Robbed

The reason why the blog stopped for a while was that my parents came down to visit us for three weeks. I was enjoying precious time with them. I wouldn’t have known just how precious time was except for the thieves that took some of the time away from us.

Would you rob these people? Cruel and evil people did. It’s a lecherous side to this country and it deserves to be told. I’m almost too enraged to do it. All I can say is you have to be careful here. There are organized and efficient thieves in Costa Rica who think nothing of taking advantage of the elderly and/or unsuspecting tourists. The most hurtful thing that these pigs take from you is your piece of mind, your dignity and your vacation time. You have to spend hours filling out reports in the O y J (Police station), hours filling out passport paper work, hours waiting in lines and sometimes days to travel to and from the embassy in San Jose.

WARNING ABOUT PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION IN COSTA RICA

If you are riding public transportation, especially the MUSOC bus, be aware at all times of what is going on around you. Guard you bags. Wear a money belt. Keep your valuables, including your passport, on your person. Divide your valuables amongst your bags, so if one is stolen, you have something. Trust no one.

A common trick that happens on buses here, is that an official-looking, uniformed person, who may or may not be an bus employee, will take your bag and "help" you store it in the overhead storage of the bus. Then before the bus even leaves the station, another official-looking accomplice will quietly take the bag from the overhead and carry it off the bus, efficiently parting you with your belongings. (In my parent’s case, a witness said that the thieves left through the employee door of the MUSOC station.)

If your passport is stolen in Costa Rica, you’ll have to personally visit the U.S. Embassy in Pavas to get it replaced before you can leave the country. Judging from the numbers of dazed and confused families that I saw at the embassy, passports get stolen frequently in Costa Rica. If your passport is stolen, there are several forms you’ll have to fill out. If you can, I highly recommend that you download them from the Internet and have them completed before you get to the embassy. It helps the embassy out and it will help speed up your visit there. You can also have your photos taken at the embassy for a reasonable price.

I’d just like to say that the U.S. Embassy was very understanding, helpful and efficient in processing my parent’s passports. Thanks to everyone there!