Liberty Reserve Founder Gave Up US Citizenship For Costa Rican

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29 May 2013

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Costa Rica Hits Theatres In US and Canada; Go Costa Rica App in July

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29 May 2013

ICT international advertising presented for the United States and Canada

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Costa Rica ventured into 1.345 movie theatres in the U.S. and Canada, to promote the country’s tourism, in major cities such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, Atlanta, West Palm Beach, Dallas and Houston, as well as Montreal, Canada.

The short film is shown before the beginning of the movie.

The shooting was carried out for 25 days with the renowned director, Patrick Pierson, who is responsible for documentaries and commercials and whose works have earned him awards at the international film festivals, including two of his projects that were presented at the Cannes Film Festival.

The objective of the shoot was to capture the living experiences in the different areas of the country. On this visit, 50 hours of film were captured. Working with the production team was Andrés Madrigal, experienced Costa Rican photographer and graphic designer who has concentrated on Costa Rica´s tourism area, trying to rescue the ¨Tico¨ authenticity, as well as the emotions and experiences and convert them into images.

According to the ICT, the objective of this first installment of the project is to construct a top quality photographic and video library, that covers just about the entire country, presenting different areas and tourist activities, natural beauties, characteristics of the areas and the authenticity of the destination.

About 8.5 million impressions are estimated; meaning the number of times that people will be directly exposed to the 60 second film.

“The publicity advertisements that will be promoted this year and next responds to the precise approach of the country´s tourist competitive strategy, which implies consolidating the differentiation of the destination, betting on innovation, the positioning of the sustainable tourism development model and the joint work between the public and private sectors that have characterized the Costa Rican tourism”, says Allan Flores, Costa Rica’s minister of Tourism.

App Go Costa Rica: Another novelty is the creation of the Go Costa Rica App, which will be designed in the iOS platform, for Ipad. This tool seeks to inspire dreams, simplify vacation planning and share experiences before the visit.

The app will be launched in July; it will have different categories, such as adventure, cultural, nature, and relaxation tourism showing a wide variety of the tourist activities that can be done in the different regions of the country. Including, thanks to the large amount of visual material available, people will be able to create their own videos of Costa Rica and share them on Facebook.

The app will be promoted in different ways, for example in digital media and social networks, thanks to the reach of the influencers and it will be available for free at the App Store. In the next phase, an adaptation for the Android will be evaluated and the translation to other languages.

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Nosara Offered Its Best Waves in the 2013 Kingston Cup

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29 May 2013

By Ariana Crespo/ Voice of Nosara – The sixth date of the 2013 Olympus National Surf Circuit ran the waves of Guiones beach last weekend, May 25 and 26. Nosara welcomed the Kingston Cup with a lot of greenery, a bit of rain and waves worth talking about.

The competition started off with good quality waves and strong sets. Being rainy season, the sky was overcast. However, the public enjoyed nice sunshine during several periods throughout the day.

The morning of Saturday, May 25, was characterized by varying winds that improved the condition and form of the waves, so by the middle of the first day spectators could watch aerials being performed.
The judges worked for 12 hours straight during the first day while the surfers entered and exited the water. At 6 p.m. the quarterfinals qualifiers of the Kingston Cup were already defined.

The quarterfinals started on Sunday, the 26th, in the morning, and by then familiar names were being heard like the McGonagle siblings. Leilani McGonagle classified for the Boys finals (the only woman), Junior girls and for the female open. The favorite of many, her older brother, Noe Mar McGonagle also classified in the junior and male open categories. The 2012 national circuit champion, Gilbert Brown, also managed to lead the qualifying list for the final of the male open.

Among the locals who stood out in the tournament was Nosaran Cristian Santamaria. This surfer left his short board and classified for the long board final. He obtained first place with a long right that allowed him to show us his best walk on the board almost reaching the shore of the beach.

Another local from Guanacaste was little 12-year-old Malakai Martinez, who came from Tamarindo to celebrate not just his birthday but also a first-place win in the mini grommets category.

In Juniors, Jason Mora and Noe Mar McGonagle fought for first place. Jason showed his competitiveness and gave us several complete examples of “power surfing.” However, it wasn’t enough to defeat McGonagle, who, in the last minute of the heat, took a right of 7.10 that earned him first place.

Gilbert Brown National Champion 2012, first place Open

Here are the final standings of the tournament by category:

The last time that the National Surf Circuit visited Guiones Beach was in March of 2011, where the final tournament was played, a date remembered by some as one of the best finals on record in the history of Costa Rican surf.

For this 2013 tournament, Guiones Beach was in charge of entertaining the public for two days. The Costa Rican Electric Institute (ICE) set up a Kolbi internet post through 300 meters amongst the nature of the Ostional Refuge to be able to transmit the entire tournament and announce rankings. The Costa Rican Surf Federation provided live updates of tournament scores and schedules on www.surfingcr.net.

This activity was possible thanks to sponsorship from several brands that had activities and prizes for the public during both days (Adrenaline, Kingston, Off, 979, Costas Verdes, Quicksilver, Reef, Wipeout films, Maui clothing line, Olympus and others). Among the prizes and gifts of the weekend were the best Kingston head made of sand and a camera given for the most creative photagraphy with smartphone on both days.

Adrenaline kept those in attendance hydrated wiht free samples of their energy drink and throughout both days there was no lack of models on the beach distributing a large quantity of products like frisbees, totebags, towels and baseball caps.

