It was suggested I start a thread in The Campfire about retiring abroad and more specifically, what it's like to retire to Costa Rica.
My wife Caroline and I moved here 5 1/2 years ago, about four months after I retired at 65. We had visited twice before, the last time a year before I retired, as part of a "due diligence" fact-gathering trip to see if Costa Rica really seemed right for us. During that final visit, we spent 3 1/2 weeks staying in different towns that we had narrowed down our longer list from. We stayed in rented casitas, shopping and cooking our own meals to see if we could "get by" on our own. We actually thought we might move down, not be able to find foods we liked and would slowly starve to death or ending up eating rice and beans for the rest of our lives.
The first thing we did before visiting was to buy about 10 books on Amazon that covered moving to Costa Rica, what to expect, and how to cope. They were written by expats (what U.S. citizens call themselves) who had moved here earlier. It seems many creative people move her and self-publish their "books" on Amazon, hoping to gain another source of income. Unfortunately, many of the self-published books were self-edited and read like blog posts, with little useful, practical information. (Costa Rica blogs are also plentiful by expats trying to monetize their information. There's even one from a Fort Collins couple who don't live here but apparently visit often) The rule of thumb for many of these is, if you live here a year to more, you're instantly an expert and can start your own blog. I never did, as I had been working since I was a teenager and was ready to stop and smell the Passion Flowers.
Caroline and I agreed we'd come down for a year and then, if we weren't happy, we'd move back. We put our belongings in storage in Colorado and came down with seven suitcases and three dogs.
Oh, just like in the United States, it's against the law for foreigners to just come down and get a job. You wouldn't believe how many U.S. citizens are upset by that when they find out. If you're thinking about moving down BEFORE you retire, don't. It's quite a hassle.
So questions about retirement abroad? (We also looked at Spain and Italy early on.)
What american food do u miss the most? What is exchange rate,does it fluctuate,I have no clue about foreign money exchange. What is a comfortable life style there...moneywise (annually)? I HATE reptiles,
snakes,etc. I assume they are plentiful and around the homes? I see open bungalows in Bali and keep thinking...HOW do they keep the reptiles out of the living rooms? Do U plan STAYING for a very long time?
homeagain wrote: What american food do u miss the most? What is exchange rate,does it fluctuate,I have no clue about foreign money exchange. What is a comfortable life style there...moneywise (annually)? I HATE reptiles, snakes,etc. I assume they are plentiful and around the homes? I see open bungalows in Bali and keep thinking...HOW do they keep the reptiles out of the living rooms? Do U plan STAYING for a very long time?
Good bagels. Italian bread. Pie. That's what foods I miss the most.
The exchange rate fluctuates over the years. Right now, a U.S. dollar is worth 600 Costa Rica Colones. "Colon" is the Spanish name for Columbus. We deal only in Colones, for several reasons: we don't have to convert and we don't get "taken" by someone doing their own exchange rate. 1,000 Colones is a "Mil" and that's our "dollar." A pack of cigarettes is 2 mil. Bananas are 50 Colones each.
"Comfortable" varies according to ones needs. You can get by on $15,000 a year but you won't be able to own a car. Taxis and buses are cheap and plentiful. We didn't get a car until three years after we arrived. New car prices are about 50% more than in the U.S., due to import taxes. You can live "comfortably" on $20,000 a year here.
I've seen a few snakes here, but not near as many as I did in Texas. Insects are plentiful. Just like in Hawaii, we have house geckos that eat many of them. Even the tarantulas are tranquilo. I just shoo them out of the house and they comply.
R drivers nutso-crazy (like Mexico or India)? What unique local food item surprised U and U now love?
How long did it take U to "feel like home"? Language barriers? OR do u have one of those new translator
devices that allows U to converse? Costa Rica I have always associated with drug cartels, I assume
your village/town is safer than most?
I hear Costa Rica is doing a superb job with renewable energy production. $20K/year to live on doesn't seem bad at all!
How are the beaches?
