The former chief of the State Department, Alfonson Villanueva Piva took his new girlfriend to the beach last week using an official car, driver included. His excuse was that he had business to attend in Liberia, the capital city of Guanacaste!

Official cars are for official use only, but it is not the first time that this kind of liberty is taking place! Indeed, Villanueva did not have the permission to use the car at all, even less to take his girlfriend on vacation in it! Villanueva was attending an Aerospacial Technology Seminar in the Garden Hilton of Liberia last week. Villanueva discretly made arrangements with the driver to pick him up and his girlfriend at his residence in Alajuela. The couple traveled during the night of the 23 and spent the Night in the Hotel Garden Hilton where the event was taking place. The following day Villanueva asked the driver to take them to the exclusive Hotel La Posada, in Hacienda Pinilla, some 78 kms away from San Jose on the Pacific Coast. The driver went back to Liberia and had to drive back again the following day to pick the couple up and drive them back to San Jose.

According to an employee of the ministry, there was no activity relevant to the seminar that took place anywhere out of Liberia.

Government official always seem to get caught sneaking out in such ventures, using official cars and abusing their rights and power. In some instance it is about official planes, never mind official cars! Getting caught however never seem to stop them, as in effect, they do not seem to suffer any consequences, apart from being weakly reprimanded, maybe….This is all tax payers money after all! When asked why he used the official car to take his girlfriend to the beach, the ex chief hang up the phone.

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Filed under: Costa Rica News on September 1st, 2010 | No Comments »

Hurricane Earl is gaining power as it makes its way across the Caribbean. It has now passed Puerto Rica and is heading towards the East Coast of the US at full speed with a trail of massive waves. With winds reaching 135mph with gusts even stronger, the powerful hurricane has been upgraded to category 4. According to the scale used by the US National Hurricane Centre, the 5-point Saffir-Simpson scale, a category 4 hurricane is a menace that can cause catastrophic damages. This means structural damage together with the life of people and animals at risk with flying debris falling down everywhere.  It also means torrential rains with the possibility of 15inches or more of water in some areas, and the risk of flash floods and landslides.  Earlier on Monday morning, the eye of the storm passed over the French Islands of Saint Barthelemy and Saint Martin, causing blocked roads and damaging power lines. According to the EDF, the French electricity supplier, at least 3500 people are left without power on the two islands. In Guadeloupe, 4000 are without electricity due to the strong powerful winds that ravaged the whole island. The Virgin Island and the Leeward Islands may get as much as eight inches of water and up to twelve inches in some areas, with the menace of life threatening floods and mudslides.

Now as it is gaining power, the hurricane is making its way up North along the East Coast of the US and New Yorkers are being prepared for the worse as the Long Labor day Weekend could end up with people being evacuated and vacationers sent home. The National Hurricane Centre is predicting a 20% to 30% chance that New York will be hit by Hurricane Earl and this prediction is being taken very seriously, in fact some people have already packed up their bags and left. Seaside Park Beach lifeguards are prepared to close the beaches along the New Jersey coastline and experts are advising residents of New Jersey, Connecticut and Long Island to be ready for strong wind and floods. This part of the country is not used to this sort of red alert and every is getting ready for the worse. The last time that the country´s low-lying areas had to be evacuated was in 1985!

Tuesday morning, the National Weather Service advised people from North and South Carolina and New England to keep a close eye Earl’s progress as it could reach the North Carolina coast by early Friday morning before curving back out to sea.

The exact path of the storm is still uncertain but the National Weather Service is still predicting a pleasant weather in New Jersey for the Labor Day long weekend..

Central America, Costa Rica in particular, always seem to get away with hurricanes as it is not, apparently, in their path. Lets hope that it stays this way!

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Filed under: Press Releases on August 31st, 2010 | No Comments »

If you live and work in Costa Rica, you would need to get a residency and to get that you would need to get on to the Caja, or Social Security. Once you are on it, you might as well use it, after all it is free medical service, and the private hospitals are so expensive!

The caja may have many advantages, but it also has many, many drawbacks.

