Playa Hermosa School Backpack Program 2017

Once again the community of Playa Hermosa has pitched in to give all the local students of the Playa Hermosa Public School a Back Pack full of School Supplies, Uniforms – everything they need to start out the year on a positive note.

The School Principal spoke a few words to the Students before giving the Backpacks to the Students.

The rough translation is this:

“The Local Community has opened their hearts to give each of you all the supplies you need for the school year and you should thank them for that.  But the best thanks that you can give is to do well in school, study hard and apply yourself to learn all you can to be a good person”

This year, with the help of the local community through the Playa Hermosa Residents Association, the school just inaugurated a new English Classroom.

School starts February 6th this year with 61 Students, up from 55 last year.  FOR THE FIRST TIME 6 non Costa Rican kids have enrolled in the School this year.  This is a long way from the little shack they started with to what is now a beautiful, organized and positive place for Students to want to come and learn.

Thank you to everyone who donated the time and money to help the school continue to grow.

Special Thanks to Carrie Enfield the Chairman of the Playa Hermosa School Committee of the Playa Hermosa Residents Association and of course Gary Lindquist the long time supporter of all causes great and small.

Until next year!

Tank Tops Flip Flops Newsletter edition no. 99

99 Bottles of Pilsen on the wall – 99 Reasons why I Love Living in Costa Rica.

One of the things you will notice, if you spend some time here in Playas del Coco, is that there are a tremendous amount of people from Wisconsin who live, retire, vacation and snowbird here. Maybe it is because the weather is so horrible there, or maybe it is because they just love to drink beer, but it seems a bundle of them have chosen the land of PURA VIDA to call their home. There is even the one and only PACKER bar in all of Latin America right here in the middle of town, Coconutz, which happens to be one of my all-time favorite places to hang out. Earlier this year, there was a huge game at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, as the Wisconsin Badgers took on the LSU Tigers. So it just made sense that a whole bundle of these Cheese heads were going to make the trek up north for this colossal sporting event. And do you think I would miss out on the fun? No way Jose, I was in like Flynn. About 50 of us loaded up on a school bus from Appleton on the day of the game, and consumed like animals the entire way to the stadium. As you can imagine, the energy was amazing, and the crowd was rocking. When it was all over, the Badgers had defeated the superior LSU team and the city went nuts!!! There were people partying like it was 1999 and it took hours to get everyone back on the bus and headed home to the hotels. This was where I wanted to cut my wrist. You see, there is always that ONE guy, who just has to lead the choir, and he started singing the most obnoxious song, ever written in the history of mankind: the 99 Bottle songs, and it seemed to go on for an eternity.

So in remembrance of that torturous 2 hour bus ride, and also in Celebration of my 99th Newsletter, I bring to you MY list of the 99 REASONS WHY I LOVE LIVING IN COSTA RICA.

99. Ninety Nine Bottles of Pilsen on the wall, Ninety Nine Bottles of Pilsen…. Take one down pass it around: Costa Rica is 99% green. It is almost totally carbon free, and the most environmentally protective country in the world and most of it still looks like it did when the dinosaurs walked the earth. You have to love and respect somewhere, which places nature above money. This haven will blow you away.

98. Hiking. There are so many spectacular places to hike; National Parks, volcanoes and mountains that the scenery seems to go on and on forever. You could spend eternity clunking around this little paradise and never see all there is to see; there is an endless supply of “secret spots.”