Shipping Crate Is In Customs

I received word today that my furniture is in customs! Charlie Zeller at Ship to Costa Rica http://www.solutionscostarica.com/relocating/ has been wonderful. He told me 5 weeks, and yesterday was 5 weeks. Hopefully, things will run smoothly through customs, and I will have all my belongings next week!

I am ready to be surrounded by my own things. It was a hard decision and harder process to pack everything up for shipping. After living here for 3 weeks I can tell you I am very happy I made the decision to ship. I love the house I am living in and love the location, but everything is brown. I love color and coziness. Having my furniture, area rugs and art is going to make all the difference. It will be home sweet home.

I have been having fun taking pictures of some of the wild life and plants since I have been here. Here are a few.

Pura Vida

Filing for Residency

Yesterday was a very exciting and surreal day. I signed all my papers with my attorney, Roberto Umana. Now he will file them with immigration. Everything is in Spanish. There is no way I could have done this by myself. In about 3-4 months I will officially have my Costa Rican residency!

It has been a lot of work starting in March when I began getting all the required paperwork together. Birth certificate, background check and proof of a pension that is no less than $1,000 a month. For most people that is their Social Security income. Once I had everything together they had to be sent to the Secretary of State for an Apostille to be attached to each document. Then off to Roberto's office and translated into Spanish.

In my case, getting my paperwork together was pretty easy. I was born and raised in the same state. If I had been married I would have been required to get a copy of the Marriage Certificate. If all your life was spent in different States it will take you a little longer to gather all your information. But it is worth it.

Pura Vida!

Nature in Costa Rica

I have been trying to get pictures of nature's beauty in Costa Rica that is literally in my yard. It is not easy. Nature here is so fast! I am inspired and in love with everything I see daily.

I have a flock of parrots that fly over my house almost everyday, but I have yet to get a picture of them. They are beautiful. A brilliant green. If you know me you know how much I love birds. I have had them all through the years. I had, Lady Bird, a white Cockatiel for 10 years. I got another wonderful and smart Cockatiel, Fella, about a year ago. I was not able to bring him to Costa Rica with me, so my daughter, Meleese, took him. She and her husband love him. He loves to "wolf whistle" to get your attention. I miss him.

I have also seen a couple of Toucans, but again have not caught them on film, either. My yard is covered up in butterflies and hummingbirds. It's been difficult to get a good picture. They are like Speedy Gonzales! I will keep trying.

Here are a few shots that I have been able to catch.

Pura Vida!

Continued...Daily Living

As I was telling you in my last post most Tico homes have no hot water and no central air or heat. In Santiago de Puriscal the air and heat are not necessary, but hot water in the shower is for me!

Now this is the hardest part for me...no closets and basically no cabinets! Not one single closet in this house. The normal way is either a large armoire, or as my photo shows below, store bought metal racks for your hangers. It works fine, but it will drive my type "A" senses crazy! I really dislike lying in bed and looking at my clothes. The rest of my clothes are in the armoire, and on the ship headed my way. Thank goodness I slimmed my wardrobe WAY down! Once my furniture and belongings get here I will see what space I have and will close the area in as a closet.

There are no cabinets in the bathrooms and only three lowers with no shelves in the kitchen. Nothing to put your dishes in. There are two very nice standing pieces here for now. When my antique Hoosier gets here I will be able to get more organized. The bathroom will basically have to stay the way it is. I'll just do a little decorating to spruce it up.

Now, with all that said, I love this house! It is so cute and the perfect size for me. Once I have all my area rugs in place I will be able to make the spaces feel separate, and I will have much more storage. Also, with the sofa that makes into a bed I will have room for company! I cannot wait to unleash my creative juices!

Pura Vida!

My First Full Week

What an exciting week this has been for me. My first full week in my new home in Costa Rica!

I opened my bank account, got my CR phone and phone number, grocery shopped, started cooking homemade meals for the first time in 15 years. Truth be known, if you can call scrambled eggs, bacon, fruit and toast and a homemade chicken and vege soup cooking then I cooked! I have so much to relearn in that category! I went to San Jose with my friend, Cathy Klein, and to two parties where I was able to meet other Americans who have made Costa Rica their home.

I have so much I want to do, but with no car it is more difficult. For a few minutes I was feeling sorry for myself this morning thinking how isolated I felt. Then in a second I told myself to hush up and take control of my life! I will figure this part out next week. (Scarlet and I have that in common. We will not worry about that today. We'll worry about that tomorrow!) It is a little more difficult than I first anticipated though. I was ready to walk to the end of the street and catch the bus when my neighbor told me it was not a great idea because there were some really mean dogs down that way. He told me if I took a large stick I'd probably be okay. HUM....5'2 (and 3/4's") 115 lbs. LOL...When you are this short 3/4" you take! I'm not liking those odds though! I do consider myself resourceful, but not stupid! It's time to make good relations with a taxi driver! I would love to get a car. Not a nice lovely car. Just one to get me from point A to point B. I don't feel I am in the financial position at this moment. It did cost a lot to move here with all my belongings. A somewhat reliable car can be bought here for $3,000 to $5,000. However, at that price it would be a bit of a "culture shock" car, but I am totally up for it!

