 |
 |
Costa Rica Your daily |
 |
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||
 |
||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
|
|
 |
 |
|||||||||
| A.M. Costa Rica's Second news page |
|||||||||
| Home |
Tourism |
Calendar |
Classifieds |
Entertainment |
Real
estate |
Rentals |
Sports |
About
us |
|
| San José, Costa Rica, Friday, Sept. 17, 2010, Vol. 10, No. 184 | |||||||||
 |
| Costa Rica Expertise Ltd http://crexpertise.com E-mail info@crexpertise.com Tel:506-256-8585 Fax:506-256-7575 |
 |
 |
|
 Loren B. Ford photo
Workmen place another one-meter section of concrete pipe into
the gap under the Interamericana.Interamericana
Norte closed
while overflow pipe installed By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Traffic was halted on the Interamericana Norte again Thursday as contractors installed concrete sections that replace corrugated pipe that washed out Sept.8. Resident Loren B. Ford reported that the temporary one-lane bailey bridge was opened to foot traffic Tuesday to allow runners carrying the Antorcha de la Libertad to pass. The route was opened to light traffic that afternoon and all Wednesday, he said. The Consejo Nacional de Vialidad said that contractors were replacing the damaged pipe with 30 one-meter concrete sections, including 10 right under the highway. The sections under the bridge are the first to be installed. MACAO Constructores is doing the job. When the job is finished, the highway will again be two lanes, the Consejo said. Ford said he was told the bridge would be closed again today so the work can continue. The Consejo said that the work under the bridge required that the temporary span be moved, which is why the route was closed. Once the concrete sections are in, fill will be placed over them and compacted so the roadway can be restored. The job is estimated at 40 million colons or about $80,000. The route was reopened at 4:45 p.m. Thursday after the work was finished for the day, Ford said. The Consejo had estimated 5 p.m. The washed out culvert carried overflow during periods of high flow of the stream seen in the background of his photo, a tributary of the Río Barranca that flows through the center of Río Jesús, he said. The stream passes under the highway in an undamaged culvert. marijuana and maybe coke By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The Tico Times, the weekly newspaper published in English, urged in an editorial today that Costa Rica legalize and regulate the sale of narcotics. Said the editorial: "Rather than working to turn the country into a police state, which would clash violently with the nation's history and values, and which long experience throughout the hemisphere has shown won't work, the government of Laura Chinchilla should have the courage to lead in developing a peaceful, more effective alternative to the failed and bloody war on drugs." The newspaper called for the immediate legalization of marijuana and a study of the best alternatives for legalizing and regulating the use of other narcotics, such as cocaine. The newspaper said in both its online edition and printed pages that such a move would give farmers an immediate lucrative cash crop and that the government would have access to a formidable source of funds. It also said that legalization would be a blow to organized crime. Surprise: Costa Rica listed as major drug transit nation By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The United States listed Costa Rica as a top drug transit country, and the announcement of the obvious sent Casa Presidencial into a tizzy. President Laura Chinchilla called a quick press conference. So did U.S. Ambassador Anne Andrew. The designation is not a criticism of the country, only a statement of the geography, the ambassador said. For some reason this is the first time that Costa Rica was included on the list, despite tons and tons of cocaine and other drugs being confiscated here. U.S. Navy and Coast Guard operations in the Pacific frequently drive drug smugglers ashore, too. Casa Presidencial said that the Chinchilla administration has been recognized by the United States for having confronted the dangers against citizen security a priority. Mauricio Boraschi, a vice minister and head of the nation's