Costa Rica

Helium Report | Fractional Ownership in Costa Rica: "I want to let you know about an exciting opportunity – Ocotalito Resort & Spa.

This five-star gated resort on the most beautiful coastline in all of Costa Rica is what I’ve been focused on for the last two years. Some of you know about my development and have even made a point of traveling to Costa Rica to see it first hand for yourself. It only seems fair that I share this limited opportunity with the rest of you—36 luxury villas available for full or fractional ownership.

Already under construction, we’re sparing nothing developing Ocotalito Resort & Spa—from our top-of-the-line finishes to our luxury services and amenities.

The 1st Phase of our development features villas that will occupy 4.9 of the resort’s total 6.5 acres. Completely furnished kitchens (indoor and out), a private Jacuzzi, flat screen TVs, digital surround sound, and iPod docking stations in each bedroom pair all the conveniences of home with room service.

Our Lifestyle Concierge is available to prepare for your arrival, stocking your favorite groceries and arranging for sightseeing tours. Or take your Land Rover Defender (yes, it’s yours with purchase of a unit) and discover the beauty of Costa Rica at your leisure.

Each villa enjoys an ocean vi"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costa rica real estate, costarica, travel

Holidays | Long haul travel specialist celebrates 60 years: "Bales Worldwide celebrates 60 years of travel this year. To mark this milestone in true style, the long haul travel specialist’s chairman and founder, Molly Bales will join her clients for a series of specially designed birthday trips to Costa Rica, India, Jordan and Egypt.

Each holiday will offer a spectacular way to celebrate this birthday from a dinner dance in Rajasthan’s sand dunes, to a candle lit cocktail party at Little Petra in Jordon. Birthday trips are priced from £1160 per person for an eight day visit to Jordon.

Bales Worldwide was originally set up by a former RAF navigator, George Bales (Molly’s late husband), as an air broking company in 1947, which flew much-needed fruit from Spain, Italy, France and Holland to Covent Garden dealers. George soon switched apple and oranges for British holidaymakers when he started taking group tours to Egypt and beyond. The company is still owned and run by the Bales family and is the oldest and most established family owned independent tour operator in the UK today.

India of the Maharajahs is a 16 day holiday to Rajasthan, India, including a magical celebratory evening at Jaisalmer where guests will trek by camel into the heart of the dunes for a spectacular evening of dinner and dancing under the stars. The trip includes highlights su"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, travel

Truth About Trade & Technology - Trading Arguments: "He won't even need to change his slogan. Oscar Arias narrowly won election as president last year under the bland banner of 'Costa Rica, Si!' That embraced the main issue of the campaign: a free-trade agreement with the United States encompassing Central America and the Dominican Republic, and known as DR-CAFTA. Mr Arias championed this, but his chief rival, Otton Solis, who lost by just 18,169 votes, opposed it. Having faced filibustering in Congress, Mr Arias wants a referendum to ratify DR-CAFTA. Now the country's courts have given the go-ahead. The referendum will be held on October 7th and Mr Arias is campaigning again: 'I am the face of 'Si',' he says.

Costa Rica is the only signatory country not to have ratified the trade accord, which has come into force elsewhere in Central America. The referendum will be very close fought. Opinion polls give the 'Si' camp a narrow lead, but many respondents are undecided.

Opposition to the trade deal is multi-faceted. Part of it stems simply from dislike of George Bush's United States. But some of the agreement's provisions are controversial. Unions oppose a requirement to open up to competition the country's telecommunications and insurance industries, both of which are state monopolies.

Mr Solis, a minister in Mr Arias's previous government in the 1980s, insists that he is"

Labels: cafta, central america, costa rica, costarica, san jose

The Ledger Independent - Maysville, Kentucky: "When Mason County High School student Keegan McGee first learned of an opportunity to travel to Costa Rica with Spanish teacher Sam Caudill and a group of students, the idea captured his interest.

Not only would the trip provide McGee with something to do during the summer, it would offer a cultural experience as well.

With the five other students who also attended, McGee travelled first to San Jose, then visited Arenal, Monte Verde and Quepos. He went horseback riding through the forests of Costa Rica, participated in a canopy tour, visited a school in the Central American country and was exposed to the various forms of wildlife. Students also visited a beach at Manuel Antonio National Park, the country's smallest national park, but one most often frequented by tourists.

'It was fun,' said McGee. 'The places we went were beautiful.'

Though the trip was filled with activities, one activity in particular McGee counted as his favorite. At one location, McGee said students had the opportunity to swim under and around a waterfall.

'(It's) one of those things you never really get to do,' he said about the experience.