Here are the final standings of the tournament by category:

Open	Juniors	Women	Long board
1 Gilbert Brown 2 Noemar McGonale 3 Anthony Fillingim 4 Luis Vindas	1 Noemar McGonale 2 Jeison Mora 3 Leonardo Calvo 4 León Glatzer	1 Lisbeth Vindas 2 Emily Gussoni 3 Leilani McGonagle 4 Paula Duarte	1 Cristian Santamaría 2 Anthony Flores 3 Adolfo Gómez 4 Alex Gómez

Source: Costa Rican Surf Federation

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From LACSA, to TACA to AVIANCA!

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28 May 2013

Costa Ricans have gone flying proudly in their national airline, LACSA, to flying a regional airline trough the acquisition of Lacsa by TACA in the 1990’s, to no flying under the Colombian airline, AVIANCA.

Lacsa (Spanish: Lineas Aéreas Costarricenses S.A.), was the national airline of Costa Rica.

Established on 17 October 1945 by Pan American World Airways (PAN AM), the Costa Rican government (20%) and Costa Rican private interests, it started operations on 1 June 1946 and was designated the national carrier in 1949. Its domestic network was transferred to wholly owned subsidiary Sansa in September 1959.

In the 1940’s the airline was based at the Sabana airport with its first international flight in 1947 to Nicaragua. In 1949 the airline got a boost to its fleet with the addition of a Curtiss C-46 and two DC-3’s.

In 1950, Lacsa began flights to Panama, La Habana (Cuba) and Miami. A year later it obtained a license to fly to the Gran Cayman, with the creation of Cayman Airways.

In 1967, Costa Rica’s national airline moved into the jet age, christening its fist jet “El Tico” (the Tico or Costarican).

The airline kept expanding. In 1981 it added flights to Guatemala and Puerto Rico and in 1987 was flying to New York, the first airline in the region to fly the destination.

In 1990, the airline added the Airbus A320 to its fleet, while working on an alliance with TACA, Aviateca and Nica that resulted in the consolidation of the Grupo TACA, passing from a national airline to being part of a regional airline.

Although Lacsa was now part of TACA, the brand name Lacsa continued in a small way. TACA operated the LACSA routes (LR), and in some airports the airline counter continued with the name Lacsa.

In 2009, the Colombian airline, Avianca, announces the acquisition of 70% of the shares of Grupo TACA, and began operating under the brand TACA AVIANCA.

Last year the Colombians announced killing off the TACA name, with its burial date of May 27, 2013. With it it also buried once and for ever the name LACSA.

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Adios TACA!

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28 May 2013

Avianca, the second largest airline group in Latin America kills off the TACA brand as of today, a brand that has been around since 1931, founded by New Zealander Lowell Yerez. Up to today the two airlines had been flying their respective colours, joined together under the brand name AVIANCA TACA.

The idea of its founder was to establish one airline in each Latin-American country, such as Aerovias Brasil in Brazil and other TACAs in Mexico, Venezuela, and Colombia.

Out of all the TACA franchise airlines created, only TACA International of El Salvador survived, and ventured in acquisitions and has helped launch airlines such as the Mexican Volaris and has 49% shares in TACA Peru.

Until 1980, TACA was owned by a United States company and had its corporate headquarters in New Orleans, Louisiana (due to the civil war raging in El Salvador) in 1980 the Kriete Family of El Salvador who owned a minority stock completed buying all the shares. The headquarters returned to San Salvador, El Salvador to a new building which was inaugurated in 2008.

Between 1940 and 1995, TACA bought the majority shares of the flag carrier airlines of Guatemala (AVIATECA), Costa Rica (LACSA), and Nicaragua (NICA), consolidating operations under a new brand name, Grupo TACA. In 2008, Roberto Kriete and the board of directors decided to revert to the original name, TACA International Airlines, since the consolidation of the acquired airlines was completed.

In October 2009, it was announced that TACA would merge its assets in a strategic alliance with Colombian airline AVIANCA, in which case each will maintain its own trademark and operations.

Ealier this month TACA began modifying their routes to and from San Jose de Costa Rica as they near the transition to Avianca Airlines, cancelling more than a half of their flights to and from Juan Santamaria Airport in San Jose, Costa Rica, including flights to all cities in the United States from San José.

Avianca S.A. (acronym in Spanish formerly for Aerovías Nacionales de Colombia S.A. (National Airways of Colombia), currently Aerovías del Continente Americano S.A. (Airways of the American Continent)) is the flag carrier airline of Colombia since December 5, 1919 when it was initially registered under the name SCADTA.

Headquartered in Bogotá, D.C. with its hub at the El Dorado International Airport, Avianca is the largest airline in Colombia. Avianca together with its subsidiaries has the most extended network of (both passenger and cargo) destinations in the Americas and one of the largest and most modern aircraft fleet in the continent. It is wholly owned by Avianca Holding S.A., a Latin American holding company established in Panama and specializing in air transport. The company is part of the Synergy Group and is listed in the Colombia Stock Exchange.

Avianca’s chied executive office, Fabio Villegas, recently announced the airlines plans to spend at least US$4 billion dollars through 20199 to buy more 100 planes to meet rising passenger traffic in Latin America.

Avianca, which has total assets of about $4.5 billion, plans to spend $4 billion to $5 billion over the next seven years to buy 104 planes, including 15 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, Villegas said in an interview with Bloomberg. The plan is conservative under the company’s traffic projections and could be scaled up if warranted, he said.