If you have an emergency, lets say you broke your leg or need an operation, they are impeccable. Remember that the doctors who work in the Caja Hospitals are the very same who work in the private hospitals. The main difference is not only that you will not feel pampered, you will not be presented with a huge check!

If you have a flu, la Grippe, or suffer from a common cold, or have allergies, very common these days with this hot and humid weather, you had better arm yourself with infinite patience before you take your first step towards getting an appointment: Getting the appointment proves to be the first difficulty. You will not only have to get up at 5am or earlier to queue up in order to get this appointment, the fact is, you may not get the appointment at all, instead you will told to come back tomorrow! And there is no guarantee that tomorrow will bring any success either!

I have seen very sick people waiting in the cold morning breeze for hours only to be turned out.  To me, this is shocking. I suffer from allergy, and while I am waiting in vain, I feel terrible and I do not know when I will be seen or even exactly what is wrong with me. Further more, when I finally got to see a doctor, he prescribes some drugs for me without doing any blood tests first, therefore I do not know what type of allergy I have, what I am allergic to, or even, if I do suffer from allergy or something else!

Once the doctor sends you to have tests, you will need to go in a remote place in San Jose only to make an appointment and you will be lucky if this is going to be less than six months before anything materialize! In the meantime, you may of course find that you have passed away! This may sound slightly exaggerated but it is discouraging and what usually happens is that people give up and go private. This can be a financial strain that should not have to happen; after all, those working here pay for the Caja!

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Filed under: Reader Opinion & Stories on August 29th, 2010 | No Comments »

In Costa Rica, the recession did not go unnoticed; after all, tourism is the main source of income and if the tourists have less money, well, they spend less!

Indeed,  this is  exactly what was going on here; the tourists kept coming, although they had less money to spend….Costa Rica is like an irresistible magnet! Whether you are a family and want to enjoy days out with the kids or are a surfer, an explorer or a fan of sports fishing,  sailing, windsurfing or horse riding, Costa Rica has it! Try tropical Bungee in some awsome canyon, or zip through the trees on a Canopy Ride. There is such a great choice of places to stay everywhere, and a wide price range too to accommodate everyone’s needs!

The number one attraction here are the breathtaking beaches, for many are still pristine and barely touched by the human hand. Stunning sunsets, gorgeous sea, perfect climate, and a feeling of peace and serenity hard to find anywhere else!  On the Pacific coast, Santa Teresa and Malpais,  on the coast of Nicoya, and Playa Guiones, further North, are some of the best surfing beaches of the country as well as excellent places to take the family. Manuel Antonio further south and the beaches of Corcovado are greener than the dry Guanacaste of the North. The Caribbean offers its exuberant culture, and its lush colorful vegetation, its typical food and music.

The fauna is another big reason to come here; whether you like big cats, huge turtles or monkeys, Costa Rica has it all! The monkeys are particularly popular and there are four species here; the notorious, and noisy, Howler Monkey, the Spider Monkey, the White Faced and the adorable and tiny Titi Monkey!

Costa Rica is also a reputable bird watchers’ paradise, indeed, this little country alone is home to more species of birds than the whole of the US. Actually, of the 850 species found here, 600 are permanent residents. Of the most flamboyant, we have the Red Macaws found along the Pacific Coast; what a spectacle these birds offer us, crimson splashes in the sky, always chatting to each other as they fly! These birds have an amazing family sense and usually travel in groups, children, parents and grand parents in a row! The magnificent colourful resplendent Quetzal, a shy birds many walk a long way so they can catch a glimpse, the curious Toucans and the amazing Hummingbirds are just a few of the birds found in Costa Rica, and more often than not, no matter how hard one looks for them, their sight is like an unexpected gift.

Who doesn’ t want to see an active Volcano? Costa Rica has that too, and not just any volcano either;  lets take Arenal that is listed as one of the most active volcano of the world! Its perfect geometrical shape over the lake is a scenery many would die for. The roars and frequent explosions of the volcano are awsome and impressive. Like many volcanoes, Arenal is often hiding in the clouds, however a little patience is well rewarded. Thermal baths, walks, horse riding, and windsurfing on the lake are additional attractions too!

