The expected publication of the price drop in La Gaceta did not occur on Tuesday as had been expected, but will be on Friday, says the government.
Thus it will be on Saturday when the Autoridad Reguladora de Servicios Publicos (ARESEP) approved drop of ¢6 colones per litre takes effect a the gas pumps.
But, there is wrinkle. The reduction has generated controversy among gasoline retailers, who had asked for an increase to bolster their profit margins.
The ARESEP did not agree and approved a reduction that will see the price of a litre of super from from ¢735 to ¢729, regular ¢693 to ¢688 and diesel fuel from ¢656 to ¢650 Natural gas, kerosene and aviation fuels will also drop.
Meanwhile, gasoline station owners announced that if the price drop goes into effect they will close for business and layoff employees, as a means to protest the ARESEP.
Although the threat of closure may be to force the cancellation of the reduction, a closure of gasoline stations could paralyze the country as it heads out for the busiest travel period of the year, Semana Santa.
If ever any person ever wished to be in the tourism business, never believe the numbers. That might well be the only truthful statement made.
There is only one thing more devious than tourism numbers and that’s its kissing cousin; real estate.
Tourism looks good on paper, as does real estate. This is especially true if you factor in laundering dirty money for which Costa Rica has some fame for doing. It is easy if the laundering client can absorb a little hit on the profit, perhaps 10% maybe 15%.
The dirty money either buys the small hotel, yacht, bungee jump, etc. Or rents out the rooms but never occupies them. Ergo, the hotel is full up and that looks good to the tourism agencies but there are literally no hotel guests.
The launderer rents the rooms at $200 each and gets 90% or so back. In one location, it is reported that the phantom guests even purchase meals and drinks. After all, drinks have this high end profit margin so the dirty money, even with a 10% – 15% haircut, can show a small profit.
On the legitimate side of tourism, the industry is in great shape if you want to believe the Costa Rican Chamber of Hotels (CCH). On the other hand Camera Costarricense de Hoteles, similar but not the same as the CCH expects only a less than 70% occupancy rate nationwide during this high season.
To confuse things further, right after Semana Santa and Spring Break, the ICT translated to Costa Rican Tourism Board will release its findings and they are always positive. After all, this is a government agency and needs to hustle for funding. (The true goal of any bureaucracy.)
To the land of Pura Vida come Mr. and Mrs. Jones who are intent on getting in on the action.
Second to owning a restaurant, being an hotelier is second on the list, especially a romantic B&B like those we see in Vermont with the change of season and the startling multi colored trees. But, in Costa Rica the only change of season is dry to wet and that’s about it. That translates to brown to green which is indeed spectacular.
The typical expat who goes into the tourist biz has “lust”, not “love” and knows little if anything about the country and its business climate.
In tourism, except for ancillary offerings, this is a nation limited to the big boys. The all inclusive resorts seem to do well (Who really knows?) and tourists seem to be safe as they emjoy select, guided tours, get to see rent-a-monkey from the hotel and eat appealing food fit for a king.
The little guy, or boutique offers truly personalized services and appreciates every customer. It is either that or perish.
Some hotels and B&Bs are so small and the boutiques that they cannot afford even security guards which are essential in Costa Rica. They might be a spa, but that does not mean they are making a profit.
“Yes,” all the ingredients are here but they never seem to mix well except for the major resorts players.
Perhaps the number one malfunction is the dollar to colon exchange rate.
Tourism earns its money in U.S. dollars but pays its bills in highly inflated Costa Rica colons. A loss no matter how you look at it. Ergo, the rates for hotels, meals, etc. need to also appreciate in order for the providers to find a profit, or in the case of the last two years: breakeven.
The choice of the new found tourism entrepreneur is fight the tide or sell out to laundering drug money. Not “good” no matter how you look at it.
The Dirección de Servicios del Registro Nacional announced that the planned license plate changeover will start by the middle of the year. The plan is to replace some 1.7 million license plates within the next three years.
The new license plates have been popping up on vehicles for months, mainly for new vehicle registrations.
At the moment a vehicle owner can request the new and more secure license plates. The new plates have a vertical security bar on the metal plate and a sticker that is to be placed inside the front windshield, making difficult to counterfeit.
While license plates for new vehicles have a three letter (no vowel) and three number combination, the replacement plates will be with the original registration.
At the moment, any vehicle owner can request of one the new plates. Starting in a few months, however, the changeover will be compulsory for all older style license plates.
The cost of the new plates are ¢15.000 colones for the pair.
The U.S. State Department strongly criticized the Costa Rican courts’ internal corruption controls in its latest International Narcotics Control and Strategy Report.
According to the report, the courts simply lack the proper machinery to adequately deal with cases of corruption of national public officials. The report added that even the courts lack resources to police themselves.
