www.CostaRicaTicas.com

idk i would tend to think maybe they are trying to feel you out for the best deal they can offer
and if i put myself in their place i don't want to say anything like for cash no tax etc in writing
i would also think that a group that big might be a concern for noise, nuisance etc. for the hotel so they are getting a feel for what the expectation is without going through endless email
getting a little background isn't that unusual ime and maybe they don't even want that business

_________________
im way deep into nothing special
riding the crest of a wave breaking just west of hollywood

Plus 1 for everything LAD said!!

Plus:
It sounds to me like the age old problem for Gringos--Can't seem to realize (even when it is a much traveled person such as yourself) that it is not people in the USA you are trying to do business with and you can't accept doing business the way the person you are dealing with wants and expects to do business. That age old problem for many- when in Rome do as the Romans do!! or don't and fail and have problems.

Because of many factors peculiar to CR very often business will not want anything in writing concerning certain matters. Also would you as a hotel/resort owner want 20 rooms blocked off without assurances as to what the intended use was, how much partying (noise, drunks, etc.) to expect, and what deposit would be necessary based on that info!!

Guess I have been living here too long but I can't imagine doing it any differently than what they did.

_________________
Old and retired but still bang, and bang, and bang!!!

Srilm,

I used to run a call center in CR. I found Costa Ricans abhor conflict worse than anything else. We used to have clients call in with problems and even my very best workers would assure them the problem will be fixed 'manana' even if they had no clue, just to get the aggressive demanding gringo off the phone. The Americans working there declared the true meaning of the Spanish word manana was "not now"...

My impression based on my work experience down here and the little I could gather from your thread was he was probably a timid guy and was nervous about who you were and what you and your group would be doing, yet interested in the business but terrified it might be a group convention that might get out of hand and get him in deep doo doo with his boss.

He probably was in a state of conflict searching for reassurances you weren't going to be holding a crazed drunken mongers and drunken puta guests get together and had no idea how to deal with the situation once he realized you weren't going to answer all his questions, then he basically was dumbfounded and froze like the proverbial "deer in the headlights''.

If he doesn't get your business, nobody knows, he won't get fired but if he books your request and you guys tear the place down and run around the grounds in hula skirts, he gets fired. Better to address this issue "manana"....

_________________
Don't try to understand 'em, just rope 'em down and brand 'em...

Yes you have posted this several times! I am still trying to understand what your reasoning is! Yes I had one stolen (about 8 years ago). Yes it was used before I could get hold of my bank. BUT, before my account was totally wiped out the bank or Visa caught the irregularity in use and put a stop on it. Then after I got hold of the bank, within an hour the charges made against my account were removed and every penny was credited back to my account.

In this case it was a card with my picture on it and thus could only be used where a person involved in the thief worked. Visa refused to pay the business so the only person to actually lose money was the business with a crocked employee!! Or at the least, a very careless employee. I mean my picture certainly did not look like a 20ish Latino!!!! The picture was taken when I was 64 years old!

I did not lose, my bank did not lose, Visa did not lose!! I absolutely do not understand your dislike, distrust, hatred for debit cards. Nothing was any different than if it had been a regular Visa credit card. When it has the Visa logo, it has the same protections in place that a Visa credit card has!! You have never clearly explained your reasons for disliking a debit card so much!!! At least not that I have seen!! Mine was replaced very quickly and I still use it with no problems!!

_________________
Old and retired but still bang, and bang, and bang!!!

My understanding is that the issuing bank or the merchant that dealt with the crook are the ones that "eat" any fraudulent use of a card. The cardholder has no liability for fraudulent use.

Of course, the cardholder has to "prove" that the use of ANY kind of card is fraudulent. Sometimes that's easy to do. Sometimes it's hard to do.

The banks say that this liability is the reason that they keep interest rates on card balances so high....... because they have to "eat" these (and other) losses.

_________________
But mama, that's where the fun is

//\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/////

Bro Srilm comes off as hard-nosed, savvy businessman--firm but fair--in this Thread, and has given us/reinforced the root difference between debit vs. credit cards--very valuable knowledge to have. Not sure why the pushback against demonstrated facts. US credit cards are soon going to make a major change in how they operate (catching up with the rest of the world)--here's a WSJ article on "smart chips" in them: http://blogs.wsj.com/corporate-intellig ... edit-card/ << I would like his and others opinions on how this will change the credit card experience--can't see a difference in online buying but face-to-face, it's gotta make a difference.

_________________
"A man accustomed to hear only the echo of his own sentiments, soon bars all the common avenues of delight, and has no part in the general gratification of mankind"--Dr. Johnson
"Amen, brother"-ED

I think you are out of date. Most debit cards now come with the same fraud protection that debit cards do. Even Chase does this now and some much smaller banks.

Is this a good way to use my debit card ?

I swipe the card through the card reader.
The reader asks me if it is a debit or credit card.
I say credit card and the transaction goes through.
So now my card has gone through the Visa protected network but the sale is charged to my checking account at once.

Is this how the debit card should be used ?

_________________
Softbob

There is nothing either good or bad
but thinking makes it so.
HAMLET

Correct, I understand that now.

I will keep that in mind when I use my debit card.

They say never use a debit card at a gas station or other public place where the card reader can be rigged to steal your pin and card number. Hard to get your money back.

_________________
Softbob

There is nothing either good or bad
but thinking makes it so.
HAMLET

Srilm, let's paraphrase the mighty potentate of this message board, Kenny:



I do like your point about this "pura vida" nonsense as well as the other joke....I forget.....oh, yeah...."Tico Time"....; ain't pushing tin, is it?

_________________
"Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the over-compensations for misery. And, of course, stability isn't nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation, or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt. Happiness is never grand."
- Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Ch. 16

...and yet you obviously feel and have the need to proclaim to the readers of this message board just what a mover and shaker you are; how financially well placed you are; and, bluntly, something of a name dropping braggart. Or, is it the Richard Cory dealy bob scenario? http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/174248

oh....and by the way, I'm with you 110% on the cultural sensitivity woo-woo. It's code speak for synthetic barriers and tied in to the "self esteem" jibber jabber which now dominates the public school system of the USA rather than educating.

So, far as I'm concerned, you and me are pretty damn close in our thoughts at the very least in the respect of Mr. Vidal's remarks: “It is of no consequence to you what others think of you. What matters is what you think of them. That is how you live your life.”

_________________
"Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the over-compensations for misery. And, of course, stability isn't nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation, or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt. Happiness is never grand."
- Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Ch. 16

I do not see Bro Srilm as a self-important braggart (look at the magnificent FREE offer he made me...which unfortunately I am unable to take up). Those kind of jerks are unwilling to an extreme to tell you how they do things (it's pure magic, I'm the holder of the secrets and Phuck you)--I have no doubt Bro Srilm will tell you in detail how you can do as well as he has (not financial backing, let's keep it real now). Doubtless he can read most folks like a 2-page book but if he believes in you, HE BELIEVES IN YOU. Willingness to genuinely share is everything and why this Board was founded. If I'm mistaken, I'll take the hit...but I don't think I am.

_________________
"A man accustomed to hear only the echo of his own sentiments, soon bars all the common avenues of delight, and has no part in the general gratification of mankind"--Dr. Johnson
"Amen, brother"-ED

Well Srilm, I was on the fence about my feelings about you ( sure you could give a rat's ass) but your post about credit cards and debt cards was spot on and well written.
Not sure what your business is but you brought some facts and cleared up some unknowns ( at least for me)about how things work...thanks again ....you bring some great info to the site.

I disagree with both major points Srilm made in this thread.

mh

_________________
mh