The visit to a Costa Rican school also stood out in McGee's memory. At the school, students witnessed a few traditional dances. They were also exposed to the great"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, travel

TeleTech Expands Into Costa Rica: "TeleTech Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTEC), one of the largest and most geographically diverse global providers of business process outsourcing (BPO) solutions, today announced the opening of a new delivery center in San Jose, Costa Rica, to serve global clients seeking multiple levels of support. The new facility is TeleTech's first in Costa Rica.

TeleTech initially expanded operations into Latin America in 1997 and has strategically grown its footprint in the region since that time. The San Jose delivery center will initially contribute more than 700 new workstations to the existing 7,400 currently in use in Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico. The center will offer front- to back-office services to clients requiring English or bilingual business process outsourcing support. The facility is located in Zona Franca Del Este, an urban area close to the largest concentration of universities in the country and near main transportation lines.

'Expanding to Costa Rica is a logical next step in our global diversification strategy,' said Brian Delaney, executive vice president of global service delivery for TeleTech. 'We have a broad base of clients in Spain and North America seeking multiple levels of BPO support, and San Jose allows us to offer expanded services in a near-shore location to our rapidly growing client base.'

'In my duties as President of the"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, san jose

Article Reuters: "Costa Rican authorities seized almost two tonnes of cocaine on two speed boats on Monday, the latest capture in a series of large, U.S.-backed drug operations in the Central American country.

Costa Rican coast guards hauled 899 kilograms of cocaine off one boat along the country's Pacific coast and stopped another with a similar amount with help of the U.S. Coast Guard.

Authorities have yet to disclose the exact amount on the second boat as Colombian smugglers sabotaged the vessel and caused it to sink in shallow waters, slowing the narcotics collection.

'Judging by the size of the quantity on the first boat, we expect to find a similar amount on the boat that sank,' said Public Security Minister Fernando Berrocal.

The Costa Rican and U.S. Coast Guards had been searching for the boats after being alerted by U.S. authorities on Saturday evening, Berrocal said.

Traffickers have changed tactics, hugging the Costa Rican coastline in order to avoid detection on the high seas by the U.S. Coast Guard, he added.

The Coast Rican government, with U.S. assistance, has captured 21 tonnes of cocaine this year, compared with 23 tonnes in all of last year."

Labels: central america, cocaine, costa rica, costarica, politics, san jose

Costa Rican president to visit China in October - Asia-Pacific: "Costa Rican President Oscar Arias plans to visit China in October after establishing diplomatic ties with Beijing last month at the expense of decades-long relations with Taiwan.

'The start of the tour is planned in principle for October 21,' a spokeswoman for the president told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

Costa Rica hopes to increase commercial ties with China and find new niches for the Central American country's products. The Costa Rican government is also hoping to spur Chinese investment.

On June 1, Costa Rica ended ties with Taiwan after 63 years. China has since opened a diplomatic delegation in San Jose, headed by future ambassador Wan Xiaoyuan.

China has become one of Costa Rica's main commercial partners and Arias has expressed an interest in negotiating a free trade agreement with China and other Asian nations. Government sources have not ruled out that Arias could also visit India."

Labels: central america, costa rica, costa rica china, costarica, politics, san jose

Mel Gibson Meets With Costa Rican Leader - Forbes.com: "Mel Gibson has met with the president of Costa Rica to discuss making a financial donation to help the country's native Indians.

'He wants to help the indigenous population here and wants to know how to channel the funds,' President Oscar Arias told reporters outside his home, where he met with the 51-year-old actor-director for about an hour Monday.

Arias said Gibson, who directed last year's Mayan epic 'Apocalypto,' would return to Costa Rica next month to arrange details of his donation.

Gibson has avoided the press in prior trips to Costa Rica, but spent a few minutes answering questions from reporters.

He acknowledged buying a house in Guanacaste on the Central American nation's Pacific coast and jokingly asked reporters if they wanted the address.

Gibson starred in the 'Lethal Weapons' movies. His directing credits also include 2004's 'The Passion of the Christ' and 1995's 'Braveheart.'"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, mel gibson costa rica, politics, san jose, travel

American Airlines to Add Service From Fort Lauderdale to San Jose, Costa Rica, and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic: "American Airlines will bolster its Fort Lauderdale (FLL), Fla., schedule on Dec. 13 when it adds new service to San Jose, Costa Rica (SJO), and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (SDQ). Additionally, American will upgrade to larger aircraft on some of its flights between Fort Lauderdale and San Juan, Puerto Rico (SJU), and its flight to Port-au-Prince, Haiti (PAP).

