www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Hello my friends,

I recently stumbled across this board and since then I have spent countless hours reading the posts. I wish there was a support group like this back in 1995-98. The trip experiences I have read so far are fascinating and i wish I was there. The folks appear to be extremely knowledgeable and are willing to share.

Back in that period, I used to get TLN for a mere 10,000c. Of course in those days, $5 fetched you 1000c. Dl and BM were not that infested with chicas from DR or Columbia. A swedish monger decided to take me under his wing and told me to stay the F away from them. I was a cheap bastard and stayed at a bare bones motel about 8 blocks away from DL(close to Best Western). If my memory serves correct, I paid about 1,800c per nite.
It had its own cafeteria where sumpsteous food could be had for 400c.
Things were relatively safe in those days. I used to walk from DR to my lodgings at all times of the day/night with my escort for the day/night.

My main challenge was:" how do I avoid the chica I had the night before, without burning any bridges, and move on to the next one". My routine was one in the morning. One in the afternoon and one for the night. About 95% of the chicas were semi pros or appeared to be. Those were the best vacations I have taken in my life.

I would love to get some feedback from mongers who were active in that era and compare it to the current times.

On a funny note, I passed for a Tico(I am of East Indian Ancestory), and when a chica would approach me , I would say in my spanglish, Jo no gringo. Jo tengo muy poquito denero. This seemed to break the ice.

Please keep postin. I enjoy reading them.

Pura Vida mi amigos.

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pablitho53

Hey Pab

So you remember when the airport was still like a bus stop in a major city in the US with that escalator/track device for emptying luggage? Do you remember what it felt like waiting for your bag with everyone else (wondering if it would ever arrive or worse get stolen from anybody in the area)?

Compare THAT to the airport now and its night and day.

I've only been coming since the airport was in Alejuela, not la Sabana, but I did like the cafeteria upstairs before they turned the main terminal into a big Quonset hut. The biggest issue with the old setup was finding the international exit lines under the stairs. Yes the stairway down to customs was memorable.

Hi Rom,

Yessiree. I would never pack anything of significance in my checked-in stuff.

I remember, on my first trip, my suitcase got literally shredded due to

that"escalator". Also, I would see strange looking characters hovering aruond

there. Immigration and custom clearance was a joke. The cabbies were still

the most despicable hustlers. Starting right from the Airport.

P.S. Is crystal still around one buck at B.m?

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pablitho53

Veelee wrote:



That second floor restaurant is the thing I miss most about the remodel job of the terminal.

Use to take the morning Lacsa flight back to Miami and we always made sure to get to the airport early enough to have breakfast in the restaurant. There huevos ranchero were the best in San Jose. The prices were also reasonable. Today you have to sell your first born to afford a BK whopper or a Papa John pizza in the new terminal.

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Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

As each new building goes in in San José, a bit of Costa Rica is lost. I too miss the restaurant in the old airport. Hell, I miss the old airport and would gladly change back if I could.

It just kills me to see McDonalds, Burger King, Pizza Hut and all the worst things from the US infest Costa Rica. I avoid those places and eat at local sodas and restuarants. If I wanted that crap I´d stay in the US.

The older I get the more I realize that change is rarely good.

I miss cruising Happy Days and the Bikini Bar also.

ElGamin

Hello El,
I dint know Happy days is no longer there. What happened??

I concur with you. Progress, based on recent standards, is defined as "mcdonalds, pizza hut" etc. Although I hate Castro, I must admit that I enjoyed visiting Havana. If you like architecture and similar things, it is worth a visit. When he is gone, It wont be long before the Miami cubans buy up every fast food franchise and ship it over there.

What other differences do you see between C.R. of the old and the new?

Look forward for some responses.

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pablitho53

Sadly the owners of the Del Rey bought the property and tore down Happy Days and the Old New York Bar. Guess it has been almost 3 years ago by now.

Happy Days was a classic and is really missed and the NY Bar has not got the intimate feeling of the old one.

With Kamur, Casablanca and the Park Hotel all for sale I think a wise investor would be better off to pass on them and open a Happy Days replica in the gulch.

