The tech race is on for smart phones in Costa Rica - Will ICE loose?
Last week (Feb 21th) something unspeakable in this day of age happened, around 800,000 Costa Rican’s cell phone users suddenly found themselves without service.
And at the same time we received a landslide of emails wondering, if this could be the beginning of the end for Instituto Costaricense de Electricidad (ICE)?
An interesting question.
ICE has been under threat since the signing (Jan.2009) of Central American Free-Trade Agreement (CAFTA) when they suddenly found themselves in a competitive world of the telecom market; something they knew little about and not prepared for. ICE for 50 years never had to construct any promotional and marketing strategies. Fact remained, anyone who’s ever wanted a cell phone in Costa Rica had to go through ICE’s neverending playing slot machine; a monopoly that is in jeopardy.
After a ton of paperwork, some major setbacks, two large foreign and multinational mobile phone providers, America Movil and Telefonica, prepare to offer cellphone service to Costa Rican customers and most important, with advance technology. Read more... (670 words, 1 image, estimated 2:41 mins reading time)
In Costa Rica what better way of seeing nature is walking from point A to B and back to A. For almost 20 years they have a long-established reputation for being environmental protective and conversational that is the envy of many other countries around the world.
So if you like to hike, Costa Rica is a superb country for you to explore a wide variety of countryside and wildlife and can freeze you in time when you see your first monkey, those lazy sloth’s, and then the array of squawking colorful birds.
From the short walks from Quepos to Manual Antonio, to the more adventurous hikes of the Tarzan jungles of the Caribbean and Southern Pacific coast, to the mystic and unique cloud cover of Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve it is one of the most biologically diverse places on earth. Almost 25% of the entire country is dedicated to national parks and reserves.
Your hiking adventure can be a a few hours or a several day eco-trip and it can start in places like remote Tortuguero National Park – a back-in-time system of islands and twisting waterways in the Caribbean rainforest – to experience the mystery of something more mountainous like beautiful Monteverde cloud forest, with fog covered ground, its darting butterflies and Resplendent Quetzals, a bird in the trogon family. Read more... (785 words, 4 images, estimated 3:08 mins reading time)
It seems it is an epidemic of Fast Food joints - they are springing up everywhere in Costa Rica.
I can not remember when the first US fast food joint opened up in Costa Rica, but when it did, I first thought, “Well, there goes a country.” And since that time (I/m thinking around 1982 and a McDonalds) the tiny Central American country has been overrun with American’s fast food joints.
Cruising San Jose, and driving the main drag in Jaco, and even in San Jose Airport , I swear nowadays, every fricken corner is some fricken US fast food franchise.
Papa Jones, Dominos, Subway, Piza Hut, Quisnos, Burger King (even in the airport, complete with a heaping plate of Gallo Pinto for under fifty cents), Kentucky Fried Chicken, McDonald’s, Churches, Taco Bell, Wendy’s (a late comer in the burger experience) and God-knows who is thinking about infiltrating the Tico’s demand for fast food.
So much so, San Jose’s former Palace Theatre which was built in 1930’s as a variety theatre and cinema was declared a National Heritage site on November 8, 2000, and was later chosen by the Government for restoration. Read more... (708 words, 3 images, estimated 2:50 mins reading time)
The Nokia 3120 Classic is just one of many phones you can buy cheap off of eBay and will work nice in Costa Rica with a prepaid SIM card.
A couple of years ago we wrote about cell phones in Costa Rica and since that time, things have changed.
About 2-4 times a week we get questions on whether or not someone personal phone will work in Costa Rica. So this is all about common questions and answers on Costa Rica cells phones.
I HAVE A BLAB BLAB PHONE, CAN I USE IT IN COSTA RICA?
One of the first things you have to remember, Costa Rica is not smart phone savvy and as of now it is limited to G3, but everyone is Costa Rica seems to have a cell phone, and they do have a fairly good cell phone service. In the tourist areas the phone service is excellent, but when you get into the sticks you will have problems.
Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE, pronounced “ee-say”) is the leading government owned monopoly of cell phone service. Cellular phones from the USA will generally not work here. And do not believe your US cellular company claiming it will – most of the time the service personal is trying to get you to buy a International Card, a cost that will drain your pocketbook. Read more... (1385 words, 1 image, estimated 5:32 mins reading time)
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