Probably one of the best bathroom signs I have seen at Los Amigos. They sell t-shirts with this logo on it.
I had not been to Jaco in a while - with said, a while back I wrote about how wild Jaco is and how I predicted that the desire for tourist bucks will change it. Needless to say, I spend some time checking out the ‘new’ Jaco a few weeks ago.
Those that experienced Jaco years ago had warnings about the lawless of the town. Druggies, prostitution, pickpockets etc, pretty much ran it. I’m impress how Jaco has changed. The last time I was there, old men with their bellies protruding from Hawaiian shirts with hookers on their arms was a common occurrence. And high-rise cranes littered the sky in development. Not anymore.
However, Jaco still has it problems, last August the mayor was arrested for embezzlement, illicit enrichment, misrepresentation and fraud and there are still those undesirables that cruise the streets and beaches, harassing gringos to buy drugs and other illegal items. Jaco has also become sorta the “no-mans-zone” for drug traffickers. This has increased the on-foot police force – which is a good thing as it gives the tourist a sense of security. Read more... (948 words, 4 images, estimated 3:48 mins reading time)
Starting in Jan, 2012 the monthly fishing license will be discontinued and fees will go up.
In the past, tourist and nonresident anglers could pick whether or not they wanted a monthly ($13 USD) and/or yearly fishing license ($25 USD). Considering that most anglers come to fish once a year (about 98%) they’d pick the cheaper. Fishermen who don’t know this in advance have been known to get a little upset at having to shell out cash at the dock to get one before they set forth on a $1200/day sport fisher charter. Fishing licenses are not usually included on a charter and have to be paid for when on the docks.
But soon that will change – affective Jan 1, 2011 sport fishing licenses will go up in price. And [most importantly] Costa Rica will no longer provide the low-cost monthly fishing license, instead, they will force anglers to buy the more expensive yearly license at $30 USD.
Costa Rican Fisheries Institute (Incopesca) claims the price hikes and single yearly license are necessary due to the rising cost of administrating the fishing license system. Read more... (715 words, 3 images, estimated 2:52 mins reading time)
click on the city to view the current and forthcoming weather conditions
Alajuela | Cartago | Chacarita | Dominical | La Fortuna/Aerial | Golfito
Jaco | Liberia | Puerto Limon | Puntarenas | San Isidro de General
| San Jose | Tamarindo | Tambor | Tortuguero
Unlike the U.S and other countries, where there are four seasons, Costa Rica has no real summer, fall, spring or winter, only dry and rainy and/or very wet times of the year.
The dry season (or “tourist season”), generally starts during November and last to June.
The wet season starts in June and goes to November and a time when one can get the best deals on hotels and other forms of recreations.
Average temperature is around 75 degrees Fahrenheit, but in the high mountain areas it can get below freezing. Starting in December to April (the peak of the tourist season) normally there is little rain. Keep in mind that Costa Rica is a tropical country, so the average rainfall in the country is around 100 inches, some mountainous areas get over 200 inches of rainfall on a yearly basis with the heaviest rain period between September to October. Read more... (394 words, 1 image, estimated 1:35 mins reading time)
Above NASA map shows the tracks of all Atlantic hurricanes which formed between 1851 and 2005, so in reality Costa Rica never receives the blunt force, but they sure can receive the effects when it is downgraded to a major Tropical Storm.
We get asked all the time, does Costa Rica get hurricanes? Well, yes and no, meaning “yes” they do receive the tropical aftermath of one, like heavy rains of what Tropical Storm Tomas did in November 2010 that caused sever damage and deaths.
In meteorology; a tropical cyclone (or tropical disturbance, tropical depression, tropical storm, typhoon, or hurricane, depending on strength and location) is a type of low-pressure system, which generally forms in the tropics. Hurricane is the term used to describe tropical cyclones that form in the Caribbean where we are located.
Hurricanes need the warm humid air above tropical oceans in order to develop. That’s why they form over ocean waters close to the equator. In addition, that’s why they form only during the summer and early fall, when those waters are about 80 degrees Fahrenheit or above. However, you won’t normally see hurricanes form right at the equator. That’s because at zero degrees latitude there isn’t enough turning of winds in the atmosphere to give tropical cyclones the “spin” they need to get started.
Read more... (802 words, 2 images, estimated 3:12 mins reading time)
Dominical used to be one of those Costa Rican coastal villages that was the talk of surfers and travelers that managed to disregard their GPS settings.
However, that started to change in the mid 2000s when private enterprises started to promote the kick-back town as Costa Rica’s newest and hottest tourist attraction.
Dominical is unique because it has mountains rising behind and around it, beaches to the front and sides, and beautiful jungle terrain making up much of the immediate surroundings – walk a 1/2 mile inland and one is in Tarzan country. The Río Barú (Barú River) empties into the Pacific Ocean at Dominical, and along the banks, you will find ecologists enjoying and studying the local species.
Even if Dominical is considered on Costa Rica’s Central Pacific coast, it is also the gateway to the Southern Pacific becoming the last outpost before heading south to places like Osa Peninsula, Puerto Jimenez, and the Golfito area. With Manuel Antonio National Park to the north, Dominical has become the town of choice for a centralized vacation spot.
Five reasons why Dominical has become one of thee places to visit. Read more... (682 words, 2 images, estimated 2:44 mins reading time)
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