“We have to grow, but it has to be in a profitable way,” Villegas, 58, said yesterday at the company’s headquarters in Bogota. “The biggest failures in this industry start with disproportionate expansion plans.”

With Dreamliner Routes Avianca will expand available seat-kilometers — a measure of passenger capacity — by about 8 percent to 9 percent per year over the next five years, Villegas said. Capacity growth was 10 percent last year, according to a report on its website.

The new plane orders “are mostly for replacement, and our growth will be quite reasonable,” he said. Avianca operated 152 aircraft as of Dec. 31, according to the bond-offering document. The Dreamliners will allow the company to add routes and fly existing routes more profitably, he said.

The image of the “new Avianca” will be displayed in over 160 airplanes, 14 thousand seats onboard, 214 ticket offices, 100 airports, VIP lounges in 25 countries, as well as the corporate buildings in the Americas and Europe. This new image will also dress over 13.000 employees with client service positions -out of the 18,000 total-, and identify our new integrated website, social networks, onboard reading materials, and corporate communications media in general.

Fabio Villegas, Avianca Holdings CEO said: “The single commercial brand represents a very important milestone for an improved flight offer and an interesting challenge to Avianca’s service capacity. For that reason, the airlines’ background and the professionalism and experience shared by the many generations of men and women who have contributed with their work to Avianca, TACA Airlines, Aerogal, and Tampa Cargo, have become our inspiration.”

More than 5.100 weekly flights operated on a modern fleet enable us to help our travelers reach 100 destinations in 25 countries throughout the Americas and Europe, provide access to 21.900 daily flights served around the world by Star Alliance member airlines, be preferred by more than 23 million passengers who choose our services yearly for their travel plans and the transportation of 300 thousand tons of goods. This motivates us to assure the “new Avianca”, as the leading airline in Latin America preferred by the world´s travelers,” quoted the executive.

TACA International Airlines Boeing 737-300, 1994

Avianca Airbus A330-200 at El Dorado International Airport (2009)

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120 Traffic Accidents Daily During Rainy Season

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28 May 2013

Wet roads and low visibility are responsible for up to 120 traffic accidents daily during the rainy season, this according to the Policia de Tránsito (traffic police) that attend on average 75 collisions daily in the greater metropolitan area (San José).

“Drivers fail to adjust to the conditions, conditions like braking on wet roads as the vehicle does not have the same grip causing rear impacts”, says Transito director, German Marin.

Checking the condition of the vehicle at the start of the rainy season is important. Experts recommend taking extra time to inspect your vehicle and adjust your driving to the weather conditions.

The thread life of the tires, the condition of the wiper blades and windshield washer levels are very important all the time, more so during the rainy season, for slick tires don’t brake well and worn out wiper blades blur the windshield instead of giving you clear vision.

Adjusting speed is also very important during the rainy season.

A mixture of grime and water means slick roads and require increased stopping distance. A combination of speed and hard breaking lead to losing control of the vehicle.

Although most of the daily accidents are minor, keeping your car in good condition and driving to the conditions will avoid accidents.

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Costa Rica: $26.7 million for Telecommunications Projects

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28 May 2013

The National Telecommunications Fund plans to develop seven projects in the areas of education, social welfare, health and homes, which will be connected for the first time with the internet and telephone serves.

According to the Telecommunications Superintendency (Sutel), there are a total of 477 schools, 78 colleges, 155 Ebais (health centres), 25 Cecis and 70 CEN- CINAI which will be connected with a speed of 4 megabytes.

In addition, the Sutel said the project for Siquirres will be put out to tender on May 30, “on the same day operators will be consulted on the tenders for projects in Pococí La Roxana and the Northern Zone in towns like Guatuso Upala, Los Chiles, San Carlos and Sarapiqui “.

“The tender for the project in Limón closes on June 21 and is expected to be awarded next July 10, observations from operators on the project in La Roxana in Pococí must be received by June 28th and the contest will be released on July 10 for award on August 14, while the Superintendency will receive comments from the projects in the Northern Zone on July 19 to bring them to contest the August 1st and will award them on October 1st”, noted an article in Prensalibre.cr.

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Cartago Legislator Wants Referee’s Resignation

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28 May 2013

The Legislator from Cartago, Victor Hernandez, used his alloted time on the legislative floor to demand the resgination of Randall Poveda, the referee in Saturday nights game between Heredia’s Heredianos and Cartago’s Cartagines, where the Herdianos took the national championship.

Hernandez said that Poveda’s decisions harmed the Cartago team that lead to the Heredia win.

The legislators comments opened a flurry of comments on the social networks, inciting strong passions and emotions.

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Multinationasl Big Market for Small Businesses

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28 May 2013

A special report by the export promotion agency Procomer reveals that large transnational companies in packing and construction are the biggest market for small and medium sized businesses in Costa Rica.

But not all is beer and skittles for these successful contractors — the transnationals require exacting standards and strict quality control.

Local companies provide construction services, cardboard boxes and provide food for their cafeterias. But Procomer would like to see more exports of finished products.

But diversification is happening. On 2008, 56% of exports fell into the above categories, while this year the average is something like 16%. Another smaller percentage falls into the infrastructure category having to do with building construction.

According to Procomer’s Rolando Dobles, small companies that succeed in tying in with transnational companies with branches inside the country find it good business and perhaps even a stepping stone to direct export.

La Nacion profiled the situation of Artemisa Precision. The small firm of 10 workers supplies equipment, repair parts, cold room materials to 10 transnational companies with operations here in medical equipment and electronics in Heredia and Alajuela provinces.

