Top 10 Costa Rica

Dick Martin, (on the right) who was best known for being one half of the “Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In” comedy show in the 1960s, died from respiratory complications. He was 86.

Martin, who had a severe lung condition for years, died at a hospital in Santa Monica, California, with family and friends at hand, citing family spokesman Barry Greenberg.

The comedian, paired with comic Dan Rowan, was known for telling risque jokes and coming up with bogus theories about life on the “Laugh-In” show, and popularizing catch-phrases such as “Sock it to me!”. The show debuted in January 1968 and was canceled in 1973.

“Laugh-In” made stars of actresses Goldie Hawn and Lily Tomlin, and featured appearances by actors such as John Wayne and Kirk Douglas and even Richard Nixon, while he was campaigning for president in 1968. Rowan died in 1987.

Martin is survived by his wife Dolly Read, and two sons, actor Richard Martin and Cary Martin

In the international electronic coffee auction known as “The Cup of Excellence”, buyers from Japan, the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States paid up to $1,510 per a 100-pound bag of coffee grown in Costa Rica. Even the lowest price paid, $465, surpasses by far the $137 that the product gets at the New York Stock Exchange. The auction is sponsored by the Alliance for Coffee Excellence, a non-profit organization with headquarters in the United States which focuses on improving the quality of coffee around the world.

Costa Rica has launched a program to plant 7 million trees this year. A nationwide campaign is aimed at mitigating global warming. The idea is not only that the people join in planting the trees, but that they also care for them. Last year, at least 2 million trees were planted in Costa Rica, according to official sources.

Costa Rican exports hit $3.3 billion in the first quarter of 2008, marking a 10.5 percent increase over the same period last year.

The boost was in large part due to a 400 percent growth in sales of medical implants, which totaled $80 million, according to the Foreign Trade Ministry (COMEX).

Costa Rica is now considered the second largest provider of such devices to the United States, behind Ireland.

Total exports to the United States, however, dropped slightly, less than 1 percent, compared to the first quarter of 2007.

“It’s apparent that the economic slowdown in the U.S. and the delay in Costa Rica’s implementation of CAFTA (the Central American Free-Trade Agreement with the United States) continue to affect our exports to that market,” said COMEX Minister Marco Vinicio Ruiz.

Exports to the European Union, meanwhile, grew 19.4 percent.

Besides medical products, other sectors that saw export growth were seafood, 11 percent; agriculture, 11 percent; food, 7.7 percent; and manufacturing, 10.6 percent.

The President of Costa Rica Oscar Arias traveled to the United States in order to receive special treatment on his vocal cords, the Presidential Press Office disclosed. Dr. Arias, 68, has been on sick leave since May 12, when an acute problem made him lose his voice. The official release was very brief and did not provide any details on the President’s ailment. His spokesperson Michelle Mitchell argued that it is a “private” trip in order to get medical treatment and that “out of respect for the President’s privacy,” it was decided not to disclose where he will be treated. However, it was later disclosed that the President was treated in Philadelphia and that he was diagnosed with a benign cyst on his vocal cords. Apparently, he will not undergo surgery, but has to abstain from speaking for four weeks. Vice-President Laura Chinchilla is the acting President of Costa Rica.

Costa Rica became the first country in Latin America and the Caribbean whose operating rooms incorporate a list of procedures to lower adverse events from surgery, such as infections and bleeding not linked to the patient’s ailment. These procedures are already operative at hospitals in the United States, Canada, France, Germany and Space. Promoted by the World Health Organization and the Pan American Health Organization, the strategy fits perfectly within the Costa Rican National Program for the Safety of Patients.

Though San José is not a guidebook favorite, it is undisputedly the king of Costa Rican nightlife. University bars line San Pedro’s Calle de la Amargura, small bars bump to the beats of cumbia and salsa songs, and the city itself overflows with dance clubs, bars, and combinations of the two.

Of course, after living here for awhile, you’ll find your own neighborhood favorites, but for the uninitiated, finding a place to spend your evening can be challenging. To help get you started, Costa Rica Pages has compiled the following list of some favorite San José nighttime hotspots:

• El Cuartel & La Esquina (2221-0327): With a drink menu that numbers more than 150, El Cuartel is known as one of the best bars in the country. On Monday nights, its doors open up to combine with next-door La Esquina, and both bars rock out with live music that ranges from Latin Rock to your favorite English-language cover songs. Located just across the street from Barrio California’s Cine Magaly.
• Jazz Café (2253-8933/2288-4740): Now with two locations — the classic Jazz Café in San Pedro and a newer version in Escazú — this area favorite is one of the country’s premier locations for live music. Their schedules are always packed full (Monday - Sunday) and the music eclectic, offering Afro-Caribbean syncopations, slow and sweet trova, and 70’s and 80’s cover bands. This is also one of the best locations to see the famous Malpaís, a popular Costa Rica band with a smooth fusion of traditional folkloric beats and a current style all their own.
• Castros (2256-8789): If you want to party the night away, but can’t decide between salsa or reggaetón, Castros is the ideal place for you. With multiple dance floors and a constant rotation of musical styles, this Barrio Mexico nightclub is a must-visit for un poco de todo.
• Tobogán (2223-8920): This downtown San José club is known for its incredible tropical beats and lively dance crowd - indeed, El Tobogán (The Slide) is one of the hippest salsa clubs in town. If you don’t know how to salsa (or merengue, or cumbia, or…), there’s always a friendly soul willing to lend a hand and initiate you into the wonderful world of tropical dancing. And if you’re a little nervous, don’t despair: with a dance floor built for 500 and a total club capacity of 1,100, your goofs will always be lost in the crowd.
• Vertigo (2257-8424): As the number one club in the country for electronica and techno, Vertigo is the place to be for fluid beats and rhythmic downtempo dance music. Set in a nondescript office building on Paseo Colón, the club doesn’t look like much from the outside, but its high interior ceiling, huge dance floor, delicious elixirs, classy VIP section and loud music are sure to hit the [nightclub] spot.

There are many places to spend the evening in San José, many secretly snuggled into to tiny corners, but these easy picks are a guaranteed good time if you are looking to follow the local crowds.

Last Saturday Costa Rican’s national newspaper, La Nación, reported that only nine of the 81 subdivisions of the country receive water of optimal quality. Such were the findings of a recent study regarding equal access to potable water and its relation to development and health in Costa Rica. Of the remaining subdivisions, 26 received the second highest rating of medium to high unequal access to water, and a frightening majority of 46 subdivisions received the lowest rating of very high unequal access to water. Therefore, of the approximately 4.1 million people that live in Costa Rica, 1.8 receive water of poor quality.

According the La Nación, The study evaluated five variables: population that receives water in their homes, potability, quality-control programs, treatment and disinfection of liquids, and the number of service operators. The study found, not surprisingly, that the areas with the worst access to potable water are also the poorest areas of the country.

Study abroad is more than just traveling to beaches on the weekend and remembering not to drink the water. In order to make a study abroad experience worthwhile, you have to learn to live in the country. This integration into the country entails a preoccupation of the nation’s issues. For example, I have learned that poverty and inequality are two of the most pressing concerns of Latin America as a whole.

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Doctors have ordered Costa Rican President Oscar Arias not to talk for a month due to a cyst on his vocal cords, his office said Wednesday.Arias, a 67-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner, had been losing his voice for several weeks and traveled Tuesday to be examined at the Philadelphia Ears, Nose and Throat Associates medical center, his office said in a statement.

The doctors found he had a nonmalignant cyst on his vocal cords and advised him against talking for a month. If he does not improve after that, doctors will evaluate the need for surgery, his office said.

Arias was expected to return to Costa Rica on Saturday.

The president has suffered from several medical problems since taking office in 2006. In April, muscular pain in his lumbar region forced him to cancel several activities. He suffered from tendinitis in August 2007.

Arias won the Nobel Peace Price in 1987 for helping broker an end to Central America’s civil wars.

Under the recently ratified Central America Free Trade Agreement, Costa Rica’s law making body must enact a series of laws to put them in accordance with the other treaty nations. Some of these individual laws will force previously-monopolized sectors (i.e. ICE’s former telecom monopoly) to open up to private national and international companies, causing quite a stir among the employees and advocates of these state-run institutions.

As CAFTA becomes law, the country’s insurance monopoly, the National Insurance Institute (INS), will also be broken. Like the new law to ensure ICE’s continued competitive potential, a similar law has been created to allow the INS to remain flexible and competitive in the new market.

However, the Costa Rican Comptroller said it objects to article 47 of the INS’s new policy, which shortens the amount of time necessary to carry out various company tasks and purchases, a change made to allow INS to be more efficient and remain competitive. According to CGR, while reducing wait times may be more efficient for INS, a huge reworking of government policies would be necessary. In a country infamous for its love of bureaucracy, such a change in public policy would be very expensive and time-consuming, and CGR said it cannot approve it.

In addition, CGR has asked the Sala IV to rule on whether or not INS can sell insurance outside of Costa Rica. Though CAFTA would seemingly allow such a change, Costa Rica’s Constitution must come first, and there is no greater authority on Constitutional law than the Sala Constitucional.

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By the end of the week, Palm Inc. will introduce its newest smartphone to Costa Rican consumers at a price of ¢250,000 (about $500).

As with other smartphones on the market, Palm Centro boasts voicemail, text, instant messaging, e-mail and Web services. It also is equipped with an agenda and calendar functions � among other programs.

