Pura Vida Ya'll

The Casa at Playa Blanca--now available for rent or puchase

2011-06-26T10:49:00.002-05:00

Here's another option if you're looking for a vacation, or even retirement, home in Costa Rica. The Casa a Playa Blanca is a private and gated beachfront estate just north of the Iguanazul Hotel in Junquillal. It is the only vacation rental that directly borders Playa Blanca, and you'll find the rental rates very attractive. Learn more and start the reservation process at Junquillal Beach House.

Junquillal December 29, 2010

2010-12-30T06:09:00.000-06:00

Former Costa Rica Ambassador Proposes Latin America Agenda For Obama

2010-12-22T16:11:00.001-06:00

I am not often in agreement with positions taken by The Hudson Institute. However, the conservative think tank's Jaime Daremblum, who served as Costa Rica’s ambassador to the United States from 1998 to 2004, has outlined a policy the U.S. should consider in Latin America. The following was published yesterday in The Weekly Standard:

A Latin America Agenda for Obama: Seven things the president should do in 2011.

Jaime Daremblum

December 21, 2010

Nearly two years have passed since his inauguration, and President Obama has yet to unveil a major policy initiative for Latin America. Regional officials are hoping that Obama ends this neglect in 2011 and increases U.S. engagement. Here are seven ways in which his administration could demonstrate its commitment to Latin America.

(1) Convince Nicaragua to end its illegal occupation of Costa Rica. Several weeks ago, in the midst of a river-dredging project, Nicaraguan troops invaded Costa Rican territory and began occupying Calero Island (which is located in the San Juan River). The Organization of American States (OAS) has demanded their withdrawal, only to be rebuffed by President Daniel Ortega. So far, the U.S. response has been dismayingly weak. By tolerating Nicaraguan military aggression, we are emboldening the Sandinista government and sending a dangerous signal about the lack of U.S. leadership in the region.

It’s past time for Hillary Clinton and other U.S. diplomats to get tough. They should sternly inform the Nicaraguan regime that continuing to occupy Costa Rican territory will affect its access to future economic aid and jeopardize its participation in Central American free-trade agreements.

Read the full article here:

The Weekly Standard--A Latin Ameria Agenda for Obama

Why Costa Rica is the happiest nation on earth?

2010-09-07T13:47:00.000-05:00

Nic Marks, a statistician by trade, makes a compelling statement on the relationship between environmental stewardship and happiness.

In this video he states, "...the ultimate outcome of a nation is how successful is it at creating happy and healthy lives for its citizens. That should be the goal of every nation on the planet. But we have to remember that there's a fundamental input to that, and that is how many of the planet's resources we use. We all have one planet. We all have to share it. It is the ultimate scarce resource, the one planet that we share."

A nation, he argues, should strive to be a place "where good lives don't cost the earth."

According to Marks and the Happy Planet Index, the county that rates the highest in happiness is...Costa Rica

Ceviche recipe

2010-01-17T09:48:00.002-06:00

Here’s my favorite ceviche recipe. I found it at www.costaricaparents.com. I use both fish and small shrimp.

Ingredients you will need:

2 lbs fresh sea bass, tilapia or other Fish cut into 1/2-inch cube

½ cup lemon juice, freshly squeezed

1 ½ cups lime juice, freshly squeezed

½ cup red bell peppers, minced

½ cup purple onion, chopped

2 medium Serrano peppers, chopped.

1 red sweet banana pepper, chopped.

½ cup parsley, finely chopped

1 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped

½ cup vegetable or olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Optional ingredients - Shrimp, Avocado, Garlic

How to make it:

Place the fish in a stainless steel or glass bowl. Pour lime and lemon juices over the fish. Cover and let it sit for 1 hour. Add onions, red bell peppers, parsley, and cilantro. Mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or more before serving.

Add olive or vegetable oil, and salt and pepper to taste before serving.

Serve on a bed of lettuce, with saltine crackers or with tortilla chips and lime wedges.