But, says founder/manager Kelly Duarte, when the transnational firms want something, they want it immediately and precisely. Speed and quality are the only way to keep their clients happy.

She was a precision mechanic working as a sales consultant when she came across the opportunity and founded Atemisa seven years ago. But she is not satisfied just providing materials — she says she hopes to actually provide part of the transnationals’ products soon.

Her company has applied for several certifications, including a carbon neutral one. But it is this pressure to gain internationally recognized quality certification that stands in the way of many small businesses gaining contracts with transnationals, Martha Castillo, Vice President of the Industrial Chamber, told La Nacion.

So far, many small businesses here sprang up because of the efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and the foreign investment promotional agency CINDE in bringing in transnationals. Thus, exports, employment and business creation are dependent on these agencies as well.

Source: iNews.co.cr

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Only 5% Have Submitted Email Address To Drivers Licensing Office

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28 May 2013

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Of the almost one million drivers in Costa Rica, only 5% have sent in their email address to the Consejo de Seguridad Vial (Cosevi) for notification of traffic fines.

The deadline for submitting the information is June 26.

The measure is mandatory, as established by the Ley de Tránsito (traffic law).

Silvia Bolaños, Vice Minister of Transport and former director of Cosevi, said the measure aims to create a database of drivers to facilitate the reporting of traffic violations.

Failure to send in the email address, the Cosevi will publish the notification in the La Gacetta – the official government newsletter – to make the notice official.

A driver has 10 working days from notification to either pay the fine or appeal it. In the case where there is no email address on record, the 10 days starts from the day of publication in La Gaceta, that is to say the offending driver is not notified personally of the traffic ticket, but is fully responsible to pay it in full.

To register your email address, drivers have to fill out a form and send it to the Cosevi. The form is available at the website www.csv.go.cr or at any Tránsito (traffic) police station, Riteve (vehicle inspection) or Cosevi central and regional offices

Once the form is filled out it should be sent to direccionelectronicavial@csv.go.cr. For those who subscribe to “digital signature” they will have confirmation, all others not.

To ensure receipt of the information, the form can also be personally delivered at the Cosevi offices in La Uruca (San José) or any Cosevi office across the country, regional drivers licensing centres, at any Tránsito sation or at any Riteve station.

If the vehicle is owned in the name of a corporation, the process is a bit more complicated. The form must be signed by a legal representative of the company, and submitted with an original and photocopy of the “personería jurídica” (legal document provided by the national registry on the corporation) OR present the original registration certificate issued by the Property Registry and a list of all vehicles owned by the corporation. Note, that to obtain a personería jurídica the corporation has to be up to date with its corporate tax.

Bolaños explained that, according to Ley 8968 de Protección de la Persona frente al Tratamiento de sus Datos Personales (the Protection of the Individual from the treatment of your Personal Data), the information will be kept confidential and its use restricted only to send notifications related to traffic tickets and fines.

Source: Traffic Law Costa Rica

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Law Makes Cyberbullying a Crime

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28 May 2013

Alarmed at incidents of bullying and harrassment in the United States that resulted in teenager suicides and ruined lives, Costa Rica’s Legislative Assembly passed a law that went into effect last November making the practice a crime.

Although the articles punishing the act of posting a fake profile in Facebook and other tactics do not mention either harassment or cyberbullying specifically, their description in the articles are unmistakable.

The violation of personal data (including posting videos and photos) makes such alteration of another person’s data without that person’s permission punishable by a prison sentence.

Moreover, to impersonate another person on a social medium or any Internet site is unlawful. Should an adult be the victim, the punishment is a standard three to six years in jail but if the victim is a minor, the sentence can reach eight years.

Early in May, the leading Spanish language paper La Nacion identified no fewer than 50 sites cruelly making fun of Costa Rican high school age youths. Lawyer Rodrigo Araya has already filed a criminal complaint, using the new law, La Nacion reported.

Prosecutors are currently examining the suit and Araya hopes that it may set a precedent for future actions. The law makes no distinction between adult and teen perpetrators.

But Judge Carlos Chinchilla, president of the Sala III criminasl court, told La Nacion that he expects judges will take youth into account where teenage are the offenders.

Although proscutor Omar Fernandez told the paper that many teens may be sentenced to non-jail punishments such as social service. “Does that mean they cannot be sentenced to jail? No,” he clarified, “There is the possibility of internment in particular cases.”

Public defender Juan Carlos Salas noted that where the offender is an adult and the victim a minor, the judge will have less wiggle room and that the minimum is four years in prison.

La Nacion reported that Araya’s case is one in which he was contacted by the parents of a high school student. The day of her 17th birthday, she received a nasty shock — she found a Facebook profile with her name and photo, filled with sexual content.

Araya revealed that the shy girl had been bullied from age 14 but it reached its culmination in 2010 with the Facebook entry. Although that was three years ago, she was so distraught by the entry that she missed a year of school she still has to repeat.

A doctored pornographic photo was posted of her along with false quotes and her real phone number appeared on the site, an implied invitation to any pedophile to contact her.

This ground-breaking case also includes dissemination of pornography. Right now, prosecutors in juvenile court are building the case because the bullies are her classmates–or were at the time.

Commentary: This case also contains another facet — the element of sexual corruption implied in the content of the Facebook entry.

So far, no suicides have been registered here or at least reported as the effects of cyberbullying — but if it continues, it’s bound to happen. But another element is even more worrying — what is poisoning the Costa Rican society?

