In early 2013, my wife and I made our first trip to Costa Rica on what we considered an exploratory mission after deciding a few years earlier that we wanted to look for a place outside the United States to build a second home fora retirement getaway. We were primarily focused on Central America and the Caribbean after doing a lot of research, primarily through international Living magazine. We'd already been to Belize, which we liked very much, but wanted to see Costa Rica. We had no plansto buy anything at this point we were just looking around. We began our trip exploring the central and southern Pacific coast for about a week, which we found to be far too hot and humid for us and we didn't particularly care for the towns we saw.

The last three days of our trip before returning home we drove north to check out the Lake Arenal area, which we'd heard many positive things about both from international Living articles and from a good friend of mine who had recently visited the area on vacation. When we arrived late one afternoon, the first thing we noticed beyond the lush beauty we saw everywhere was that the climate was remarkably different than the coast much cooler and less humid.

We checked into our hotel on the east side of the lake and made plans for our stay. Our first full day in the area was to be spent with a local real estate agent who was going to show us around some of the developments bordering the lake. When we went to see him, he'd arranged for us to meet the developers of a gated community on the west side of the lake called Vistas Del Lago, have them show us around there and then rejoin the agent to have him show us some areas on the more populated east side of Lake Arenal. We met Brad and Bev Sheatz at a restaurant and they drove us to Vistas Del Lago for the first time.

The beauty of the surrounding area was breathtaking. The drive to the west side of the lake revealed lush green rolling hills, beautiful homes and the sleepy nearby town of Tronadora. Once at Vistas, we were shown several available lots and a couple of the houses that had been built and met a retired couple who lived there full time. In addition to taking me on a nature walk along a jungle setting along one side of the development Brad also showed us where he was planning to build a clubhouse. We loved the layout of Vistas, especially how most of the lots had great view of the lake. My wife had a stomach bug that day and didn't get out and explore as much as I did before we headed back to the restaurant to get our car. We had some lunch and then toured some other developments with the real estate agent that afternoon. When we were done, we agreed that Vistas Del Lago was the only place we'd seen during our entire Costa Rica trip that we really liked enough to consider living at The next day we played tourist doing some of the many fun activities around the lake.

That evening we went to dinner at a highly recommended restaurant not far from our hotel. When we walked in, we were surprised to see Brad and Bev there. They told us they ate there often and invited us to sitwith them for dinner, which we gladly did. We learned a lot more about Brad and Bev, their family, how they came to the area and we discussed a whole range of topics related to living in Costa Rica. It was the beginning of what we now feel is a close friendship with the two of them. I expressed my hope that we could go back out to Vistas again the next day so my wife could look around some more now that she was feeling better. We were invited to join them back at the same restaurant the following morning, as they were taking another couple from there to see Vistas.

The next day, we checked out of our hotel, met up at the restaurant and headed back to the west side of the lake.

One thing in particular that I noticed from our drives to Vistas was that there's an entirely different vibe on the west side of Lake Arenal.

It's far less touristy, more rural and far more laid back and the local people are warm and friendly. Upon arrival for our second day at Vistas, the other couple went with Bev while Brad took us to show us one more lot that we hadn't seen on our first trip. The building pad was atop a steep hill and when we got up there, the view was spectacular. During that first time on the lot we were visited by pair of toucans in one of the trees near the road. We later checked out the other lots we'd seen and then went back up to the high one.

I was already sold on it when my wife turned to me and said, I can see us living here". I told her I felt the same and asked if she thought we should put a deposit on the lot and think about it. Without hesitation, she agreed. It was amazing to each of us that we were doing this when we came with no intention of buying anything that trip! We found Brad and asked him what it would take to hold the lot while we mulled it over. To make a long story short we agreed to the terms, got some money from a local bank, signed a contract and headed back to San Jose to make our flight home the next morning. During that drive and the flight back to the U.S., that lot was all we could talk about and we decided we didn't need any time to think about it -we were keeping it. We returned each year the next few years, renting casitas in Vistas Del Lago to get a feel for living there. By the time we went down for our third visit the Clubhouse was well under construction. It is now done, even better in every way than I could have imagined it and is a focal point of community activity for the neighbors. Each visit allowed us to meet more of our neighbors and get a sense of the amazing community Brad and Bev had built. We found that we dreaded having to leave every single time we went there because we had so much fun with everyone there. All of us shared a bond of having come to the same conclusion about this amazing slice of heaven we'd all found. Some neighbors had been looking for the right place for a long time and in several different countries before seeing what we'd seen and, like us, deciding Vista was THE place. We felt incredibly fortunate to have found it on our very first visit to Costa Rica. Subsequent trips have validated what we felt on the first one. Each time we left we couldn't wait to return. We used each of our early trips to meet with builders and architects to start making plans fora house, and then make our final choices for each. We had our lot graded on one trip, had water and electric lines brought from the road up to our lot on another and we began taking the necessary steps to get construction started about four and a half years after buying our lot.

We now have an incredible home and are eager to use it as a base from which to explore more of the amazing country that Costa Rica is. We especially look forward to having family and friends come down to visit and share in our little piece of paradise. We continue to see more houses being built in the neighborhood and are still meeting new neighbors. All of the people on the Vistas staff from our incredible office manager to the guards, maintenance guys and gardeners are like extended family. The glue that holds it all together are Brad and Bev. As I have told them many times, we love our lot but without the two of them, we almost certainly wouldn't have bought it. It is their commitment to and love of Vistas Del Lago that makes it such a magical place. Having themas hands-on resident developers makes it what it is. In summary, we feel blessed to have found in Vistas Del Lago a place filled with friends and neighbors we love to spend time with in a setting that we absolutely love. From the views to the flora and fauna to the towns, the native population and the climate, we could not possibly have found a more perfect fit for our second home.

- Skip

I definitely think it was divine intervention how we landed at Vistas that day, with you and Brad showing us around in a very non-pushy way. Beatty worked her Texas mamma magic on me for sure when I was doubled over with a stomach bug. But why did we choose to buy a lot, in another country far from home, so impulsively? First off, the view is spectacular from almost any lot at Vistas, but we were just in awe when we saw the view from lot 56. Whether we ever get to use the lake or not (and I want to get a small sailboat someday), we can always admire the view of the water, the hills, the sunsets, the rain and rainbows coming towards us, the moon over the lake at night and spectacular sunrises from our bed. And then, there's the volcano: magical! I have always been a birdwatcher, and you just can't find a greater variety of birds than Costa Rica. Almost everyday I see another amazing bird; including toucans, parrots, caracaras, tanagers, oropendolas, woodpeckers, etc. And the animal life is great, too, including: howler monkeys, coatimundi, and farm animals. There are fields, roads, and creek side trails for walking. In the coming years there will be so much more for us to experience in this beautiful country within a one to two hour's drive; whether it be the volcano with it's zip lining and hot springs, the beaches, the towns with such friendly people and delicious food, coffee plantations and more. Colorful flowering trees, shrubs and vines are everywhere, and something is always in bloom. It's just beautiful! My first thought was, this is what the Garden of Eden must have looked like! And it's so peaceful and quiet - except for the birds and monkeys sometimes! The soil is very rich and I was definitely enticed by the thought of how many varieties of fruit trees and vegetables I could grow! But, my husband and I are social too, and what really won us over at Vistas was the heartfelt, friendly welcome we received from everyone there. We immediately felt at home and knew we wanted to be a part of this special community. We've never looked back on our decision to build at Vistas del Lago and can't wait to return to our Costa Rican casa!

- Anne