American's new flights from Fort Lauderdale to San Jose and Santo Domingo will feature one daily roundtrip using 148-seat Boeing 737-800 aircraft. American's upgrade of aircraft from Fort Lauderdale to San Juan will include replacing one of its three daily roundtrips with a 267-seat Airbus A300. The other two daily roundtrips between Fort Lauderdale and San Juan will continue to be flown with 188-seat Boeing 757 planes.

In addition, American's once-daily roundtrip between Fort Lauderdale and Port-au-Prince will be upgraded to an Airbus A300 from the current 737-800 aircraft.

'We continue to see increased demand for service from Fort Lauderdale to Latin America and the Caribbean,' said Henry Joyner, American's Senior Vice President - Planning. 'These new flights and larger aircraft will help us provide the service our customers are asking for.'

American Airlines is a founding member of t"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, san jose, travel

: "A recent report by Transparency International and the US-based Carter Center found “deep flaws in the standards and practices governing transparency and accountability in party and campaign financing systems in Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay and Peru.”

“A lack of oversight for private donations, scarce accountability by candidates, unreliable data delivered by parties along with the fact that information about political financing is not made public in most of the countries studied” are the main problems the document pointed out.

“Citizens have no way of knowing who finances candidates and political representatives. The lack of transparency in political financing poses alarming risks of corruption since private donations easily become a channel for buying favors,” said Silke Pfeiffer, regional director for the Americas at Transparency International.

The study found that electoral bodies in Paraguay and the four above-mentioned Central American countries do not receive reports about the private campaign donations or when they do, they are not audited, only recorded.

Reports submitted to electoral bodies in the eight Latin American countries in the study were not reliable or incomplete. The study said less than half of the funds were reported in Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Paraguay."

Labels: central america, costarica, politics, san jose

Four Firms Want in on Centam Refinery - Forbes.com: "Four international firms have shown interest in constructing an oil refinery in Central America, the government said Monday.

The refinery, which will process 360,000 barrels of heavy crude a day, is the linchpin of a regional energy integration plan backed by 10 countries, including Mexico, Central American nations, and Colombia. The project will require a minimum investment of $6 billion.

The companies that have expressed interest in bidding for the project are Ecopetrol, of Colombia; Itochu, of Japan; Reliance, of India; and Valero Energy (nyse: VLO - news - people ), of the United States.

The firms will have the next 12 months to present their construction proposals as well as a suggested location on where to locate the refinery. The governments of Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras and Panama all have said they would like to host the refinery.

Mexico has promised to supply the plant with 80,000 barrels of heavy crude daily from its state-owned oil company, Petroleos de Mexico, or Pemex. In addition, the company that wins the construction bid will be committed to supplying 55,000 barrels a day of gasoline and diesel - 36 percent of regional demand - at preferential prices.

The bids are due in June 2008, according to the Energy Department, which coordinates the governing committee of the so-ca"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, politics, san jose

http://www.sys-con.com/read/399500_p.htm: "The leading small-ship cruise line Cruise West is offering five specialty cruises in the paradise of Costa Rica & Panama this November and December 2007 onboard the 100-guest Pacific Explorer. Whether a photography or history buff, or interested in environmental issues, Cruise West's compelling expert lecturers reveal mysteries and offer a uniquely satisfying learning experience. Guests may also enjoy the holidays Central American style on either the Christmas or New Year's sailings, visiting a warm destination that is family-friendly and offers culture, sea and wildlife. Early booking savings are still available on these voyages with savings of up to $175 for guests who book and pay their trip in full by September 14, 2007.

The eight-day Coast to Canal departure on November 3 features Panama Canal expert and 30-year employee of the canal, Eileen Boyd, who will share her knowledge about the history and future expansion of the canal. Professional photographer and educator Charles Edwards joins the departure on November 10. Amateur photographers and novices who are looking to hone skills will enjoy Edwards' approachable teaching techniques and vast experience in travel photography. His images have been featured in numerous galleries across the country.

Sustainable tourism has become a hot topic in the travel industry, and Cruise West's "

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, san jose, travel

Print Version: "Costa Rica is a land teeming with the paradoxes of its geographical location, bridging North and South America and the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The resulting climate makes it ideal for year-round travel.

The forces of nature are at their spectacular best here, churning out rainforest and volcanoes, great beaches and vistas. The animals and plants of the region are of two great continents. The diversity of flora and fauna, of geography and terrain all come together here in a mere 50,895 square kilometers.

The elevation of much of the county's landmass offsets the tropical setting of its location only 8 degrees north of the equator. Like Hawaii in the Pacific, Costa Rica hosts 10 of the 13 recognized climatic zones as well as local microclimates.