Such malice was unknown when we entered this country — insults were frowned upon and criticism was muted. Granted, no Internet existed in those early years of our residence here but such cruelty was rare.

Those posting insults and harassment against teens are the worst of cowards. But the sources of Internet harassment can be traced. We are pleasantly surprised that the Legislative Assembly, which is usually a decade behind events, has made cyberbullying a crime.

Source: iNews.co.cr

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QToons: Mexico’s EL Universal Uncovers Organ Trafficking in Costa Rica

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28 May 2013

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Clostridium Claims Fifth Death In Costa Rica

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Carter Maddox

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28 May 2013

The press office of the San Juan de Dios Hospital confirmed Monday afternoon, the fifth death related to clostridium bacteria.

The death is of an adult over 84 years of age, who had a chronic respiratory disease and was oxygen dependent, a situation that favoured the spread of the bacteria.

This condition usually causes diarrhea in vulnerable people, especially older adults with cronic conditions.

The hospital reported that at this time there are five patients in isolation.

Four of the deaths to Clostridium have been in the San Juan de Dios, one at the Heredia hospital.

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Public Employees Get Day Off For Visit of China’s President

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28 May 2013

The central government announced that the public sector will get a day off work on June 3 for the visit of China’s president, Xin Jinpin.

The decision was made because the visit is considered of public interest and also for security measures, says Casa Presidencial.

Just like the visit by US President Barack Obama on May 3, the day off for public employees, which filters down to the private sector in many cases, facilitates the movement of the Asian president and his entourage along the designated routes of San José.

Authorities will be preparing activities and police operations for the visit, which will probably mean closures of certain roads and access to various different areas of downtown San José.

Casa Presidencial says details of the visit will be provided in the coming days.

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No Evidence of Illegal Organ Transplants in Costa Rica, Says OIJ

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28 May 2013

The Organismo de Investigación Judicial (OIJ) says there is no evidence of the illegal practice of illegal organ transplants, says the director of the judicial police, Francisco Segura.

Segura made the affirmation on the live radio show Nuestra Voz, reacting to the report “Turismo de trasplantes en Costa Rica” by the Mexican newspaper “El Universal”, which claims the trafficking of organs exists in Costa Rica.

According to the newspaper, two Israelis travelled to Costa Rica in 2012 and paud US$6.000 each to a Costa Rican and a Nicaraguan for two kidneys, an act that is illegal in Costa Rica.

“Costa Rica is known worldwide for transplant tourism. We all know what that means!”, Roberto Tanus, president of the Transplantation Society of Latin America, is quoted as saying.

The newspaper says the transplants were performed in a private clinic in Costa Rica and that the case was discussed during a meeting of delegates of the Executive and Judicial branches of Costa Rica on human trafficking in organs, tissues, fluids and human cells.

According to the EL Universal, that meeting took place on April 24, in the meeting that sought to develop training for judicial and health authorities to identify organ trafficking and punish the offenders.

Marvin Agüero, organ transplant coordinator at the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS), acknowledges that the country lacks the legal framework to investigate and punish trafficking in human organs.

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Experts Do Not Rule Out Strong Quake in Sixaola

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28 May 2013

4.2 was the strongest of the some 150 aftershocks registered after the original 5.6 quake early Monday morning in Panama, near the Costa Rican border.

It was 3:41 am local time when many all over Costa Rica were awakened by the strong quake southwest of Sixaola, an area that was hit by a strnong earthquake on April 22, 1991.

Costa Rica’s seismology institute, the OVISCORI, says it does not rule out the possibility of a quake in the area that may be stronger than 6 on the Richter scale.

Though the likelihood is “pretty low”, according to the experts, the threat exists.

In the 1991 quake, known as Limón Earthquake or Bocas del Toro earthquake least 48 died in Bocas del Toro, Panama. Roads and bridges between Limón and Sixaola were all destroyed, and the epicentral region was only accessible by helicopter from the Panamaian side.

In Limón, hotels and other landmarks collapsed and 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) of uplift at the waterfront left coral and sand bluffs exposed. In Panama, extensive damaged also occurred in Guabito, Changuinola, Almirante and Isla Colon. The Chiquita Brands office building in Changuinola separated with a 3 metre breach. The international bridge of Sixaola stayed intact because it was well constructed by Americans in the early 1900s.

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Photo of the Day

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28 May 2013

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My Perception of the Up-coming Presidential Election

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Juan Sebastian Campos

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28 May 2013

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Nothing makes me an expert in neither predictions nor results. You, as expatriates very much need to be in the loop and talk amongst yourselves.

It is critical to your future in Costa Rica, your investments and the cost of living. To walk away, absent of opinion and knowledge is simply an not an acceptable alternative from reality.

While I might not meet your expectations or your opinions, “I am here and I care!” For to move forward, you need to do the same.

There is not a question, as indicated by all polls that the Mayor of San Jose, Johnny Araya will become the next president of Costa Rica. And, if you are reading any news at all, we also know he will inherit a host of issues and critical problems.

Don’t get this wrong…I think Mayor Araya would do well as president of Costa Rica.

For almost one year we have met at 10:00 AM once a week for two hours.

I promised the PLN candidate that whatever we discussed would always be confidential, and so be it. What I can publish are his concerns, his position and his thinking as a person. I promise to you readers that what I am writing is correct.

Araya is 56 years old, a youngster in politics and he has been the mayor of San Jose for almost 20 years. He has been an advocate of development, has been to China more than once and considers himself an advocate of Asian opportunity.