The hard-hitting report said, “Despite measures adopted to investigate and combat corruption, Costa Rican governmental institutions — particularly the judicial branch — lack adequate internal controls and processes to prevent, detect, and investigate corruption of public functionaries.”
The report cites deficienses in the Judicial Inspection Tribunal, “the agency charged with investigating and sanctioning bad conduct in the Judicial branch.” It cited the example of a judge who placed two Mexican drug traffickers under house arrest instead of preventive detention.
The judge, noted the report, only received a suspension for a month for this serious error. Moreover, states the report, cases where court decisions “influenced by intimidation or (bribery)” have been investigated with the court finding no corruption but errors of procedure.”
Jose Manuel Arroyo, chief judge of Sala III, denied this was true. He pointed out cases where errors of judgment or negligence have been sanctioned. He admitted that there was room for improvement since the courts confront “new and sophisticated forms of criminality…”
Judge Arroyo would like to see all judges, not just the top magistrates, make public a report on their individual income and goods.
But Adriana Orocu, president of the Costa Rican Association of the Judiciary is not content that the courts investigate themselves. She notes that in other courntries an independent body investigates judicial corruption charges.
The report did praise national efforts in tracking money laundering but even there would like to see investigations make more use of witnesses, confidencial informants, and such techniques as electronic data gathering.
Another impediment to anti-narcotics prosecution, says the report, is a pondrous bureaucracy that plays into the hands of the lawless. It recommends passage of specialized laws against organized crime.
The report does recognise that this countrty has limited resources to put into play against the well-financed international drug cartels. But, say its writers, that means it should make better use of what it has.
Comment: There is little doubt that the courts show a definite reluctance to sanction their own. The press such as La Nacion and the old Tico Times print edition has done its best to report the most notorious cases.
But this reporter speaks from experience that the court restricts information that it shares with the press, available only when a case goes to trial. Many accusations do not get that far, being swept under the rug.
The courts jealously protect their own and could use more transparency. Moreover, a model 1902 press law that stifles investigative reporting does not help matters. A “none of your business” attitude prevails that is positively anti-democratic.
With something between anger and despair this reporter has reported on cases where “an error” has freed drug thugs before their trials, alloowing them to flee the country and avoid justice. And the whole newsroom knew that the judge would happily count his bribe during his one or two month suspension.
Most judges are honest and honorable. The court owes it to them — and the country — to clean out the bad apples.
It was a brief meeting, a few seconds, on Tuesday at the Vatican where the exchange between the new Pontiff and Costa Rica’s presidenta took place, among the usual exchange of greetings and protocol.
Doña Laura Chinchilla Miranda was in Rome to attend the inauguration of Pope Francis I. After the brief meeting the Presidenta said the new Pope conveyed great serenity.
After the meeting doña Laura tweeted, “Mi saludo al Papa: Afectuosos saludos de un pueblo q ha crecido en el espíritu franciscano. Un pueblo humilde, protector de la naturaleza”. (My greetings to the Pope: “Warm greetings from a humble village that has grown in the Franciscan spirit. A humble people, protector of nature).
The exchange took place minutes before 5:00am Costa Rica time and broadcast on national television. Teletica ran the broadcast, though without audio.
More than 100.000 people packed St. Peters Square for the first mass of the new Pope.
Eating like a local is one of the best ways to keep your cost of living low in Costa Rica. And for dining out that means frequenting your local soda, the equivalent of a diner or neighborhood restaurant in the United States and Canada.
They serve simple, nutritious food, including the casado, the unofficial national dish, which runs from ¢2.000 to ¢3.000 colones (US$4 to US$6). The base is rice, black beans, a side of plantains, cabbage or green salad. Then you have a choice of fish, beef, chicken, or pork.
A casado (Spanish, “married man”) is a Costa Rican meal using rice, black beans, plantains, salad, a tortilla, and an optional entrée that may include chicken, beef, pork, and so on.
The term may have originated when restaurant customers asked to be treated as casados, since married men ate such meals at home. Another theory is that the rice and beans and/or the grouping of dishes are married, since they are always together.
At first glance, seems boring… bland. Rice and beans is rice and beans, right? But each soda does it a little different, adding their own special touch.
My hands-down favorite restaurant serving comida tipica (traditional food) is Rancho Nelson in the Central Valley town of Grecia. They add fresh avocado slices and a savory casserole of either chayote or potato, depending on what they cooked up that day. They serve very generous portions. I usually have enough to take home. Just $5.
As an added bonus, it’s a family-run place, like many sodas. Kids do homework at one of the tables while mom works the kitchen. An uncle mans the register. And the family patriarch—since passed away—watches over everything from family photos on the wall.
Come in more than once and you get a friendly handshake and greeting every time you walk through the door.
