qitdgnd.info

San Jose, capital and largest city, has the best Costa Rica tours for most travelers and tourists. This city offers numerous spectacular museums, first class restaurants, and amazing night life venues. Some may think less of this city because of its urban sprawl but nevertheless, they soon found out how this city can be very entertaining especially once you’ve visited Plaza dela Cultura and Paseo Colon.Some of the fun things to do in Costa Rica can be done at the Plaza de la Cultura. It is also known as the Culture Square, is usually the place to go to shop for souvenirs, sun bathe or enjoy a night out while watching marimba bands and other entertainers including comedians or clowns, jugglers and colorfully dressed artists playing Andean music. The Paseo Colon; however, is one of the best hotels in San Jose with really accommodating and helpful staff as well as luxurious and comfortable rooms.The Jade Museum is one the most visited attractions according to Costa Rica vacation reviews, highlighting the country’s century-old artifacts and the world’s largest and renowned collection of Pre-Columbian Jade. The Costa Rican Art Museum also known as Museo de Arte Costarricense by the locals, showcases a collection of works by the country’s most celebrated artists back in the 19th and 20th centuries. Its presentation is highly impressive because of its rotating shows and sculpture collection. Most of the works are exhibited in all forms of media. The National Museum, also called the Museo Nacional, was founded in 1887 and is situated in the old fort used by the military during the civil war back in 1948. This museum displays the natural history, Pre-Columbian culture as well as history of Costa Rica.Other exciting Costa Rica tours involve the Pre-Columbian Gold Museum near downtown San Jose. The Pre-Columbian Gold Museum which is part of the Central Bank Museums is an underground cultural center that exhibits the marvelous collection of gold objects that reflect the techniques of the Pre-Columbian people in Costa Rica. The exhibition is divided into two levels: an introductory and area for orientation at the 2nd level of the structure that interprets the evolution of Pre-Columbian cultures. The metallurgy development in Costa Rica, the styles and stages are also featured in this level. The second level which is located at the 3rd level of the structure showcases the diverse uses and meanings of the gold objects. An introductory video is presented in this level before people can view the collection.The Mercado Central also the Central Market in Costa Rica is another destination where tourists go strolling about to purchase the exotic spices, fruits, vegetables and even t-shirts. There’s also a bakery and even wood and leather handicraft sold in stalls. This market consists of three blocks and is located near a train station.Most tourists check out travel agencies in Costa Rica to get the best travel packages only to visit San Jose. The best thing about this city is that most of the tourist destinations are really accessible. Many realized it’s best to explore the city on foot. But if travelers decide to travel around outside the city they can opt to go visit the Monterverde National Park considered the most visited national park in the country.An overseas travel adventure to the Monteverde National Park is only 3 to 4 hours from the capital by car; however, air travel is offered through Sansa Airlines which only takes 20 minutes. It contains the most beautiful beaches and coral reefs coupled with a superb combination of lush rain forests. The rain forest houses a diverse collection of species including monkeys, iguanas, sloths, squirrels and crabs.

