Puerto Viejo Costa Rica a margay at the Jaguar Rescue Center.
Puerto Viejo, Cocles, Manzanillo, Chiquita, Punta Uva, Poas Volcano, La Paz Waterfall Gardens and Manuel Antonio in 6 days. Look at your Costa Rican map and you can see we were seriously 'Doin' Costa Rica'.
Yup, we just got back from an excursion around Costa Rica and do we have a TON of work to do in the next few weeks putting together some videos for you guys.
We got this opportunity THANX to David and Mindy, a couple from North Carolina, who were emailing us with questions prior to their vacation as well as checking out our videos on YouTube and our travel info on Travel Costa Rica Now. After meeting David and Mindy in La Fortuna they asked us if we'd like to join them on a few legs of their journey around Costa Rica. We have no car and travel on a backpacker budget which they generously offered to help with, so of course we said, "hell yeah". The fact David and Mindy were very COOL was sugar on cereal.
Hope you ENjoY these pics, they're just a sampling of what's to come.
One of the most beautiful places we've seen in Costa Rica, Punta Uva, a little south of Puerto Viejo.
Holding a sloth at the Jaguar Rescue Center which was one of the neatest places we've ever visited in Costa Rica.
A Bribri Indian woman explaining one of the many traditional ways they use the banana leaf.
Walking down to view the waterfalls at La Paz Waterfall Garden.
It was a fun time road trippin' it around Costa Rica with David and Mindy and once again, a huge THANX, totally appreciated.
I think we got some GREAT video footage,,,,so be on the L@@K out.
TONS of Costa Rica Travel Info and VIDEOS on our website: Travel Costa Rica NOW and if you want to visit our YouTube Channel: iCostaRica24 ENjoY!
Our VIDEO of the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve.
The Monteverde, Santa Elena Area is one of the most bio-diverse locations on the planet. *btw- for the record, Monteverde and Santa Elena are pretty much the same 'area', at least as far as the tourist is concerned, so don't let it confuse you.
Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve isn't as popular as the Monteverde Biological Cloud Forest Reserve, but that's precisely why we like it (something about the path less traveled). Santa Elena is a 765 acre reserve and has a maximum elevation of 5,510 ft. making it the highest cloud forest in Monteverde. It has 8 miles of hiking trails and is open from 7am to 4pm. Guides are available and you can also do a night tour. , If you're into flora and fauna then definitely don't skip Monteverde if you're planning a trip to Costa Rica.
Jurassic Park has nothing on Santa Elena... well except maybe the dinosaur thing.
TONS of Costa Rica Travel Info and VIDEOS on our website: Travel Costa Rica NOW and if you want to visit our YouTube Channel: iCostaRica24 ENjoY!
The Catholic Church in Costa Rica says gay same sex unions are NOT part of Gods master plan.
I have nothing good to say about the Catholic religion. It SUCKS. That's right, I have absolutely NO respect. It is probably one of the BEST examples of how religions are often used to RULE people through guilt and shame. Of its followers, I would say 60% have an IQ of the sheep they are (sheep are usually sheep because they've only known one shepherd) and the other 40% are the same folks who read 'self-help' books like the newspaper.
Ask me how I really feel?
The Bishops in Costa Rica had a conference recently. This is what they said about gay civil unions, which was really a WARNING directed at lawmakers here in Costa Rica, you know, before they do something stupid, like making gay EQUAL:
“Marriage is not just any union between two human beings,” they stated, explaining that it was “founded by the Creator, who gave it a particular nature...and an undeniable purpose.”
“The legalization of such unions distorts the understanding of fundamental moral values and undermines the institution of marriage as such.”
“In making same-sex unions equal to marriage or the family under the law, the state is acting arbitrarily and is contradicting its own duties,” the bishops continued.
Nothing new here. This coming from a 'business' which has to have a written policy on how to deal with accusations of pedophilia because of its L...O...N...G history of abuses, can you imagine? Name another Fortune 500 company that has to do that. And if they did, they'd be BOYCOTTED into non-existence... really, think about it.
Their arguments are lame and tired. The dinosaurs of the Catholic Church went on to say this:
The bishops stressed that “men and women with homosexual tendencies must be treated with respect and must not be subject to discrimination.” However, the bishops then reaffirmed the Church’s teaching that “homosexual practices” are “objectively contrary to God’s plan for the human being.”
This statement is just out and out STUPID. They can discriminate against 'gay' but you shouldn't. This is akin to the old, "Hate the sin, LOVE the sinner", bullshit. Which by the way is NOT in the bible. Although sometimes subtle and sometimes NOT, the Catholic Church teaches homosexuality is WRONG and abNORMAL, that's it.
Hmmm, interesting. 30 million gays in the United States ALONE, not 30, not three thousand, 30 F'n million. Science, doctors and gays themselves concur, gay is who you are, CASE closed. (Although personally, I'd have chosen it, sex is better). And because some F'ed up book with more contradictions and mistakes in it is misinterpreted, you want to use said book as 'gospel'... pun intended.
The CHURCH will eventually LOSE big time, and gay will not only be tolerated but ACCEPTED. Connect the dots for christ's sake....geez.
Of course if the 'dinosaurs' that are the Catholic Church happen to become extinct sooner rather than later...SWEET!
For your amusement or disgust, whichever the 'gay' may be:
TONS of Costa Rica Travel Info and VIDEOS on our website: Travel Costa Rica NOW and if you want to visit our YouTube Channel: iCostaRica24 ENjoY!