Then, of course, we have the Cloud Forests. Majestic, beautiful and magical Cloud Forests, precious gift of nature that many, but maybe not enough, are fighting very hard to preserve in Costa Rica, while others only seek financial benefits and profit from illegal logging and developments…Monteverde, Braullio Carillo and Corvado are some of the most beautiful cloud forests of the world. Seeing a Cloud Forest is second to feeling a Cloud Forest, its strength and fragility, mixed with something like love and respect…

If you want to see something different, have a great holiday, see new people, new land, relax and play, and get in touch with Mother Nature, Costa Rica is the place!

(2 votes, average: 3.00 out of 5)

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Filed under: Living on August 25th, 2010 | No Comments »

Yes it is happening, Green Day is coming to Costa Rica! The American Band is on a Giant Latin Tour and for a change, our country will not be bypassed!

Green Day is a US Punk Rock band that was first came out in 1987. Green Day’s sound has often been compared to first wave punk bands such as the Clash, the Ramones, the Sex Pistols and The Jam, to name a few. Rock bands such as Queen and The Who have also played some influence, as well as the power pop band Cheap Trick, a well deserved name for a band that managed to mix the sounds of the Beatles with Punk Rock!

Green Day consists of Billie Joe Armstrong lead vocals and guitar, Mike Dirnt is the bassist and backing vocalist and Tre Cool is on the drums. The band was purely Punk when it made its first appearance in Berkeley, California. In 1994 Dookie launched them to stardom with over 15 Millions copies sold worldwide!

Nobody heard much of them for a while, however in 1997 they release Nimrod that was a hit, with a variety of style ranging from pop punk, acoustic ballads, surf rock and ska – a combination of Calypso, Caribbean Mento, American Jazz and Rhythm and Blues. In 2004 the band’s fame shot off again with a newer generation of fans with the Rock Opera American Idiot, followed by the 21^st Century breakdown in 2009. To date, Green Day has sold over 65 Millions records, of which 24,5Millions in the US. In 2009 they announced that they would make a Rock Band Video Game and the game was actually release in June 2010; it features albums such as Dookie, American Idiot and 21^st Century Breakdown.

The band is already working on a follow up album however no dates has been specified yet. Apparently this will include brand new material.

Many bands overlook Costa Rica, mostly because the facilities are inadequate and not usually big enough, further more, it takes a lot of organising and professionalism to welcome big rock bands, something this country is slowly learning! Maybe the new Stadium in La Sabana will allow for more concerts to take place, in the future! In the past, we have seen confusion leading to violence, in some cases the concerts even had to be called off. On some other occasions, the band complained that the facilities was not able to support their equipment or that the security was inadequate and fans would go and harass them right down to their hotel rooms! Now producers and organisers have learnt the tricks of the trade and the last few concerts have run smoothly without chaos or catastrophe, instead they have been rather successful; music, freedom and happiness ruled!

The producing company Evenpro confirmed the presentation of the band will take place on the 29^th October in the Ricardo Saprissa Stadium. Tickets are and have been on sale for quite some time already in www.specialticket.net and is selected places such as Servimas in the Mas por Menos supermarkets, in the musical instrument shops Bansbach and in the shops Gollo throughout the Capital. For more information, call 22 06 77 70 and hurry, tickets are going fast!

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Filed under: Costa Rican Music on August 22nd, 2010 | No Comments »

A Costa Rican Electric Engineer, Juan Scott Chavez, is doing some research  on Carbon Nanotubes and their potential to kill certain bacterias and to cure a variety of diseases. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs  also known as buckytubes) are allotropes of carbon with a cylindrical nanostructure. Diamond is of course the best known of all allotrope carbon! Thanks to their properties, nanotubes are useful in electronics, optics, material science, and lately in architectural fields. Because of their amazing strength and electrical properties , they are also widely used as thermal conductors.

Chavez is just back in Costa Rica and set himself up in Cartago, where he has been working as an engineer in the TEC (Costa Rican Institute of Technology), after having spent several months  in California, in Long Beach, teaching and researching in the University of California. His work there eventually led him to the Carbon Nanotubes. Carbon Nanotubes works pretty much the same way as another mineral called Graphite that is used as a lubricant and to build cars, aircraft and golf clubs!