Johnny Araya is dismayed with his political party “Partido Liberacion Nacional” (PLN) and is dedicated to bring that party back to its root mission. He is not a neoliberal but rather a liberal. However, he is not willing to rescind the international agreements of Arias and Chinchilla.

Araya is far more practical than his predecessors and his fear is to alienate the people of Costa Rica which have given up on democracy as well as liberalism such as described by the founding fathers.

That liberalism incorporates private enterprise, the right to profit and social well being as in health and education. He believes in technical schools that offer expertise to repair cars, computers and anything else mechanical. He believes in public universities as well as technical institutions.

While traveling is essential, Araya is more national than Arias or Chinchilla and wants to focus on the infrastructure and those critical things that attract or turn-off both tourism and taxpaying investors.

His biggest challenge is democracy itself.

According to some studies, 60% of the eligible voters do not care to vote. They are turned off on the concept that voting is meaningful. And there is a group of young lions who agree! They are in favor of a benevolent dictator who can eliminate the needless legal system and protect the public at large. Who? No names for now, but there is an informal group who challenge democracy and they have been supported by the Chinchilla administration.

As in all cases in Costa Rica, the press will convict and condemn! “We do not need a court!”

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The Rains Finally Arrived!

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27 May 2013

The rains finally arrived in Costa Rica, breaking a killing drought and feeding the dangerously low hydroelectric reservoirs – – but it took a tropical depression to do it.

Friday morning, the rains began and extended into the evening in the Central Valley and the Pacific slope, although in the north and the Caribbean water was still scarce.

The tropical low pressure area first dumped some rain in the Caribbean area before moving on the the rest of the country. Rains had been predicted a week or so earlier but it was a false alarm.

As usual, the beginning of the rainy season caught some municipalities by surprise and caused some flooding in urban areas when clogged drains backed up. This is despite the rainy season being an annual event and not a novelty.

According to meteorological institute sources, the entire weekend would be cloudy with a drop in temperature. The experts also issued a warning about rivers and lightning.

Each year, Costa Rica suffers some fatalities from lightning in rural areas. Avoid open spaces, even if it is not raining, and never take refuge from the rain under a tree.

Rivers are another danger from flash floods. Even if it is not raining in the area in which you are, watch clouds upriver. Water can rise suddenly in rivers, becoming raging torrents in minutes.

Residents who would like to see electric rates go down are asked to have patience. Generating electricity with diesel or bunker has raised the rates due to low water levels in hydroelectric dams but it will take some time for the the basins to fill to comfortable levels.

Source: iNews.co.cr

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Voter Absenteeism May Win 2014 Presidential Elections

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27 May 2013

In nine months, in February 2014, Costa Ricans will take to the voting booths and elect a new president and surveys indicate that the likely winner will be “absenteeism”. But, absenteeism does not run the country.

According to a CID-Gallup poll, non-voter turn out may be as high as 60% in 2014, this after a decrease to 30.9% in 2010.

The poll shows that majority of those in the 60% are between the ages of 18 and 40, academics and workers who are wary of the candidates and sick of hearing about allegations of corruption, cronyism and despotism in politics, preferring to sit out the election by not giving their vote to any candidate or party.

In a survey by the University of Costa Rica (UCR), “Actualidades 2012”, the percentage of abstainers shows it could even be as high as 70%.

“In short, people positively value the next national elections, but do so in anticipation of a growing abstention, questioning of the transparency of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE), a poor contribution of political parties to resolve national problems and a strong leader who can occupy the presidency, ” the survey states.

Analysts explain that absenteeism could be divided into three groups: those who for any impairment or disability do not attend the polls, those who do not vote for exercising “political protest” and those who are not interested in politics, nor what happens in the country.

“Those who will not vote for political protest, are those who are not satisfied with the flaws of Costa Rican democracy, with political parties or who feel slighted by the political class, of broken promises, abuse of public institutions, people who are tired of lining up at the Social Security Fund (CCSS) to get access to medical services, or have build up some inner rage”, says political analyst Francisco Barahona.

Increasing the phenomenon of absenteeism, is the division that exists in the opposition. The lack of a united opposition against the Partido Liberación Nacional (PLN) creates a sense of hopelessness in these people, which could lead them to not vote.

In 2010, the fact that Laura Chinchilla was the first woman presidential candidate reduced absenteeism, but this is unlikely to continue, what may occur in fact is an even higher rate of absenteeism.

This will be even more so if the opposition parties fail to get a “major” candidate and unite to oppose the PLN candidate face-to-face.

If there is not a united opposition there will be even more absenteeism. However, if the opposition can form a coalition, the fight for the presidential chair will be serious, according to analysts.

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The Turrialba Volcano

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27 May 2013

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Costa Ricans took to the streets to say no to smoking

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27 May 2013

Hundreds took to the streets on Sunday to express their stand against smoking. The participants in the walk say that, people have to stop smoking in order to reduce the impact of cardiovascular disease and cancer.

The participants walked about four kilometres from the Instituto Costarricense de Alcoholismo y Famacodependencia (IAFA), in Montes de Oca (San Pedro) to Avenida 4 in downtown San José, stopping in front of the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS).

Participaing were former smokers and children from the CEN-CINAI, all carrying banners and placards.

The CCSS allocates some ¢90 billion colones annually to care of patients with illnesses related to smoking.

