Theatrical Production Experience Aids Costa Rican Wedding Planner

Randy Gritz knows all about planning tropical weddings, and she should, as she has designed and organized over 200 of them in the past seven years! Originally from Philadelphia, Randy has made Costa Rica home for the last 20 years. She speaks fluent Spanish, has an extensive knowledge of the country and the people, which helps her successfully navigate the often unpredictable course of planning the perfect wedding ceremony and reception.

“Planning a wedding is like mounting a theatrical production,” says Randy. For years she has been an active member, producer and stage manager for The Little Theatre Group of Costa Rica. Founded in 1949 by Bert Williams, the Little Theatre Group is the oldest continuously running English-language theatre in Central or South America. A dedicated wedding professional and member of the theater group, she is always aware that this very special day is one that the happy couple and their family will remember for the rest of their lives, and therefore, must be perfect in every detail. “Each wedding has a different script and budget, and just like before the opening night of a play, a wedding requires careful direction and detailed planning,” states Randy.

Global Warming and Costa Rica – A Refuge from the Storm?

The World is facing one of the greatest challenges that humanity has ever endured in the modern age – global warming. Yes, we’ve all heard some say in the past that it’s junk science, but now, the question isn’t is there global warming or not, but whether it is caused by man, or just nature going through cycles. It really doesn’t matter at this point, as it is coming upon us with the inertia of a heavy flywheel.

Often I’ve heard people say, “How can we stop it; reverse it?” “For me”, according to Brad Butler of Emerald Forest Real Estate Company in Costa Rica, “I am of the opinion it is beyond a quick fix at this point, and what we humans must do is ask, ‘How we can best survive the storm at this approaching, late date?’”

From SCUBA Diver & PADI Instructor to Eco Hotel Owner in Drake Bay

Rick Lane: Co-owner of the Pirate Cove Hotel and PADI Resort

How did you happen to come to Costa Rica and become a eco-hotel owner?

“Well, twenty years ago, I visited Drake Bay and enjoyed some great scuba diving at Isla del Cano. It was love at first sight. This isolated and beautiful home to deserted beaches and pristine rain forests is a natural paradise! It was hard to reach and far from normal tourist routes, but that just increased its allure. I vowed to return.”

 There was nothing here at the time, so how did you come to build a hotel?

“On a return visit, I became friends with a Swiss couple living in the area and we decided to build a small beach hotel for scuba divers and those who wanted to experience the awesome beauty of Corcovado National Park but who didn’t necessarily want to travel rough and sleep in the mud, like I had to on my first trip! We decided to call our hotel ‘Pirate Cove’, as a sort of back-handed compliment to Sir Francis Drake, who discovered Drake Bay.”  

At that time, things were really primitive, with unpaved roads and no electricity?

“Absolutely!  But now, the road from Manuel Antonio to Dominical makes the trek much easier, and we have electricity, phone lines, GSM and 3G service now.  Pirate Cove is an intimate place in the rain forest right at the edge of a very long deserted beach. The bungalows are the most popular with our guests, and all have private bathrooms with hot water showers and private terraces overlooking the beach. We also now have three rooms on the second floor of the main building, which have air conditioning.”

Are you an all inclusive hotel, as aren’t there few restaurants?

“There are no restaurants close to the hotels down here, so prices include all meals.  ‘All inclusive’ generally means alcoholic beverages are included, which we don’t, but we do have an honor bar.  Our guests rate our food as excellent, we use local produce, much of it organic, fresh caught fish and often homemade bread.”

Since you are in a more remote, but pristine area, what type of guests do you attract?

“SCUBA divers and true nature lovers!  Most guests stay between 3 and 7 days to experience and relax. The beach is safe with no dangerous tides and we provide kayaks  at no extra charge. The two most popular tours are Corcovado National Park and Isla del Cano, and during the 45 minute boat rides, whales and dolphin are often seen. Isla del Cano is the home to world class scuba diving and snorkeling. Large pelagic and colorful reef creatures abound below the surface.  For horseback riders, Susanne keeps the most beautiful and well trained horses and you can ride along the beach and into the rain forests.”

“ This is the true, old Costa Rican, Pura Vida!  If you’re looking for discos, night life and casinos, city views from behind glass windows, don’t come here.  But if you’re looking for SCUBA diving and nature, then you’ll be in paradise – guaranteed!”

Pirate Cove in Drake Bay is  working towards “Bandera Azul”, the Blue Flag Award for beaches in Costa Rica, and  in the  final stage of becoming verified as an ecological hotel by The Rain Forest Alliance.  For more information, visit their websites:Pirate Cove Hotel and Cano Divers PADI Resort.

