Archive for October 29th, 2009
Thursday, October 29th, 2009
Costa Rican Social Security System (Caja) officials closed Ricardo Saprissa Stadium Wednesday, claiming the San José soccer team owes a ₡ 720 million (more than $1.2 million) debt, just hours before Saprissa was set to play neighboring rival Liga Deportiva Alajuelense.
The time of closure was not accidental. Manuel Ugarte, the Caja’s finance director, explained that his administration chose to shut down the stadium in the northern San José district of Tibás on the day of a game so that the debtor would feel the impact of the measure.
Ugarte said Club Deportivo Saprissa’s owner, Mexican businessman Jorge Vergara, reported lower salaries to the Caja than his players were actually earning during the period of October 1999 to August 2004.
Nice way to show off with sports, the team’s lawyer, Jorge González, remarked sarcastically about the Caja’s efforts to make an example of Saprissa. He claimed that Saprissa is debt free and that the case of its alleged debt has sat unresolved in the courts for three years.
(The stadium was) closed because the Caja feels like it. Saprissa is absolutely up to date with its regular and monthly payments, González said.
As the administration (of the Caja) has state authority to execute (a closure) without waiting for a verdict from the court, the lawyer said. This is a measure that’s draconian, arbitrary and more akin to dictatorial regimes.
The game between old rivals being billed as el Clásico has been postponed until a future, as of yet undefined date. Alajuelense has requested the game be played Thursday night at the José Rafael Fello Meza Stadium in Cartago, east of San José, according to the daily La Nación.
Caja officials said the closure is not meant to affect the Costa Rica-Uruguay soccer match at Saprissa scheduled for Nov. 14, tickets for which went on sale Wednesday.
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Thursday, October 29th, 2009
Next week the price of a litre of gasoline will drop ¢11 colones and not the expected ¢14 colones, while the price of a litre of diesel full jumps up ¢4 colones.
A higher drop in gasoline prices had been approved by the Autoridad Reguladora de Servicios Públicos (Aresep) to take effect in November.
However, the implementation of the “impuesto único de los combustibles” (tax on gasoline prices) of 1.69% means prices will not be as low as expected and in the case of diesel the increase higher.
Beginning next week, the price of super gasoline will drop from the current ¢575 to ¢564, regular from ¢558 to ¢547 and diesel will jump from ¢484 to ¢488.
The prices have not to wait publication in the official government newsletter, La Gaceta, to take effect the day following publication, which is expected next week.
The ministerio de Hacienda explained that the tax increase is an adjustment for inflation.
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Thursday, October 29th, 2009
The collapse of a bridge last week that resulted in the death of five people could have been avoided had the government taken heed of an engineer’s report carried out in 2006, the report’s commissioner has claimed.
The report, complete with photographs, highlighted a series of structural problems and warned of a possible collapse of the bridge over the Río Tárcoles, on the way to the central Pacific town of Orotina.
The morning of Oct. 22, the report’s predictions became frighteningly real. One of the cables of the bridge snapped under the weight of a full school bus, which fell six meters into the water.
Guillermo Saborio, chairman of Turu Ba Ri Nature and Adventure Park, in conjunction with the Turrubares Municipality, commissioned IMM & Asociados Ltda. to carry out the study after suspecting maintenance of the old bridge was long overdue.
“It was obvious the bridge was in need of attention, it was more than 80 years old,” Saborio said.
“Many of our visitors used to cross that bridge to get to the park, so we, in conjunction with the municipality, paid for an engineer to carry out a survey, which we sent to (the road authorities) CONAVI, but nothing was done about it.”
Despite those warnings in September 2006, the only work carried out on the bridge in the three years until its collapse was the replacement of 200 wooden planks lining the bridge floor, repairs to a left hand support pillar and a reduction in vehicle weight allowance, from nine tones to four.
Annotated pictures of the support cables connected to concrete blocks at either end of the bridge explained how “years of strain caused by heavy vehicles could have caused severe interior damage and could lead to a collapse of the entire structure,” the report contended.