The equatorial position of the country means that throughout the year there is a fairly constant twelve hours of light between sunrise and sunset from 6:00 am each day to 6:00 pm. The county's location also maintains a fairly constant temperature, never varying more than a few degrees on a seasonal basis. If you are traveling from the Northern Hemisphere, you are used to giving due consideration to terms like 'summer' and 'winter'. However, in Costa Rica, the seasons revolve around a dry season, December through April and a wet season May through November. Costa Rica promotes thei"

Labels: central america, costarica, politics, san jose, travel

Online Poker - Pacific Poker hosts Costa Rica WPS qualifier - PokerListings.com: "With great surfing, nightlife and a heavy dose of the 'pura vida' Costa Rica is internationally renowned for, Jaco beach in Costa Rica is a notorious hot spot for travelers the world over.

This October, it'll be a hot spot for great poker on top of it all, with the World Poker Showdown bringing its headlining $2,500 main event to the Jazz Casino in the Amapola Hotel.

And Pacific Poker will be putting one of their players front and center.

Saturday, July 14 at 6:30 p.m. (GMT) they'll be holding a WPS qualifier, offering up a $5,500 prize package - including a seat in the main event, scheduled for Oct 26-28, plus travel expenses.

You can buy-in directly to the qualifier for $50+$5, or satellite your way in from only 75¢.

For all the details, visit Pacific Poker."

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, san jose, travel

Kremlin-Hillsdale FFA student travels from Costa Rica to Washington to Indianapolis over month: "“Agletics” have given Kremlin-Hillsdale High School’s Robert Parrish a chance to travel from Indianapolis to Washington, D.C., to Costa Rica this summer.
The 17-year-old, who prefers agricultural activities to traditional athletics, recently received the National FFA Organization’s national champion honor in grain production and entrepeneurship.
In the past month, Parrish has traveled the country and across the Caribbean Sea to share his knowledge and experiences.
Just over a week ago, Parrish arrived home from Costa Rica, where he traveled with 42 other high school and college students from 16 different states. While he was there, Parrish and three others stayed with a host family, and each shared their agricultural practices with one another.
“It was a neat experience to talk to (the host family) and understand their culture,” said Parrish. “(In Costa Rica) they do everything more by hand. They don’t have the machinery ... and they don’t have much government help.”
Parrish said bananas, coffee, papaya and pineapple were several agricultural staples.
In addition to learning about Costa Rican agriculture, Parrish and his friends, who were mostly in their early 20s, went rafting, visited Arenal Volcano — which erupts daily "

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, politics, san jose, travel

Taipei Times - archives: "Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) said yesterday that the nation's former ambassador to Costa Rica, Wu Tzu-dan (吳子丹), should assume the greatest share of responsibility for the severance of diplomatic relations between the two countries last month.

Lu said that Wu was 'completely in the dark' about the fact that Costa Rica had secretly signed a joint communique with the People's Republic of China to establish diplomatic ties on June 1.

'Strictly speaking, the legislature was too lazy to look into Wu's responsibility in the affair,' Lu told reporters during a flight from the Dominican Republic to Paraguay, the second leg of her three-nation Latin American visit.

Determining whether diplomats have fulfilled their duties and whether they have the skills to deal with foreign affairs are crucial to maintaining Taiwan's foreign relations, Lu said.

Pointing to Wu and his predecessor Mao Kao-wen (毛高文), Lu said that both diplomats were incapable of handling ties with Latin American countries as neither speaks Spanish.

To improve Taiwan's foreign service, Lu proposed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs establish a fair and reasonable system to promote career diplomats and cooperate with local universities to train more Spanish-speaking talent.

Lu outlined two ways to preserve existing dip"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, politics, san jose

Scotsman.com Sport - Football - The Costa of living dangerously: "THEY travelled to the under-20 World Cup in Canada insisting they had the quality to go all the way and win the tournament yet today the Scotland squad will be back on home soil reflecting on a disastrous three matches that left them bottom of their qualifying group without a single point.

Scotland has become accustomed to the hard luck stories of its football teams and we seem to have written the book on glorious failure. However, on this occasion the Tartan Army would have to confess that there was precious little in the way of glory and Scotland were simply second best for much of the tournament. In Sunday morning's game they were chasing a victory and the third-place spot to give themselves a slim chance of qualifying for the last 16 but in the end they, and indeed their opponents, failed as later results sent Costa Rica packing as well.

Archie Gemmill's men, who entered the prestigious competition on the back of finishing as runners-up in the European Championships, turned in woeful displays against Japan and Nigeria in their opening two group F games.

Yet despite an upbeat start, taking the lead through Mark Reynolds, they succumbed to two second-half goals, the second in the 92nd minute with less than 20 seconds of time left, to ensure they wouldn't even end the competition on a high n"

Labels: costa rica, costarica, san jose

Xinhua - English: "A high-ranking official from the Costa Rican Foreign Ministry will visit Beijing to begin the process of setting up an embassy in China within the next few days, Costa Rica's Presidency Minister Rodrigo Arias said on Wednesday.