Junquillal, Costa Rica offers a refreshing response to the challenge of climate change

2010-01-15T05:36:00.001-06:00

The WWF leatherback turtle project in Junquillal, Costa Rica, a community-based conservation project led by Dr. Gabriel Francia, is pioneering work on mitigation and adaptation of climate change impacts to the nesting sites and the local people. The people of Junquillal recognize the real threat of climate change and are taking positive action. More to come later on how you can help.

In search of the best ceviche

2010-01-12T15:30:00.001-06:00

While enjoying a cold Imperial at the Playa Hermosa beachfront cafe of the Hotel el Velero, I met a delightful young couple from Denver. As we shared stories of where we'd been and what we'd experienced in Costa Rica, the discussion turned to ceviche. It seems they had been on a mission to find the best ceviche in the country and were listing their findings. While I had not been so diligent as to catalog my preferences from among the many cafes and sodas where I had dined, I knew that what I had enjoyed earlier in the day at the Restaurant Coco Mar was truly outstanding and worthy of a strong recommendation. Coco Mar is easy to find. It's directly on the Playa del Coco on the right at the end of the main road into Coco. Look for the gaudy sign pictured above.

Update on Jess's work in Nicaragau

2009-07-30T08:54:00.006-05:00

Anita Zelek provided the following update on the work Jess and Mike Zelek have been doing this summer in Nicaragua.

Mike sends his greetings and his appreciation for your encouragement, prayers, and donations. Please do keep him in your prayers for his health and safety and that he will be able to do the work that he is there to do. He is grateful for everyone's support in any and all forms. The following is some of the latest news on his projects: research, health and nutrition, and hosting visiting groups. In some ways, these all overlap with each other.

Research: Mike's friend from high school, Jess, is now a grad student in epidemiology at UNC. She is currently involved in a research collaboration between UNC and the medical school in León, Nicaragua. Their project is in the northeast, Caribbean, side of the country in a very remote area which was devastated by a hurricane. It's an area that is accessed by canoe, after a very long bus ride. They have no access to computers or telephones. They are doing research on how the inhabitants' health has fared since the hurricane. Jess is there now.

However, Jess also wanted to do some research related to the health and nutrition of families of the children served by Fabretto Foundation in the area of the impoverished town, Cusmapa. So she spent an extra month in Nicaragua. Also the directors of Fabretto had wanted to do a study of the educational levels of the mothers to see if higher educational levels among the mothers translates to lesser incidence of malnutrition in the children. However Fabretto did not have funding to conduct a study.

Jess and Mike met with the Fabretto folks, who also arranged for them to meet for consultation with a USAID Foreign Service Officer, who has a background in epidemiology. They developed a 54-item survey which was a combination of health, education and nutrition questions. In order to reach as many families as possible in one week's time, Mike recruited the help of some volunteers, SAT (Rural Tutorial Learning System) teachers, who go out into communities where there are no schools and teach high school.

Ten researchers in all, Jess, Mike, the SAT teachers, and some scholarship college students, administered the survey to 250 households in 21 communities, 19 of which are served by Fabretto, in and around Cusmapa, the areas where Mike has been searching for sick children and working on getting them to healthcare services.

They rode in the Fabretto pick-up truck as far as they could and then walked several hours per day to the homes which are scattered about the countryside. Since Fabretto only feeds children at school and would like to be able to get grants to feed younger children, they need data pertaining to the needs of younger children. So the surveys focused on children less than 5 years old. They were able to obtain data on 247 children.

Observations: The families were very welcoming and hospitable, even to foreign strangers. The mothers allowed them to handle and weigh their babies. (Mike had gotten the Red Cross to let them borrow scales.) Jess told me that because Mike has spent much time in these communities, it sometimes took him longer to administer surveys because the families wanted to tell him all of their problems. And some families wanted to complain that he wasn't fixing those problems!

The Fabretto truck delivers food and SAT text books to drop-off points for the extremely rural schools. The father's come on foot to meet the truck to pick up the food to carry it to the schools for the kids' lunches, walking for hours each way.

