Costa Rica Expat — Chad Fisher

Age: 34
Place of Birth: Lima, Ohio
Current home: Tamarindo, Costa Rica
Lives with: Girlfriend, Tica, 6 years together, no kids, 6 dogs, one cat
Has lived in Costa Rica: 4 years (10 years and 4 months in the country)
Occupation: Real Estate company owner

What activities do you enjoy here?
Mountain Biking in Costa Rica is amazing, Every year Grettel and I participate in a 150 km “Vuelta de Arenal” which is a mountain bike “open” all the way around Lake Arenal. Totally awesome and tough! I also play golf at the Hacienda Pinilla, yoga with a German instructor at a beachfront house overlooking the ocean and I surf occasionally.

When did you first consider moving to Costa Rica?
I moved here fresh out of college, two friends and I with our backpacks… rented a car for ten days until we decided on the right place to live – or what we thought the right place to live at that time. Quepos/Manuel Antonio is where we laid our hats.

Costa Rica was chosen as it was the closest Spanish speaking country to the USA besides the “unfriendly” Mexico, basically it was the country that seemed the most up and coming to us at the time and we were right. It was my objective to learn Spanish, thus Spain was to far and South America also… CR presented itself as the perfect option. We started to look on line. The cost of living really stuck out to us and the fact we could rent for $200 to $300 a month with a maid for $150 a month. Wow we thought, let’s go there to hang for a while “until the real world starts”!! … Now it is more than ten years later.

How did you deal with the need for Costa Rica residency?
My friends and I have had our residency for approx. 8/9 years. We got it thru means of a good lawyer and our contacts… these days it seems to be tougher to get residency, but not impossible; one just needs to be patient and to make sure he/she is dealing with the right person (lawyer or other) to get it done!

Do you speak the local language and do you think it’s important?
Yes I do think it is of utmost importance!!! If you plan to live in another country the bottom line is you should at the very least try and speak the language even if you think you could never learn another language. I personally thought I would never be bilingual, I was wrong! You may never be fully bilingual, but you should make the attempt to learn the basics… it is to show you care and to improve your overall living experience in the country. Once you start to speak Spanish you will not want to stop. Your everyday interaction with the locals and richness of life with the Ticos becomes so much better.

Personally, I did not want to be another “Gringo” or shall I say foreigner that could not speak the native tongue.

Do you miss people or particular aspects of your home country?
No I really do not. I would like to see my family more. I visit two times to visit my hometown and family, once for either Thanksgiving or Xmas and another time in the summer. If anything I miss the mountains, particularly skiing, however I plan to ski this up and coming ski season!

Do you have other future travel plans?
Knowing that I can speak the language, by all means! I have spent time in Nicaragua, Panama and I just got from 12 days in Colombia. This goes back to learning the language… now I can travel throughout Latin America and mix in with the locals… even though I am a blonde haired and blue eyed guy… learn the language! Chile is on the horizon also…

Are you renting or have you purchased a home or apartment? What is the average rent?
I own several pieces of property and plan to build a home soon. Average rent in Tamarindo is $500 to $700/month mid range and over $1000 to $2000 a month for a nice place. If you want $300 to $500 you have to be outside of Tamarindo.

What is the cost of living here?
Well I state it like this: you can live a very expensive lifestyle here if you live like a tourist. Live with and among the locals and eat and do where they do and the cost of living is about two to one compared to the USA. However, some things are expensive and be prepared like gas and electro domestics just to mention two things… again, you can live fairly cheap here, just watch where you go.

What do you think about Costa Ricans and how they treat foreigners?
The Costa Ricans are great people and they treat the foreigners with respect, especially if you treat them with a little respect. They are humble, warm and kind and always willing to lend a helping hand. In ten years I have never had a problem with a local. Just don’t take their advice all the time as they are horrible with directions…and the locals really respect when you try and speak Spanish.

What do you think of the Expat community in Costa Rica?
I have met a lot of interesting people here in CR (Americans and Canadians); a lot of good people that give back to their respective communities and that respect the ground they walk on as this is not their country. On the other hand, I have met a good amount of expats, well lets just say I have not cared for them; they are usually the typical loud mouths and the guys that give the other expats the bad rap. They are the ones that should go and learn some Spanish; most of these gentlemen that have lived here for years, practically decades and have not taken even one minute to learn the language or even try…. this I believe wraps it up in a nutshell. They do busy drinking at the bars or complaining about how things should be here, but deep down inside these expats still love it here no matter what the heck they do with their lives.

What is your favorite place to visit in Costa Rica?
I know Costa Rica very well. I have been here for over ten years and six of these years I owned an online travel agency which gave me the experience to know the country. I love to travel and experience all of Costa Rica. I really love to visit everywhere as every place is distinct in its own very way, shape and form… the country is small and you can get around fairly quickly to all different types of environments. The two peninsulas are distinct, the highlands, the lowlands, Guanacaste, Caribbean…Costa Rica truly offers it all when it comes to distinct places and adventurism.

Do you have any tips for our readers about living in Costa Rica?
Contact Chad Fisher on more info about where to live and purchasing real estate in Costa Rica. Some people should rent before purchasing to find out what place fits their needs and interests better. Come here with an open mind about the differences with the culture, the lifestyle and the pace of life here… My motto that I live by here is that I always have a plan “B”, even “C” and sometimes believe it or not “D”, go with the flow, be open and someday once you have lived here long enough you may even become “Ticoized”; which means you are acting like a Tico: laidback, show up late “mañana”, all is pura vida…etc.

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Filed under: Expat Interviews on November 8th, 2007