Arias said there are a large number of potential candidates for the post of Costa Rica's ambassador to China, adding that only Oscar Arias, president of the country, can make that decision.

China and Costa Rica announced last Thursday that they had decided to established diplomatic ties after the Latin American country agreed to break official relations with China's province of Taiwan.

A joint communique, signed on June 1 by Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and his Costa Rican counterpart Bruno Stagno Ugarte, says the two governments, 'in accordance with the interests and aspirations of the peoples of the two countries, agree to establish diplomatic ties at ambassadorial level beginning June 1, 2007.'

'The Costa Rican government recognizes that there is only one China and the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legitimate government representing the whole China. Taiwan is an inalienable part of the Chinese territory,' it says.

Costa Rican President Oscar Arias has said that the establishment of diplomatic relations with China and breaking ties with Taiwan "

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, politics, san jose, travel

Print Story: "A Former Nottingham doctor drowned after getting caught in strong tides during a turtle conservation holiday in Costa Rica, an inquest heard.

Jonathan Wilson, 36, who spent two years working in the city but had moved to Oxford, died in November.

Westminster Coroners' Court heard he lost consciousness as waves crashed down on him and colleague Dr Dave Treffitt.

Dr Treffitt said they had been warned about strong tides but criticised the project leader for not supervising them.

He also said local paramedics did not have the right resuscitation equipment.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, coroner Shirley Radcliffe said she had no power to complain formally about the 'tragedy' but urged Dr Treffitt to take up the issue of poor supervision.

She said: 'There is a high risk to our children going on these courses and some of them aren't run properly.'"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, san jose, travel

: "Carmine Calzonetti brings a personal understanding to Tuesday’s Children, which offers support programs to 9/11 families. A former securities broker, he left his partnership at Cantor Fitzgerald in 2000. One year later, the terrorist attacks destroyed the World Trade Center, and many of his former colleagues lost their lives. Now he takes over the support group in hopes of bringing some relief to children and families in distress.

You suffered quite a loss on 9/11. Did this inspire you to get involved with Tuesday’s Children? Yes, very much so. I was familiar with the organization, I knew people that were employed by the organization and I knew the wonderful things that they did. I just felt, and believed, that this was my calling: to become part of this program.

For you personally, was there anyone that helped you move on from the 9/11 tragedy, as Tuesday’s Children now does for families of victims? It took a long time and I think anyone who witnessed this with friends and co-workers had this incredible sorrow and hollowness in their lives; and it’s ever present. I just spoke to other people that I knew and to my children about it. After a little more than a year, on Christmas night, I went down to Ground Zero – that was the first time that I was there (after 9/11) – and at that moment, I realized I had to move"

"How does your organization address that? Tuesday’s Children has developed programs over the years to aide these children through these moments. We are always looking forward but never forgetting the past. We have programs for career paths for the children; we have golfing, picnics and baseball games. We have programs called creative insight where the mothers go over how they can develop in their life as time moves on. We have programs designated for mothers with young children. We have programs where our children go and volunteer, for example, inCosta Rica and help build homes with the children in Costa Rica. There are many, many programs available."

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, san jose

Print Article: "Dominican Republic still has some 10 commitments pending to fully access the Free Trade Agreement signed with the United States and Central America (DR-CAFTA), and for that reason confronts a situation defined as 'serious' against its other competitors.

Industry and Commerce chief Trade negotiator Vilma Arbaje said yesterday the country must comply with pending issues as soon as possible, including individual commitments with the Central American countries.

Although the country formalized its entry in the DR-CAFTA in March, those diverse pending commitments would prevent the national productive sectors from benefiting.

Among Arbaje cited the rules of origin for textile merchandise and garments, the mutual recognition of sanitary registry for medicines and which currently has only with Honduras, and still pending with Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala and El Salvador.

Also, approval of the list of national and non-national referees of the DR-CAFTA, update of the people in charge of the treaty’s different committees, bilateral negotiation with Costa Rica for chicken breasts and milk, as the agreement stipulates, as well as the exchange of information on validation procedure in the agreement applied to Dominican Republic.

Arbaje, quoted by the newspaper El Dia, said the obstacles also include a “very sensible aspect,"

Labels: cafta, central america, costa rica, costarica, politics, san jose

Salt Lake Tribune - Hook shot: "Shuse Stangl, Salt Lake City: Catching a sailfish can be challenging enough, but Stangl decided to make it even more difficult by fishing for one using an 8-weight fly rod on a trip to Costa Rica. He fought this 80-plus-pound dandy for 1 hour and 45 minutes before this shot was snapped."