We recently tried a new soda in Santa Cruz, a town in the northwest corner of the country, near the Pacific coast. We were in town running errands when we spied a rustic looking building just off the main road. Farm implements hanging from the walls… mismatched plastic chairs… crowded with locals, all regulars who shouted their order as they walked in… All good signs.
What made the difference here was the sauce: it was a little sweet and a little spicy—scientifically formulated to liven up rice and beans!
I couldn’t resist. I asked the waiter if I could take home a bottle. He wouldn’t betray the secret but let on it was a mix of white wine, cilantro, hot peppers, and spices. As we paid the bill he dropped off an old wine bottle full of sauce—$5—just made in the kitchen. It’s had an honored place at my dinner table since then.
And one last thing…
Skip the soft drinks. Try a refresco natural, tropical fruit mixed with ice, water, or milk. You can usually get pineapple, blackberry, or strawberry. But why not be adventurous and try guanabana, tamarindo, or cas—tropical fruits you really don’t see much in North America but are sweet, refreshing, and delicious.
Not every soda is special. But do some searching. Once you find your place you’ll go back again and again.
The Seattle coffee store chain Starbucks announced it plans to buy its first coffee farm, a nearly 600-acre estate on the slopes of the Poás Volcano in Costa Rica. It would be the first farm the chain purchases.
Starbucks on Monday said it plans to convert the farm to an agronomy research and development centre working on climate change mitigation, long-term crop stability and other programs. It did not disclose terms of the deal, which is expected to close in May.
The centre “will support the resiliency of coffee farmers and their families as well as the one million people that represent our collective coffee supply chain,” CEO Howard Schultz said in a news release.
Starbucks’ farm also could be used to experiment with new types of coffee, he said.
Over the past 40 years, Starbucks has invested more than US$70 million on programs that support farmers’ livelihoods and help ensure the long-term availability of high-quality coffee.
The chain has farmer support centres in China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Rwanda and Tanzania. Their agronomists and other experts provide farmers with expertise and training in soil management, field-crop production and milling processes to improve the quality and size of their harvests.
Families and friends separated by distance, can now communicate more easily and at more competitive prices, thanks to the introduction of the “Número Internacional Tigo” (International Number by Tigo).
The service consists of the purchase of a phone number abroad that, when dialed from the chosen country, on a landline will ring Tigo in Costa Rica.
For example, if someone in Costa Rica has a family living in Rome, Italy (Spain, the United States, etc) with Tigo they can active the international number service and purchase a Rome (Madrid, New York*) local number and the family can call at any time, with local rates of that city and the call received in Costa Rica.
The service, for now is available, only for home (landline) phones.
For now the countries included in the Tigo plan are:
Google released a way to visit the tallest of the Seven Summits. The world’s biggest mountains are starting to come into view on Google Maps, including Mount Everest, Kilimanjaro, Aconcagua, and Mount Elbrus.
“While there’s nothing quite like standing on the mountain, with Google Maps you can instantly transport yourself to the top of these peaks and enjoy the sights without all of the avalanches, rock slides, crevasses, and dangers from altitude and weather that mountaineers face,” the company said in a blog post.
Google also posted a gallery of some favorite images from the company’s mountaineering photo shoots, and a separate blog post from one of the members of the team who went on the journey.
In a few days Costa Rica goes into “holiday” mode as Semana Santa rounds the corner. And while most businesses close only a few days during the holiday week, the Central Government (Ministries) will be off the entire week.
Most autonomous and semi-autonomous (like ICE, INS, etc) will be on vacation at the same time as the Central Government, however, it will be up each agency to set holidays for their employees.
The Central Government announced that civil servants will be off Monday (25), Tuesday (26) and Wednesday (27). Thursday (28) and Friday (29) are legal holidays.
So, in effect public employees will be off at the end of the work day Friday (22) and return to work Monday morning (April 1).
As to Thursday (28) and Friday (29) of Semana Santa, the Ministro de Trabajo reminds all employers that employees required to work on those days are entitle to double pay.
Starting Wednesday eastbound traffic along the Sabana Sur, the road parallel to the Ruta 27, will no longer be able to turn left onto Avenida 10 and Paseo Colon.
The change in signalization will begin on Wednesday by the Ingeniería de Tránsito. The change was needed as many drivers would literally stop on the train tracks waiting for the light ahead to change.
With the change, eastbound traffic will move straight ahead past the Universal and McDonalds and be able to turn left several blocks away, in front of the CNP, then to the right for Avenida 12 or one block north to Avenida 10.
Sabana Sur traffic headed for Paseo Colon and the autopista General Cañas – past the Nissan – will either have to go past McDonalds, make a right, a block down, another right, another block and another right, to head north again, OR a right at the Universal, a block down, a “legal” U-turn and head back north.
