Archive for August 2009
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Trusted Hostel Partners
Below you’ll find a list of hostels that we know will take the best possible care of you and your travel needs in Costa Rica, Panama, Mexico and Nicaragua.
Not a hostel, and located in Sayulita, Mexico, La Casona is another creation from Storm, Courtney Bialy and Hana Waxman. La Casona is more of an up scale hotel, but we wanted to share this with everyone in case they ever make it up to beautiful Sayulita, Mexico.
From the twisted minds that brought you Mondo Taitu and Hostel Heike in Bocas del Toro, Luna’s Castle is, bar-none, the best backpacker spot in Panama City. Housed in a creaky, colonial mansion near the water’s edge, Luna’s Castle blends historic Spanish architecture with funky, laid-back backpacker vibes. Although it’s the newest accommodation in the capital, the owner’s winning formula of professional service, international atmosphere and shoestring prices are sure to make this a legendary stop on the Gringo Trail.
Long rated one of the best hostels in Panama, Hostel Mamallena should be your choice for a hostel in Panama City. One of the only hostels in Panama City in a large colonial style house, this is where you will get to experience the real Panama. Perejil(Close to La Exposicion in the Lonely Planet) was once one of the most upmarket areas of Panama City, now it’s a middle class area with tree lined streets and a peaceful atmosphere.
Bambu Hostel is located in David, Panama. David is a frequent stopping point for travelers heading to Boquete, Bocas del Toro, Panama City if your heading south, or a stopover point if you’re heading north to Costa Rica.
Bambu is a Backpackers resort with a deluxe in-ground pool and Mayan-Style rancho bar and landscaped garden. Located in a safe middle class neighborhood in the San Mateo District of David-City, Panama. We welcome Backpackers and International Travelers from all corners of the world. Gregg Lapkin, seasoned traveler and hostel owner will personally greet you and make you feel at home. Don’t believe everything you read in the guidebooks. David is fun! It has everything that a weary traveler could need to recharge the batteries, fine dining, casinos, movie theatres, inexpensive shopping, world class nightclubs and discos, festivals, and, within 45 minutes, awesome mountains, oceans and Costa Rica. Come stay with us at Bambu, relax in the garden, swing on a hammock with a cold beer in the rancho bar, dip in the pool and watch the tropical birds flying in the backyard. We have very few rules here, just come with a good attitude and have fun.
Mondo Taitu is a landmark in Bocas del Toro. A long time destination on the Central American backpacker circuit, “The Mondo” is legendary for it’s atmosphere and being the social center for travelers visiting Bocas del Toro on Panama’s Caribbean Coast.
I added some pics from their “super heroes” party, and the “foil” party. The girl with the mask, actually got arrested that night for wearing the Panamanian flag as part of her costume.
Solo Bueno is a surf hostel nestled within the jungle at Playa Guiones, near Nosara, on the Nicoya Peninsula. The hostel attracts an international crowd of travelers interested in surfing, music, art, yoga, and the pura vida vibe of Costa Rica.
I’m proud to say I designed their new logo.
Etiquette tips for Costa Rica
Costa Ricans are warm, friendly and are quick to smile. It is not uncommon for them to start a conversation even with foreigners. Ticos as they are fondly called would approach foreigners and ask the latter what he thinks about Costa Rica, where he comes from and how his family is doing. In the same way, Costa Ricans appreciate being asked about their families particularly their children, the local culture and history. It gives them great pride to discuss the beauty of Costa Rica.
On the other hand, Costa Ricans have a deep sense of honor, thus, care should be taken not to say anything that would in the least be interpreted as disrespectful. Politics and family are good conversation topics while Costa Ricans shy away from discussions about religion and personal criticisms.
Costa Ricans, regardless of social standing, conduct themselves with utmost humility. They frown upon boasting of any kind. Public displays of anger and impatience are also seen as bad manners. Because of their desire to leave good impressions, Costa Ricans are wary of embarrassing themselves or appearing rude or unhelpful. As such, they are exceedingly courteous.
