A personal post about a dream that turned into reality and then into a different dream. Because in life you’ve got to have a plan B. A few weeks ago Barry and I both realized we were living out our dreams again. He was recently appointed a position with the U.S. National Park Service in
Can trading versus purchasing simplify your lifestyle? Short Answer: Maybe. This is our latest transaction. When I want something my mind first concentrates on the benefits of what having that thing will bring to me. I often let these benefits simmer around a bit in the old noggin and my want increases. That thing is starting to
Our move to Costa Rica This summary of our move to Costa Rica can be found at Living Abroad in Costa Rica a website/book/guide about moving to and living in Costa Rica. The fourth edition is coming out and our expat profile (a version of this article) will be included. by Erin Van Rheenen Kimberly Beck
Starting a business in Costa Rica I remember talking up our business plan to anyone that would listen back in early 2010. “We are going to build our portfolio as we drive across the U.S.A. and then open a Bed and Breakfast that offers Photography Classes in Costa Rica.” The star-shine in my eyes must have
Country Living in Costa Rica – Clinic Visit & Rollerskating You probably already know that we live in the country. After all, we do have a cow, pig and chicken farm to the North, South and East of us and the farms above us in the mountains are all grazing land for cattle. It might
Will Work for Beer – Finding Work in Costa Rica What if in some magical dreamland the “Will work for beer sign” that you kept under the bed just because you thought it was funny actually WORKED? What if it was a real job and not the here’s a six pack now get in the
Value of $4.50 in Costa Rica for an U.S. expat in 2012 There are a lot and I mean a lot of things here in Costa Rica that are more expensive than in the U.S. Most of you can go to the local Walmart and pick up a new coffee maker for $9.99. Now it
An Expat’s Experience visiting home for Thanksgiving. I recently returned from a 18 day trip to my hometown in the U.S., Cincinnati, Ohio. It was during Thanksgiving and the start of the Christmas season. I found Thanksgiving a great time to be home. During Thanksgiving week I saw family, old friends, new babies and people
Starting a New Life at 40? What was I thinking? We stayed overnight at a friend’s house recently so that we could be there early the next morning to catch their great green macaw saying “Quiero Café” or “I want coffee”. Cocito comes into the house sits on the back of his own chair and
These images are taken of the mountains in mainland Scotland from a commuter plane from the Isle of Lewis. We really enjoyed Scotland and hope to re-visit Edinburgh some day.
Residency in Costa Rica This Fourth of July was a very interesting day for us this year. Immigration scheduled our appointment for Costa Rican residency on that day, in San Jose. It meant a two and a half hour drive one way and a hotel stay because you never know how long you will wait
A cow and a truck, a love story – Updates on our move to Costa Rica I have so much news this time around and no time to sit and write. We have one day off a week, which is Sunday. Every other day we wake up at 5am. I make the coffee and Barry
Our first days living on a Costa Rica farm. We were staying on a friends farm and learning everything including Spanish. You can’t expect to come to Costa Rica and just take the country by storm. Even if you have a building plan, money and big dreams, nobody cares. There are permissions, stamps and rules that need
Making Butter, Collecting Fruit and the Birds – Our new life in Costa Rica Begins We arrived on December 7th and it has rained every day save for three since then. The Caribbean rainy season can last until February and then begins again in August. It is the rain that keeps everything this lovely shade
Fying instead of Driving and Shipping our stuff to Costa Rica This is an update on our trip. We were planning to drive to Costa Rica this week but have decided to fly instead. There are several factors that went in to this decision, some I consider to be “everything happens for a reason” reasons.
Driving to Costa Rica. Fitting it all in. Hi all. This video shows how we put an entire house full of stuff into the back of an 1999 S10 pickup. Fun things about this leg of the trip included looking down at my ring finger half way through Wisconsin and not knowing where my wedding
Applying for Residency in Costa Rica In early August we went back to Costa Rica to apply for residency. We stayed in San Jose proper which is unusual for us, as we normally get straight on a bus to Siquirres and never get to see the big city. We decided that after business was was finished that
End of July Building the Starplate Loveshack It is the end of July 2009 and this is our loveshack that we’ll be living in while we build our house. It has all the walls now and has screen around the entire building. It is made using the starplate system. Barry & his Dad Peter built
Updates and Transitions – Preparing for the move to Costa Rica All kinds of fun stuff going on since the last post. Coleman got back to us with a big thumbs down on our trip sponsorship. The reason, no budget. Really Coleman? If your CEO decided that he wanted to finger paint our truck I
The steps to take for residency in Costa Rica *FYI – this information changes all the time. This our experience. Contact a firm or lawyer to make certain you have the most up to date info on Costa Rica residency. I just sent the final documents, via courier, to the Washington DC office of the
Trip Sponsorship Are you interested in sponsoring our Destination Costa Rica trip? Your logo, website, advertisements, and product information could be seen by millions of people as we travel 7000+ miles from Cincinnati, throughout the Western U.S., Mexico and Central America. We are also able to accommodate product testing on gear throughout the trip. •
How the Costa Rica Idea was Born – What made us choose Costa Rica as the place to live? It all started when I received a bonus at work. I had a stellar sales year in 2007. I received a fairly large commission and a free trip to London (I’ll post later about how I extended the trip to
Leaving the Grind Behind Approximately 20 days after leaving my sales position, I think I have regained my perspective or I am starting to. As I dropped my friend at work downtown this morning, I studied all the people on the street while at the red light. Each and every person I viewed appeared worn, hurried and unaware