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, san jose, travel

Costa Rica: Colombia's Decision Supported: "Costa Rica respects the decision of Colombian authorities to release five Colombian citizens reportedly hired by a Colombian drug cartel to kill Costa Rican Public Security Minister Fernando Berrocal and Presidency Minister Rodrigo Arias, Berrocal said July 3. Colombia released the alleged hit men, whom Costa Rica deported June 30, because they did not face pending criminal charges. Investigations in both countries are still ongoing."

Labels: assassination, central america, costa rica, costarica, politics, san jose, terrorism, travel

George Ratliff Interview, Director of Joshua - MoviesOnline: "MoviesOnline sat down recently with George Ratliff to discuss his new film, 'Joshua,” a gripping suspense thriller about the perfect New York couple, Brad and Abby Cairn (Sam Rockwell and Vera Farmiga), whose lives unravel into total chaos after the arrival of their new baby. They begin to suspect their eccentric 9 year-old son, Joshua (Jacob Kogan), may be responsible for the escalating chain of domestic terror.

Ratliff, a Texas native, began his career in journalism. After graduating from the University of Texas at Austin film program, Ratliff moved to Costa Rica to write for a Central American news magazine and become a correspondent for a Texas newspaper. Since returning to the states, he has written and directed features, shorts, and television programs.

Not surprisingly, 'Joshua” emerged from the mind of a director who has long been fascinated by the psychological machinations of fear. While the film marks Ratliff’s feature debut, he earlier came to the fore with the acclaimed documentary 'Hell House,” which explored the creation of a sinister and graphic haunted house, intended to scare sinners, by a Pentecostal Texas high school.

On the heels of that film, Ratliff wanted to explore the idea of terror and human vulnerability from a more everyday, naturalist point-of-view. The story of 'Joshua"

"Q: What has living in Costa Rica taught you about yourself?

GEORGE RATLIFF: [laughs] Well you know one thing that living in Costa Rica taught me is that America is not that bad. Costa Rica is beautiful. I really love visiting there but it’s a tough place to live. I was only there for 6 months. I had an internship with a very tiny, tiny rag of a news magazine. It was a good experience but it wasn’t that long."

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, movies, san jose, travel

Poker News - Titan Poker dishes out $250 guarantee - PokerListings.com: "There's nothing like a guaranteed prize pool to bring out online poker players from all over the world for a tournament. On Sunday, Titan Poker reeled them in with a $250,000 guaranteed tournament.

The winner was Jose Manuel Gomez Rebenaque from Spain, who took home a $65,000 chunk of change.

Adding to the international flavor of the tournament were the second and third place finishers from Germany and Denmark, respectively.

Heiko Schultz made it to heads-up against Rebenaque where his tournament ended with a second-place finish and a payout of $42,500. Behind him was Ole Langvad who took home $20,000 for third.

They weren't the only recent special event winners at the poker site. Bruno Peyrou from Marseilles, France, also won a $8,000 prize package for the WPS Costa Rica Poker Showdown.

The package includes the $2,650 buy-in for the main event, air fare voucher for two, eight-night hotel accommodation for two, ground transfer and cash.

The next super satellite at Titan Poker for the Costa Rica Poker Showdown will take place Sept. 1 at 8:15 p.m. (GMT). It costs $320+$30 to enter, or interested players can try to win their way into the super satellite through daily qualifiers currently running.

For more information, visit Titan Poker."

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, san jose, travel

Kyle Lardner - Sail Among the Stars - Pop CD Review at TheCelebrityCafe.com: "Kyle Lardner’s “Sail Among the Stars” is a passionate album filled with wild-eyed tracks about the very essence of love. Lardner’s voice starts out timid at times, and then segues into a powerful chant of love not to be denied.

“The Blanket Song” has percussion and piano work in the intro. It has an upbeat flow as Lardner uses the metaphor of being enveloped in layers of adoration: “We were standing on the field of heaven. We didn’t know where this could go we tried to so hard…We were wrapped up in our blanket, we were wrapped up in our love…We were wrapped in the story, wrapped up in the summer heat…You feel so sweet.”

On “Costa Rica” the intro might remind some of the smash hit by Maroon 5 called “This Love,” as this song has a rhythmically similar tone. It also has drums and what sounds like electronic hums that give it a signature sound. On this track, Lardner expounds on the wonders of the Central American country with lines like, “Oh I heard it from a friend and he said that it’s nice…It’s just the roll of the dice. In Costa Rica, Costa Rica. Where the skies are endless blue. In Costa Rica, Costa Rica, in your eyes I get lost with you.” It seems "

Labels: costa rica, costarica, san jose, travel

Taiwanese embassy in Costa Rica closes after 63 years of ties - Asia-Pacific: "The Taiwanese embassy in Costa Rica closed Friday, after 63 years of diplomatic ties ended when San Jose established relations with China on June 1.