Not all of its gadgets can be accessed locally, however.

Spokeswoman Paola Ramírez said some multimedia functions will not work in country due to technological limitations of the local network, controlled by the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE). We see ourselves limited, Ramírez said. Users can’t exploit all the tools [the Palm Centro] has.

Mobile access should loosen up in coming years. The Legislative Assembly passed a liberalizing telecom bill tied to the Central American Free-Trade Agreement last week.

Canadian company Research in Motion has also agreed to sell its Blackberry through ICE in Costa Rica. Roughly 1,500 of their models should hit the market in July 2008. Prices will range from ¢250,000 to ¢350,000 ($500-$700).

The Palm Centro available in red and blue models will be available at a variety of local stores, including Play, Gollo, Universal and Office Depot.

Today investors from all across the globe are flocking to Costa Rica to invest in the real estate market. With the giant payoffs available, it is easy to see why so many investors are choosing this country to invest their money in.

With giant payoffs available for investors, the time is definitely right to invest in Costa Rican real estate. Although North American real estate seems to be shaky these days, investors can still find excellent returns on investments if they look to Costa Rica. Property prices are affordable, and investors from across the globe are thrilled with the bargain prices and amazing profits available in the real estate market in Costa Rica today.

In the past five years, the real estate market in Costa Rica has taken off and is now in the middle of a boom. With the excellent prices that are affordable and the investment incentives being offered to foreign investors by the Costa Rican government, this is a paradise to investors looking for a new place to invest their cash.

All throughout Costa Rica there are many excellent investment opportunities, and one excellent company that caters to high end investors interested in this market is Gap Investors. Gap Investors Ltda is a Costa Rican company specializing in brokering syndicated loans, which are loans offered by a group of lenders, to provide funds for a borrower for real estate development in Costa Rica.

There are many reasons that Costa Rica has become such a prime spot for real estate investors. Of course first of all is the low price of real estate, which even though it is rising, is still cheaper than places such as the United Kingdom and the United States. The cost of living in Costa Rica also is a drawing point, with the average cost of fine living costing between $900-1200 a month. Property taxes are quite low as well and many times investors are able to cash in on predevelopment prices, both of which make investing in Costa Rica even more attractive to real estate investors.

To learn more about investing in Costa Rica real estate, visit www.gapinvestors.com

Britney Spears has hit the beaches of Costa Rica while vacationing with Mel Gibson, her father (Jamie Spears) and Mel’s wife (Robyn Moore).

The pop star enjoyed the lush beaches in a two-piece.

Britney seems to have let loose and relaxed a bit now that she’s away from Tinsletown.

She was spotted running on the beach, jumping in to the water and even driving a quad on the sand.

Costa Rica placed seventh in the attraction of foreign investment in 2007 among the Latin American and Caribbean nations, according to a survey by the Latin American and Caribbean Economic Commission. The $1,889 million that Costa Rica attracted last year was surpassed by Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Argentina, and Peru, all of them much larger economies. The chairlady of the Costa Rican Chamber of Exporters (CADEXCO in Spanish) pointed out the good image that the nation has at the international level, but remarked that a large part of it is due to campaigns to promote tourism and some institutional efforts to attract investment. She added that work must continue to preserve the arrival of direct foreign investment.

Firestone Industrial Products Company LLC (FSIP) will open a new air spring manufacturing plant in Turrialba, Costa Rica.
The facility, to be located between San Jose and the port of Limon, is expected to initially employ approximately 100 people.

“As the emerging markets for air springs develop and grow internationally, Firestone continues to expand its global footprint,” said Mike Cerio, president of FSIP. “Costa Rica represents a new opportunity to better support these emerging international markets in a cost-effective manner.”

The company has signed a lease on the former Conair facility in Turrialba, and will initially occupy 11,500 square meters to manufacture air springs and Marsh Mellows springs. FSIP is currently awaiting government approval on the necessary permits it has filed in support of this new location.

Considering that tourism is the main source of income of the country, one wonders sometimes, what is going on! If you want to go to the southern tip of Nicoya, you need to take the ferry in Puntarenas. The drive from San Jose should not take more than two hours at a steady pace. You will then find yourself in the worst part of Puntarenas; it can be a shock, even if you are prepared! The poverty is present everywhere. It has the look, smell and feel of having been abandoned forever.

Make sure you have the timetable sorted first and that you know at what time your ferry leaves; it is a good idea to arrive in advance, if possible, as the schedule often changes between high season and low season, when there may only be 4 departures a day. There are currently two ferries; the better and newer one, which is much bigger, holds up to 140 vehicles. It has a small restaurant inside serving burgers and pizzas, and good places to sit outside. The smaller one is much older, and definitely shows it. If you happen to get that one, just find a place to put yourself and stay there, as you may have found the best spot!

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