Tránsito says it will take three days to complete the changes at the intersection, with work being carried out between 9:00am and 5:00pm Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
One in four inmates who made an appeal since 2009 was to get a bed, this according to the Sala Constitucional (Constitutional Court). In the last four years, the Court says it resolved 78 appeals with respect to overcrowding in the country’s prisons, of which 19 were requesting a bed because the inmate was sleeping on the floor.
The prison with biggest overcrowding problem is La Reforma in Alajuela..
Magistrate Fernando Castillo, said that the Court receives constant appeals from inmates for the poor living conditions in the prisons.
According to the Ministerio de Justicia (Ministry of Justice), the prison system is experiencing a 34% overpopulation. Currently there are 14.000 inmates in a system that is equipped to handle some 11.000 prisoners.
Justice Minister, Fernando Ferraro, said that the situation, the distribution of the “colchonetas” (mats) has improved, this due to a new contract with the supplier.
To mitigate the overpopulation, Ferraro said the bidding process for the construction of 2.700 news spaces is underway. Without providing specific details, the minister said the spaces will be added in various prisons and funded with a loan of US$132 million by the Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID).
Semana Santa is big for tourism in Costa Rica, both for national and international tourists, as hotel operators and businesses ready to welcome the thousands of tourists that will be visiting them. Two of main tourist destinations are Jacó and Manuel Antonio, in Costa Rica’s Central Pacific coast.
One of the big attraction is the Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio (Manuel Antonio National Park), just south of the city of Quepos. Established in 1972 with an area enumerating 4,014 acres (16.24 km2) (the smallest of any Costa Rican national park), it is the destination of as many as 150,000 visitors annually and well known for its beautiful beaches and hiking trails. In 2011, Manuel Antonio was listed by Forbes among the world’s 12 most beautiful national parks.
This park has one of the most impressive landscapes of the world and has several coves with many white sand beaches and lush foliage amidst great mountains and forests that reach the beaches. Additionally, it is located in the tropical forest.
It has a large land and marine biodiversity with beautiful coral reefs.
Entrance to the park is ¢1.600 for nationals (Costa Ricans and residents) and ¢5.000 for foreigners.
Four beaches are contained within the limits of the park: Manuel Antonio, Espadilla Sur, Teloro, and Playita. With their large light sand berms, it is easy to see why they attract beach goers of all ages.
Closest to the Central Valley and perhaps the “most” visited beach is Playa Jacó, south of Puntarenas and north of Manuel Antonio.
Jacó is a sanctuary for surfers and fun-lovers – but most of all, fun-loving surfers! Jaco is also one of Costa Rica’s Top Ten Beaches.
Jacó was once an archetypal sleepy beach town. But it wasn’t long before Jaco Beach’s excellent waves began to draw foreign surfers in exponential numbers, especially because of the Costa Rica beach’s proximity to the San Jose (less than two hours).
Along with the surfers came the need for nightlife. Now, Jacó is Costa Rica’s wildest party beach, and a top destination for wave-worshippers and land-lubbers alike.
For visitors who want to be close to the action in Jacó but prefer a mellower stay, there is Playa Hermosa (not to be confused with Hermosa in Guanacaste) and Playa Herradura.
Hermosa is imediately south of Jacó and where most hardcore surfers head to take advantage of its consistently large waves. Playa Hermosa also holds an international surf convention each year.
Herradura is immediately north, offers an escape to Jaco’s boisterousness and home to the Los Sueños development that includes the five start Marriott and a marina.
Panama is the Central American country with the most number of Roman Catholics, this according to the latest results of the report on global Catholicism by the Pew Research Centre, a nonpartisan source of data and analysis.
The study, produced in 2010, focuses on the size, distribution and evolution of the Catholic faith around the world.
The Pew Research indicates that more than seven out every 10 persons (74%) in Panama consider themselves “strong” members of the Roman Catholic Church, for a total of 2.6 million Catholic faithfuls.
Following in second place is Costa Rica (68%) with an estimated 3.1 million Catholic population; Nicaragua (59%) in third place with 3.3 million Catholics; Guatemala (58%) is in fourth place with 8.3 million Catholic faithfuls; Belize (52%) with 160.000 Catholics; El Salvador (51%) with 3.1 million Catholics; and Honduras (50%) with 3.8 million.
The report on the size and distribution of the world’s Christian population is a comprehensive demographic study of more than 200 countries finds that there are 2.18 billion Christians of all ages around the world, representing nearly a third of the estimated 2010 global population of 6.9 billion. Christians are also geographically widespread – so far-flung, in fact, that no single continent or region can indisputably claim to be the center of global Christianity.
Saturday evening, eight o’clock, I saw the second choreography of Henriette Borbón! As in her last modern dance, from the lighting, the music and the truly original interpretation of “Krisis”, the work of Borbón will and perhaps already has out grown this country.
