News Paradise From Ojochal, Costa Post Rica and Beyond January 2009 Updates from the Osa On January 8th suffered Inside this issue: the worst earthquake in 150 years. Its magnitude was 6.1 and its impact was fairly localized north of the San And…the transport ministry said Updates from the Osa 1 Jose area (fortunately nowhere near that by the end of the year, the entire 26 New Trees in Costa Rica 1 us). 23 lives were lost and for many miles between and Dominical businesses and families in the area it will be paved. The bridges are expected A Visit to the 2 was devastating. Costa Rica is pulling to be completed by the middle of 2009. How Pure is our Water 2 together and rebuilding has begun but Ylang Ylang Restaurant 3 there are still families in need. If you’d like to help please contact me. The Casado 3 There is a new shuttle from Plantains 3 Ojochal to San Jose (as well as other Health care in Costa Rica 4 areas of the country) running twice daily for those who’d prefer not to drive or The American Crocodile 5 take the bus, www.easyridecr.com. Joe Terraba Sierpe National and Danette Terzano have opened Joe’s Wetlands 5 Coffee Shop on the Playa Tortuga Road News from Pacific Lots 6 serving sandwiches, homemade breads, The Epicenter of the Jan. 2009 pastries, espresso, etc… and offer free Earthquake January Tour Photos 6 wireless internet. La Fogata in Uvita is now serving pastas dishes in addition to chicken and pizza. Also, Ylang Ylang is a [email protected] new Indonesian restaurant in town worth 305-295-0136 checking out. [Is my obsession with food obvious?] Costa Rica is in relatively good shape to weather a slowdown but has 7 million trees were planted not been immune to the downturn of in Costa Rica in 2008 the worldwide economy. The economy is expected to slow but continue to grow by ccording to the Ministry of 2.2% in 2009 and inflation is predicted AEnvironment, Energy and to ease. The economy expanded by 2.9% Telecommunications (Minaet) Costa in 2008 and the government ended the Rica planted more than 7 million year with a budget surplus. Also, due to trees last year. Of the total planted the tightening in credit available in the 55% are exotic species primarily teak US, Costa Rican banks are beginning to and melina, often used in household offer more property financing options construction, and 45% are native to foreigners, although they still require species including cedar, oak and consumers to jump through several almond. hoops to qualify. The new trees help offset 2.3 JetBlue Airways has announced million tons of carbon dioxide and plans to start daily, nonstop service brings Costa Rica a step closer to between Orlando, FL and San Jose, becoming carbon neutral. The goal La Paz Waterfall Gardens on our visit Costa Rica beginning March 26th subject for 2009 is to plant an additional 7 Jan 6th just before the quake. to receiving Costa Rican government million. Photo courtesy of Dave Shelton operating authority. www.PacificLots.com A Visit to the Boruca Village: Paradise Post By Steve Linder the tribe of the Talamanca, named after The construction of the proposed Boruca s we drove further up the ridge I the river located just below their reserve. hydroelectric dam would require many of Arealized that even if we had wanted The Boruca people live on land granted the tribe to relocate. As in the past, the to turn around, the road was too narrow to them by the Costa Rican government Boruca Indians continue to fight a battle to even consider it. If we slid off the in 1956 in one of the first indigenous to save their lands from being taken road on either side, we would surely land grants in Costa Rica known as the from them by outsiders. plunge to our death. We were headed Reserve Boruca Terraba. Their land is A visit to the Boruca village atop to the village of the Boruca Indians, one located along the bank of the Terraba the Talamanca ridge is a breathtaking of the last indigenous tribes left in Costa River as well as high atop the frontal experience. It is an easy day trip from Rica. ridge in the Talamanca mountain range, the southern region of Costa Rica but When the Spanish arrived in just south of the town of Palmar Sur. making the visit requires 4 wheel drive Costa Rica, there were very few native The Boruca tribe had it’s own language and is not for the squeamish or those people to be found. Even before although there are only a few elders afraid of heights. the Spanish had actually arrived, who still speak it. The tribe has long the diseases brought by the white been self-sufficient farming corn, coffee, man were already traveling down the beans, cassava, papaya, isthmus of Central America. When the pigeon peas and rice. The th Spanish arrived in the 16 century, the Boruca tribes have chosen to Boruca Indians were fierce fighters and live in isolation, raising money managed to escape the battle with the through sales of carved Spaniards. Today, the Boruca Indians wooden masks and woven celebrate each year with a Fiesta de los articles. Diablitos, the festival of the little devils, Recently the public which takes place early in February each utility