There is so much beautiful nature around me. I wish I could catch it all on film. I'm a pretty good photographer, but nature shooting is tough! Everything moves so fast. I have dozens and dozens of butterflies and hummingbirds that cover a bush with purple flowers right outside my living room window. I still have yet to get a picture that captures it. I saw my first Toucan yesterday. Too fast to get my camera. Today I saw a flock of parrots flying over my house. Again, no camera in hand. This is the most naturally beautiful place I have ever seen on a daily basis. If any of you photographers have suggestions please do!

Did I mention the sounds of all the birds? Nature's pure band! I do want to learn what all these birds are called. I have not recognized any except for the Toucan and the Parrots.

Pura Vida!

Everything Is New

I am learning something new every day! Very little, if anything, is the same as in the States.

Eggs....You do not have to refrigerate them, and they stay fresh for 3 weeks! All eggs have what is called the cuticle or bloom. This is the natural coating or covering on the eggshell that seals the eggshell pores. The bloom helps to prevent bacteria from getting inside the shell and reduces moisture loss from the egg. In the States the eggs are washed and sanitized removing all the natural bloom. Therefore, having to be refrigerated. Who knew? When you think of our ancestors they certainly did not have refrigeration and somehow lived through it! So, here are my eggs sitting our on top of my microwave! Gotta love it! Between the delicious natural eggs, the abundance of fresh fruit everywhere and my fresh fruit smoothies every morning I must be getting healthy!

Recipe for morning Smoothie:
1/2 Papaya
1 individual sized container of plain yogurt
1 Banana
(any other fruit you might want to add)
Optional - 1 scoop Zeal (I drink Zeal every morning. It is loaded with vitamins and minerals)
Orange juice to just the top of the fruit and yogurt you have in the blender
Puree away!

Pura Vida!

Home in Costa Rica

Hola from Costa Rica! I am finally getting my energy back and getting caught up on my blogging.

The process was exhausting. The packing, the stress of moving day, making sure my house was ready for my renter, selling my car, the living out of a suitcase for a week then the flight! The flight was tough. A vet gave me pills to relax my dogs and make them sleep. Well, guess what? It did work on Arianna, but not on Gigi. She was a wreck. My dogs are small, so I carried both on the plane with the help of my daughter, Meleese and son-in-law Drew. Gigi cried and whined the entire flight. We were late boarding then stuck on the tarmac for 45 minutes. We finally arrived, went through a long line at customs, then luggage check. Can you spell STRESS????

After getting our rent car we finally got to the hotel around 8:30. I was so sick all night, then really sick that next morning. I cannot imagine ever putting my dogs on a plane again. Once we got to Puriscal I began to feel better, and now have my energy back.

Meleese and Drew flew back home to Texas 2 days ago. We had a great time while they were here, and they were a huge help getting me settled. We found a couple of great grocery stores, hardware and bars with food! I hated watching them pull out of the drive way. I love them so much.

Now, on with real life!

Pura Vida

Moving Day May 26, 2017

Moving day came and went with a fury! My best advise is find a good mover and pay them to load your shipping crate. My friends and I could have never gotten all my things in the 20' crate and had it so organized. I filled it to the brim! The mover arranged everything like puzzle pieces.

I was given 4 hours to load the crate. The driver arrived promptly at 9:00 and we finished just before 1:00. Not only was it a pretty day it was the hottest day of the summer so far. It was 98 degrees and humid!

Do not kid yourself, as I did, into thinking 3 weeks is plenty of time to pack your entire house up. I nearly killed myself. I do not remember ever being so exhausted. I just could not figure out why in the world the last 3 days I was not finished. I swear my house was growing things just to make me crazy. The last day I worked from 9:00 in the morning until 10:30 that night. How in the world I still had that much left to do I have no idea.

Then there is the decision making of what to take and what not to take! I read an excellent book by Arden Rembert Brink called "Unraveling The Mysteries of Moving To Costa Rica." She explains everything from choosing a shipper, how to pack, how to label, and what to take and what not to take. This book was a huge help to me. If you are thinking of moving this book is a must!

It will now be 4-5 weeks before my furniture and belongings make it to me. They are on a freighter that will stop all along the way through the waters of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and finally Costa Rica. My crate will be unloaded in customs, examined, taxes accessed then put on a truck and sent to me. A huge process, but for me worth every penny. I know I am going to be very happy to be surrounded by my own belongings. I'm sure it is different for everyone, but I love my furnishings and it will make me feel at home.

One more piece of advise...Do not try to handle moving day by yourself. You cannot do it. There will be mistakes made that will cost you when your things arrive in customs. Many many many thanks to my friends Dodi Mascias Lasovich and Mary Jane Morris for helping me get through that day. I could never have done it without them.

Pura Vida!