Related: New eco-resort near Manuel Antonio empahsizing sustainable tourism.

New – Guided Dental Implant Surgery in Costa Rica

What is Guided Dental Implant Surgery?

Guided dental implant surgery is a computer-guided technology that utilizes digital x-rays enhanced with special software to allow the dental surgeon to see every angle and plan an exact procedure for placing dental implants within the patient’s mouth.

Using the guided implant surgery process, dental surgeons create a precise surgery plan, locating the optimal locations to make incisions and determine the best path to the implant area.  Because this process allows surgeons to see the human mouth in real-time 3D, they can avoid “hard-to-detect” problem areas, minimizing patient pain, surgery and recovery time.

Dr. Julian Conejo

“Colina Dental is the first dental clinic in Costa Rica to invest in this cutting-edge dental equipment to give our patients the most efficient, pain-free dental implant services available,” says Dr. Julian Conejo, dental implant specialist with Colina Dental.

“This process minimizes surgery time, dramatically reduces pain, and helps our patients heal faster than ever before.   With some patients, we have been able to provide a full set of teeth in one day, which was unheard of before this procedure.”

Love in the Wild – Ep. 8: The Finale

Seven adventures and it had all come down to this – the grand finale.  Mike and Samantha vs. Miles and Heather for all the marbles, or rather a first class trip around the world.  Having won three of the adventures together, including last week’s, Mike and Samantha came into the final the odds-on favorites.

On the morning of the final competition, Samantha read a card full of encouraging words from her mom. ( Watching this, I’m thinking if only mail service were that good in the city!)  Reading how much her mom loved her, how supportive she was, made Samantha cry.  Mike got all choked up too just because Samantha had allowed to him to read over her shoulder.

Where'd Mike and Miles go?

THE ADVENTURE

The girls showed up at the starting line in their itty-bitty, teeny-weeny (minus the polka-dot) bikinis for the second week in a row.  Although I can’t be sure, I assume from previous experience that Mike and Miles were there, too.  Once Darren counted down from three, the teams took off on a final adventure that would last not one but two days, and consist of swimming, canoeing, changing clothes in front of one’s partner, assembling an oxcart from scratch, coping with a dysenteric mammal, pitching a tent, pitching a fit, and climbing to the top of a volcano only to run back down again for no apparent reason.

Love in the Wild – Ep. 7: The Dirty Half-Dozen

Bare Down: The final 3 couples battle to win that trip around the world...and look good doing it.

This week the three remaining couples met Darren not in the jungle but at the beach in their skivvies.  He then told them to swim for it by which he meant a boat anchored maybe 50 meters offshore.  No problem, right?  No, none – except that Miles from Minnesota, land of 10,000 lakes, didn’t know how to swim.  Fearing that he might drown, he was outfitted with a life jacket and training wheels.  Having retrieved a map from underwater, all three couples started paddling like mad (on paddle boards) in a race to find five coin-filled bags and deliver them to an oddly named gentleman at a place called Coco’s Bar in town (Ed. Note: In Cahuita, for those curious).  While Mike was smacking Samantha in the head with a paddle, Skip, stoked by the sight of Teresa’s rear end staring him straight in the face, rowed his team into an early lead.  Meanwhile, Heather was doing her best to keep Miles from ending up face down in the kiddie pool.  Having been first to retrieve a fourth bag at the pier, Skip and Teresa were feeling pretty good about themselves at this point in the adventure. The only thing between them and the win was recovering the fifth bag and delivering it to that dude at Coco’s.  But, then the unthinkable happened. Teresa lost the fourth bag somewhere between the pier and forever.  And just like that their lead completely evaporated.  Yes, they backtracked, crossed paths with a mapache, went back into the water at the pier, but it was all for naught.  They were toast.  It was a two-team race after that.

Love in the Wild – Ep. 6: Bad luck turns into good luck, which turns back into bad luck

Last night episode began with a ‘big ass’ armadillo sighting.  Among some indigenous peoples, this apparently is a sign of good things to come.  If only Steele was conversant with aboriginal folklore, he would’ve known when he saw that ‘big ass’ armadillo – that his luck was about to change.

THE ADVENTURE

Have you ever had to find a carved stone mask hidden in a fichus tree?  Well, neither have I.  But, that’s exactly what the remaining five couples had to do last night.  Then, they had to find 4 more hidden variously on a rock pile, a guava grove, on top of a boulder, and behind a waterfall.  I won’t bore you with a tedious blow-by-blow description of the adventure.  Suffice it to say, Steele and Erica miraculously came in second, Skip instructed Teresa to find a horse with a “nice ass,” and, upon sliding into a mud pit, Erica emerged to say she detected the smell of horse**** in the air.  Along with another night at The Oasis, winning couple Samantha and Mike also won immunity and two tickets on a zip line.

