Grecia, San Ramon (with the exception of PVT :lol: ) and most people will do anything for you. Humble and kind folks.

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