With Costa Ricans, a handshake is the most common form of greeting. A firm handshake is preferred between men. Women often greet each other by patting or touching the left forearm lightly instead of shaking hands. Women friends may exchange a light kiss on the cheek. Abrazo or embrace is not typically done in Costa Rica as compared to other Latin countries.
In Costa Rica, everybody receives equal treatment and respect regardless of social standing. However, titles are important and should be used if aware of them. They are usually included in business cards. A person should be addressed directly by using his/her title only. Professionals are addressed according to their university degree. A physician is called a Doctor, teachers prefer Profesor, lawyers are Abogado and engineers go by the title Ingeniero. Persons who do not have professional titles should be addressed as Senor (Mr), Senora (Mrs), Senorita (Miss) plus their appropriate surname. Most Costa Ricans have two surnames, one from their father which is written first followed by their mothers’ surnames. Only the father’s surname is used when addressing someone.
Latin countries are more flexible when it comes to punctuality. Being late for an appointment for thirty minutes is acceptable. Costa Ricans may not be punctual when it comes to social activities but they are on time for their business appointments. Since they only have a short time for midday break, everyone is expected to be on time for business lunches. Business projects may progress slowly since Costa Ricans are conservative individuals and are averse to taking risks. They do not usually welcome new ideas. They tend to lack initiative and are passive.
People in downtown San Jose dress more formally than those in the countryside. Costa Ricans do not usually wear shorts outside beach areas. Leather dress shoes are the norm. Tennis shoes are only for sports. For business meetings, formal business attire is expected. Men should wear a conservative, dark and lightweight business suit with a tie. For women, dress, skirt and blouse or light business suit is recommended. Nowadays, it is common for women to wear pants to work. Jackets or coats should be worn all through the meeting.
When accepting a dinner or lunch invitation, it is customary to bring flowers such as roses but not calla lilies which are associated with funerals. Suggested gifts are fine wine, chocolates and other delicacies. Costa Rican women are partial to perfume or silk scarves. As a guest, expect to be seated at the head of the table. If you are a first time guest, linger only for an hour or less after the meal is finished. Good friends can stay longer. If there are no servants, offering help will be greatly appreciated. Women should also refrain from drinking liquor. This is seen as being impolite.
There are other unacceptable behaviors in Costa Rica. Putting ones feet on any furniture is a no-no except on items specifically designed for that purpose. Fidgeting with ones hands and feet is impolite. Making a fist with the thumb sticking out in the middle is offensive. Offering bribes to police officers or any bureau personnel is prohibited. Bargaining is not allowed in store and local markets.
Tipping:
At Restaurants: Tip is included in the bill; anything additional is a pleasant surprise.
At Hotels: Twenty-five to 50 cents per bag to the porter, $1 per bag at a fine hotel; leave $1 a day for the housekeeper.
Guides and Drivers: Tip cabbies a small amount if you have luggage; drivers get $2–$4 for a long drive, $1–$2 for a trip from the airport; tour guides should get $5–$10 per person per day.
Who Else?: On an organized tour involving several guides, there’s usually a jar for tips to be divvied up among staff—leave $2–$3 for each person who’s helped. On a boat, $5–$10 for the captain will be distributed among the crew.
P.S. Costa Ricans generally get paid better than other Central American guides. “Rarely do you find them standing around with their hand out for a tip,” says Leigh Ann Cloutier of Rico Tours.
Top Diving Destinations in Costa Rica
Costa Rica is a mecca for both wildlife and marine life and boasts over 5% of the world’s biodiversity. On a recent trip to the Osa Peninsula in the Southern Pacific Coast of Costa Rica, a diver referred to Costa
Rica’s diving as offering the best variety in the world.
One of the biggest misconceptions about diving in Costa Rica is that typically you will find the diving to be big fish diving rather than
small coral dwelling fish. However if you want to see rays, whales, many species of sharks, octupus, schools of barracuda, etc. There are several protected coral diving areas that offer great opportunities to see nursing sharks, bright tropical fish species and sea turtles as well.