Jess found Mike's help with the logistics, knowledge of the culture and how to get around in the surrounding area, and his persistence (refusal to take "No" for an answer when they needed to obtain supplies or resources) to be very beneficial. She evaluated the data and presented her findings to Fabretto.

Making a difference: Because of this project, a severely malnourished 4-year-old boy, Gabriel, was found by one of the SAT teachers. Fabretto started sending food, which a high school boy in the area to take to Gabriel daily. Also Mike contacted the public health authorities, who have gotten Gabriel admitted to the hospital in Somoto to boost his nutrition. Mike has been able to visit Gabriel in the hospital. (Gabriel's story with a photo) is now on Mike's Razoo website.

Hosting Visiting Groups: There have recently been several American groups of visiting volunteers, who operate out of the Fabretto house in Cusmapa. Mike helps with their programming and assisting Nora, the housekeeper, with the cooking, Tonight I talked to Nora, whom we met last year when we were in Cusmapa. She looks on Mike as a son and has taught him to cook "comidas Nicaragüensas." He, in turn, has taught her Chicken Tetrazzini and Thai dishes. The groups have been helpful with construction projects, teaching, and other humanitarian activities.

A recent group from a Catholic church in Chicago gave Mike some money, with which Mike has bought beds for Gabriel and his mother. A group from a Unitarian church in Tucson has been there for a month helping in various ways. They had a birthday party for Mike (July 10th) complete with a "white on white" birthday cake with buttercream icing, as he requested.

Health: Paralyzed 10-year-old Martín remains in the rehab hospital in Managua. Thanks to this program, both of his parents have been able to be with him at different times there. Fatíma, who has kidney disease, is doing better.

Nutrition: The improved school lunches, including more fresh produce, have been implemented and all money donated through the Razoo nutrition link goes directly to the Fabretto food budget.

Thanks again for all of your support and prayers.

I include the razoo links in case you want to be able to see Gabriel's story or be able to check on updates for either program in the future.

For Medical Cases:

For the lunch program:

Take care,
Anita Zelek

Fabretto Children's Foundation

Mike Zelek's Video--Fabretto Children's Choir and Life in Cusmapa

Costa Rica May 2007

2007-05-25T12:09:00.001-05:00

Paradise in Pictures

Traffic jam between Santa Cruz and Paraiso

Beach behind our villas at high tide

Everyone enjoys each day's sunset.

Turtle who couldn't find his way to the ocean.

Downtown Santa Cruz

Snapper dinner

After the daily rain.

A tribute to a wonderful dog

2007-02-26T05:54:00.004-06:00

A great American songwriter

2007-02-08T21:50:00.000-06:00

Dan Tyler's music is poetry in motion. His songs and style portray stories of life and capture a philosophy othe good life. Plus, he's a helluva good guy.

Listen at this link and then go buy his work:

http://www.dantyler.net/music.html

For a great song about Costa Rica, click on the "I Hope" CD.

More Costa Rica Photos

2007-02-07T19:43:00.000-06:00

In an earlier post, I included photos from the area around Junquillal. After leaving Junquillal, I visited the fishing/diving village of Playas del Coco, which is about 20km from the Liberia airport.

Coco attracts tourists from Costa Rica and abroad who are into waterports--fishing, boating and diving--by day and who want lots of night life. There are several nice hotels and very good restaurants. I enjoyed my time there, but....I tend to like the peace, quiet and unspoiled nature of less developed areas further down the Pacific coast.

The harbor at Playas del Coco

"Downtown Coco"

The guard at my hotel. The weapon resembles a sawed-off shotgun. But, he was a very nice guy.

I offered him money to carefully watch my car, but all he wanted was a cigarette.

