Live in Costa Rica

The first of major tropical waves has hit Costa Rica and rainy Season is officially under way. The tropical wave hit the Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica early morning on Monday and moved its way towards the Central Valley int he late afternoon. During the rainy season Costa Rica typically has very similar weather patterns and it is common for the Central Valley to receive rain starting in the early afternoon lasting into the early evening before the rain subsides moving to the Pacific Coast. The rainy season here in Costa Rica is expected to last until mid to late November with showers increasing more frequently around September when the Atlantic hurricane season is in full force.

A great article on Importing, Buying, and Registering a car in Costa Rica. Getting your car to Costa Rica or buying a car in Costa Rica can be stressful, especially if you don’t speak Spanish, But if you know the laws and regulations, you can stay one step ahead of getting ripped off or having multiple headaches.

Costa Rica transit authorities have issued 944 fines or “multas” since Monday in the enforcement of what gringos call, The License Plate Rule. You can read more about Driving Laws in Costa Rica at My Costa Rica. Furthermore, the original article on The License Plate Rule and Driving Restrictions in Costa Rica can be read at our main site in the news section. Drivers are complaining that this rule being enforced only does two things..

1. Thing fines are cheaper than renting an alternative vehicle with different ending license plate numbers.

2. The people who can’t drive on a restrcited day will take longer routes consuming more gas and causing more pollution.

Below are a few recommended travel books for Costa Rica

Fodor’s - Costa Rica 2009

Lonely Planet - Costa Rica

Frommer’s - Costa Rica 2009

Moon Books - Costa Rica

Moon Books - Living Abroad in Costa Rica

The Surfer’s Guide to Costa Rica and South West Nicaragua

Foder’s - Costa Rica 2008

The “License Plate Rule” is a term given to a law Costa Rica has had for a while now, but just recently has been thoroughly enforcing it. The laws requires that those driving with a certain last digit number on their license plate, are restricted from entering the city of San José during posted hours. The law holds afine of 5,000 colones if broken. It is important to know that Costa Rican transit officials are extremely adamandt about busting people for breaking this law. As a gringo, you stand out more so they will want to make an example out of you. Here is the artcle about The License Plate Rule and the Regulations, this article shows what digits are restricted at what times and which hours the License Plate Rule is in effect.