On my monthly relocation and retirement tours I am always asked about the country’s public health care system (known as La Caja). I make it a point to explain how this system works and its advantages and disadvantages.

Those of you who choose to live in Heredia and join the Caja will have the privilege of being treated at the New San Vicente de Paul Hospital. It is the largest public hospital in Central America and cost $485 million to build.

The new medical center has six buildings: one for consultations, another for emergencies, a third for x-rays, another for Cat scans and lab work, a fifth building with 10 operating rooms and a pharmacy and a sixth for hospitalization, nutrition and cardiology. The hospital will boast 7,000 pieces of state-of-the-art medical equipment.

It is expected that the hospital will be used by 500,000 persons. The doors will open officially in June.

One more thing..I have driven around the block where the hospital is located and from the outside it is very impressive. Once the hospital opens I will arrange a tour through my contacts to see the facilities from the inside.

Retirees and others who are planning to move to Costa Rica always ask me about natural disasters like hurricanes I have included this article. Fortunately we only get the rain form the hurricanes and the mountains keep the strong winds out of the Central Valley. They are a natural barrier.

Hurricanes rarely hit Costa Rica, the last one was Hurricane Cesár which came ashore on July 27, 1996 and killed 41 people and trashed the Pacific southwest in Costa Rica’s worst national disaster in a decades. Even though Costa Rica is in the Caribbean, because Costa Rica is so far south it is very rare that a hurricane strikes land over Costa Rica.

In May 2008, there was Tropical Storm Alma. Alma was the first tropical storm on record to strike the Pacific coast of Nicaragua. In Costa Rica, heavy rainfall caused flooding and landslides, killing two and causing $35 million (USD) in damage.

For 2010, U.S. meteorologists say they expect an above-average number of Atlantic basin hurricanes to develop during this year’s hurricane season. The Colorado State University hurricane forecasting team predicts the season to be a “harsh” one.

The 2010 Hurricane Season in the Atlantic Ocean will begin on June 1, 2010, and end on November 30, 2010.

Atlantic hurricanes affect the eastern and Gulf coasts of the U.S. and the Caribbean nations. Those with interests in hurricane-prone areas must heed federal and state advice on preparedness, the season in general, and each specific storm in the season.

Colorado State University’s forecasters report that eight hurricanes are expected for the 2010 season. Four of the season’s hurricanes are expected to strengthen and become major hurricanes. This means that these four, if they do in fact become major hurricanes, would ultimately receive a rating of at least a category 3 storm.

Category 3 storms are defined by the Saffir-Simpson scale. The Saffir-Simpson scale indicates that such a storm must have winds of at least 111mph; and that these winds be sustained for a period of time.

University forecasters William Gray and Phil Klotzbach each stated that El Niño conditions will likely dissipate by summer. In addition they believe that the warm tropical Atlantic sea surface temperatures will not drop and will remain at the current temperatures. These temperatures have reportedly been much warmer than usual.

Because of this phenomenon, Gray and Klotzbach indicate that the 2010 hurricane season will be above-average. Specifically, they said that the warmer-than-average sea surface temperatures will “[lead] to favorable conditions for hurricanes to develop and intensify.

In part Courtesy of Inside Costa Rica

On my monthly relocation and retirement tours I am often asked about which foreigners find success here and those who don’t. To address this concern I give examples of those who make it here and those who do not.

Probably the most important factor in determining your success in Costa Rica is one’s attitude. If you come here and expect everything to be like States or Canada then you are deceiving yourself. The country is the way it is and it will not change despite your complaints. I don’t know how many times I have heard, “In the U.S. we do it this way.” Well I have news for you, things are not going to be the way you want them to be, so don’t have any false expectations. You have to adapt and go with the flow or you will be miserable. You have to understand that this is a different culture.

I have lost count of the number of times that I have heard Americans putting down the local culture without really understanding it. Learning Spanish and mixing with the Costa Ricans is the best way to learn about the country and its people. If you don’t follow this advice, then you will always be a foreigner or “stranger in a strange land.”

I know a few unfortunate souls who like to get on their soapbox and pontificate about what’s wrong with Costa Rica Rica and what needs to be changed. Some of them even do this on their web sites. We’ll I have news for them. It’s either the “Costa Rican way or the highway.” If you are not going adapt, then it is best to buy a ticket and move back to your home country or you will be an “unhappy camper.”

I am always asked about crime in Costa Rica by people on my retirement tours and at the many lectures I give. Recently, I obtained some figures that should dispel any fears you may have about crime in Costa Rica. These numbers mostly reflect crimes against citizens the of countries below and not against foreigners.

Homicide rates per 100,000 inhabitants

Honduras = 66.9
El Salvador = 65
Guatemala = 47
Nicaragua = 13
Costa Rica = 11

With the exception of Nicaragua and Panama, who does not make these figures available for obvious reasons, Costa Rica is by far a safer place to live than its neighbors. In Honduras between 2005 and 2009 there were almost 19,000 murders.

Mexico says it wants to lure 5 million retirees in coming years. The country is downright unsafe and is quickly becoming the murder capital of the New World as drug cartels fight for their slice of the market. Violence is rampant in Michoacán, in the Juarez and Tijuana areas. Kidnappings are also on the rise. It is only a matter of time before the drug cartels target the lucrative retiree market.

On my monthly relocation and retirement tours I am often asked about continuing one’s education in Costa Rica for both retirees and their older children. As I have mentioned in prior articles, universities charge only a fraction of what the do in the States and Canada. My son goes to ULACIT which is one of the country’s premier private universities. I pay a little over $2,000 per year for his education. Public universities like the University of Costa Rica ONLY charge around $300 per year. Yes, you read right!

When I refer to Costa Rica as being New England what I am saying is that country has the potential to become a tropical education center or New England Tropical. Since the last 1940’s Costa Rica has emphasized education. This was possible because the country abolished its military in 1948. This enabled Costa Rica to spend more money on the education of its citizens. So, the roots of Costa Rica’s university system have been growing for 60 years. At present the country has a number of first-rate universities including: CATIE, EARTH, INCAE, OET, University of Peace, the University of Costa Rica, Universidad Nacional, The Technological University of Costa Rica and a growing number of private universities like Ulacit.

Over the years the country has produced outstanding professionals including a Nobel Peace-Prize wining president, an astronaut, renowned doctors, engineers, scientists, etc. Costa Rica has also become a center for research at the university level.

Costa Rica has become a country of “knowledge” and many predict that this trend will continue with a new type of industry evolving called “The Industry of Knowledge” or “La industria de saber.” Costa Rica offers many advantages for university study for foreigners. Like England, Costa Rica has the potential to become the “superior educational center” of Latin America.