Taylor Pushes Much Needed Insurance Reform

2007-02-05T05:11:00.000-06:00

Mississippi Congressman Gene Taylor, one of the most decent, honest, articulate and courageous elected officials in the U.S., continues the fight against BIG insurance. Taylor is a Democrat who consistently wins landslide re-elections in one of the nation's most conservative districts. When George W. Bush attempted to give Social Security to Wall Street, Taylor was one of the most eloquent voices of opposition, and he has been steadfast in his opposition to W's failed approach to Iraq. The Democrat nominee for President in 08 would be wise to strongly consider Taylor as a VP running mate.

This from the Biloxi Sun Herald:

For Congressman Gene Taylor, a national all-perils insurance program is . . . A VISION TO MATCH THE VIEW

No community can survive without access to affordable property insurance. That is why Rep. Gene Taylor, D-Miss., has dedicated himself to helping establish a national all-perils insurance program.

The lack of access to affordable insurance has reached crisis proportions in South Mississippi since Hurricane Katrina. But, as Taylor told the Sun Herald on Friday, the situation is now spreading down the Atlantic seaboard, from Connecticut to the Carolinas to Florida.

Taylor's solution is to expand the National Flood Insurance Program to cover all natural disasters and, initially, make it available to property owners along the Gulf and Atlantic shorelines.

"It has to happen," says Taylor.

If other regions of the nation choose to join the program - to better insure themselves against earthquakes or other natural calamities - then Taylor says they should be welcomed into the program.

But initially, Taylor simply wants to safeguard residents on or near the nation's shorelines, where more than half of all Americans live.

"If you ask for too much, you usually wind up with too little," Taylor said of congressional proposals.

Taylor believes he has a natural - and powerful - ally in Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss.

Both lost their homes to Hurricane Katrina. Both have chosen to sue their private insurers over the handling - or mishandling - of their claims. Both understand the need to reform the insurance industry.

"We know it to be true because we've been through it," Taylor said of the horror stories he and Lott have heard from constituents about their insurance claims.

Taylor will continue to advance his reform agenda at congressional hearings this month and next.

His testimony will carry the added credibility of his having chaired the Hurricane Katrina Task Force last year. In October, that task force (on which Rep. Charlie Melancon, D-La., served as vice-chairman) made its recommendations to Congress, including these three:

Repeal the federal antitrust exemption as it relates to price-fixing, bid-rigging, or market allocation in the market for property insurance. The Katrina Task Force seeks to prohibit commercial insurers in the market for property insurance from any form of price-fixing, bid-rigging, or market allocation. It seeks to prohibit insurers in the market for property insurance from engaging in concerted activity to deny compensation to policyholders through restrictive and unwarranted interpretations of policies. It also seeks to prohibit concerted activity by insurers in the market for property insurance to limit the scope of policies and compensation.

Establish all-perils disaster insurance coverage backed by the federal government. The segmented insurance market leaves gaps in coverage that result in widespread uninsured losses from natural catastrophes, especially from flooding, earthquakes, and other perils commonly excluded by private property insurance. Private insurers can shift responsibility for hurricane losses to property owners, the National Flood Insurance Program and relief programs by attributing damages to water rather than wind. Any effort to provide a federal backstop for insurance losses should insist on elimination of the exclusions and gaps in coverage.

Rather than providing relief aid after the fact, the federal government should establish a reinsurance program that assesses the cost of catastrophic risks and collects premiums before such events occur. The program would provide reinsurance to the all-perils insurance coverage and would be triggered by large-scale natural catastrophes.

The federal program should encourage state efforts to provide catastrophe insurance programs by providing reinsurance for state insurance funds. When states are stakeholders in insurance risk, they have incentives to implement and enforce zoning codes, building standards, and mitigation efforts to minimize disaster losses.

Establish stronger federal oversight of property insurance practices.

Congress should establish federal authority to conduct oversight of property insurance practices. When insurance companies stop issuing policies in New York because of claims in Mississippi and Louisiana, the industry cannot reasonably claim that property insurance is not interstate commerce. The government has assumed responsibility for insuring risks that the insurance industry refuses to cover, such as flooding. The federal government also provides disaster assistance to offset the uncovered losses of individuals, businesses, and communities. Since federal taxpayers are forced to fill the gaps left by property insurance, Congress and the federal government have an obligation to perform diligent oversight of the industry.