Love in the Wild – Ep. 5: The Ol’ Switcheroo Trick, eh?

Uh oh, the ol' switcheroo.

At some point between episodes 4 and 5, somebody somewhere decided that the show had become just a tad too cozy.  Attachments had formed, couples had coalesced, but the show wasn’t even halfway done yet!  So, this week producers decided to mix it up a bit, to gum up the works.   Once Darren had described the week’s adventure in minute detail to the six remaining couples, he pulled the ol’ switcheroo, announcing that, before setting off on said adventure, the men were to pick brand new partners.  It didn’t come as much of a surprise when last week’s first and second place finishers, Derek and Ben, respectively chose Erica and Samantha to be their new partners.  Likewise, it was hardly a shock, that, despite his good looks, all the girls dreaded the prospect of being picked by Steele, fearing the curse.  (Cue thunder and lightening.)

Love in the Wild – Ep. 4: Jason, The Horse Wimp-erer

Remind me.  Had we seen the contestants chatting in the aftermath of the previous week’s Couples’ Choice Cermenony to start an episode before?  Well, that’s what happened last night.  It was illuminating too in so far as Derek told everyone within earshot, including his partner Jess, that he nearly dumped her for Samantha, explaining that – hey, he could always ‘circle back’ if things didn’t work out with Samantha.  When wiry little Mike got wind of this, he tried to impart the hands-off message to Derek.  May have even worked, too, in the end.

Jason and Jessi looking bitter (and blurry.)

Thanks to creepy Night Vision Goggles-O-Rama, we got to watch a couple of the new couples dispensing with pleasantries and getting right down to a snog  (Yes, I’m writing from England) in bed.  We also got to see Ben bring Brandee breakfast in bed on the occasion of her 26^th birthday, and the sad sight of Jessi blowing off Jason’s gift of a bouquet of freshly cut jungle flowers.

Love in the Wild – Ep. 3: Snakebitten

…So, let’s see now, with Vanessa having been given the boot last week and Peter having been redirected to the caves at Lascaux, eight couples entered last night’s episode…

THE ADVENTURE

Steele rowing Kym to her doom.

Darren informed the sixteen competitors that they would have to race down a path leading to the shore of Lake Arenal, where, having first located a map, they would then jump into one of eight waiting canoes.  Their destination?  The ominously-named Snake Island (Ed. Note: For the record, not a real place in Costa Rica).  Derek and Jess pushed off first, while at the other end of a very short spectrum, Ben and Brandee couldn’t even find the gol’dern map.  Hitherto happy loving couple Samantha and Mike ran – er, paddled into (for the first time in three episodes) choppy seas, when Mike, being of the XX chromosome variety, insisted on rowing to the right when everybody else was rowing – correctly, I might add – to the left.  It was like watching a guy refuse to ask for directions – for fear that it would impugn his masculinity – while driving the family Winnebago off a cliff.  Samantha managed in the end to get all their oars in a row but not without losing a little faith in his stewardship of both the canoe and their budding romance.  Mike, however, wasn’t the only man in hot water in the lake.  Adam, who’d spirited Heather away from Miles in last week’s Couples’ Choice Ceremony, just couldn’t get a handle on the subtleties of rowing, thus sacrificing precious brownie points with the aforementioned Heather.

Love in the Wild – Ep. 2: Peter’d Out, Karma’s A *****

Jessica and a frightened Derek on Costa Rica's Hanging Bridges

And, then there were nine – nine couples, that is, what with Dawn and Jared having been eliminated last week.  This week, the newly-minted – and not-so newly minted – couples were informed by affable Scotsman Darren McMullen that they’d have to circumnavigate a slew of bridges slung perilously across gorges, chasms and voids – and even a bat cave for good measure – in pursuit of six so called tethers.  Said tethers were not only charged with “symbolic” significance, but also tested the couples’ ability to work in tandem so as to avoid certain death in that they literally connected boy to girl like an umbilical.  Like last week, the winning couple would get a night’s luxe accommodation at some place called The Oasis and, as an added bonus, the next day, a scenic helicopter ride and romantically situated lunch for two with an outstanding view of the majestic and still quite lively Volcan Arenal.

