The title is not really a valid alliteration. That is, not if you actually pronounce the name of Costa Rica’s most thriving beach community properly. It is not pronounced “Jack-o,” but “hawk-O” (with emphasis on the “o”). But when you juxtapose Jaco with the rest of Costa Rica, there is definitely something “wrong with this picture.” The place has become littered with “Mexican Riviera type” condo towers, each standing as a half-finished relic of some developer’s idea that Jaco could be turned into a Cancun or Cozumel experience. I have a hunch that some of these brilliant ideas stem from the imaginations of well-to-do businessmen who came to Costa Rica once and became overly enchanted with the gals that frequent the “Beatle bar.” In short, Jaco for me has become an “eyesore” and an embarrassment to the rest of the country. I can remember when things were different. Jaco was once a sleepy little surfer town with a dirt road running through. Those days are long gone. The nearby resort community of Los Sueños has met with much success and it seems that many believed that success could be easily duplicated in Jaco by throwing up garish concrete towers with condo units at ridiculously high price points. And there they sit as monuments to impulsive and ignorant ideas about what Costa Rica is. Costa Rica is green. Its greeness has been its greatest success. There are many who recognize that and successfully attempt to capitalize on the “green theme” by developing in a way that harmonizes with Costa Rica’s greeness and rich biodiversity. The results are good for the country and actually set a standard for the world. Costa Rica has become a pioneer and world-leader in the realm of eco-tourism and sustainability. But half-finished concrete towers are the antithesis of what Costa Rica is all about. Of course, now we hear repeated news that over-development is putting serious strains on the area’s resources and also polluting the one thing Jaco still has going for it, the ocean. I guess Jaco still appeals to some. The “Beatle Bar” is still going strong. There are certainly plenty of good times to be had there. Maybe Jaco will become Costa Rica’s “Spring Break” playground. Whatever it evolves into, I won’t be there to enjoy it. At least, not if I can avoid it. My advice to any out there who desire to vacation here and experience the real Costa Rica….skip it.

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