It concluded: “Considering the level of use and nature of the vehicles that cross the bridge have changed considerably in the last few years, we consider necessary the building of a new, two-lane concrete and steel bridge with side barriers and space for pedestrians.”
Following the bridge’s collapse, the Public Works and Transport Ministry called on a Japanese technical expert who will supervise the repair of 10 Costa Rican bridges, earmarked as “priority,” throughout the country.
The expert, experienced in the design of steel and concrete bridges, will be working with engineers starting next year.
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Thursday, October 29th, 2009
Costa Rica offers amazing adventure retreats for families, even if you are traveling with little kids that should not be an impediment for having an adventurous and educational vacation at this Central American paradise. Not many places in the world offer what Costa Rica has. Costa Rica is one the few countries where families can admire tropical and rainforest ecosystems, which come together with countless of exotic species of birds, plants and wild animals.
While in the country you can contact one of the many tour operators and plan an educational tour to a volcano, river or mountain. Prices are very affordable and all safety precautions are taken if you are touring with children under the age of twelve. Some popular activities that can be enjoyed by the whole family are: bird watching, hanging bridges, snorkeling and an expedition to the famous butterfly farm in Arenal. These great activities are available country wide, but can be experienced with an additional dose of excitement in areas such as: Monteverde, San Jose and Arenal.
The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is one of the most visited places in Costa Rica not only by families but all kinds of travelers including scientist, artists and photographers from prestigious magazines. Families will love this extraordinary town and its unique flora and fauna. A visit to the Butterfly Garden is a most before living Monteverde. You can also purchase a souvenir from one of the traditional stores downtown.
Arenal is great for a volcano adventure, the Arenal Volcano is just a few minutes away from Arenal City. The surrounding hotels provide great views of the volcano from their room facilities. Families can enjoy a day at the hot springs combined with a nature oriented tour in the Arenal Volcano National Park. You don’t need to plan ahead your activities in Arenal, you can ask for an advice at your arrival to the hotel; they always have a list of regional tour agencies, prices and activities available for you and your family.
The outskirts of San Jose in Costa Rica are another fantastic destination for families. Mountain biking is a good way to spend some quality time with your family by admiring the local nature and the rural Costa Rican lifestyle. Dairies, livestock and agriculture can be observed while biking trough the trails with your local bilingual guide. If you are not into sports you can always visit the “Children Museum” in San Jose. This is a museum specially designed for kids and adults to learn important facts about Costa Rica and the world while interacting in the several activities organized by the museum staff. Less than a mile away from the Children Museum you can be part of another great adventure at the “Morazan Zoo”, a place where your family can observe a few of the most rare animal species in Costa Rica.
If you are looking to travel with your family but you are having a hard time finding activities to suit all ages and interests then Costa Rica is your place to visit.
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Thursday, October 29th, 2009
Olympus, the Japan-based company that manufactures optics and imaging products, is setting up shop in Costa Rica to serve the Central American and South American markets.
Olympus, named after Mount Olympus, the home of the 12 supreme gods and goddesses in Greek mythology, has a long history in camera and lens design.
In 1936, Olympus introduced its first camera. Today, the company is a leading manufacturer of digital cameras, with a large range of compact digital cameras. Olympus is the designer of the Four-Thirds System standard for digital single-lens reflex camera design and development, which uses the same frame size as the PEN cameras.
Olympus also manufactures and provides client support for its fully automated random access automated analysers for clinical chemistry, immuno chemistry, and blood grouping.
These analyzers are used in medical laboratories by medical technologists. Other Olympus products used in the clinical laboratory are microscopes utilized by the microbiology and hematology departments. Many Olympus imaging products are used in hospital endoscopy departments. The whole diagnostic business was sold to Beckman Coulter in August 2009.
From Costa Rica, the company will providing marketing and distribution services for Central America and Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela.
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