ICE has been trying to year. During the festivities, the males of build a dam in the Terraba the tribe dress in carved wooden masks River just below the location and the event begins with a battle of the Boruca tribe’s reserve against a masked bull, to symbolize along the river. The dam fighting the spirits to save their homes. would flood the area now The Boruca Indians are part of home to many of the tribe. How pure is our water? he water supplied to the town of also referred to as parts per million pipes used to distribute water to TOjochal comes from an artesian well (ppm). TDS is directly related to the consumers. high in the mountains. We know it’s purity of water and the quality of water The US Environmental delicious and have heard it tests purer purification systems. It affects everything Protection Agency (EPA) has established than Evian sourced from the French that consumes, lives in, or uses water. a secondary water quality standard of Alps. We’ve just gotten a more precise Some dissolved solids come no more than 500mg/L (500ppm) to measurement of just how pure it is. from organic sources such as leaves, provide for palatability and safety of Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) silt, plankton, and industrial waste drinking water. refers to the combined content of all and sewage. More harmful sources The Ojochal town water tests inorganic and organic substances come from runoff from fertilizers and at about 63 ppm. and water regularly contained in a liquid. It’s expressed in pesticides used on lawns and farms. checked in Phase 5 consistently remains units of mg per unit volume of water, Water may also pick up metals such as between 57-59 ppm. lead or copper as they travel through

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here’s a new restaurant in town that of the Costanera where you can enjoy accommodate a vegetarian diet and Thas everyone quite excited. Ylang a fabulous sunset ocean view while starters and desserts are available. Ylang, our new Indonesian option, enjoying a tasty meal. Prices for a 3 course meal run $25-$30. opened on the Calle de las Estrellas a In addition to cooking they love Wine and beer is also available. They’re couple of months ago. The proprietors horses. “In Holland we made a lot of open Thursday – Sunday from 11:30 am Hans and Caroline have owned property trips with our horses and carriages. We – 9 pm and they can be reached at 506- in Ojochal since March of 2007 and hope we can pick up this hobby again in 2786-5054 or [email protected]. made the move to Costa Rica in March this area”, states Hans. Swieber, their of 2008. beloved dog, completes the family. Caroline was born in Indonesia They serve 7 main courses (Jakarta) and they both are coming to including Rendang which is beef boiled us from Holland. In Holland they owned in coconut milk with lemongrass, a company in the computer software onion, garlic, ginger koenjit and roasted industry. Caroline has always had a coconut and they serve filet of fish with passion for cooking and she’s been sambal ketjap sauce. They also serve a student of authentic Indonesian vegetables like sambal goreng kool, cooking for quite some time. They felt boentjes sambal, smoor aubergine and that Ojochal would embrace something atjar to completes the main course (I new and unique to the area so decided guess you need to be Indonesian to to open an Indonesian restaurant. The know what any of these are. Trust me location is along a mountain ridge off they’re all delicious). They’re happy to Hans and Caroline The Casado: When you want to eat like a married man hroughout the country you’ll find in their own homes for lunch and/or Tsmall family run roadside diners dinner. called sodas offering a mix of typical Casados are usually inexpensive Costa Rica dishes, the most common ($3-$5) and quite filling and because being the casado. A casado is a the mixture of rice and beans makes a complete meal usually consisting of complete protein, quite healthy. Casados Plantains rice, beans, fried plantains (similar to may also come with yucca, cheese or bananas), tortillas, a small salad and pasta. Tabletops are also never complete he plantain, firmer and lower a choice of chicken, beef, pork or fish. without a bottle of Lizano sauce which Tin sugar than the banana, has Oftentimes vegetarian casados are is made of vegetables and spices. It’s been consumed since prehistory. available as well. The term originated a brown sauce used to enhance the Unlike bananas they are not eaten with clients wanting to eat like married flavor of foods. A trip to Costa Rica is not raw, rather they are boiled, fried or men when they’re on the road and this complete without eating like a local at steamed. Plantains can be used for is what customarily eat least once. cooking at any stage of ripeness. As the plantain ripens, it becomes sweeter and its color changes from green to yellow to black, just like its cousin the banana. Green plantains are firm and starchy, and resemble potatoes in flavor. Yellow plantains are softer and starchy but sweet. In Costa Rica fried plantains may be called patacones.