'The two peoples have treated each other with sincerity and the friendship has grown day by day,' the embassy said in its farewell statement.

Taiwanese representatives thanked Costa Rica for having supported the island in the past.

'We are convinced that the universal values which both countries share, such as liberty, democracy, peace and human rights, will continue to maintain closely the feelings of fraternity between our peoples,' the statement added.

Costa Rican President Oscar Arias based the decision to drop relations with Taiwan for China on 'realism,' given the current weight of the Asian giant in the global economy.

Taiwan, seat of the exiled Republic of China since the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949, is now recognized by only 24 mostly- small nations, half of them in Latin America.

While Taipei has no objection to dual recognition of China and Taiwan, Beijing insists that its allies drop all formal ties with what it regards as a renegade province."

Labels: central america, costa rica, costa rica real estate, costarica, politics, san jose, taiwan costa rica, travel

Scotsman.com Sport - Lynch prays for the call to aid Scotland: "HIBS kid Sean Lynch has revealed he is hoping to get the nod to try to resurrect Scotland's under-20 World Cup hopes against Costa Rica this weekend.

The defensive midfielder has yet to play a single minute of the tournament in Canada and has had to content himself with being an unused substitute against Japan and Nigeria. However, Kilmarnock midfielder Jamie Adams is suspended for Sunday morning's clash with Costa Rica after picking up two bookings leaving the door open for Lynch to become involved.

The tie is a 'must win' match for the Scots if they are to finish third in Group F and keep alive their fading hopes of making it to the knock-out stages as one of the four best-placed teams finishing in third.

And Lynch insisted he is ready and willing to answer the call to play in the crunch match in Burnaby, just outside Vancouver, if he is given the nod by team manager Archie Gemmill and head coach Tommy Wilson.

'Of course I want to play, that's why I'm here,' said Lynch, who impressed in a handful of appearances for the Hibs first team last season.

'Obviously it's up to the gaffer what he wants to do and I'm not sure what his thoughts are but I'm here and ready if he decides to use me.

'I don't know if he will be planning to mix things up a bit b"

Labels: costa rica, costarica, san jose

Today's News - Online Daily Update to The Tico Times Weekly Edition Newspaper - Costa Rica's Best Journalistic New Source: "Fret not if you can't make it to Saturday's Live Earth event, a 24-hour, seven-continent concert series promoting environmental protection and conservation. Eight hours of it will be broadcast live on Costa Rica's RadioDos, 99.5 FM, tomorrow starting at 11 a.m.

Live Earth will feature more than 100 music artists, including high-profile names such as Madonna, Dave Matthews, Genesis and The Police. The event was founded by Kevin Wall, the worldwide executive producer of Live 8, another series of concurrent benefit concerts that took place in 2005 in the member nations of the G8.

RadioDos advertisements promoting environmental awareness in Costa Rica will also run on the station during the broadcast of Live Earth. RadioDos is the only radio station in Costa Rica that will be broadcasting the event.

For more information on Live Earth, visit www.liveearth.org. For more on Radio Dos, visit www.radiodos.com."

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, san jose

Two surfers venture to Costa Rica for 'the pure life' -- OrlandoSentinel.com: "For many surfers, surfing's more a lifestyle than a sport. Unlike softball, tennis, golf or any of those other sports, surfing is different from the get-go.

If you don't surf, you probably don't understand why it's different.

My 19-year-old son, Jacob, has been surfing since before he was 5 years old.

'It's actually two-in-one. You need to be an athlete, but you really need to live within close distance of the beach. You must be physically able and mentally prepared to catch waves. You need to be committed to surfing; drop whatever you're doing to go surfing.'

In today's world, this is a difficult task for anyone who is trying to maintain a reasonable schedule, hold down a job or raise a family.

This is one of the reasons surfers travel to affordable places where they can ride consistent, quality surf. For years, Florida's surf crowd has been traveling to Costa Rica and Central America for this very reason.

Along with its tropical beauty, abundant wildlife and undeveloped beaches -- the price is right!

In general, the people are kindhearted and helpful.

One example: Hitchhiking is still a popular method of transportation in Costa Rica (I personally stopped hitchhiking to surf at Florida's beaches during the mid-1970s).

My partne"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, travel

Today's News - Online Daily Update to The Tico Times Weekly Edition Newspaper - Costa Rica's Best Journalistic New Source: "By the year 2011, energy from another of Costa Rica's volcanoes could be powering homes and businesses under a plan by the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) to build another geothermal energy plant in the northwestern Guanacaste province.