The Top Diving Destinations in Costa Rica are:
- Caño Island
Caño Island is a National Marine Park and is protected by the Government and the National Park Service and therefore there is no fishing allowed in the area. Due to its remote location it is considered slightly off the beaten path meaning not many divers actually dive here and the marine life is abundant. The average dive depth is 30ft/10m with a mild current and great visibility. You can expect to see eels, nursing sharks, white-tipped reef sharks, parrot fish, rays, octubus, sea turtles and many species of micro marine life. Divers just might find themselves at the foot of a giant school of jacks swimming in a tornado fashion to gather food, a truly unforgettable experience.
In order to get to Caño Island you will need to fly into San Jose and then take a domestic flight to Drake Bay, or take the long drive to beaches like Dominical or Uvita where you can depart by boat to reach the island. One of the best properties to stay at for diving is the Aguila de Osa Inn on Drake Bay as it has its own dive shop and several hotel packages include a dive trip in the total price.
- Manuel Antonio
The diving in Manuel Antonio is satisfactory however not the best diving in Costa Rica. The main reason people go here is to enjoy the luxury hotels, restaurants, white sand beaches in the national park and also to dive for a couple of days. Normal dive depths are 20-40 ft with a mild current and the dive site is around a submerged rock. You will see species such as jacks, grunts, angels, nudie branch and trumpets.
While the area has a wealth of great hotels, some top recommendations are Si Como No, Buena Vista Villas and Arenas del Mar.
- Catalina Islands/Tamarindo/Ocotal
All of the diving in Northern Costa Rica will be around the Catalina Islands which are located just off the Guanacase Coast. The diving is around 30-40 ft and the current is mild. Expect to see large bull sharks, giant manta rays, eagle rays, schools of cow nose rays, devil rays and a large variety of schools of fish.
The best hotels to stay at to reach the best diving spots in Guanacaste are Ocotal Beach Resort in Ocotal, Capitan Suizo in Tamarindo and Reserva Conchal in Playa Conchal.
Costa Rica and Peru ‘hot locations for solo and gap year travellers’
Although taking a trip with friends can always be a good source of fun, many gap year students, holidaymakers and people on sabbaticals are now opting to travel alone.
This is according to the editor of SoloTravel.org Anthony Page, who has noticed an increase in the number of people heading out on their adventures without companions.
He added that although some solo travelers prefer city breaks and lively hostels, the most popular locations for people hooking up with groups and volunteering abroad is Latin America.
“The best advice is to hook up with an organized holiday company or to stay in a hostel where other solo travelers hang out so you can hook up,” Mr Page said. “Costa Rica and Peru – these are hot destinations at the moment”.
According to the latest research from Mintel, five million Britons plan to head out alone this year and the number of people going away on holiday unaccompanied has increased by five per cent since 2004.
Gambling Companies Could Leave Costa Rica if Taxed
By Christopher Costigan, Gambling911.com
Following news over the past two weeks that the Government of Costa Rica is considering taxing online gambling firms operating in that country, operators have told Gambling911.com they would leave if push comes to shove.
On Tuesday, July 21, Finance Minister Guillermo Zúñiga announced that the Finance Ministry will introduce a bill in the Legislative Assembly to impose a special 2 percent tax on gambling revenues – online and offline – earned in
Costa Rica, according to the Tico Times. The bill is set to reach the Legislative Assembly on Monday, Aug. 3, and a vote on its approval is expected to be held sometime in mid-August.The Finance Ministry estimates that the proposed 2 percent tax will generate $85 million in government income.
“The principal idea of the bill is to regulate activity,” Zúñiga said. “Gambling is something that we are currently not monitoring and, thus, not taking advantage of. If we can regulate it, it could create millions of dollars for the economy.”
But those numbers are unrealistic should much of the
online gambling sector bolt. Costa Rica’s land-based casinos generate very little revenues in comparison.“They (The Costa Rican Government) needs to understand our business and the consequences before passing such a law,” said Mickey Richardson, CEO of BetCRIS.com, the largest and most established sports betting operation in
Costa Rica in terms of bet sizes taken. “Hopefully nothing will happen. I think they would ask for our input and then we might be more supportive.”Richardson estimates that the industry both directly and indirectly employs some 10,000 people, perhaps even more.