To expect something like the “Nut Cracker Suite”, stay home. To see and more important feel messages of life, look for a Borbón production.
Those attending were 99% nationals and they each seem to have had a flare for the major league arts. This was or is a Costa Rica that I have forgotten among Hummer cars and tacky jive pick-up joints, not to mention vacant, and over priced condos.
While such a contrast to the La Trocha scandal, the work of modern dance and in particular Borbón demands each audience member to soul search for meaning, a meaning and message as abstract as any painter, living or dead.
We live her pain, her frustrations her social issues all within one hour and fifteen minutes for a minimal price of admission. (Less than a medium pizza)
The dancers, ballerinas carry messages with the grace of any developed country, with the grace and imagination of New York or Los Angeles.
Truly, a side of Costa Rica that expats too often miss in favor of beaches, sloths and beer.
The audience was young, between 20 and perhaps a max of 40 years old, except for my wife and me. But both times it was an audience of young people who find their future in the arts. A traditional Costa Rica journey going way back: way, way back before corruption, conflict and trying desperately to become a “developed” country that carried the news headlines.
When I worked Central America, one thing I will always remember are the words of a client in Panama, “Costa Rica has culture we have very, very little so we import it.”
The production is made up of a superb team of talent: Costa Rica’s own national lead by diva of dance, Natlia Herra and the choreographer, Henriette Borbón. They make a unique combination that any dance group, local or international would love to host.
Whatever Henriette Borbón and her dance troop offer to the public, go see it and if you do not like it, email me and I will refund your ticket price.
Dr. Rodolfo Hernández is the third declared candidate for the 2014 presidential elections, being chosen Saturday as leader of the Partido Unidad Social Cristiana (PUSC), at a ceremony at the INBio parque in Santo Domingo de Heredia.
Dr. Hernández will lead the fractured party that once was a political force in the country and with the support of former president Rafael Ángel Calderón. The former president was not present, represented by his wife and legislator, Gloria Bejerano.
Dr. Hernandez joins San José mayor, Johnny Araya, for the Partido Liberacion Nacional (PLN) and José María Villalta Flores-Estrada of the Frente Amplio (FA) party in the contest for the presidential chair on Sunday February 2, 2014. See report: Only Two Candidates Confirmed For 2014 Presidential Elections
In his speech, the good doctor promised to help the poor, promote education and environmental protection. One woman in the audience was overheard muttering a reference that the doctor has features similar to the newly elected Pontiff.
“Today we take the first step in a struggle to restore the dignity of Costa Ricans,” said Dr. Hernandez, who for the last 12 years has been medical director at the Hospital Nacional de Niños (Children’s Hospital) in San José.
The approval of the concession for the construction and maintenance of the toll road between San José and San Ramón has generated controversy and criticism, many in the country questioning the contract going to the Brazilian firm OAS, while residents of San Ramón and other communities west of the airport of the cost of daily travel, among other concerns.
One reader of the Q writes, “does this (road construction) have to be done by a foreign company, how about putting the monies back into Costa Rica? Does this sound stupid or does taking care of ones own country make sense?“.
Before the end of the year construction, well really, modifications to the portion of the Ruta 1 – Interamericana Norte – that starts northeast end of the Sabana park and ends 58 kilometres northwest at San Ramón will (may) begin. The construction will take 30 months to complete and will be operated and maintained for the next 30 years under a concession contract.
The concerns of residents west of the airport and opponents of the road say the project was forced down the people’s throat, the Contraloría General de la República (CGR) – Comptroller’s office – did not listen or respond to their concerns.
The central government, the Ministerio de Obras Públicas (MOPT), the Consejo Nacional de Concesiones (CNC) and the CGR itself have not been able to answer questions about the project. Meanwhile, the MOPT minister, Pedro Castro, said that “those who do not want to use the route can always use alternates…”.
The major upset of residents is that no one is listening to them, not taking their concerns into account and not getting responses to the queries of groups like the Foro de Occidente and the Municipalidad de San Ramón.
This is the first impression visitors to Costa Rica traveling West get minutes after arriving at the airport in San José.
Paul Brenes, leader of the Occidente group, told CRHOY, “the Constitution establishes the obligation of local governments to ensure the welfare of its citizens and the obligation of the State to respect municipal autonomy to know about projects that could affect or benefit its residents.”
In this case, the group argues, neither the MOPT, the CNC or the CGR took time to visit and remove doubts before endorsing the project.
“We asked the Comptroller not to approve and give us time to discuss the project. We know they have the full power to approve, but what we expected is that before (giving approval) there is a social, environmental and economic impact studies done”, said Brenes.
Brenes added that the studies used in the process were done eight years ago.
The social and economic impact of the project is clearly seen by all but by the powers that be, it seems.
