U.S. Diplomats: "Costa Rica Is No Paradise "

INSIDECOSTARICA.COM | COSTA RICA NEWS | Sunday 20 March 2011

The tourist brochures do not tell the whole story, writes US diplomat in cable Have you ever wondered what American diplomats in Costa Rica really think of the country? The answer: "Costa Rica is no paradise, with raw sewage everywhere", according to Wikileaks reports printed in Costa Rica's largest daily, La Nación. "Costa Rica treats less than 3% of human waste and discharges 97% of the sewage into the rivers that flow into the sea and constitute little more than contaminated sewage ditches open (...) placing the country among the five worst in Latin America. And the country is going backwards. "The Central Valley, which includes the greater metropolitan area of San José and nearly two million people (almost half of Costa Rica's population), has an antiquated sewage collection, with many underground pipes dating back from the last century and perforated with rust". That is the report by Laurie Weitzenkorn, Public Affairs Office of the U.S. Embassy in San José in a cable dated April 4, 2007, the year that Weitzenkorn was give the task of reporting to the State Department the reality live by Costa Ricans. She added: "You can see spills on the streets. Although at least they have added 100 new residential network since 1981 no extensive work has been done on the sewer system. "Almost all sewage flowing from San Jose enter the rivers and empty into the Pacific, particularly in the Gulf of Nicoya by way of the Tárcoles river. Locals know to avoid that area beaches for the sewage. "Pollution has damaged mangroves and coral reefs, and is suspected of causing a decline in commercial fishing. It is also linked to water pollution hepatitis, cholera, skin problems and diarrhea cases increased by 16% in Costa Rica from 2002 to 2005. Read more

Full Moon Cause For "Green Alert" For Costa Rica's Coasts

The full moon this weekend is the reason for the "green alert" for high waves for Costa Rica's coasts. The alert was issued by the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias (CNE) as a preventive measure.

The CNE is advisory is from Sunday to Thursday. CNE officials say the Pacific coast and the area of Isla del Coco could be the most affected by the waves.

According to the Instituto Meteorológico Nacional (IMN) - national weather service - the high waves could have a greater impact at high time.

The lunar event this weekend, called by some as Super Moon Sunday, brings the moon closest to Earth in past 18 years. The super moon event is said to occur between March 16 and March 22 with the full moon being closest to Earth than any time in the past 18 years on March 19.

Celestial bodies do not orbit in perfect circles as the earliest scientist thought. Johannes Kepler showed us in 1609 that planets and moons sweep out their orbits in ellipses. This means that, at some points in their orbits, they are closer to the body they orbit than other points. Whenever a celestial satellite is at its closest point, it is known to be at perigee and when it is at its furthest point from the body it orbits, it is at apogee. 


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Los Suenos Signature Billfish Series 2011

The eighth annual Los Sueños Signature Billfish Series begins Wednesday off Costa Rica, and the call of "Hookup!" will likely be heard often throughout the tournament.

The strictly catch-and-release competition, fished out of Los Sueños Resort and Marina in Playa Herradura, Costa Rica, takes place in two legs -- January 26-29 and March 2-5 -- and targets all species of marlin as well as Pacific sailfish. The event is sanctioned by both the World Billfish Seriesand the International Game Fish Assn.

Points will be awarded for each successful release -- 500 for marlin and 100 for Pacific sailfish -- with the top three boats per tournament awarded trophies and cash prizes based on overall points.

Registrants can still sign up for one or both legs of the series. The entry fee is $7,000 per boat per tournament or $10,000 per boat for both events.

Last year, 43 teams from the United States, Nicaragua and Russia entered the tournament and ended up releasing a total 1,014 billfish during the six days of competition.

Read original article from L.A. Times

Cafe Britt: 25 Years of Success Sharing Costa Rica's Finest Gourmet Products

Heredia, Costa Rica (PRWEB) November 26, 2010

This year, Café Britt is celebrating its 25th anniversary, which further emphasizes the success that has been built on three core beliefs: superb quality, tremendous creativity, and a unique business model. In the beginning, Café Britt was just a small roastery that sold artisan coffee to locals and tourists. Now, it is a very diverse company with stores and operations in more than 10 countries employing over 900 people. The company's arsenal is packed with a wide range of gourmet products focusing on coffee but also including a vast array of chocolates and various candies. Its production and coffee distribution model became a case of study in Harvard University and gave the company the recognition of their costumers and stakeholders in different locations.