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[Video] Pavas Women and Children Create Art From Trash

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Carter Maddox

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27 May 2013

Fifty women from the Asociación de Desarrollo de Finca San Juan and three children from the Escuela de Rincón Grande, both in Pavas, transformed dirty gray walls into true words of art.

With the Asociación Artística para Niños (Asart) and the Municipalidad de San José, they tell their story in the following video.

[youtube id=”rPWsdJwA0Po” width=”620″ height=”360″]

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Tobacco 1, Salud 0

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27 May 2013

The ministry of Health backtracked and declared unfounded the complaint against British American Tobacco, one the largest producers and distributors of tobacco products in Costa Rica.

Last week Health reported its first fine against the tobacco industry, fining the company ten base salaries (¢3.6 million colones) for not respecting the new anti tobacco law that went into effect last year.

The fine is a result of a complaint filed by PASE legislator Rita Chavez with respect to the promotion, “Dunhill takes you to London to live a unique experience”.

However, following an appeal fined by tobacco, the ministry of Health now says there is lack of evidnce in the complaint.

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Early Morning Quake hits Panama/Costa Rica Border Region

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27 May 2013

A moderate earthquake with a magnitude of 5.6 on Monday struck the border region of the contiguous Central American nations of Panama and Costa Rica, the U.S. Geological Survey said, but no damage was immediately reported. The Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Costa Rica (OVSICORI) puts the quake at 6.0.

The quake had a relatively shallow depth of 11 km (7 miles) and felt many areas of the country, including the Central Valley.

Costa Rica’s National Emergency Commission (CNE) said no injuries or damages were reported, a spokesman for the commission said.

In Panama, the country’s leading newspaper, La Prensa, quoted the director of the national civil protection service as saying that no damages or injuries were immediately reported in his country from the pre-dawn quake.

Its epicentre was about 12 km (7 miles) southwest of Guabito, Panama and about 79 km (48 miles) southeast of the Caribbean port of Puerto Limon in Costa Rica.

The quake struck at 3:41 a.m. local time (0941 GMT).

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Costa Rica Back Drop For “After Earth”

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27 May 2013

This year’s intense, sci-fi blockbuster, After Earth, is a family affair, starring Will and Jaden Smith, but also a panoramic beauty thanks to Mother Nature and Costa Rica.

Will Smith and son, Jaden, fittingly star as father and son in this year’s sci-fi blockbuster, After Earth, a Post-Apocalyptic movie directed by the acclaimed M. Night Shyalaman. The film opens May 31st amidst controversy.

Mr. Smith is a veteran of futuristic flicks with I am Legend, Independence Day and the Men in Black series to his credit. This time, instead of the alien adventures of Agents “J” and “K”, After Earth pits two crash-landed travelers against a hostile environment, courtesy of Arenal, Costa Rica’s still-rumbling volcano.

The Arenal Volcano is the backdrop for this photo of the Will and Jaden Smith

The movie’s underlying environmental message rings true with Costa Rica’s own green approach to eco-tourism. As Jaden said, “If we don’t take care of our planet, bad things are going to happen. What happens in the movie could happen for real…” The very successful movie from 2006, Pursuit of Happyness, was the last time senior and junior Smith starred together.

Costa Rica has been the setting for numerous movies in the past, but when these Hollywood A-Listers were in town, the excitement was running high! During shooting, three of Arenal’s luxury hotels, each with their own panoramic view of the volcano, were booked solid for the stars and film crew. There was so much activity that the production company wanted to rent the locals’ 4x4s.

Being just a couple of hours drive from the Juan Santamaria International Airport (SJO), Arenal is a popular tourist destination with its relaxing hot springs and wealth of outdoor activities, such as white water rafting and horseback riding. Don’t just enjoy the view on the big screen; come visit the backdrop for After Earth firsthand!

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Real Attraction of Costa Rica is the Weather

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27 May 2013

One of the real attractions of Costa Rica is the weather. Throughout the country you’ll find that temperatures vary relatively little from January to July. This is true whether you’re in the central valley, in the mountains or along the coast.

For starters let’s compare San Jose to a place we have all heard of (and I lived in for a few months). I’m talking about the 2nd City, the Windy City, Chi Town… Chicago, Illinois!

I suppose that the most obvious thing about the above chart is just how much COLDER it gets in Chicago. Well, YEAH! But also notice how in July the average high temperature in Chicago is actually HIGHER that in San Jose, CR. How can that be? Well, without laying any math on you (as if I could) it’s due to two things.

Firstly, due to the difference in latitude, Chicago actually receives more sun in July than San Jose does. Although the sun is not as intense at Chicago’s latitude, days last a lot longer there than in Costa Rica. In Costa Rica, there is only about a half hour difference between the longest day and the shortest day.

The longest day in San Jose is less than 12 and a half hours, while the longest day in Chicago is 15 plus hours. The shortest day is about 9 and a quarter hours. So by doing a little math (sorry) you can see that the days vary by about 6 hours in Chicago but less than a half hour in Costa Rica. So it’s no surprise that the temperature range in Costa Rica is less variable than locations in North America. Even Miami is more variable than San Jose.

Now let’s take a look at somewhere closer in latitude than Chicago, that is, Miami. Once again, both highs and lows in Miami exceed those in San Jose. The reason Miami gets much hotter in summer is due to its altitude of over 3000 ft. One of the little tidbits I picked up in my physical geography class was that all other things being equal, every thousand feet in altitude you climb you lose about 3 degrees Fahrenheit. Since San Jose is more than 3000 ft. in elevation, San Jose is about 10 degrees cooler than the coastal areas of Costa Rica (yes, there are more than one!).