The project just came one step closer to becoming a reality when the Comptroller General's Office gave the green light for the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) to finance the construction of the plant on the outskirts of Rincón de la Vieja Volcano, according to a statement from the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE).

The project, called Las Pailas, is expected to be operating by 2011 and have the capacity to produce 35 megawatts of electricity per hour.

CABEI plans to invest $160 million to build the plant in four years and “rent” it to ICE during a 12-year period, during which ICE has the option to purchase it.

Under the contract, ICE is responsible for the plant's construction, which involves tapping into geothermal sources and installing the necessary tubing to harvest this energy.

Geothermal power, considered a “clean” form of energy, is more environmentally friendly and readily available than conventional, petroleum-derived energy, the statement said.

"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costa rica real estate, costarica, politics, san jose

Online Daily update to The Tico Times Weekly Edition Newspaper, Report Highlights Problems In Education for the Disabled, Limón Turtles Saved By National Police, Businesses Ready to Hire In: "During the next few weeks, residents in Costa Rica will see a 5-8.5% increase in their electricity bills thanks to a rate increase approved yesterday by the Public Services Regulatory Authority (ARESEP).

The amount of the increase depends on each user's electricity provider. For example, those who receive power from the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) will pay 7.92% more while those who receive it from the National Power and Light Company (CNFL) will pay 6.97% more.

In rural areas including Los Santos, south of San José; San Carlos, in north-central Costa Rica; and parts of the northwestern Guanacaste province, users of cooperative energy providers will pay 5.4-7.9% more.

ARESEP sent these new tariffs yesterday to the National Printer, and they will go into effect as soon as they are printed in the official government daily La Gaceta."

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, politics, san jose

Business News Americas - Latin America's Business Information Leader: "Costa Rica's national concessions council CNC and international highway consortium Autopistas del Sol will resubmit by the end of the month an addendum to a concession for the San José-Caldera highway, CNC project director Estephan Brunner told BNamericas.

National comptroller CGR is then expected to decide on the addendum by end-August, and if approved, two weeks later Autopistas del Sol would begin works on the second, 38km section - between the Colón and Orotina municipalities - of the 77km, three-section highway, said Brunner.

The addendum deals with seven conditions for works to begin under the highway concession, including the creation of a trust consisting of 100% of shares in Autopistas del Sol, to provide a guarantee on finance for the project from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (Cabei) and Spain's Caja de Madrid, said the project director.

Under the addendum, if the concessionaire did not make its loan repayments to the banks, its shares would come under possession of the trust, which would have six months to find a new company to either finish the section two works, or continue with operations on the highway for the remainder of the concession if construction is already finished, Brunner added.

The addendum also includes a specification of the "

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, politics, san jose

Falls Church News-Press - Down on Drinks: Costa Rican Treat Elusive: "A reader e-mailed me for help in locating guaro, a sugar cane-based liquor from Costa Rica.

'I saw a posting you made regarding ... guaro. After trying it in Costa Rica, I have been trying to locate it here. I live in Florida, but travel to California frequently. Please let me know if there is anywhere I can purchase guaro. Thank you.'

Guaro is an elusive liquor to purchase in the States. A year ago, I introduced my readers to S Guaro, a 70-proof liquor that was the first American branding for the pure cane sugar liquor that usually sells for under $20 for a 750ml bottle.

Like vodka in Poland and Russia and tequila in Mexico, the clear, odorless spirit once was the province of the poor drinker. However, fancier bottling and additional filtering have raised both its image and its popularity among tourists.

Guaro tastes like a vodka more than anything else, and its distributors recommend it as part of a mixed drink rather than straight.

It began in the U.S. as essentially a California drink, with a marketing campaign by distributor S Spirits of Malibu that began by creating a word-of-mouth buzz from serving guaro at parties orbiting the Golden Globes, Grammy and Academy Awards shows. The thought was that such a campaign worked a year earlier for Hpnotiq"

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, san jose, travel

Today's News - Online Daily Update to The Tico Times Weekly Edition Newspaper - Costa Rica's Best Journalistic New Source: "A Costa Rican citizen identified as Norman Medina, accused of sexually abusing a child, was arrested Friday at his home in the U.S. town of East Hampton, New York, according to a statement released yesterday by the international police agency Interpol.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, together with Costa Rican Interpol officials, located Medina, a former police officer, after a judge in the Pacific port of Puntarenas issued an international warrant for his arrest in October 2006.

Investigations revealed he entered the United States legally in December 2006 with a temporary tourist visa, the statement said. Medina faces deportation to Costa Rica."

Labels: central america, costa rica, costarica, politics, san jose