The newest member of our family, a 2 1/2 month old chihuahua named, Pincho.
Hey EVERYONE! Just wanted to introduce you to the newest and CUTEST member of the Travel Costa Rica NOW.com TEAM- 'Pincho'. He's small, but tenacious and we think he'll learn his way around a camera in no time. In Costa Rican spanish, 'pincho' means 'skewer' as in 'shish kebab'. We thought it worked. The Tico's here think his name is pretty funny or maybe they're just wondering if he tastes better than chicken, hard to say.
I got this funny feeling you'll be seeing a little more of Pincho as he will no doubt find his way into a few of our VIDEOS with his outgoing personality and rugged good looks. And as long as he doesn't try to upstage us and become the next 'Taco Bell' dog, we'll all get along just fine.
But when his first words were, "Me llamo Picho, soy Tico".... well who knows what could be in store.
Between our sites: 'Travel Costa Rica NOW', 'Doin' Costa Rica', 'Doin Gay Costa Rica' and our YouTube Channel iCostaRica24 as well as my other blog about my on-going BATTLE with Palo Verde Resort called: 'Arenal Bungalows- MY STORY', we have a LOT of INFO on the internet about Costa Rica. Literally, hundreds and hundreds of pages of content with approximately 150 videos, not to mention our pics on Flickr, showing off the beauty that IS Costa Rica. *Doin GAY Costa Rica is being remodeled.
We don't sugar-coat Costa Rica and REFUSE to 'push paradise' at all cost like most other Costa Rica websites tend to do. In fact, that's why this blog is titled, 'The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Living in Costa Rica.' We also attempt, through our Travel Videos, to pass along pertinent INFO that visitors to Costa Rica can actually use, so unfortunately not everything about traveling here is toucans, volcanoes and sunsets, although most is. *Truthfully, it's living here which presents the more relevant issues.
We're getting biGGER everyday, which is NICE. It's cool to see some of our hard work appreciated, but the more 'popular' we get, the more SHIT we get. It's just the way it goes, like this comment I received a couple days ago concerning this POST- Doin DRUGS in Costa Rica
"We really don't need any of your lame invitations for the white-trash to come and ruin our reputation as a turistic destination more than it already is, thanks in part to idiots such as yourselves.
You keep posting bullshit like this, pretty soon someone (E.G.: me) is going to make friends with somebody at inmigration and you are going to end up taking your sorry asses back to the U.S.
Wonder what took me so long to finally visit your little bloggie...
When are you guys getting a life?"
While we may not have a LIFE, we do have a computer and it travels. lol
We love comments and feedback and even the above doesn't really bother us, we're BIG boys, BUT, I would like to point out a few things I've noticed about some of our more negative comments and perhaps suggest a few things as well:
1) The most vile, negative comments we receive usually come from Tico's themselves. Ironically, rarely do they disagree with our CONTENT, but they HATE the fact we're telling YOU. It's the, "Don't air Costa Rica's dirty laundry or no one will visit." plea. *I do understand this up to a point.
2) People who don't want to visit Costa Rica just because they hear some of the road conditions are questionable... well, they're the same people who are bored if it rains and typically these sorts of people are perpetual whiners and complainers regardless... seriously fuck'em, but the road conditions ARE questionable and people need to know. Ditto, for Theft & Crime.
3) I can't seem to stress this enough, D'Angelo and myself LOVE Costa Rica or we wouldn't live here, but like any place with a population over 5, there's going to be problems- that's ANYWHERE in the WORLD. Although I do believe problems should be aired and discussed, not neatly tucked away. I'm all about airing 'dirty laundry', as it would never become CLEAN otherwise.
4) First and foremost, we are a Costa Rica Travel Site. We're like a 'Lonely Planet' or 'Frommers' on VIDEO (we're hoping anyway). We believe knowledge trumps the 'pushing of paradise' card and makes for a much better Costa Rican experience, so unfortunately, sometimes, we have to tell folks about the Good and the Bad of Riding the Buses in Costa Rica. Proactive is better than Reactive ANY DAY.
5) Think of something a little more clever than, "If you don't like it, go back to your own F'in country", which is usually followed by some other derogatory statement about the United States. Whatever.*I didn't like the traffic problems or the local law enforcement in Las Vegas either, but I LOVED Las Vegas, get it?
6) At this time we have about 150 videos uploaded. I understand that many times a person could just randomly run into one of our videos and think we're 'bad mouthing' Costa Rica, but more often than not it's obvious we have more than a few videos about Costa Rica. Maybe if you watched more than ONE, you'd get a better perspective of what we do or perhaps read more than one blog post... cruise around our sites, CHECK-OUT our pics, I think our 'stuff' speaks for itself.
Still want to call immigration... learn how to spell it first.
We're not TICO,,, but we don't love Costa Rica any less because we're not.
TONS of Costa Rica Travel Info and VIDEOS on our website: Travel Costa Rica NOW and if you want to visit our YouTube Channel: iCostaRica24 ENjoY!
We got this opportunity THANX to David and Mindy, a couple from North Carolina, who were emailing us with questions prior to their vacation as well as checking out our videos on YouTube and our travel info on Travel Costa Rica Now. After meeting David and Mindy in La Fortuna they asked us if we'd like to join them on a few legs of their journey around Costa Rica. We have no car and travel on a backpacker budget which they generously offered to help with, so of course we said, "hell yeah". The fact David and Mindy were very COOL was sugar on cereal..jpg)
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