Today we had our 100,000th Visitor!!
¿Qué Pasa en Quepos? – January 2013
Bienvenidos/Welcome to Paradise..if you are reading this then we have made it through the Mayan End of the World deadline- yahoo! and New Year’s Eve festivities since we are writing this mid December….Happy New Year – Feliz Año Nuevo………lucky you to be spending your holiday in beautiful Costa Rica…we hope you will find Quepolandia full of useful information concerning great restaurants and fun tours – we have it all in one very small area—everything that you want to see and do is here! Don’t forget the Manuel Antonio National Park for great outing, inside the park is another beautiful beach,………please mention to our advertisers that you found them in Quepolandia………the fishing is great – lately with lots of Dorado around for a fun catch and a tasty dinner—many of our restaurants will cook your catch, so check out one of our fishing charters – our fleet practices Catch & Release of all billfish……..congrats to Marilyn Burrow of Canyon Lake, Texas for our cover shot. The beautiful Africa tulip tree with a flycatcher standing by…..Marilyn said she loved the beauty of Costa Rica and we agree! Nice Shot.
We have many new advertisers and would like to mention Dragonfly Thai now open at the beach and Ummara. Ummara has been in the business of swimsuits for years and can have you in a custom swimsuit in about 24 hrs ..look for them just down from BAC SJ ATM where the taxis park………..don’t forget to follow us on online here and on facebook, www.facebook.com/Quepolandia ….Quepolandia would like to thank all of our advertisers of 2012 as we look forward to PROSPEROUS 2013 for all..tell your friends about us….hasta pronto!…….ciao………..P.
Meet Author Ron T. Shaw
Ron T. Shaw
By Pat Cheek
I recently sat down with newcomer Ron Shaw and enjoyed hearing about his latest book HELLBENDER. The book is a docudrama regarding how American politics hampered U.S. Armed Forces from actually prevailing during the time of the Vietnam War.
Ron went on to say: While President Lyndon Baines Johnson (after JFK was assassinated) worked on building the Socialist “Green Society” programs such as food stamps, gun control, environmental protection and civil rights, U.S. forces languished and waited for support. By the time support arrived and war was actually declared in 1965, Communists had already finished the 900 mile Ho Chi Minh Trail and it was “hell to pay” and U.S. casualties were climbing at an alarming rate toward the 58,220 number that it would become in 1975 after the fall of Saigon. By that time, the U.S. had been indirectly involved (by sending Army Advisors) since 1945.
¿Qué Pasa en Quepos? – December 2012
Bienvenidos/Welcome to our Paradise we are happy to have you here with us and know you will enjoy your stay……you should be able to find everything you need right here in Quepolandia…..this month we are introducing our “In the Spotlight” section for one restaurant- Barba Roja and one tour -Tres Niñas Boat Rental but you will find all our tours and restaurants excellent…including Silvana’s new Gondola Gourmet Restaurant at Tres Banderas Hotel ….. we have fun and eat well! Please let our advertisers know that you found them in Quepolandia …although at print time we didn’t have info on turkey dinners you can usually find a great traditional meal at Victoria’s Restaurante on Christmas and a New Year’s Eve package… there will be many festivities as well as Live Music and Party at Dos Locos Restaurante. There is a huge street party with DJ in front of the seawall in Quepos including fireworks at Midnight……we would like to thank local Dallas Boyd for our great cover photo of the humpback whale, Dallas was lucky enough to spend about a hour with this whale while aboard a Tres Niñas Boat so you can see the other great shots “In the Spotlight”……….. Thank you Quepos Tennis Club for another great tournament… we would like to wish you all Happy Holidays ….thanks for visiting with us and spread the word about your great vacation in Quepos/ManuelAntonio. Follow us here online when you get home…Happy New Year!!..caio…………P
Quepos Will Host 2012 Red Ribbon Week
For the fifth year in a row, the U.S. Embassy and Costa Rica’s D.A.R.E. Foundation are joining together to pay tribute to DEA Special Agent Enrique Kiki Camarena who was murdered by Mexican drug traffickers in 1985.
Over a week, known as Red Ribbon Week, students from different primary and high schools will receive special training in the prevention of drug use and abuse, participate in cultural and sports events and, at the end of the five day program, more than 900 students will participate in a march during the closing ceremony, where they will pledge to say “NO” to drugs and “YES” to life.
16 schools from Quepos and surrounding communities will be part of this special week, taking place from November 12-16. Red Ribbon Week is supported by the Municipality of Quepos, the Ministry of Public Education, the National Childrens’ Council and local businesses.
