Trip report

[Dragon3283]

Hey I went to cost rica with a 2 friend both very mature and serious about not only seeing the sites but possibly moving or getting eventually married down there from the 4-9 of july and wanted to share it with you guys. So we stayed in Herradura in the Marriott Los Suenos and god damn is it nice and the level of service is amazing. Wait before i go on i just want to say Costa Rica is nothing like Mexico and is very modernized the people are extremely friendly and it is very very safe. Well anyway the hotel had a tour company pick up up and on the way to the hotel we told of a strip club"hey give me a break i was on vacation" called pelufos or something like that by the hotel. So we decided to go and let me tell you i am never wasting my money on american strip clubs again. The only minor downside to them is that some of the strippers are prositutes that solicit sex for 100 dollars once you are in the rooms oh yeah and the lapdance rooms lock from the inside so you know what goes on there. But they still give a quality lapdance and are extremly friendly even if you turn them down. The next day we went into a Town Close by called Jaco were just my luck one of the strippers was also there she actually recognized me and came across the room to say hi and even bought me a drink when she was getting herself one. For her to recognize me i thought was really nice since i am hispanic and so where my friends we looked like everyone else there. So we got to chatting and she offered to show us around but you always hear about turist getting kidnapped and stuff that we just took her cell number and told her we would call. Along the trip we also did a ton of siteseeing from manual antonio national park which is a rainforest to waterfalls and a crocodile picture safari. On the second day while i was buying some souverniers i struck up a very nice conversation with one of the girls that works at the place and ended up taking her out for dinner later that night where i let her pick. I thought for sure she was going to pic a fancy place but she actually took me to a place with my friends and hers that the locals go to where the food was cheap but amazing and her and i hung out almost the whole vacation i did see the stripper a couple of times in town and we did hang out a little but i feel that a stripper might just not be the right type for me if they are anything like the USA.

[Cap'n Jib]

Thanks for sharing. A friend dated a stripper for about a year. He definitely had no complaints and neither did we. She fit in with our group and IF you did not know what type of work she did, you would never guess. You did not use foul language in her presence.

I also lived next door, for nine months, to two American 'working girls' who catered to Airline pilots. To this day, they provided some of my best memories of good times. We would often go out for dinner and/or bar hopping. When they were not working, they were just plain fun and nice to be with. No, I did not mix my pleasure with their business.

Sure sounds like you had a good time. Thanks again!

What caught you eye the most in Costa Rica?

[Dragon3283]

What i liked the most about costa rica was the fact that so many americans lived there and went there for vacation and the extremely low crime rate. I also heard the girls were some of the best looking in the world. I def would have to agree if i didn't know what this girl did i would have never known nor did it ever come up when we hung out or did she ever try to milk me for money but since i do know i just seem to have trouble getting my head around it i know it is shallow but i dated a stripper once here in the usa and it was a nightmare.

[LastLion]

Dragon, nice to see you getting out there man. Don't date the strippers! Might as well save airfare and get one up here. Been there done that, memories that will never go away, but at the same time It is a proffesion that changes the souls of women.

I toured the same areas of costa rica as you. Jaco is fun , cause I love the surf like. But stay out of the Beatle bar! jajajajaj

What blew me away about Jaco, was that it is hard to tell which are the working girls. There are quite a few there. So be careful. Last time I was there I brought up a gal from Peru, unfortuantley she was looked at poorly a couple of times because she was with me the gringo. I did not like that!

I hope the atmosphere changes there because it is one of the most beautiful countries. Thanks for bringin back some good memories Dragon!

[HonkyTonk]

Good to see you put up a report dragon!

CR really seems to be a cool place. I'd like to hit some of the out of the way places that gringos don't visit. Any recommendations? All I've been to is SJ.

[Dragon3283]

Sorry tonk i really can't recommend anywhere because i really didn't know myself but i also would love to hit some of the out of way places i am actually planning another trip next year.

