Bullet Ants: Pain You Don’t Want to Feel
Bullet Ants in Costa Rica: Tiny Forest Giants with a Bullet of Pain Walking through a lowland Costa Rican rainforest, you expect birdsong, dripping leaves and the rustle of lizards. What you probably do not expect is a single insect capable of delivering a sting that...
What’s Your Jewelry Style? Fashion Flash
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] I love jewelry! It makes me feel “dressed” even in pajamas. From big chunky necklaces to tiny silver pendants, jewelry completes your outfit and shows a bit more of your personality. Is your style classic or more eccentric when...
Beyond Bananas: The 30 Export Products Powering Costa Rica’s Economy
Costa Rica’s export story today is really a tale of two strengths: cutting-edge medical technology and world-famous tropical produce. Together they anchor a remarkably diverse list of the country’s top 30 export products, based on the latest 2024 goods trade data...
Featured Adventure – Scuba Diving in Costa Rica
[vc_row full_width="full_width"][vc_column][vc_column_text] Scuba Diving in Costa Rica: Where Mantas, Bull Sharks and Volcanoes Meet the Sea Costa Rica may be small on the map, but underwater it feels enormous. Wedged between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea,...
The “non-adventure” Adventures of Costa Rica
Costa Rica, renowned for its thrilling adventure activities and lush rainforests, also offers a treasure trove of non-adventure experiences for travelers seeking relaxation, cultural enrichment, and indulgence. Beyond zip-lining and surfing, this Central American gem...
Pay in Dollars, Colones or Plastic? The Currency Trap Tourists Are Walking Into in Costa Rica
If you’ve lived in or visited Costa Rica for more than a week, you’ve probably heard someone mutter, “El dólar está flojo.” For years, the greenback felt like a super-currency here. Now, with the colón hovering around ₡500 per US$1 and having been much stronger than...
The Importance of Swell Period
As it relates to surfing, we call the distance between 2 consecutive waves the swell Period, and it is measured in seconds. So let’s imagine for a moment you are out in the water, waiting on your board as a set of waves begins to pulse through. None of the waves have...
The Art of Listening
Speaking Spanish with Ticos: How to Stop Freezing and Start Enjoying Real Conversations Learning Spanish in Costa Rica is not just vocab lists and verb tables; it’s sweaty palms at the supermercado till, nodding along in a café, and wondering if you’ve just agreed to...
Building Costa Rica: Understanding Tico Plumbing
Living in Costa Rica: plumbing that works and still saves water Living in Costa Rica means waking up to birds instead of alarm clocks, watching storms roll in over the hills and rinsing sand off your feet rather than road grit. What many newcomers don’t expect is how...
Sands of Change
In the early seventies, my brother and I arrived in Tamarindo with single fin, 7 foot, down-railers and homemade bungee cord leashes. When your tail “side slipped” out from under you on a late drop, your board stretched out to the breaking point on the rubber...