Everybody who lives in Costa Rica knows that the beach is warmer than the mountains, though some can’t tell you why, not having the benefit of one whole course in physical geography. I suppose I should mention rain before I wrap this up. Costa Rica is more or less divided in the middle by a range or mountains. The part of the country that is east of the divide gets more rain than the western part, which doesn’t get much rain from around the first of December to the first of May. I won’t bother to try to explain why other than to say it has something to do with air currents (or something).

As I stated before and as can be seen by the climate chart, the temperature doesn’t vary much from one season to the next. So if you prefer a warm climate, you can find places that seldom dip much below 75F, and if you prefer cool, you only have to head to higher ground where, if you go high enough, you can find a place where you’ll need a ski jacket year round. These places are very few, but they do exist. I can testify to it.

In my own particular case,I live in the Monte Cielo Gated Community in Puntarenas, in the hills above Pacific near Jaco. I have a beautiful ocean view, a pleasant warm climate but with nice breezes and cooler than the lowlands below. At the moment, I wouldn’t change the temperature even if I could. Pura vida!

Phil Taylor, retired building contractor from Chicago Illinois. Phil lives with his wife of 35 years, two mongrel dogs they adopted locally and a parrot named Socrates. Phil enjoys working on his tree house and writing about his adopted country.

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[Video] Costa Rica Protests Monsanto

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26 May 2013

[youtube id=”1wYUJVGKico” width=”620″ height=”360″]

Click here for the report Costa Rica Joined Global Protests Against Monsanto

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Costa Rica Joined Global Protests Against Monsanto

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26 May 2013

Photo courtesy of CRHoy.com

With banners, a group of Costa Ricans and foreigners participated in the global day “March Against Monsanto”, the seed giant and the genetically modified food it produces, organizers said.

Costa Rica was one of 52 countries and over 436 cities where demonstrators waved signs in protest.

Genetically modified plants are grown from seeds that are engineered to resist insecticides and herbicides, add nutritional benefits or otherwise improve crop yields and increase the global food supply.

[youtube id=”1wYUJVGKico” width=”620″ height=”360″]

Most corn, soybean and cotton crops grown in the United States today have been genetically modified. But critics say genetically modified organisms can lead to serious health conditions and harm the environment. The use of GMOs has been a growing issue of contention in recent years, with health advocates pushing for mandatory labeling of genetically modified products even though the federal government and many scientists say the technology is safe.

The ‘March Against Monsanto’ movement began just a few months ago, when founder and organizer Tami Canal created a Facebook page on Feb. 28 calling for a rally against the company’s practices.

“If I had gotten 3,000 people to join me, I would have considered that a success,” she said Saturday. Instead, she said an “incredible” number of people responded to her message and turned out to rally.

“It was empowering and inspiring to see so many people, from different walks of life, put aside their differences and come together today,” Canal said. The group plans to harness the success of the event to continue its anti-GMO cause.

“We will continue until Monsanto complies with consumer demand. They are poisoning our children, poisoning our planet,” she said. “If we don’t act, who’s going to?”

Protesters in Buenos Aires and other cities in Argentina, where Monsanto’s genetically modified soy and grains now command nearly 100% of the market, and the company’s Roundup-Ready chemicals are sprayed throughout the year on fields where cows once grazed. They carried signs saying “Monsanto-Get out of Latin America”

Monsanto Co., based in St. Louis, said that it respects people’s rights to express their opinion on the topic, but maintains that its seeds improve agriculture by helping farmers produce more from their land while conserving resources such as water and energy.

The Food and Drug Administration does not require genetically modified foods to carry a label, but organic food companies and some consumer groups have intensified their push for labels, arguing that the modified seeds are floating from field to field and contaminating traditional crops. The groups have been bolstered by a growing network of consumers who are wary of processed and modified foods.

The U.S. Senate this week overwhelmingly rejected a bill that would allow states to require labeling of genetically modified foods.

The Biotechnology Industry Organization, a lobbying group that represents Monsanto, DuPont & Co. and other makers of genetically modified seeds, has said that it supports voluntary labeling for people who seek out such products. But it says that mandatory labeling would only mislead or confuse consumers into thinking the products aren’t safe, even though the FDA has said there’s no difference between GMO and organic, non-GMO foods.

However, state legislatures in Vermont and Connecticut moved ahead this month with votes to make food companies declare genetically modified ingredients on their packages. And supermarket retailer Whole Foods Markets Inc. has said that all products in its North American stores that contain genetically modified ingredients will be labeled as such by 2018.

Whole Foods says there is growing demand for products that don’t use GMOs, with sales of products with a “Non-GMO” verification label spiking between 15% and 30%.

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Autopista General Cañas Eastbound Closed Nightly

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26 May 2013

Once again the autopista General Cañas is a headache for drivers. Starting last night and until May 31 the eastbound lanes (Alajuela to San José) between La Castella and Juan Pablo II bridges will be closed to all traffic between 10pm and 5am.

The closure caught many surprise last night

The Consejo Nacional de Viabilidad (CONAVI) and the Policía de Tránsito (traffic police) will barracade all access to the autopista.

The closure is to allow crews to trim and cut the trees along the side of the road.

If using the autopista at night – from the airport or Cariari, for instance – to San José keep in mind the closure.

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Resident Plugging Up Manhole Causes Headache For Road Authority

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26 May 2013