anti-drug effort, quickly listed a number of measures the administration has taken. They included creating the anti-drug commission, authorizing a study and donating 3.4 billion colons to the Poder Judicial for the development of the so-called police platform, a computer system that is to link officers and police agencies. Anti-drug money also went to develop the Centro Nacional de Intervención de las Comunicaciones, which will eavesdrop on communications, he said. He said that there is a system of inspection and control of shipment containers at both ports. Government officials here hope that the designation leads to more U.S. money to fight trafficking. City cleanup brings out 200 By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Some 200 volunteers spent Thursday cleaning up Avenida Central, Barrio Amón, Barrio Tournón, Paseo Colón and Sabana. The groups included the Asociación Terra Nostra, 20 members of the Policía Turistica and representatives from private industry. The effort is part of II Jornada Nacional de Limpieza 2010.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Home |
Tourism |
Place
classified ad |
Classifieds |
Entertainment |
Real
estate |
Rentals |
Sports |
About
us |
|
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The contents of this page and this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río Colorado 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 and may not be reproduced anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details | ||||||
 |
| A.M. Costa Rica third newspage |
 |
||||||||
| Home |
Tourism |
Calendar |
Classifieds |
Entertainment |
Real
estate |
Rentals |
Sports |
About
us |
|
| San José, Costa Rica, Friday, Sept. 17, 2010, Vol. 10, No. 184 | |||||||||
 |
 |
 |
|
||||
| In search of the lucious, sweet and inexpensive grapefruit |
|||
| I felt a small
leap of joy at the feria last Saturday. From 15 feet away
I saw on the ground, in front of a fruit stand, a box full of
grapefruit. Even from 15 feet, even though they were small and
obviously not quite ripe, I knew they were grapefruit. I felt like that
dog in the commercial that jumps up and down yelling “Bacon! Bacon! I
love bacon!!” Even the sight of grapefruit makes my mouth water. In a country where every possible tropical fruit is available, my favorite is grapefruit. There are grapefruit trees, but not being a popular fruit among the population, except when candied, many are allowed to rot on the ground. The same seems to be true of lemons. Of course, I love lemons, too. Friends with access to lemon trees bring me some when they are in season. A few years ago both fruits began to appear sporadically at the feria. My friend Jerry told me that he had bought grapefruit in the AutoMercado and they were delicious. I bought them there once, but they were expensive and not that good, so I didn’t buy them again. Even at the feria the price has gone up a bit. Grapefruit are not the only food that is getting expensive. A comparison between supermarkets in Canada and the local AutoMercado shows prices remarkably similar for many products — not more than 20 Canadian cents difference between items like chicken breasts and potatoes. Feta cheese, cereals and other imported products are much more expensive in Costa Rica. It does make a difference when produce is in season. And right now everything seems to be between harvests. At least I hope that is the explanation for the higher prices. However, in the interest of saving money, I am sharing a recipe that was taught to me by a Chinese student who was one of my resident assistants when I worked at San Jose State University. It became a favorite when my RAs and I shared dinner in my apartment. Tuna Tofu ala Gordon (serves 4-5) 1 block tofu ½ tsp salt 2 cans tuna 1 tsp. sugar 4 eggs 1 tbs. soy sauce 1 medium carrot grated 4 or 5 Boquitos (like Ritz crackers) crushed ½ small onion chopped oil for frying (you can spice this up with a mashed garlic clove or hot sauce.) |