Love in the Wild – Ep. 1: The Adventure Begins…

On last night’s premier episode of the new NBC reality series, Love In The Wild, we got to meet the twenty contestants for the first time as they stood nervously in a leafy grove in the middle of the jungle in Arenal.  In brief video segments, we learned that basically they had all embarked on this once-in-a-lifetime adventure to find true love, having apparently run out of legitimate opportunities in the concrete jungle back home. At the young ladies’ choosing, they then all paired off and set out on their first, so-called adventure together – essentially an obstacle course – during which they raced to bring samples of air, earth and water back to the show’s genial host, young Scotsman Darren McMullen, waiting sweatily at the finish line.

Turn on (at 8), tune in (to NBC), and, for God’s sake, throw away the meds

Hi.

Hello there.

My name is Nick Silver. (In some, slightly grittier, parts of this big blue-green ball we call La Tierra, I’m also known as Dirk Shank, but that’s a story for another time, another place, a fatter paycheck.) By way of introduction, I have been tasked with the awesome responsibility of blogging, for the benefit of Tico Times readers far and wide (those high and low are welcome to read along as well) on a new reality series called “Love In The Wild” premiering tonight at ten on the peacock network, otherwise known as the National Broadcasting Company – NBC for short.

I’m an expat. Living in Costa Rica, who, after years of high art preening, has finally come to appreciate the true meaning of TV, i.e., that it works best as a kind of sedative., preferably one administered by a busty nurse. Nothing outside of prescription medicine (prescription medicine in Costa Rica – perish the thought!) quite takes the edge off like a couple of hours in front of the ol’ flat screen. In my case, I’ve so come to appreciate – and depend, really – on this aspect of TV that I’ve sworn off Lexipro for good. Valium, too. OK, so I got a death grip on the Prozac. Go ahead and sue me. As for my shrink, that kook Dr. Vargas – well, he can take a hike in the proverbial cloud forest, too, for all I care!

As to the critical question of ‘why now?’ – well, the show is premiering tonight for one thing. Plus, there’s no time like the present; I remember somebody telling me that a long time ago.

Why this show? Good question. Well, it’s elementary, my dear Watson. (Insert yawn here.) It just so happens the show is set in Costa Rica, our collective home away from home, hence you’re supposed to care. Don’t worry, though: it ain’t another iteration of the CSI franchise, this time set in the crummy streets of San Jose. No, no. Instead, it’s a charming lark among the camera-ready flora and fauna of Costa Rica – ergo the title, by which is meant – or so I gleaned from very briefly glancing at the show’s website – photogenic locales like Volcan Arenal, The Blue River, and Tommy’s Bait and Switch on Isla Coco.

Apparently, the dealio is as follows: 10 fetching adult girls and 10 strapping adult boys – 20 homo sapiens in all – have been flown in from The States to see if they can’t make a love connection while testing their mental and emotional intelligence in the leafy and humid environs of prime Costa Rican jungle. Dunno ‘bout you, but to me it sounds like a reanimated Frankenstein’s monster made up of bits of Survivor, Temptation Island, Get Me Out Of Here – I’m A Celebrity, and The Bachelor. Then, of course, every week – ah, you know the drill by know – the castaways are winnowed by a factor of two until, at the very end, by means of a series of diabolical competitions, the canny producers at NBC will hope to have produced a modern day version of Tarzan and Jane., minus the chimp. (Of course, Tarzan and Jane will announce their separation soon after the wrap party.)

Sadly, I have some bad news to impart. If, like me, you were hoping to see the one and only Chuck Woolery hosting in a loin cloth, it pains me deeply to inform you that instead we have to countenance yet another British interloper as MC. This time it goes by the name of Darren McMullen, a Scot by way of Australia, who, at least based on his online vlogs, will be a genial and sometimes cheeky host in the manner American audiences might associate with Craig Ferguson. China overrunning American manufacturing is one thing, but the British invasion of American media must stop at once, I say! Enough with the Pierses and the Simons and now the Darrens. I can’t take it anymore!

Anyway, I’m gonna be turning on and tuning in to NBC tonight at 8 – that is, as long as power doesn’t go off – and trading in my meds for a piping hot bag of Jack’s microwave popcorn – that is, as long as the power doesn’t go off – while the premiere episode of “Love In The Wild” unfolds before my bloodshot eyes. Why don’t you join me? Loosen the ties on your straitjacket and sit a spell. Trust me, you’ll feel better.

Rapid Growth in Costa Rica’s South Pacific Coast, Through the Eyes of a Vacation Rental Owner

Even though the real estate market has slowed greatly in most areas of Costa Rica in the last several years, the Dominical and South Coast areas seem to be immune, with previous lot buyers now building their dream home.