Once the new road is complete and the tolls kick in – which are now being discussed at ¢1.900 each way for a light passenger vehicle – it will mean that the only “viable” way to and from the Pacific coast is by way of a toll road: either by the Ruta 1 or the Ruta 27 (San José – Caldera).
Taking the “alternates” takes forever and at certain times of the year – like the rainy season – passage is next to impossible. For example, the alternate to the south takes one trough Escazú, Santa Ana, Puriscal and Orotina before connecting back to the Ruta 27, which still means a toll at Pozón before reaching Caldera. To the north, one has to weave through Heredia, Alajuela, Grecia, Sarchi, Naranjo to reach San Ramón to connect back to the Ruta 1. In either example you can add up to two hours or more of additional travel, depending on traffic and weather conditions.
Take the local farmer who makes his daily trip from the fields to the Cenada (fruit and vegetable wholesaler group) in Heredia or the downtown San José street markets. Every Saturday and Sunday there local fruit and vegetable markets in every community. Farmers tavelling to markets east have to face the tolls. Using the passenger vehicle toll, each farmer now has to spend ¢80.000 a month extra to get his/her product to San José markets. Taking the alternate would add hours to his/her daily run.
Bus companies and thus passengers to and from points west of San José will also be affected. Taking the daily bus to and from Grecia, Palmares and Atenas – three major San José sleeper communities – will cost more. Taking the family to Guanacaste for a vacation will cost more.
Given the nature of Costa Rica’s political system, there is doubt that this project will get underway. Not for some time at least. Even Presidenta Laura Chinchilla joked about appeals being filed within 24 hours of the project’s announcement.
The question is not whether the country needs this project complete, but whether it should be a toll and under the control of a foreign operator, in this case, the Brazilian company OAS which is being alleged to have committed acts of corruption and payoffs in other South American countries. See report:San José – San Ramón Road Concessionaire Questioned For Corruption in Other Countries
Another way of looking at it is this: it took almost 30 years of planning and construction for the San José – Caldera, the San José – San Ramón is only in its eighth year. Pura Vida, Mae!
Nobody knows how many there are in total or where they came from, but they have been seen regularly in and around the Legislative Assembly building. Some days are just a couple, sometimes four cats, others times five and seven. One cat even gave birth below the Christmas portal.
While they are seen in the day, it is at night when they become most active, as the sun goes down, the cats roam the halls and the roof of the empty Legislative building.
Some say the cats have been around for several years.
The photo says it all, as the ministro de transportes, Pedro Castro, visited the community of San Ramòn Friday night to face residents about their concerns of the San José – San Ramón construction, mainly the cost of the tolls.
Among the concerns raised by the residents attending the meeting were the expansion to four lanes – two in each direction – of the section of road between Manlos and San Ramón and the cost of the tolls, about ¢4.000 coloes for a round trip for a passenger vehicle.
Despite the unease of residents, minister Castro confirmed that there will be no changes on the construction plans.
The minister did say that there is the possibility of a toll reduction which will be up to the Autoridad Reguladora de los Servicios Públicos (Aresep) to set the rates.
The opinion of the majority of the residents of San Ramón and the areas of Grecia, Sarchi, Naranjo, Palmares and Atenas is that the project – the tolls – would negatively impact many families.
The mentioned areas are a sleeper community for many who travel to and from San José daily, which based on a 20 day a month work week, would add ¢80.000 colones monthly to their transportation costs.
About 5.000 runners are expected to participate in the Central American Games marathon this Sunday, March 17, forcing the downtown core of San José to be closed to vehicular traffic from 5:00am to noon Sunday, confirmed the coordinator of the Committee on Safety, Rafael fair Arias.
The mayoral adviser recommended drivers to avoid the area bound by the La Sabana park, Avenida 10, Plaza Gonzalez Viquez, Avenica Central and Paseo Colon. (See map).
The Juego Centromamericanos (Cental American games) come to a close Sunday with a big closing ceremony at the Estadio Nacional (National Stadium) starting at 7:00pm.
Tickets for the event are still available online at Specialticket.net or call centre at 2206 7770 and Servimás outlets in Mas x Menos and Walmart stores across the country, La Barberia in Santa Ana and the Ramada Plaza Herraduea hotel. Prices start at ¢12.500 to ¢20.500 plus service charges.
Costa Rica is ill equipped to prevent its growing importance as a major drug smuggling corridor, according to the US, even as Mexican trafficking groups expand their operations throughout Central America.
“Our geography has us imprisoned,” President Laura Chinchilla told the Wall Street Journal, referring to Costa Rica’s position between South American’s cocaine-producing nations and the principal drugs market of the United States. The government cannot match the “power and stealth” of the Mexican cartels, said the paper, of which the Sinaloa Cartel is believed to be the greatest threat.