In pretty much the same way  discoveries in the medical field were made throughout history, Chavez discovered the medical properties of the Nanotubes completely by chance, while trying to understand how he could produce them.  Making nanotubes results being a tricky affair as they get damaged in the process; a slide of atom is wrapped up in some iron sheet in order to shape them like a tube, but when the sheet is removed, the atoms are in bad condition. This was when Chavez’s brother suggested he uses iron-eating bacterias to get rid of the iron sheets, thus there would be no damaged done to the atoms.

Upon trying the theory, Chavez was pleased to observe that indeed this functioned perfectly, as the bacterias ate the atom tubes, extracting the iron sheet leaving the tubes of atom completely clean. However that was not all!  Following this feast came no excretion, instead, they started to develop some kind of  bacterial flagellum with a peculiar tail with which they propelled themselves forward in an organism. Then came the bigger surprise when  it was observed that the bacteria started to divide themselves, or in other words,they started to reproduce! As he was observing the process, Chavez concluded that the nanotubes were placing themselves in such a way as to force the division, or reproduction to take place, and this is exactly what happens with antibiotics.

So far, experiments have only been carried on animals, however Chavez is hopeful that the experiments will advance further. This is an exciting discovery when the current antibiotics are today less potent against bacterias that have become immune to them.

Chavez is now hoping that  the construction for the new laboratory of Nanotechnology of the TEC will be finished by the end of this month, with an investment of over $1million. He is then planning on creating an Alliance with the scientists who are involved in doing research fon the the culture of the skin that is also taking place in the TEC, andhe is confident that his researches on nanotubes used as antibiotics will keep on advancing.

This is another success story for Costa Rica, something that is becoming a bit of a habit in this country! Lets not forget Chang, the famous Costa Rican astronaut, who is doing researches in the AID in Rohrmoser against Chagas Disease.

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Filed under: Costa Rica News, Technology on August 18th, 2010 | No Comments »

The Steinvorth building was built at the beginning of the 20th Century and is one of the oldest and most beautiful edifice in San Jose, one of the very few representing the Art Nouveau; many beautiful buildings were destroyed in earthquakes, resulting in the rarity of what one can call a work of architecture in this city.

When the building, designed by architect Francisco Tenca,  was finished in 1907, it reached  as far as the Avenida Central and its facade was ellaboriously ornate and was difficult to go unoticed. Located between calle 1 and avenida 0 and 1, it is located right in the center of the town. In 1872,  Otto Steinvorth started works on the building, He was one of two brothers who came from Germany to settle on Costa Rican soil. The name Steinvorth became associated with Adolf Hitler and the Steinvorth brothers were sent to Costa Rican concentration camps and their posessions and estates were seized. Ricardo Steinvorth was sent to the United States, and was back in Costa Rica in the 1950s. He managed to get the Steinvorth building back from the goverment but found that doing business in Costa Rica had become difficult and before long, he got into the real estate business. Indeed, in 1960 he sold part of the building that was later demolished by Samuel Grinspan.

The Steinvort won first prize beating nine competitors in an annual contest, and in fact thanks to this annual competion many valuable buildings of San Jose have had a face lift. There is presently an offer to start working on the restauration of the Steinvorth in order to save and recuperate its architectural glamour and to give it a mixte value so that it would serve as housing as well as being a commercial property.

Presently, the Steinvorth has a very popular Lounge, concert venue bar and discotheque on the second floor, but it also serves coffee and snacks in the afternoon. Indeed it is probably one of the most sought after night spot to hang out for much of the night fun seekers of San Jose.

If all goes according to plan, the Steinvorth is to receive $200,000 so it can be fully restored and shine in all its glory again. This money actually comes from a competion called” We save our heritage” of the Ministry of the Culture, where the Steinvorth won first place.

It is refreshing and inspiring to see the very beautiful and artistic buildings of San Jose getting the attention they deserve, and that they can be protected and restored instead of being pulled down, painted over and generally abused. San Jose may not be the most beautiful city of the world but it does have its share of beautiful building, it is just a matter of finding them!

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Filed under: Cultural Events, Press Releases on August 16th, 2010 | No Comments »