Glen Love - rental owner

“When we first started building our luxury homes in Dominical in 2003, there were only 4 listings for the Dominical area on the entire VRBO website. Now, there are more than 90! That is certainly amazing growth for this once difficult-to-reach area,” related Glen Love, owner of Paradise Costa Rica vacation rentals. “Even before the improved Costaneras coastal highway from Manuel Antonio to Dominical was built, that didn’t seem to deter people’s interest in this pristine, remote area, including ours. It used to take almost two hours to drive the pot hole-filled dirt road with rickety, one lane decrepit wooden bridges – a real daring experience! Even so, the area grew rapidly.”

From Civil War Survivor to Rental Car Entrepreneur

The interview with Rember Guevara of Service Car Rental was ending when he looked at me pensively and said, “There is really so much more, what happened in my life, and how I got to Costa Rica.”  I said, “What do you mean?” not knowing anything about his past.  He then explained how he and his mother and brother were fugitives from the horrible civil war in El Salvador in the ’70’s and ‘80’s – the intimidation, the atrocities, and luckily, how they eventually were able to flee to Costa Rica.

To me, this put an even a greater emphasis on his story of entrepreneurship that I had just listened to.  Here was a person that had started out with some of the worst disadvantages in life, and now, he was the owner of a successful rental car company in Costa Rica, which is an extremely competitive market.  What a compelling testimony not only to him as a person, but also to Costa Rica for providing the environment in which he could reach his potential.

Rember Guevara - Owner Service Car Rental

CAD/CAM Dental Technology Comes to Costa Rica

Medical Tourism Patients Benefit from CAD/CAM Technology

In an effort to offer its patients the best and most modern equipment and procedures in the cosmetic and restorative fields, the Colina Dental Clinic in Escazu has now instituted the proven treatment advantages of the CAD/CAM Dentistry technology, (Computer-Aided Design and Computer-Aided Manufacturing in Dentistry).

Colina Dental is one of the first, and very few dental offices, to offer to their patients this new and innovative technology.   The Cad-Cam technology consists of an advanced software that allows the dentists to design their restorations by computer, whether they are crowns, veneers, inlays or dental implants preparations.

With the “CAD” portion of the procedure (Computer Aided Design), the dental technician specialized in this training has the capability of doing and undoing different patterns and designs, showing these to the patient for his approval.  The CAD approach can also simulate the behavior of the restoration to see if it will ultimately be successful in the mouth.

Dr. Maricarmen Gutiérrez takes a CAD impression inside a patient's mouth

Costa Rica National Stadium Opening Ceremony Fireworks on Saturday, March 26, 2011

A National Treasure: Costa Rica’s National Stadium is the first modern sport and event arena to be built in Central America. The stadium, built at a cost of $100 million, was a gift from the Chinese government. Inauguration festivities kicked off Saturday with a friendly soccer match between China and Costa Rica. Read the full story….

Opening ceremony fireworks surround the new National Stadium - center

Opening fireworks Saturday night from Escazu

Inauguration events for the new National Stadium in La Sabana Park kicked off March 26 with an official ceremony, and will be  followed by almost two weeks of concerts, soccer matches and other events. Read the full story…

Central America Travel Deals Feature Ecotourism in Costa Rica and Mexico

Although Costa Rica is a relatively small country if you compare it to Mexico, it stands out from other Central American countries by emphasizing the ecotourism trend that it helped create and promote. Especially in this time of economic crisis, the whole idea behind ecotourism is to preserve natural resources while at the same time profiting from them, and giving back to the community. Costa Rica, receives over 1 million visitors per year and practically half of them (49%) come from The U. S, and with the depressed economy there, great deals on travel and eco-tours can be found in Costa Rica as well as Mexico.

Secluded, Los Chonchos Beach, Mexico - Jungle Trekking, Snorkeling, Whale Watching

Most people may not think of it this way, but Costa Rica’s “neighbor” to the north has always offered many eco-tourism attractions. From the Pacific to the Caribbean, Mexico offers unequaled natural beauty and great weather year round. Oliver Weickardt, of Vacaciónes Mexíco, reminds us, “Mexico is not just about sandy beaches, it has many other options to offer its visitors such as: beautiful architecture, mountains, biosphere reserves, and magical archaeology, including one of the 7 wonders of the world in Chichèn Itzà , located in the Yucatan peninsula. Sure, we have our big hotels on white sandy beaches, but if you’re looking for ecotourism, we have isolated beaches, and traveling now is a bargain.”