All three of these recommendations deserve the attention and action of Congress.

The consequences of Katrina are being felt in the pocketbooks of consumers far beyond the reach of the hurricane's winds or storm surge. The same will be true of the next catastrophic storm to come out of the Gulf or the Atlantic.

Nothing can be done to calm the winds or turn back the surge of a hurricane. But much can and should be done to help people bounce back from the ravages of nature.

Junquillal 2007

2007-01-29T14:26:00.001-06:00

I'm back in the USA after a much needed Pura Vida fix in Costa Rica.

My favorite destination there, and probably anywhere, is Playa Junquillal, which is about 70 kilometers from the Liberia airport. All but 16 kilometers are on paved roads. But, those 16 account for about half of the drive. Unless, you have previously been to Junquillal and and know what awaits, this road is enough to make you want to turn around and go elsewhere. The "gravel" is actually small boulders. Pot holes can break axles. Horses, livestock and children clearly have the right-of-way. It is not uncommon to see three vehicles, side-by-side, coming toward you from the other direction. It is literally bone-and-butt-jarring. Not to mention the dust that blinds you when other cars pass and the constant fear that a rock will fly through your windshield, doing damage that in Costa Rica would cost almost $2,000 to your economy sized rental SUV. (In Costa Rica, the insurance for rental cars usually is as much as the daily rental rate, and you're still not covered for everything. So that adds a little to the tension of driving.)

The most awaited landmark is the entry to Paraiso because then you know there are only 5 more kilometers to go.

Welcome to Paradise

As you enter Junquillal, a sign on the left makes the turn into the Guacamaya Lodge , my favorite hotel in Costa Rica. In addition to outstanding service, the restaurant is superb.

The cabinas

After checking in and having an Imperial at the Guacamaya bar, I dumped my gear in the cabina and headed to Rudy's to watch the second half of the Saints-Bears NFL playoff game. Rudy's is a relatively new restaurant/bar and is owned by Steve, an ex-pat from Florida. Steve, his wife Georgiana and bartender Gabriel, have made Rudy's a must stop for either breakfast, lunch or dinner. Plus, they are eager to provide guidance on what to do and other information about the area. Beers are cold and only about $1.40, and the daily menu board always has great food. My first tasting on this trip was a shrimp taco that was the best I've had anywhere. Another evening, I returned for Steve's fried corvina dinner special. It was incredible. The only problem was the portions were so huge that not even I could finish anything, except the Imperial or Pilsen cervazas.

Friendly staff and patrons at Rudy's. Gabriel is rear right.

I spent the next days hiking, doing some work thanks to the wireless Internet service at the Iguanazul Hotel (I did not mooch the service--I always ordered food and/or drink) and getting reacquainted with old friends and making new ones. Junquillal has the type of community spirit and neighborly interaction that urban planners and sociologists strive for, but rarely attain. The village population is a combination of Swiss, German, Italian, Canadian and U.S. ex-pats, as well as the native Ticos and the long-term tourists who come back year after year, many staying for several months at a time. From the Tico laborer to the wealthiest investor, you cannot help but be impressed by their expressions of pride in the community and the respect they hold for their neighbors and visitors.

Anyway, here are some photos (double-click on any photo to enlarge). Notice how crowded the beaches are, even in the "high" tourist season.

A daily ritual in Junquillal is to gather at the Iguanazul Hotel bar for "sunset". Not "happy hour." When finishing a meeting or conversation with someone anytime after lunch, they don't say "hasta luego" upon leaving, they say, "I'll see you at sunset."

Special thanks to Alice and Bernie, the splendid hosts and owners of the Guacamaya Lodge, and my good friends Dave and Lisa for their hospitality and kindness during my visit. Lisa continues to publish America's favorite political humor website, All Hat No Cattle and Dave is editor of Costa Rica's best and largest circulated English language newspaper.

More later...