[Dragon3283]

Funny you mention the beatle bar lion everyone i spoke to also said to stay away from it even the drivers. And i also noticed that it seemed that all over costa rica it was very hard to tell the working girls from the everyone else i even heard of a couple of stories at my hotel where guys approached the wrong girl oh well suck to be them

[GrizGator]

I have a soft spot for Costa Rica. It's the first place that I ever went in CM where I stayed longer than a day. My first of three trips was in 2001, shortly after my divorce. I went with my brother, his wife and in-laws, and my mother. Actually it was a good time.

Alas, Costa Rica is no longer what it once was...even what it was six years ago. It has become too populars with Americans and Canadians, among others. Lots of gringos go there to retire. On my first trip, we spent a lot of time in Quepos/Manuel Antonio. I really like the area, but it's been over-run with gringo tourists and is also popular with the gays. Go for a day or two to see the park and then get out of dodge.

I personally like the Arenal....up in the mountains with an active volcano. There are still gringo tourists there, but you can find some spots to yourself. Hike into the hills (or take an ATV), go to Tabecon springs and relax in the natural hot springs, windsurf on the lake. Very nice.

Another place I really like it Tortoguero. You go there for peace and quiet...and to see nature. You are in the rain forest and the only way to get to most of the lodges is by boat. Some of the lodges really attract tourists....others are little more laid back and not as tourist-oriented. I would return to Tortoguero.....but not if I was looking for ladies (which, since I am married, I am not).

Jaco....forget it. Tourist trap. That's not to say that I did not enjoy a few days there.....but there are lots of tourists and lots of prostitutes. Jaco is NOT typical Costa Rica.

Next time I go to Costa Rica....I think I'll plan to visit the northwest side....the Nicoya Peninsula and the Guanacaste Range. There are still some places that gringos have not over-run, both on the coast and in the hills. You can fly into Liberia and avoid San Jose all together. Dominical, south of Quepos in the southwest end of Costa is also an idea.

All of this talk makes me want to start planning my next trip. It's been a few years.

Griz

Originally Posted by HonkyTonk

Good to see you put up a report dragon!

CR really seems to be a cool place. I'd like to hit some of the out of the way places that gringos don't visit. Any recommendations? All I've been to is SJ.

[Underwriter]

I have traveled to CR 10 times in the last 6 years. I do a lot of Billfishing and CR has some of the best Sailfishing in the world. When you couple that with a gringo friendly environment and inexpensive accomidations...it makes for a great locale.

I have stayed in San Jose, Quepos and Jaco. When I first went down in 2001, Quepos was the fishing spot. It has been replaced with the Jaco area after Los Sueneos was finished in late 2001. If you have never been....Los Sueneos is a 5 star Marriott hotel, condo and marina property...absolutly beautiful.

My last trip in February is the first time I EVER looked over my shoulder in Jaco. It appears that the Tranny element has come to Jaco. If you are walking around late night they will ask you if you want sex....they mostly hit the drunk gringos going home from the Beetle Bar. They will grab the guys, one grabbing his package....the others grabbing his Colones...

The main reason for me starting this mission was my experiences in Costa Rica. There are a lot of Colombian women in CR. Most of them are working girls....that being said, unlike their American counterparts, who sell their body for cash, jewels and cars...these girls send a majority of the money home to pay for their children and families. Don't get me wrong....I am sure there is a fair share of Colombians who hook for the lifestyle....but I would say the majority of them are there because they need the cash....

Anyway, every time I would meet a beautiful girl.....they would tell me they were Colombian. So I said to myself....I have to get to Colombia!!!

Dragon...my guess is the best looking women you saw in Costa Rica are Colombian. Dating a stripper or a working girl can be a difficult thing if you are not strong enough mentally to handle that.....keep that in mind, just because she tells you that you are her amor after the first hour knowing her does not mean she is in love with you. Colombian women can tell you they love you within hours and days of knowing them.....BE CAREFUL!!

UW

[HonkyTonk]

Griz and UW, thanks for taking the time to give me some info on where to aviod tourists in CR! I think others might find that info useful as well.