There was a time when all of Costa Rica's best coffee was exported as a commodity, leaving only the poorest quality of beans for local consumption. For New York coffee broker Steve Aronson, this situation was unacceptable. He recognized the potential opportunity for investing in Costa Rican gourmet coffee consumption and jumped on it. In 1985 when Café Britt was founded, not only did the company provide gourmet coffee to the local citizens, but it also expanded to export and share Costa Rica's gourmet coffees with the rest of the world directly from point of origin.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2010/11/27/prweb4831094.DTL#ixzz16VCs8jga

Living in San Isidro de General, Costa Rica - After the 2010 storm

Costa Rica Realtor Victor Guerrero

Costa Rica doesn't get hurricanes but we do feel their effects... San Isidro and the general valley area are recovering from the secondary effects of hurricane Tomas.

It started raining throughout the San Isidro area on Sunday morning October 31st and literally did not stop until the next Saturday the 6th of November. With periods of very heavy down pours to light showers, this was the most intense storm to hit Perez Zeledon since the effects of Hurricane Cesar back in '95.

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What Makes the Osa Peninsula So Special?

Infrastructure Improvements make one area of Costa Rica in high demand for expats

The southern Pacific region of Costa Rica is often regarded as the nicest part of the country but has also been the hardest part of the country to get to. Until now…

Background: The region around the Osa Peninsula is often compared to the Galapagos Islands. This area is home to more lowland forest than anywhere else on the entire Pacific coast. The largest mangrove wetlands can be found here as well as the largest native colony of Macaws. There are towering trees, scenic waterfalls and sweeping sandy beaches. A dizzying amount of the world’s biodiversity can be found in this area of Costa Rica. In fact Costa Rica contains twice the number of species than the entire United States while the US contains over 200 times more land. Though only 3% of the land area of Costa Rica, the Osa region in the southern Pacific contains over 50% of animal and plant species of the entire country.

History: Over 20 years ago, a small enclave of expats formed a community just north of the Osa Peninsula in the towns of Ojochal and Tres Rios de Coronado. The development grew primarily by word of mouth attracting North Americans to this spectacular part of the country. But getting there was not an easy task. The inland route, the Cerro de la Muerte (translation is “passage of death”) traversed a mountain ridge high in the clouds, topping 11,000 feet in certain places. The coastal route required numerous river crossings as well as a trek over 20 miles of unpaved road. These challenges made the area largely unvisited. There was the option of taking a small commuter flight from San Jose but upon arrival to the region rental cars were hard to find and taxi service was not readily available.

Recent Changes: In January of 2009 two new highways were finally completed, the Caldera highway stretchin from San Jose to the Pacific coast and the Costanera connecting Quepos to Dominical. These improvements made the drive from San Jose to the southern region an attractive three hour drive through some of the most scenic parts of the country. This area is home to Pacific Lots, the largest and oldest residential development for expats in the region

Hold the Presses: (Oct. 15, 2010, Costa Rica) President Laura Chinchilla announced this week high priority on the 35 million dollar southern regional international airport construction project. Chinchilla said construction will start in 2012 to put in the international airport. Environmental studies and other preliminary work has been done on the site located between Palmar Sur and Sierpe and the administration said money for this project will come from the Dirección General de Aviación Civil, the national budget and an allocation the Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes received from the International Civil Aviation Organization. This location is about a 30 minute drive from Pacific Lots!

About the development: Pacific Lots development stands alone as a haven for expats. Now in its 21st year, this project consists of 19 phases set in a mountain backdrop with expansive ocean views. Each phase features home sites with artesian spring water to each lot as well as extensive roads (gravel) and electricity throughout. Internet service, phone service and satellite TV is readily available. The North Americans and Europeans living here are blessed with abundant water, being sculpted into prior rain forest that had been cut away years ago as cattle farming was introduced to the area. Now many of these farms have been developed into residential properties. The area is greener now than before as farmers have come to realize that cattle doesn’t do well in the terrain and weren’t very good for the environment.

Read more Escape From America Magazine
What Makes the Osa Peninsula So Special?

Pura Vida de Osa Mountain Village, Costa Rica

As your flight pulls into the terminal in San Jose, Costa Rica, you are immediately greeted by the lush rolling hills that surround you. An updated airport, clean and nice, welcomes you to a land of adventure. You will exchange a little cash for Colones at the airport bank, enough for tips and gas, though many places take US dollars and the exchange rate at a real bank is much better. You grab your bags and snag your rental car (In August 2010 was $392 at Budget for 7 days, 4×4 Automatic, includes supplement liability insurance and the must have GPS navigation system as many roads are in good condition but poorly marked) and then venture on your way.

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