According to the US State Department’s 2013 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, Costa Rica has “inadequate resources” to tackle the rising tide of transnational crime, an issue highlighted by the WSJ’s trip to Peñas Blancas, a border crossing with Nicaragua.
Facilities are described as outdated, understaffed, and poorly equipped, with one “rickety wooden rain shelter,” staffed by just one person, responsible for dealing with the thousands of people crossing by foot each day. “It’s very rustic, it’s old,” said a police anti-narcotics official. “It makes [the work] more difficult. We don’t have enough teams.”
Officials said that it is difficult to combat the changing methods used by drug traffickers, which include carrying smaller, less conspicuous amounts of cocaine and finding alternative, less-policed routes.
A lack of effective border patrolling was an issue also noted by the US report, alongside a vulnerable coastline.
As drug routes have shifted from the Caribbean into Central America, Costa Rica has gained increasing importance as a drug transshipment point, as investigated by InSight Crime. Cocaine is now reportedly trafficked to 39 destinations from Costa Rica, with seizures nearly doubling between 2011 and 2012 — almost all connected to Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel. In 2012, the Costa Rican Drug Institute (ICD) also stated that the Gulf Cartel and the Zetas have a presence in the country, along with the Colombian business partners of these organizations.
In addition, local drug demand is being spurred by the tourism industry, which attracts high numbers of American and European consumers, as noted in a 2011 article by the Council on Hemispheric Affairs.
In the face of this, Presidenta Laura Chinchilla has emphasized security as a government priority, highlighting as achievements a decrease in homicide and crime rates since 2010, when her administration took office.
The presidenat has met also certain security goals, including increasing the police force by 880 officers, constructing a new Coast Guard post on the Caribbean, and putting over US$1 million towards improvements at the Peñas Blancas crossing.
A February Associated Press article highlighted increased security collaboration with the US, which reportedly spent over US$18.4 million in security assistance to Costa Rica in 2012.
Samsung Galaxy S4 keeps calm, carries on with big screen
If you’re looking for Samsung’s new Galaxy S4 to define a novel new era of smartphone greatness, it’s time to temper your expectations. The brand-new flagship smartphone, which runs the latest Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean, improves hardware significantly and it piles on the features.
Compared with the extremely successful Galaxy S3 that came before, it’s a firm stride forward rather than a giant a leap, but it raises the bar again for Samsung’s competitors. And by super-sizing the screen and packing in so much specialized software, the GS4 sets itself even farther apart from the iPhone.
[colored_box color=” grey”]Apple iPhone Still A ‘Work of Art,’ But Samsung’s Galaxy S4 Ups the Smartphone Ante
Samsung’s new Galaxy S4 may not be a game changer (with some reviewers calling it “meh” and “completely amazing and utterly boring.”) But the smartphone may have just enough new features to lure over iPhone users and steps up the pressure on Apple CEO Tim Cook and his team to deliver a groundbreaking new phone this year.[/colored_box]The Galaxy S4 handset steadily draws from the same design language as the S3, but takes almost every spec to an extreme — the screen is larger (5 inches), the resolution greater (1080p), the battery capacity higher (2,600mAh), the processor faster (1.9GHz quad-core or 1.6GHz octa-core), and the rear-facing camera stuffed with more megapixels (13, to be exact). But, once you’ve gone through the features checklist (which also includes lots of internal and external storage space and RAM), it’s the software extras that Samsung continues to lean on to keep its phones one step ahead of the competition.
The problem is, based on my brief time with the Galaxy S4, very few of the extensive list of enhancements stood out as a killer, must-have, cannot-possibly-live-without feature. The TV control app that works with the IR blaster is perhaps one exception (the HTC One has this, too), as are a handy translation tool and eye-tracking and gesture capabilities that allow you to pause a video when you stop paying attention and let you hover your finger over an item to preview what it is. Many other software additions are semi-interesting ideas that some power users may enjoy once they’ve figured them out, but which will hardly convince a prospective buyer to pick the GS4 over, for instance, the HTC One, Nokia Lumia 920, or iPhone 5.
After using the device at a briefing (along with several other journalists), I do think that Samsung has accomplished what it’s set out to do in pushing its Galaxy brand forward. Fans will find a familiar, appealing smartphone that’s packed with hardware and software features — albeit more than one person would ever use.
With less than a year to go before the presidential elections, on the first Sunday of February 2014, only two candidates have been declared by their political parties.
The first one out of the gate was Johnny Araya Monge, the current mayor of San José, who will be waving the “verdiblanco” (green and white) fag of the Partido Liberación Nacional (PLN).
The only other declared candidate is José María Villalta Flores-Estrada, who will be waving the “bandera amarilla” (yellow flag) of the Frente Amplio (FA) party.
The PLN and FA are the only two political parties that have completed their internal procedures and named their presidential running horse for the elections on February 2, 2014.