www.PacificLots.com Paradise Post World Class Health Care in Costa Rica

n the most recent worldwide health is considering offering Icare assessment from the The World coverage to Americans in Health Organization (WHO) Costa Rica Costa Rica. ranked a step above the United States. Costa Rica is also Costa Rica also outranks the US in noted for medical . It terms of lifespan. For a country with has quickly become one of a population of just over 4 million and the top destinations in the spending less than a 10% of what is world for cosmetic surgery, spent in the US for health care the facts dentistry or operations Hospital CIMA are startling. such as hip and knee Costa Rica’s universal health replacements. In fact, care is considered to be the best cosmetic surgery, for health care system in Latin America. example, is so affordable Private care providers are affordable that the total cost of a and world class. Most speak excellent medical vacation in Costa English and, after receiving their basic Rica including airfare, medical training in Costa Rica, travel accommodations and a few far and wide seeking specialized training days of sightseeing is often Clinica Biblica from the finest teaching hospitals far less than the procedure in the world, often becoming alone would cost in the United States. center, and an obstetrics and gynecology certified in their specialties, Plastic surgeries cost a third or even a center. There are 23 departments in the countries where they receive fourth of what they do in the US, without with 7 medical specialists, 10 general their advanced training. It’s not compromising quality or results. Not that practitioners and 30 nurses. uncommon to find doctors and dentists we’re saying you need it (we think you Prescription drugs in Costa speaking several languages fluently. look fabulous) a face lift in Costa Rica Rica are sold by brand name, many Costa Rica nationalized costs around $3,000 while the same of them being local brands (Costa its health care system shortly procedure in the US costs anywhere Rica is home to many pharmaceutical after abolishing their military in 1948. from $7,000 to $15,000. companies). Drugs originating in Costa Through Costa Rican Social Security Numerous clinics and hospitals Rica are inexpensive however some (CCSS) commonly known as the Caja offer special package deals and there drugs which have been imported may all Costa Rican citizens receive free are many agencies in the US who be more expensive than in the US. Most medical treatment at many hospitals specialize in putting patients in touch pharmaceuticals can be purchased and clinics. There are ten major public with doctors in Costa Rica. The well over the counter without a prescription. hospitals affiliated with the Caja. For respected CIMA, for example, offers a Many drugs (like birth control pills, non-emergencies and everyday medical complete physical check up including high cholesterol medication, migraine care, small clinics are located in almost x-rays, lab work, stress test, bone density medicine, etc…) are available in Costa every community. Foreigners with test, eye exam, pap smear, etc... for only Rica without a prescription, and residency in Costa Rica can access the $385. pharmacists can easily and accurately CCSS plan by paying a small contribution Costa Rica has over 30 diagnose and treat many common based on their income. hospitals and more than 250 problems. If it is not an emergency, the Residents (both national and clinics throughout the country. first course of action is to head to your foreign) can also buy health insurance The best hospitals in San Jose are CIMA neighborhood pharmacy, and consult from the state monopoly (INS) which (JCI certified and ranked in the top 3 of with the pharmacist (referred to as has recently opened to international all hospitals in Central America), Clinica doctor or doctora) about your ailment. competition due to the passing of the Biblica (also JCI certified) and Hospital Central American Free Trade Agreement Nacional de Ninos (considered to be the (CAFTA). Currently, private medical best children’s hospital in all of Central insurance costs about $50-$100 America. “Time and health are two monthly per person, depending on age, The Hospital de Osa is the precious assets that we don’t gender and other factors. With INS closest hospital to our area. It’s located recognize and appreciate until in the town of Cortez on the Costanera. insurance you can access all hospitals. they have been depleted.” Without insurance you will often find It’s Costa Rica’s newest hospital (not paying in cash will get you a discount for long though) and is a modern facility Denis Waitley and credit cards are widely accepted. of 85,000 square feet. The hospital A visit to a general practitioner will features a state of the art emergency cost between $25 and $50. Medicare room, pediatrics wing, a neurology www.PacificLots.com The American Crocodile Paradise Post lthough Costa Rica does not have takes the egg into her mouth and gently eating for more than a year which any alligators, American Crocodiles squeezes it to break the shell. Upon A causes them to lose all their excess can be found in several areas of the hatching, the young call to the mother weight. Crocs’ stomachs contain the country including the Sierpe River. Crocs who digs them out and gently transports highest volume of acidic gastric juices are usually 10-12 ft at maturity but then to the water in her mouth. Croc of any vertebrate, which allows them can grow to 23 ft. Their eyes, ears, and embryos do not have sex chromosomes. to digest even bones and shells. At any nostrils are on the tops of their heads so Sex is determined by temp. Eggs that given time, an adult croc’s stomach may when they are submerged in water, they are incubated above 93° produce contain 10 to 15 lbs. of rocks which are the only parts of them visible above males, and below 86° produce not only aid digestion; they also help the surface. Because their teeth are females, in between will produce both them submerge quickly and float with attached to the outside of the jaw they sexes. Parental protection of eggs and a minimum of body showing above the are visible even when the crocodile’s hatchlings is unusual for reptiles, but water line. Their diet includes primarily mouth is closed. The longevity of crocs have a high degree of involvement aquatic animals and occasionally