Hello Residents, Friends and Merchants!

A new year has begun and we are all probably wondering, where did the time go?!? 2008 was indeed a year for expansion for the Costa Rica Sims Estate as well as change. Let’s take a look at what happened in the last few months of the year:

Recap of 2008

The shocking news from Linden Lab® regarding the increased tier and changes for the open space/homestead sims:

This change required the move of many residents as they decided to move onto to “full” sims to avoid the scheduled tier increase. The estate had to also realign sims to ensure continued connectivity of all sims within the region. As the residents moved from the open space/homestead sims, these were converted to full sims to accommodate as well as provide additional residential parcels.

As the news spread across the grid, we saw several longer established estates deteriorate while the Costa Rica Sims Estate flourished. Thank you to all of our residents and our friends for the help and support ensuring our continued success!

The estate retained over 50 sims and now that most are full sims, we are more robust than ever! We do need to report one casualty…the airport was closed as our other amenities were more popular and enjoyed.

Speaking of the most important events:

Maxie Daviau was crowned as Miss Costa Rica Sims 2009, our second annual pageant which was held in conjunction with the first year anniversary of the estate. Another high point of the celebration was the Mermaid Treasure Hunt won by Marius Polikarpov – he won 100,000L$, most of which was donated by residents and friends!! And who can forget the halloween party as we joined forces with the talented team of Scarlet Creative. December brought the Cookie Bear Treasure Hunt that ran at full speed for 24 hours bringing so many avatars to the shopping district, raising awareness and interest in what Costa Rica Sims Commercial District has to offer. I’d like to send a special thank you to our good friend, Sway Dench, for creating the cookie bears for the hunt that are also the Estate official mascots. Then there was the First Annual Winter Ball that was enjoyed by all!

Business Partnership Announced in December:

Our new business partner, RUNWAY Productions, came in with a ‘bang’ presenting the first fashion show late in the month. This show was a total success and showcased many of the amazing designers we have in our shopping districts. As you already know, there will be a monthly fashion show to be held on the 3rd Saturday at 12:00 Noon SLT. We could not be happier to have formed this partnership with the professional team of RUNWAY Productions.

Land Sales:

Land sales seem to have normalized during December. We welcomed over 30 new residents during the month!

Event Sim:

Our new event sim hosted some magnificent events, including The Estate Winter Ball, the KMADD Winter Party, and our first fashion show, each of which packed the sim to the max while maintaining very good performance. And just this past weekend, our first big event for 2009 was held with the Princes and Princesses party celebrating Clyde Saunders's Rezz Day.

The event sim can be rented out by anybody wanting to host a large event. The sim offers 15000 prims, with estate manager rights so the renters can terraform, as needed. The rental cost for this sim is currently set at 3,000L$ per day for residents and 5000L$ per day for non-residents.

Upcoming in 2009

2009 will bring many good events, changes and experiences here in the Costa Rica Sims Estate.

With your help, we expect that we will keep growing and continue to be one of the best estates in Second Life, with the best community ever! The residents of 34 different countries now call the Costa Rica Sims their SL home.

A positive outcome of the open space change - the rainforest is getting a facelift! The layout will be a bit different and there will be an information area where people can learn about the importance of keeping our rainforests around the world safe. The rainforest offers scenes that are very realistic and enjoyable … be sure to check it out soon!

Rezz Day Parties:

Our now famous rezz day parties will be moved to the last Saturday of the month at 12:00 noon SLT to give us time to create more elaborate venues. We hope to offer a different experience each month so be watching for announcements each month!

Rental Community:

We will build a community of rental town homes on the Laguna del Arenal Sim for those avatars who would love to live within our estate, but cannot afford a full parcel. The town homes will have an old colonial style and will offer 300 prims. The price per week for each town home is currently set at 900L$.

The Resort:

Our longtime resident, Geko Stoop, had a great idea to bring a resort to our estate! As many of you might know, she owns much of the Puntarenas sim and wanted to develop this space into a resort so that all can enjoy. With the help of Rawly, we will have what promises to be a great addition and attraction to our estate. Watch this space for more details as this is further developed.

The Spa:

Along with the idea of a resort, Geko Stoop also felt that there was something else missing… an estate as posh as Costa Rica Sims should have a spa! So… yes… Geko will also be bringing a spa to our estate where residents will be able to relax within a beautiful setting while breaking out of their SL routine. More details will follow on this development as well.

The Costa Rica Ladies’ Society Club

A group of our female residents led by Gigimarie Franizzi, Prisqua Newall and Pasha Felisimo came up with the great idea of forming a social club just for the ladies of our estate. This club will allow the female residents to get to know each other better and potentially form long lasting friendships. The Society Club will give the ladies the occasion to get together regularly for lunches featuring fashions provided by some of SL top designers, talks about their dreams and opportunities, and offers of assistance to one another. They will be using the estate mansion as their meeting site. More details to come as this group moves forward with plans. Just a quick fact that many of you may not realize - 65% of our residents are female! :D

Finca La Generosa

Our long time friend and resident, Miss Karima Hoisan has opened the doors of her beautiful estate to all residents. Her land reflects a beautiful and typical cattle ranch at the foot of Volcano Arenal in La Fortuna.

This personal estate offers a bull-ride that will test your skill, a donkey ride that will take you up and over the hills, two swimming pools and waterfalls to explore and enjoy. There are romantic spots for couples and an eclectic and unique sculpture collection for art lovers too. We have the only authentic Brahma Bull in SL! So head over to milk a cow, swim, dance, explore, ride and enjoy a cup of coffee on the bridge while Arenal explodes in fiery glory in front of you. As Miss Hoisan is also a resident of RL Costa Rica, she is well suited and knows better than most anyone how to run a cattle farm in SL.

As we proceed further into 2009, there will be many more events, occasions and items of interest coming our way. Watch the blog, website and notices for more information on these as it comes available.

As always, I would like to welcome the residents that moved to our estate in the month of December: Aldo, AlwaysRollin, Amatra, Ariadna, Bartolo, Beth ,Bjorn, Brechyn, Charisse, Cindy, Danann, Eleanor, Imagine, Indiana, Jarred, JohnJoseph, Jude, Kikko, Kiro, Madeleine, Maurice, Mayzen, Renaldo, Sapphire, Sebastian, Sharlote, Siena, Sudidi, Udinetta & Wheelife. Welcome home all!! 

To recap 2008, in just one infamous SL word, it was one HOOO! of a year. On behalf of the executive team, I would like to thank you for helping us create this beautiful estate that truly belongs to you - the residents. Have a great 2009!!

Love & Light

Gian