The other major parties, the PUSC, PAC and ML, all have to yet define who their running candidate will be.
Johnny Araya announced his candidacy bid last year, locking it up following the nomination withdrawal of Rodrigo Arias and Fernanco Berrocal.
If the elections were to be held today, it would not be a matter of which is the best candidate, but the fact that voters would only have two candidates to choose from – Green or Yellow.
Costa Ricans are used to having choices, a choice of candidate from several major political parties and a number of smaller ones.
Following the tugging and pulling between the municipalidad de Belén, the Centro de Eventos Pedregal and the Asociación de Importadores de Vehículos y Maquinaria (AIVEMA), Expomóvil (re)opened its doors to the public on Friday.
The 23 car dealers and the major banks opened with the same “car fair deals” offered on February 21 before the event was shut down by the municipality for lack of permits.
Last month, the Tribunal Ambiental Administrativo forced the closure of the Expomóvil the day after its opening, for alleged environmental damage by construction being carried out by the Centro de Eventos Pedregal.
The car fair this time around will only be for five day, running until March 20.
The reaction of customers was lukewarm, as those who had had intention to buy had the opportunity to do so at the respective car dealers, who carried on with the Expomóvil special pricing, though the main event was postponed.
According to event organizers this will be the last time Expomóvil will be held in Belén.
Costa Rica and Panama have agreed to a cross-border card and so Costa Ricans and Panamanians no longer need a passport to enter the neighbouring country.
The first ID card was issued by the Dirección de Migración y Extranjería (Costa Rican immigration service) to the Governor of Chiriqui in Panama
According to Presidenta Laura Chinchilla, the idea is that by the end of 2014, some 4.000 Panamanians and Costa Ricans will have the ID card to cross-border.
There is no charge of the ID card and will be most useful to those living closest to the border.
Next month, April 2013, the bridge over the Tempisque river in the Nicoya Peninsula celebrates its 10th anniversary. It also marks 3,653 days of neglect, not even a drop of paint to remove the graffiti that has been accumulated.
The bridge was inaugurated in April 2003, facilitating transit to the Pacific coast of Guanacaste. Prior to the construction of the bridge, this route required the use ferries to cross the Tempisque River, or long alternate land routes.
The bridge, spanning 780 metres, was financed and designed by Taiwan and built primarily by the Taiwanese, with participation of Costa Rican engineers and workers, and served as a launching point for major development in the Guanacaste region.
The Puente La Amistad de Taiwán (English: “Taiwan Friendship Bridge”), which became known colloquially as Puente de la Apuñalada (Back stab Bridge) since former Costa Rican President Óscar Arias cut off relations with Taiwan in favour of China, today has no friends.
Recent studies have found some problems in the structure that have required increased maintenance. The bridge also suffered damage on 5 September by the 2012 Costa Rica earthquake.
That day in September, the director of the Consejo Nacional de Vialidad (Conavi), Luis Salas, visited the bridge by helicopter and found that the structure that is crossed by 4.000 vehicles daily had cracks and crumbling concrete on the expansion joints.
The Laboratorio Nacional de Materiales y Modelos Estructurales de la UCR (Lanamme) – National Laboratory specialists Materials and Structural Models at the Universtiy of Costa Rica – has confirmed the existence of damage. The Lanamme has also confirmed that the September quake caused a mismatch between the sides of the bridge.
The damage is noticeable. The Lanamme report indicates that the one side of the sidewalk has shifted about 7 centimetres over the other side of the expansion joint. Rolando Castillo, the Lanamme specialist on bridges, however, assures there is “no risk to users”.
Castillo, in his report says there is not structural damage to the bridge, but it does not mean it does need attention.
This lack of attention, according to Castillo and other experts, is due to the country’s lack of culture towards its bridges.
The Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes (MOPT) admits that, throughout this time, has virtually ignored the bridge, only replacing stolen signs.
La Nacion, in it’s report on the anniversary of the bridge, said it spoke to Omar Segura, spokesperson for the MOPT, who said that the one of the main problems in the area is vandalism. Segura, however, did not address the problem of maintenance, or the lack of.
Following two assaults last month, the Parque Nacional Volcán Arenal (Arenal Volcano National Park) had decided to stop charging visitors.
The first attack was on a guard at the collection station at the park entrance, anti-socials getting away with some ¢300.000 colones and wounding an employee.
The second attack was on a conservation area vehicle, this time antisocials made off with some ¢1.5 millio colones, bounding and gagging the driver.
Thus, park administration made the decision to stop charing entry into the park, eliminating the lines of vehicles to enter the park and the collection station, to prevent more assaults.
The situation is a major loss of revenue for the park and left to rely only on ticket purchases made in San José.
Some 200 visitors a day visit the Arenal, located in La Fortuna de San Carlos, making it one of the most visited in the country.