Squeeze the water from the tofu block and mash the tofu. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Heat oil in frying pan and drop mixture by tablespoonfuls and flatten with spatula. Cook 3 or 4 minutes on each side, until golden. Mixture lasts several days in fridge. Recipe can easily be halved to serve two. Grapefruit has no place in this recipe, but, finding the grapefruit too sour even for me, I squeezed them and made myself a cocktail with the juice before my dinner. I finished my frugal beginning to the week by going to lunch with two friends. They had wanted to try Arte y Gusto café in Barrio Amón. I had eaten there once and been so impressed that I wrote about it afterwards. I was worried that things had changed. They often do in Costa Rica, especially when it comes to restaurants. Bertrand, the waiter whom I had met the first time, was on vacation abroad. Gerald, who had been behind the bar, was managing all of the tables. We ordered a salad to share. Warren had the spicy chicken and Grady chose the fish en papillote. I had another entrada containing lots of beets. Once again, the presentation of every dish was a work of art and the flavors of the food unique. There were such a variety of ingredients in each! No grapefruit, but there were fresh peaches. By the end of the meal I was kidding Gerald about his waiter’s garb (calf-length cargo pants, T-shirt with an open shirt over it.) He explained that in southern France waiters no longer wore the formal black tie outfits that tend to intimidate diners. His informal dress put people at ease and feeling friendly. It worked for me. I have never commented to a waiter on his attire before. Both of my friends said this was one place they would certainly return to. Unfortunately, they will have to wait until Oct. 1. Gerald and his wife, Patricia, the amazing chef, are going on vacation to southern France Monday. |
||
 |
| You need to see Costa Rican tourism information HERE! |
| Home |
Tourism |
Place
classified ad |
Classifieds |
Entertainment |
Real
estate |
Rentals |
Sports |
About
us |
|
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The contents of this page and this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río Colorado 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 and may not be reproduced anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details | ||||||
| A.M. Costa Rica fourth news page |
 |
||||||||
| Home |
Tourism |
Calendar |
Classifieds |
Entertainment |
Real
estate |
Rentals |
Sports |
About
us |
|
| San José, Costa Rica, Friday, Sept. 17, 2010, Vol. 10, No. 184 | |||||||||
 |
xx |
 |
| La Niña appears to be
coming on strong in the Pacific |
||
|
Special to A.M. Costa Rica
The tropical Pacific Ocean has changed from last winter's El Niño conditions to a cool La Niña, as shown by new data about sea surface heights, collected by the U.S-French Ocean Surface Topography Mission/Jason-2 oceanography satellite. La Niña ocean conditions often follow an El Niño episode and are essentially the opposite of El Niño conditions. During a La Niña episode, trade winds are stronger than normal, and the cold water that normally exists along the coast of South America extends to the central equatorial Pacific. La Niña episodes change global weather patterns and are associated with less moisture in the air over cooler ocean waters, resulting in less rain along the coasts of North and South America and the equator, and more rain in the far Western Pacific. "This La Niña has strengthened for the past four months, is strong now and is still building," said Climatologist Bill Patzert of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California. "It will surely impact this coming winter's weather and climate." The lab is an agency of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. "After more than a decade of mostly dry years on the Colorado River watershed and in the American Southwest, and only one normal rain year in the past five years in Southern California, water supplies are dangerously low," Patzert added. "This La Niña could deepen the drought in the already parched Southwest and could also worsen conditions that have fueled Southern California's recent deadly wildfires." |
 NASA/JPL Ocean Surface Topography
Team
La Niña continues to strengthen in the Pacific Ocean,
as shown in the latest satellite data of sea surface heights from the
NASA/European Ocean Surface Topography Mission/Jason-2 satellite. The
image is based on the average of 10 days of data centered on Sept. 3.