“The industry pays above average salaries and contibutes substantially to household incomes,” he said.
Learning From Great Britain’s Mistakes
Costa Rica may want to observe what is currently transpiring in the United Kingdom right now.
The country’s second largest bookmaker, William Hill, this past week unveiled plans to move its Internet operation from England to Gibraltar in order to cut its tax bill.
The Sunday Times said UK-based internet betting companies pay 15 percent of their gross profits in tax, and that a move offshore by
William Hill would put pressure on its rivals to follow suit.Ladbokes, Great Britain’s largest bookmaker, may do just that. Ladbrokes is keeping its cards close to its chest with a board meeting due the day after William Hill’s results, according to the Daily Mail. But while it is understood to prefer staying in the UK, company sources admitted it would have to respond to any move by
William Hill.The choice between the United Kingdom and offshore locales such as Gibraltar is a practical “no brainer”. Those businesses operating in England pay a 15 percent tax while those based in Gibraltar pay 1.5 percent.
According to the Gibraltar Chronicle, a mass exodus from the UK could spell trouble for the Racecourse Owners Association who would see a drop of £45 million in lost tax as well as a £30 million loss in 10% levy paid to them. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has acknowledged that it does want to level the playing field with overseas businesses but crucially predicts little, if no action prior to next year’s General Election.
Panama Might be Best Bet
Those
Panama in the past few years has opened its doors to
online gambling operators, though few have actually moved there due to Costa Rica’s “hands off” stance until now.“I love Panama,” Richardson admits.
BetCRIS has already opened a Caracas, Venezuela office for its Latin American clientele, though few would argue Caracas is a fair trade with
Costa Rica during these times.Panama City on the other hand resembles Miami in many ways, with modern skyscrapers and some of the best eating establishments rising up over the last 15 years. The Central American nation itself resembles
Costa Rica in that it abolished its army over the last decade and is now among the most stable nations in all of Latin America.For now, Richardson admits it’s a “wait and see” decision. Nobody seems overly concerned just yet.
In the past, the Costa Rican Government has attempted to increase licensing fees for
operators, but few paid them and the requirement was eventually dropped.Virilla Bridge Continues To Create Traffic Havoc
Benjamín Sandino is perhaps the most hated man in Costa Rica. As the national director of the Consejo Nacional de Vialidad (Conavi), he has had to close down completely the most important highway in the country, not once, but twice in the period of two weeks and to fix the same problem.
We are talking about the repair work at the Virilla bridge on the autopista General Cañas, a problem that has plagued the westbound lanes of the bridge for more than a year, as work crews made constant an non-lasting repairs over the time.
Two weekends ago, Sandino decided to close the autopista for 52 continuous hours to, once and for all, replace the metal plate that spans the north half of the bridge.
But that work lasted a total of 48 hours, as heavy traffic loosened the plate again and all the work and efforts were for not.
During the past week, temporary day closures and complete night closures, allowed work crews to prepare the bridge for the installation of a bean underneath the bridge to, hopefully, put an end to the all the traffic interruptions.
As such the autopista from the Juan Pablo II bridge in La Uruca to the La Castella, east of Cariari, has been closed since Saturday morning early and scheduled to re-open Monday morning at 6am, with all the repairs made and long lasting.
However, many Costa Ricans don’t have much faith in the work and that there will be no more interruptions or closures on the bridges. Some went as far as saying that they have more faith in former president, Rafael Angél Calderón, who is in the last days of a corruption and embezzlement trial, being re-elected than in Sandino and the Conavi.
The reality is that the bridge is the main link between San José and Alajuela and to points in Puntarenas and Guanacaste and the interruptions at the bridge have been a nightmare for many, with a heavy price paid in time and waster gasoline, as traffic has backed up for more than 2 hours on the alternate routes through Heredia and Santa Ana.