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Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

Well, I guess I'll chime in here. I really enjoyed the upstairs restaurant at the airport as well. You could enjoy a very reasonably priced meal and had a great view of the tarmack. I have no idea when the upstairs restaurant disappeared. Had to have been sometime between 2000 and 2002.

Happy Days was a classic. It was the second stop on my first trip to San Jose. Dark, dingy and the women in there (from my experience) were usually below average. But, kind of a cool place to drink. A replica of Happy Days would be awesome. I liked the layout of the bar. At the time it was regarded as one of the "hot spots" for nightlife. As for gulch dwellers, this was the #2 spot behind only Key Largo. At this time the Blue Marlin bar was virtually non existant.

As for airport traffic, when I first went to Costa Rica you could show up less than an hour before take off and have no issue with missing your flight. No line for departure tax, virtually no line to check in with the airline and security was a breeze. Seriously, the whole event took no more than 15 minutes and you were sitting at the gate awaiting your flight.

I also enjoyed CR before the night spots became infested (not sure that is the term I'm looking for but...) with women from other countries. It was almost all Ticaville and frankly, lots of Nicaraguans.

I know it's hard for the "Johnny come latelys" to comprehend but, when I first ventured to CR the Del Rey was just a blip on the hobbyist map. Not even worth considering. All the action was Key Largo, Happy Days, NYB and Bikini Bar. I've heard and noticed that the Del Rey is becoming less and less popular with hobbyists. I think this is a good thing as other competing establishments are opening up. Hopefully, the more things change, the more they stay the same

As for safety, I feel a bit more secure now. Back in the mid 90's the streets were lined with prostitutes, beggars and common thieves. That has certainly been one change I'm pleased with. You no longer see the streets lined with people of very "questionable" character.

dapanz1

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Paradise= Sitting outside the Bodega in Panama City about 1 am. Drinking cool Balboas with cool friends and blazin' hot Colombianas. I want to be there..RIGHT NOW!

Thank you Ding and Dap for your feedback. I really enjoyed hearing from both of you.

Was it Del rey's intention to eliminate competition by buying "happy Days " out and tearing the place down? Good business sense may suggest they should have continued operating it under the same ambiance since it had such tremendous brand value.

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pablitho53

Now all the "questionable" characters can be found at Happy Hour...

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

YO Pablitho:
I was absent during the 90's but first traveled there in 1972 - 73. Another trip in mid 70's and then ventured there several times 1983 - 86. I would take the CR of those times over today periord. I won't go into that much since I and a few others have posted about those days before. But, the attitude of the ticas and the friendliness of the locals in general was much better then. Naturally, the DR / BM was not there nor was other places you mentioned. The Key Largo was the place to be in the 80's. The Holiday Inn Casino was the best gambling establishment then. The McDonalds on Central was a favorite meeting place for ex-pats along with the bar at the Gran. The train traveling to the east coast was a hoot and if it were not for the big earthquake it would still be in existance and be well traveled today.

Serious crime was almost non-existant. I could walk all over the streets and parks at 2 or 3am and never have a problem. I wish I could remember the bar names but it's been too long. There were a lot of one or two table casinos in various bars. But the attitude and nice dressing ticas in long dresses was nice. It's all relative though. The guys that first traveled there this year will probably say comparative things 15 years from now........but I bet it won't be that favorable.

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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.

Thanks Circus,

You comment on the locals attitude towards us is very interesting. I remember getting invited into their homes, having a few drinks and just shooting shit. Is that non-existent these days??

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pablitho53

There have been a lot of changes in San Jose since my first trip...some good and some not so good.
One of the places that I miss the most is the Soda Palace which has since been converted into a KFC. This was one of the most unique gathering places that I have ever seen anywhere.
Others that were favorites of mine were Arte`s y Sauna,The Green Door, Risa`s and of course, Tiny`s. I miss them all but I still love the city and the people of San Jose.

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NON ILLEGITIMI CARBORUNDUM

DG

Hey Don,

What does "pura splooga" mean?

Happy Birthday Sir

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pablitho53