Happier than Billionaires

Happier than Billionaires in Costa Rica | EX-PATS™ Ep. 12 youtube

Rob and Nadine Pisani were successful business owners in New Jersey, but when the stress of their lives landed Rob in the hospital, they decided it was time leave it all behind and start over in Costa Rica. Five years later, they are happier and healthier than ever. Rob is in a band, Nadine has written a book, and they wake up every morning excited to see what the day will bring. From shopping for local groceries on a scooter to mountain biking, they are embracing pura vida.

Costa Rica is tiny, smaller than West Virginia, but huge in versatility, with coasts on two oceans, coral-lined beaches and active volcanoes, luxury resorts and surf camps, roaring streams and rich biodiversity.

Continental flies nonstop from New York to San José, Costa Rica. From San José, local buses can easily be found to Monteverde, Turrialba and Manuel Antonio for as little as $5 or less. Interbus (www.interbusonline.com) offers hotel-to-hotel shuttles to the most popular tourist destinations for around $30 to $50, depending on distance.

Costa Rica is known for its progressive environmental policies, being the only country to meet all five criteria established to measure environmental sustainability. It is ranked fifth in the world, and first among the Americas, in the 2012 Environmental Performance Index. It was twice ranked the best performing country in the New Economics Foundation's Happy Planet Index, which measures environmental sustaibility, and identified by the NEF as the greenestcountry in the world in 2009. In 2007, the Costa Rican government announced plans for Costa Rica to become the first carbon-neutral country by 2021, while in 2012, Costa Rica became the first country in the Americas to ban recreational hunting.

Costa Rica earned top marks this new year as the best countries to retire in 2015 for its low cost of living, entertainment/arts offerings and the ability of expats to fit in with the locals. It helps that a lot of locals speak English and the tourist-friendly country is used to outsiders.

Whether you are a tico or a foreign tourist, we welcome you to the national parks of Costa Rica, Rafael A. Vilagut

Traveller and Tourist Advisor, skype raalvive

@vilagutr rafaelvilagut@gmail.com

P.O.Box 925-2050 Costa Rica

(0ll) +506-8320-6097