My travels to Costa Rica are well documented on Bananas.org.
Here:
Just Back from Costa Rica
here
Free Bananas on Playa Platanares with Pictures!
and here
Mostly Unknown Bananas from Costa Rica
So, suffice it to say, my wife and I have enjoyed that country immensely. We have always looked at property via the web and when we were down there for a variety of reasons. After this past trip in Dec of '09, we started formal inquiries about a piece of land near Gofito in southern CR. Here is the listing that caught our eyes:
Real Estate Southern Costa Rica, Rain Forest Properties
We inquired and got sufficient answers. We researched, scoured the web, looked at hundreds more properties on-line but found nothing better that suited us.
I scheduled a quick trip the second weekend in Feb(President's Day holiday) of this year only to be met with canceled flights from Charleston, SC due to SNOW! My job doesn't allow for time off, so I rescheduled for the long Easter weekend. My wife and I went down, spent the night on the property, and made a low-ball offer(50% listed), as that was what we could really afford. With very little negotiations, we came to an accepted agreement. Our next step was to hire a CR Lawyer from the town of San Isidro to look after our legal rights and help us with the due diligence.
We made another trip down there in late August to check on things again. They were to our satisfaction and we signed papers with our Lawyer. I wired the last of the money on Tuesday, Sept, 7th, and got an email saying that we had successfully closed on the land!
While its not important news in the grand scheme of things, it is relevant to Bananas.org.
The place has a history that has ties to the banana industry, for good or bad.
There are bananas cultivated for the sole use in feeding the endangered Red-Backed Squirrel monkeys, whose habitat is diminishing in Central America.
The original owner of the property(a survivalist) had an interest in bananas as there are several cultivars from what I'm told. I have recognized orinocos/quadranos which is common to this area. I have been told of manzanos planted there as well. Oddly enough,
Not sure what kind these are... , it appears as if Saba is growing on the property also.
We'll likely gradually spend more time on the property as we figure out what to do with the land(100 acres of primary rainforest, trails, 2 rentable huts, a pool, pasture for up to 10 cattles. Fruit trees. exotic birds. 3 types of monkeys. We may even retire there.
Here are some images:
Thats the basic location of the finca.
This is the driveway, just past the gate.
Here is my wife by the pool. The plams are native, 40' tall called Palma Real, I believe.
This is just beyond the pool, looking West, toward the pastures.
Mo- Monkeys
And a video I shot with a point and shoot camera.
Thanks for sticking around!