birds crocs has not yet been determined with their young. Mothers are known to and mammals up to the size of deer. however there is a male crocodile at the share nests and nurture each other’s Crocs are an endangered Australian Zoo estimated at 134 yrs. hatchlings. Hatchlings are vulnerable species because they have been Crocs are good parents, to many different predators, and croc relentlessly killed in the past. They are particularly the mothers. When the time adults are extremely protective of an ancient lineage, and are believed comes, baby crocs must break their them. Both males and females respond to have changed little since the time of egg shells quickly or they will suffocate. aggressively to hatchling distress calls. the dinosaurs. They are believed to be Each hatchling has a horny growth at But even with careful nurturing, only 1 in 200 million years old whereas dinosaurs the tip of its snout to cut a hole in its 10 survive to become an adult. became extinct 65 million years ago; shell. When a mother notices that a They hunt about once a week, crocs survived great extinction events. baby is having a hard time hatching, she usually at night. They can go without

The Terraba Sierpe National Wetlands Mangrove Forest Reserve he Terraba Sierpe National Wetlands seen in the tree tops above. Tconsist of 66,850 acres and Mangroves are trees and shrubs encompass the largest mangrove forest which grow in brackish water. Mangrove processing. in Costa Rica. The reserve was founded forests are the most important coastal Many of the canals connect and in 1994 and protects the extensive ecosystem along the Pacific coast interweave (some provide irrigation for river mouth delta systems, estuaries of Central America and the Terraba- nearby banana plantations) and can be and wetlands between the Terraba and Sierpe Wetlands is considered the most explored on boat tours departing from Sierpe Rivers on the Pacific Coast of significant and biodiverse mangrove Sierpe. The mouth of the Sierpe River Costa Rica, north of Drake Bay. swamp in the world. Mangroves are is considered to be one of the most Most visitors pass through an important breeding ground for dangerous points along this area of the this area to access the lodges in the many species and provide protection Pacific coastline due to rogue waves Corcovado but the mangrove forest for immature (small not foolish) fish. that suddenly appear. These ‘freak is more than a through-point. The Mangrove vegetation also plays an waves’ can easily swamp a boat and are mangroves are abundant with birds important role in erosion protection caused by the massive volume of water including herons (boat-billed, green- and maintaining water quality. The that rushes down from the mountains, backed, tiger-throated, great blue and mangroves filter toxic contaminants from colliding with the incoming ocean little blue), egrets, pelicans, osprey, the water. current. Local folklore tells of a pirate roseate spoonbills, black-necked stilts, The river contains a large ship, carrying a fortune in gold, which mangrove black hawks, kingfishers, and amount of floating water hyacinth, a sank near the mouth of the Sierpe River occasionally mangrove hummingbirds. In plant introduced to the river by the possibly by one of these rogue waves. fact the last time we were there we saw United Fruit Company to help filter To tour this diverse ecosystem a pair of scarlet macaws. More than 55 out the chemicals from fertilizers and we suggest you contact Jorge Uribe species of fish and mollusks are found in pesticides used in the cultivation of Marin at the popular restaurant Las the waters and many species of reptiles bananas. Due to the downward flow of Vegas in Sierpe. He provides bilingual including crocodiles, caimans, boa the river, about an hour’s worth of these naturalists and captains for day or constrictors (considered lucky), iguanas floating plants reach the ocean each day evening tours. Information can be found and lizards are found lazing on the and die in the salt water. Water Hyacinth at www.perladelsur.net. shorelines. Monkeys including howler, is used in many water treatment capuchin and squirrel can also often be plants in the US in the final phases of www.PacificLots.com Well here we are in 2009, the world in value of great ocean view parcels. Paradise Post economic markets are in turmoil and We have had more people visiting the Obama is the new president of the properties than ever and we have more US. What does that all mean to you new construction starts than ever as and me? As unemployment goes up well. We hear more and more people and the values of our investments go citing interest in Costa Rica to offset down, Costa Rica looks more and more losses in their retirement savings, home attractive. The low cost of living, the equity and other investments. Costa low cost and high quality of health care, Rican property has not lost value like the high quality of life and the fact that the US market. We also hear more Costa Rica’s economy has proved very comments about the lower cost of living, resilient to the economic problems seen health care and taxes. I guess that’s worldwide, continues to attract attention why Kristina and I bought there in the (and envy) of many developed countries. first place so I shouldn’t be surprised. We’ve very excited to announce that we’ve opened up a new phase Los Why Gravel Roads? Brisas de Ojochal which we’re calling the Beverly Hills of Costa Rica. The First of all, we spend less time large lots are zoned as commercial or driving than I ever did when living residential and most have spectacular in the US and we actually prefer the ocean views. There are only a few lots in gravel roads over blacktop. Gravel this development and they are already roads keep speed limits down, they beginning to sell. absorb water, don’t absorb or reflect Within our developments, we heat, are easily re-graded when they finished the year on par with sales in get rough and remind us of a bygone 2007 although we are getting more era. We’d prefer if they never financed purchases and less “cash” pave our paradise, though we do buyers taking advantage of the 5% appreciate the fact that all the major discount. Prices have remained stable [email protected] roads and highways are paved. though we are still seeing increases 305-295-0137

The January Tour Group

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