As someone who grew up with a love of the outdoors and gardening it was no great surprise that when I was “grown up” and house hunting a good sized garden was high on my list. However, what the estate agent thought was large I thought was tiny.I wanted a good outdoor space to create my ideal cottage garden. I have been gardening and interested in plants for as long as I can remember. A very early memory is being given a packet of polyanthus seeds by my grand mother who helped me sow and nurture them. They grew to a massive size and the story is often recounted by my also garden loving father.As a child I was allocated an area of my fathers garden to look after and grow whatever I wanted. I remember growing a wide range of flowers and having a herb garden. Many of the plants are still thriving today.My father is still a keen gardener although his area of expertise is the lawn. In fact it is an obsession. Being a golfer each blade of grass stands to attention and is manicured throughout the year. Personally I see lawns as wasted planting space.Having graduated from this area in my fathers garden to my own, I was excited rather daunted at the prospect of a blank canvas. I expect there are many gardeners out there who would relish the opportunity to start from scratch.As someone who usually rushes into things, I planned, researched, re planned and mulled many ideas over. What was really essential to me was that the garden had year round interest and the boundaries were hidden. I wanted to create my perfect cottage garden.I have a strong aversion to structure, routine and straight lines in a garden. This aversion also includes soil and boundaries. I like to hide all evidence of garden boundaries so the garden can look as natural as possible. Covering the soil also has the benefit of suppressing weeds. Order, a place for everything and everything in its place is so unnatural and is not my gardening philosophy. Lots of billowing flowers, verticals, garden rooms and year round interest are order of the day.I aim to mimic or imitate nature as far as possible. I simply adore the sight of plants mingling into each other, jostling for position like fans at a rock concert. This way the garden has texture, colour and form throughout the seasons.Evergreen shrubs form the structural back bone of the garden with trees and arches providing height. All shrubs and trees are under planted with spring and summer bulbs and many have clematis growing through them, timed to flower before the leaves unfurl. The snowdrops are the first brave little flowers to emerge about February. I welcome the sight of their delicate flowers which have a delicate honey fragrance. So heart warming in those bitter winter months where little else is brave enough to flower.I am a strong believer that a plant needs to provide interest for more than just one season. This is vital in a small garden. One of my favourite trees the Coral Bark acer, acer sangokaku, has wonderful red stems as its name suggests. This superb tree has the most delicate green leaves in early spring maturing to dark green. Finally in the autumn it erupts into vibrant yellow as it sings autumns finale. For me this tree gets better with age.I must confess that I am a bit of a plantaholic. Buying, planting and sowing are all gardening pleasures. In my garden I have four distinct areas but they are all connected by arches,small paths and subtle nooks between plants. The garden was planned to appear unplanned, a garden to wander and explore. Each are has a slightly different feel but there is year round interest be that from frost on the remnants of last years sunflowers and perennial flowers,spiders webs glinting with dew in autumn with the fireworks of Rudbeckia, Sedum, Echinacea and acer foliage.Spring is glowing with a wide variety of Daffodils,Tulips, Fritillaries and of course the cherry blossom. I adore cherry blossom especially when viewed against a clear blue spring sky.Summer is my favourite time of year. My favourite flowers Sweetpeas are in full bloom. Vases of their sweet fragrance fill most rooms in my house. My other weakness are Roses. My garden is full of Roses, from ramblers to hybrid teas. I use Roses to climb walls,fences,shrubs and trees. I adore fragrant Roses especially if they are climbers or ramblers. There is nothing better in the summer than sitting under an arch of Roses with a glass of wine in the evening soaking up the scent. I also love the shape and form of Roses. From the tight bud to the full open bloom I find them exquisitely beautiful. Roses also fill my home. They also fill a large border outside my house which is planted with spring and summer bulbs. The border billows in high summer with fragrant Aquilegia, Penstemons and Lavender, an essential plant for me in the garden and romance. To me its perfect.My large border is cottage garden heaven. It has no rules, plants are allowed to self seed freely, plants are divided, if something is not working or thriving it is removed as there are so many plants I love its like a games of swapsies. This border has trees for the vertical, evergreen shrubs, lots of bulbs and carpets of flowers from Forget-me-nots in Spring, Aquilegia, Peonies, Sweet Peas, Larkspur, Calendula, Poppies in a variety of colour, Alliums, Nemesia, Lavender, Scabious, Verbascum and Verbena. These flowers are allowed to self seed and thus follow the seasons. I leave the seed heads for birds and insects, the rest germinate and I enjoy the following year. I simply adore my flower borders as its all about feminine pastel shades and whites which simply glow in the evening light.I adore flowers and growing them for the house is such a pleasure. There is no secret to successful growing.Trees are something that I feel are essential in the garden. I have two fruit trees and the rest are ornamental. I have trees for the colour of their bark and trees for Autumn colour. The great thing about trees is that the add instant height and interest. Trees are also fantastic for growing Clematis, Wisteria or Roses through the branches.This year I decided to enter Warminster in Bloom. I entered for fun and won first prize! I was so thrilled that my cottage garden had won despite being only three years old. Lets hope next year the weather doesn’t wreak such havoc on the garden.

