Here's a unique new site dedicated to providing accurate information for those wishing to visit or move to Costa Rica. I've been poking around The Real Costa Rica, and am impressed with the level of detail packed neatly into its' drill-down menus. There is an in-depth section on traveling to the region, with maps, a helpful travel FAQ and tons of links. There is an equally large, if not larger, section on living and working in the country, an excellent resource for anyone considering a permanent relocation.

But I wanted to know more about the voice behind the site, so I contacted the Real CR and received a pleasant reply from Tim Lytle, who spent three years (about 3,000 hours!) creating the 400-page website. Tim is listed on the contributors page for the site, but nothing distinguishes him as the founder, so I was happy to learn a bit more about him. A native of Ohio and resident of Chicago for many years, Tim moved to San Jose five years ago. Somehow, his early retirement transformed into entrepreneurship, and he now has five businesses in the country, including a web design firm. In addition to maintaining the Real CR website, he teaches a monthly seminar for others considering a move to the country, and is a forum master for the Association of Residents of Costa Rica.

Tim tells me that there are still some bugs on the site (not all pages are searchable at this point) and there are also a ton of pictures still to be uploaded, plus a few more movies and articles from new contributors to the website, which he'll get to eventually (He's getting married in a few weeks so cut him some slack till then ;-) Aside from that, it is a well organized and impressive collection on all things Costa Rica, so do give it a look.

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