"Now, more than ever, the illusions of division threaten our very existence. We all know the truth: more connects us than separates us. But in times of crisis the wise build bridges, while the foolish build barriers. We must find a way to look after one another as if we were one single tribe.” -King T'Challa, Black Panther
The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it. ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is. ~Winston Churchill
homeagain wrote: R drivers nutso-crazy (like Mexico or India)? What unique local food item surprised U and U now love?
How long did it take U to "feel like home"? Language barriers? OR do u have one of those new translator devices that allows U to converse? Costa Rica I have always associated with drug cartels, I assume your village/town is safer than most?
Yes, drivers are crazy here and stop in the middle of the road for many reasons, including a good cell phone signal, talking to a person on the side of the road or in their yard. Tico men are macho behind the wheel.
I was surprised by so much delicious seafood. Shrimp is my go-to and the main fishing port is 3 1/2 hours from our town, so restaurant seafood is very fresh. The shrimp has that strong shrimp "flavor" that is lost when it is frozen.
It "felt like home" after about two months, when we walked into our local pharmacy and the staff greeted us by name, in English.
I use Google Translate to look up words, phrases but I did Pimsleur before moving.
As for drug cartels, I'm at a loss, because I've never heard of any in Costa Rica. Drugs pass through in the Caribbean and Pacific but they're coming from South America and headed to the United States. The U.S. Coast Guard does a good job of patrolling the international waters and making interdictions.
Just recently, both Pineapples and Bananas packaged for Europe have been identified with kilos of cocaine, though. Costa Rica jumped on this immediately because it affects their world trade.
Story:
ticotimes.net/2021/02/09/costa-rica-draw...ts-checked-for-drugs
Here are 8 reasons why Gringos leave Costa Rica...
ScienceChic wrote: I hear Costa Rica is doing a superb job with renewable energy production. $20K/year to live on doesn't seem bad at all!
How are the beaches?
They're beautiful, depending on the area and time of the year. Truth be told, it's been a year since we went to the beach (the closest is about 2 hours away). Before that, it was two years, when our daughter came down and we spent a week in a rented beach house on the Caribbean side.
Many gringos live near the beach but then they pay $200 a month or more for air conditioning. Our electric bill is about $28 a month, the lowest of any of our friends, who typically spend anywhere from $40 to $80 a month.
Some say you can still live here on $1,000 a month here, but I don't believe it. Some people pay that much and more for rent in a beach town.
What factor deterred U from Spain or Italy? Did U have to quarantine your dogs? How long was the flight,
layovers to get to your new home?...Water quality from tap?
I am in awe of those who can make a MAJOR move out of country,so it is GREAT to hear a personal experience.
The video brought out afew similarities about those who decided to move to Alaska,they see it in the
summer,make the move. THEN the rest of the adventure becomes reality...HIGH PRICES for
everything, because of shipping costs. Cheechakos experience one or two winters and go"whoa,I'm,
out of here"....kinda like the mountains. There is no middle,,,U hate it,or U NEVER GO BACK to the "outside"
What factor deterred U from Spain or Italy? Did U have to quarantine your dogs? How long was the flight,
layovers to get to your new home?...Water quality from tap?
The distance from our daughter and the higher price of living.
We didn't have to quarantine our dogs but we did have to go though a bunch of hoops (remember, I said that rabies was largely eradicated in dogs here?). We had to get the USDA to sign health certificates for them, based on our vet's examinations of them (Lone Rock). The USDA office is in Lakewood, so that wasn't a problem, but it would have been if we lived far away from it. There is one USDA office in each state. They flew in United cargo via PetSafe. The company took them off the plane in Houston for a walkabout before putting them on board another plane bound for Costa Rica. I checked them in at 6 a.m. for a 9 a.m. flight from Denver. We arrived in Costa Rica about 6 p.m. Then I had to hire a guy who acted as the liason between the dog cargo and the cargo manager and pay the cargo manager. Total cost for all three dogs was over $1,000.
You can drink the water anywhere in Costa Rica. The water at our house comes from underground springs up the mountain and Caroline still remarks that it's the best-tasting water she's ever had. I like it, too.
what'' luxury" item ( that we take for grant) is most missed? How far is your closest neighbor,including
the farmer? R rx drugs less expensive there? I am assuming MEDICARE is not available to U thru
the USA....unless u r duel citizenship?