Summary
SPDN is not the largest or oldest way to short the S&P 500, but it’s a solid choice.
This ETF uses a variety of financial instruments to target a return opposite that of the S&P 500 Index.
SPDN’s 0.49% Expense Ratio is nearly half that of the larger, longer-tenured -1x Inverse S&P 500 ETF.
Details aside, the potential continuation of the equity bear market makes single-inverse ETFs an investment segment investor should be familiar with.
We rate SPDN a Strong Buy because we believe the risks of a continued bear market greatly outweigh the possibility of a quick return to a bull market.
Put a gear stick into R position, (Reverse).
Birdlkportfolio

By Rob Isbitts

Summary
The S&P 500 is in a bear market, and we don’t see a quick-fix. Many investors assume the only way to navigate a potentially long-term bear market is to hide in cash, day-trade or “just hang in there” while the bear takes their retirement nest egg.

The Direxion Daily S&P 500® Bear 1X ETF (NYSEARCA:SPDN) is one of a class of single-inverse ETFs that allow investors to profit from down moves in the stock market.

SPDN is an unleveraged, liquid, low-cost way to either try to hedge an equity portfolio, profit from a decline in the S&P 500, or both. We rate it a Strong Buy, given our concern about the intermediate-term outlook for the global equity market.

Strategy
SPDN keeps it simple. If the S&P 500 goes up by X%, it should go down by X%. The opposite is also expected.

Proprietary ETF Grades
Offense/Defense: Defense

Segment: Inverse Equity

Sub-Segment: Inverse S&P 500

Correlation (vs. S&P 500): Very High (inverse)

Expected Volatility (vs. S&P 500): Similar (but opposite)

Holding Analysis
SPDN does not rely on shorting individual stocks in the S&P 500. Instead, the managers typically use a combination of futures, swaps and other derivative instruments to create a portfolio that consistently aims to deliver the opposite of what the S&P 500 does.

Strengths
SPDN is a fairly “no-frills” way to do what many investors probably wished they could do during the first 9 months of 2022 and in past bear markets: find something that goes up when the “market” goes down. After all, bonds are not the answer they used to be, commodities like gold have, shall we say, lost their luster. And moving to cash creates the issue of making two correct timing decisions, when to get in and when to get out. SPDN and its single-inverse ETF brethren offer a liquid tool to use in a variety of ways, depending on what a particular investor wants to achieve.

Weaknesses
The weakness of any inverse ETF is that it does the opposite of what the market does, when the market goes up. So, even in bear markets when the broader market trend is down, sharp bear market rallies (or any rallies for that matter) in the S&P 500 will cause SPDN to drop as much as the market goes up.

Opportunities
While inverse ETFs have a reputation in some circles as nothing more than day-trading vehicles, our own experience with them is, pardon the pun, exactly the opposite! We encourage investors to try to better-understand single inverse ETFs like SPDN. While traders tend to gravitate to leveraged inverse ETFs (which actually are day-trading tools), we believe that in an extended bear market, SPDN and its ilk could be a game-saver for many portfolios.

Threats
SPDN and most other single inverse ETFs are vulnerable to a sustained rise in the price of the index it aims to deliver the inverse of. But that threat of loss in a rising market means that when an investor considers SPDN, they should also have a game plan for how and when they will deploy this unique portfolio weapon.

Proprietary Technical Ratings
Short-Term Rating (next 3 months): Strong Buy

Long-Term Rating (next 12 months): Buy

Conclusions
ETF Quality Opinion
SPDN does what it aims to do, and has done so for over 6 years now. For a while, it was largely-ignored, given the existence of a similar ETF that has been around much longer. But the more tenured SPDN has become, the more attractive it looks as an alternative.

ETF Investment Opinion

SPDN is rated Strong Buy because the S&P 500 continues to look as vulnerable to further decline. And, while the market bottomed in mid-June, rallied, then waffled since that time, our proprietary macro market indicators all point to much greater risk of a major decline from this level than a fast return to bull market glory. Thus, SPDN is at best a way to exploit and attack the bear, and at worst a hedge on an otherwise equity-laden portfolio.