Higher (warmer) than normal sea surface heights are indicated by
yellows and reds, while lower (cooler) than normal sea surface heights
are depicted in blues and purples. Green indicates near-normal
conditions.NASA will continue to track this change. The comings and goings of El Niño and La Niña are part of a long-term, evolving state of global climate, for which measurements of sea surface height are a key indicator. |
|
| Slob
returns to help in anti-litter campaign By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The tourism institute is reviving the 30-year-old figure of Jacinto Basurilla in a 200 million-colon campaign against litter. The Instituto Costarricense de Turismo created Jacinto 30 years ago and said that recent studies show that much of the population remembered him. The institute will spend the money, about $400,000, in television, radio and newspaper advertising as well as production of educational material and posted on social nets, it said. All Costa Ricans as well as the tourists who visit the country want a cleaner country, the institute said. The campaign will run through December, the institute said. Jacinto is a slob, as the last name implies. He carries various articles of trash that he may discard incorrectly. The institute has put up a Web site and social network pages. The campaign is expected to be carried out with other agencies and community groups. Costa Rica has a lot of problems with trash, and public litter is only part of the problem. In some urban areas, addicts and others prowl the streets and tear apart garbage to find cans and anything else of value. Any dumpsters would quickly vanish into some recycling yard. |
 Instituto Costarricense Tursmo photo
Jacinto Basurilla |
| Home |
Tourism |
Place
classified ad |
Classifieds |
Entertainment |
Real
estate |
Rentals |
Sports |
About
us |
|
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The contents of this page and this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río Colorado 2010 and may not be reproduced anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details | ||||||
| A.M. Costa Rica fifth news page |
|
|||||||||
| Home |
Tourism |
Calendar |
Classifieds |
Entertainment |
Real
estate |
Rentals |
Sports |
About
us |
||
| San José, Costa Rica, Friday, Sept. 17, 2010, Vol. 10, No. 184 | ||||||||||
 |
 |
| Home |
Tourism |
Place
classified ad |
Classifieds |
Entertainment |
Real
estate |
Rentals |
Sports |
About
us |
|
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The contents of this page and this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río Colorado 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 and may not be reproduced anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details | ||||||
| A.M. Costa
Rica sixth news page |
|||||||||
| Home |
Tourism |
Calendar |
Classifieds |
Entertainment |
Real estate |
Rentals |
Sports |
About us |
|
|
|
|||||||||
Latin American news Please reload page if feed does not appear promptly |
 Graphic via the Observatorio
Vulcanológico y Sismológico Marker shows location of quake
Tip of Nicoya peninsula
gets brunt of offshore quake By the A.M.
Costa Rica staff
At least 60 quakes and aftershocks rattled the southern Nicoya peninsula Thursday. Some were felt in the Central Valley. The location was estimated at a point just offshore in the same area where a more severe 1990 quake took place. The magnitudes ranged from 5.3 at 9:27 a.m. and 4.6 at 10:34 p.m. to strength that could be detected only by instruments, according to the Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Costa Rica. Montezuma and the rest of the beachfronts in the southern tip of the peninsula felt the shock the hardest. Some homes in Cóbano, the regional center, suffered damage. One grocer said goods fell from his shelves. Local television stations mobilized their helicopter units because scientists predict another major quake in the Nicoya area. U.S. Senate OKs export bill, giving a boost to Obama By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
The U.S. Senate has approved a bill aimed at helping the country's small businesses, giving President Barack Obama a political victory in his effort to revive the country's economy. The Senate passed the bill Thursday with the help of two key votes from opposition Republicans. It now heads to the U.S. House of Representatives, which is expected to pass the bill and send it to the president to become law. President Obama says U.S. exports had a bigger-than-expected increase during the past year, which he says will help fight unemployment. "Obviously working off a low baseline, given the crisis last year, exports are expected to be up, but we are very pleased to see that they are up 18 percent, to where they were a year ago," Obama said. "And manufacturing exports are up 20 percent, and that is helping put a lot of our people back to work." The U.S. unemployment rate remains mired at 9.6 percent, which has depressed Obama's public approval ratings and hampered candidates from his Democratic Party. The president says one way out of the recession is to sell more American goods and services in other countries. "The more American companies export, the more they produce," the president said. "And the more they produce, the more people they hire. And that means more jobs - good jobs that often pay as much as 15 percent more than average." Obama spoke Thursday at a meeting of his recently formed export council. Earlier this year, President Obama called for the United States to double its exports within five years. He says that goal can be met. |
| Latin American news feeds are disabled on
achived pages.
|
|
| Home |
Tourism |
Place
classified ad |
Classifieds |
Entertainment |
Real
estate |
Rentals |
Sports |
About
us |
|
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The contents of this page and this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río Colorado 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 and may not be reproduced anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details | ||||||