¿Qué Pasa en Quepos? – November 2012
Bienvenidos / Welcome to our beautiful Paradise… and Quepolandia….here it is November and our “green season” rains have been relatively light through Sept/Oct. so unless we get drowned during Nov. we’ve had it much easier than the last couple of seasons…..enough rain to keep us green, green, green but still easy to get out and enjoy ourselves….we hope you will do the same. Our restaurants are all open and ready to serve you delicious food of all types – the freshest of the freshest…at this writing we have not received information on Thanksgiving Dinner but in past there have been traditional meals available in both Quepos & Manuel Antonio ……… congrats go out to Alexandre Auberson from Switzerland for our cover shot…the beautiful Blue Morpho butterfly ..Alexandre and his family were here visiting his father Daniel of the Quepos Tennis Club – great shot! All tours are open and waiting for your call, so book a fishing trip, zip line, white water rafting or any of our numerous tours and have some fun…..remember to follow us here online and come back soon…….ciao………..P
Hollywood Comes to Quepos/Manuel Antonio
Jenna Ortega & Marcia Gay Harden
The stars came out and we were treated to the lights, camera, action of the world of moviemaking right here in our little town of Quepos. In July the film crew and actors for The Librarian set up at the beach in Manuel Antonio, also shooting scenes in Quepos and the surrounding area. Dos Locos became the best place for watching and even visiting with the crew and meeting some of the actors, while upstairs served as the wardrobe and makeup center. Jaime Peligro Book Store played a big role as many scenes were shot there – Carolyna and Jeff even had a scene of their own at the waterfall at Portasol which we will all look forward to seeing—possibly new stars are born!! Ummar Bikini Store was another local location. Read More…
¿Qué Pasa en Quepos? – September/October 2012
Bienvenidos/Welcome to our Paradise even in the rain it’s a great place to live and visit………this issue represents our Green Season special covering 2 months just packed full of reading material to help get us thru…just remember not to work all the puzzles or read everything in Sept!…Of interest to those visiting is that most of our restaurants choose this time to close so their employees can take a deserved vacation..we recommend that you call first to see who’s open—thankfully they don’t close all at the same time so none of us will starve. You’ve come at the right time to enjoy some really great fun on tours with less people and thru Sept for sure sunny days (usually) with rain in the late afternoon so enjoy. Quepolandia has heard that La Hacienda Restaurante in Plaza Yara has a new owner and will be opening this month. We haven’t heard if the Chili Cook Off will happen the first week of Oct. so keep a look- out…also KSTR Kids Saving the Rainforest is having a fundraiser on Sept. 9th at Byblos..1pm-5pm. with funds going to the Wildlife Rescue Center which is in serious need of help if they are to remain open…..congrats go to Terry Watkins of MA for his photo of mamon chinos …our cover shot and if you haven’t tried these fuzzy little fruits you are in for a sweet surprise so give it a try….we are big on Halloween here…with lots of partying and always in costume so enjoy the fun…that about wraps it up for us as we plan to enjoy some time off and look forward to seeing you here in November…remember to follow us online here….ciao for now…P
¿Qué Pasa en Quepos? – August 2012
Bienvenidos / Welcome to our beautiful corner of Paradise…. we know you’ll have a great time. Our little area has everything you need to enjoy a great Costa Rica experience. We have every sort of tour from white water rafting, zip lines, sport fishing and now we offer the first “Captain” your own boat service. Tres Niñas Boat Rental(see ad) is the first to offer you the chance to take out one of their boats for a tour around or to snorkel, fish or just enjoy a sunset- you decide where and what you want to do…with a short intro into how to operate the boat you are off and with GPS you can’t get lost.
Want to play a little tennis?…we are home to an outstanding facility, Tennis Club of Quepos,
which offers lessons for all levels, set up a game on one of the two courts and enjoy a game of tennis in the jungle..see their ad for more info. After all this activity you are going to be thirsty so drop by one of our drinking establishments, mingle with the locals and have a great meal at one of our many wonderful restaurants…if you are looking for Italian you are in luck as Quepos offers our own “Little Italy” with Escalofrio, L’Angolo and Dolce Vita with great pizza to pasta and in Manuel Antonio you’ll find Victoria’s, we also have great continental cuisine, try Kapi Kapi for an elegant atmosphere and wonderful food…actually the list goes on and on so please enjoy and tell them all that you heard about them in Quepolandia. August 15th is Costa Rica Mother’s Day and it a big holiday (as it should be) we wish all the Mothers a happy day…..our cover shot is by Janet Brent of Kingston, Ontario, Canada a beautiful hummingbird in flight—so send in your best shot and you might make the cover of Quepolandia………busy month around here as Quepos will be hosting a National Film Festival Aug. 23-26 –see the ad for more info….well that about wraps it up for this month…remember you can follow Quepolandia here, on line……..have a great vacation………..ciao…………….P
¿Qué Pasa en Quepos? – July 2012
Bienvenidos/Welcome to Paradise..we hope you enjoy your vacation here with us and all around this beautiful country. There is much to do, see, eat and drink so get out there and enjoy. We are into the early part of our “Green Season” so look for those afternoon showers, sometimes heavy – take care while driving….we are lucky to have great live music so check Barba Roja on Friday to hear Robbie Clark and The Live Wire or Wednesday night at Dos Locos for Benjammin and The Howlers…also at Dos Locos on Saturday afternoon you can relax to the Pura Vida Social Club with a great guaro sour or margarita…check our live music listing for more!..we would like to thank Alan Murray of Portsmouth, England for the great cover shot of the Manuel Antonio Beach area at sunset…you too might make the cover of Quepolandia – remember to send in your best shot 300dpi and see what happens……we wish everyone from the US a Happy 4th of July and those from Canada and Happy Canada Day and………Costa Rica – a great celebration of Guanacaste Day…that about it for this month….follow us here and come back soon…………ciao…….P
Costa Rica’s Mermaid: Renate Herberger
By Pat Cheek
I recently spent a little time with Renate at the Hotel Parador. It was a day off from her swimming and teaching before moving on.
As a little background, Renate began swimming at the age of 4 when her mother coaxed her into ever deepening water until she was swimming- we should say she’s been swimming ever since. She has logged about 4,800 km and still kicking since making saving the oceans her life calling.
¿Qué Pasa en Quepos? – May 2012
Bienvenidos/Welcome to Quepos & Manuel Antonio or as we like to call it ”Paradise”!………we are happy to see a little rain falling as we had gotten pretty toasted(as in dry not drunk).We look so much more inviting in multiple shades of green! It should not be enough rain to ruin your fun so get out there and enjoy everything our area has to offer – we doubt you will be disappointed……we have great restaurants offering all types of food with the freshest of ingredients & great drinking establishments to quench your thirst. Costa Rica has established the new No Smoking law which affects just about everywhere so now is the time to quit! Our friend, Virginia Utley, is celebrating her 90th Birthday on May 20th – this milestone surly rates a month long celebration and we wish the “Queen of Quepos” a very Happy Birthday! Quepolandia would like to thank Sjoerd Biesman of The Netherlands for our wonderful cover shot! We always enjoy “J’s” visits and he has sent in some great photos over the years- thanks! Quepolandia welcomes your comments and letters to the editor along with those vacation photos – our email address is on the cover and keep in touch with us here online …have a great vacation and come back soon……..ciao………..P
¿Qué Pasa en Quepos? – April 2012
Bienvenidos/Welcome to our beautiful tropical Paradise..we are happy to have you visiting…….wishing everyone a Happy Easter and a safe Semana Santa (Costa Rica’s Holiday for Easter that begins on the Thurs. before Easter through the holiday). It is a time when many Ticos come to visit their beautiful Manuel Antonio Beach & Park so if the road to the beach is crowded take it easy & enjoy the scenery during these few days…..fasten your seatbelts, be careful how much you have to drink & drive defensively……………..congrats to Terry Watkins of Manuel Antonio for this great cover shot… this beautiful waterfall is located on the Rio Canas above Cerros…with our hot weather this time of year you sort of feel just a little cooler looking at it! Thanks Terry. While you are visiting our advertisers please let them know you found them in Quepolandia…..where the finest restaurants advertise –we have great places to eat so enjoy… and don’t miss our drinking establishments with plenty of cold beer for these HOT days……. our advertisers can also hook you up with fishing, canopy tours, white water rafting, horseback riding …..just to name a few of our fun tours… have a terrific time while you are here …we hope you enjoy our part of Paradise…Keep in touch here once you get home and stay and we hope you can come back to visit soon ……ciao for now ………P
¿Qué Pasa en Quepos? – March 2012 (Happy 3rd Anniversary to Us!)
Bienvenidos/Welcome to our Paradise..we are happy that you have come to visit…whether you’re on Spring Break, Honeymoon, a family vacation or your next great adventure, we are sure you’ll have a great time!……..we have the best restaurants, the most exciting tours and the coldest libations for a hot day……… & friendly locals to engage in conversation. We hope that Quepolandia directs you to the best of everything ……… as you visit our advertisers please let them know that you found them in Quepolandia………..this issue marks our 3rd Anniversary since I began my great adventure taking over Quepolandia…. I would like to take a minute to thank the advertisers, writers and this great community for your continuing support, also a huge thank you to Paul for his dedication to help me learn(when sometimes he’d like to whack me over the head!) and get every issue together and out the door on time! This is a great job! Our beautiful cover shot of the green iguana was taken by Rich Klima, Jr of St. Petersburg, FL – thanks to Debra for sending it in…great shot Rich…..that about wraps it up for this month, Happy St. Patrick’s Day……have a great time, travel safe & come back soon…. follow us here ……ciao for now…………P