The Howler
Volume 17, No. 3 Issue No. 186
TAMARINDO COSTA RICA www.howlermag.com THE HOWLER Ced. Juridica: 3-101-331333
Publisher, editor and production David Mills
Howler • Mono Congo
Bistro Langosta has reopened and is serving international and Argentinian dishes.
CONTRIBUTORS
With all the doom and gloom prophesies, mostly by the uninformed, we wonder if we will ever see 2013/
13 Doomsday - Fact or Fantasy?
JEANNE CALLAHAN JESSE BISHOP MARY BYERLY CYNTHIA CHARPENTIER ROBERT AUGUST
Deadline for April: March 15 Howler advertising
The Howler offers a wide range of advertising sizes and formats to suit all needs. Contact David Mills • dmills@racsa.co.cr
Advertising rates & sizes
1/8 1/4 1/3 1/2 Full
8 Dining Out
dmills@racsa.co.cr Tel: 2-653-0545 ELLEN ZOE GOLDEN TONY OREZ TOM PEIFER JEFFREY WHITLOW MONICA RIASCOS KAY DODGE
Size
FEATURES
Dimensions (cms) Width Height 9.4 9.4 19.2 6.3 9.4 19.2 19.2
x x x x x x x
6.15 12.70 6.15 25.80 25.80 12.70 25.80
Price $
14 Around Town
Openings, closings, parties, music. The Gold Coast has it all, and bar-hoppin’ David is in the groove.
15 Surf Report
Media guru Carlos Brenes, director of the National Tour of Surfing and a judge on the International Surf Association is interviewed.
27
Dreams Become Reality
A couple tour Guanacaste looking for property, but their views on what they want are totally opposed.
26 Surviving Costa Rica
A very challenging aspect of Costa Rican life is the purchase of a car, and our columnist wastes several days to not buy a car.
27 Gardening the Forest
Agroforestry does for forests what gardening does for gardens. Sounds simple, but it really isn’t.
75 120 150 210 400
Discounts For 6 months, paid in advance, one month is deducted. For 12 months, paid in advance, two months are deducted. Ads must be submitted on CD or e-mail attachment, JPG or PDF format at 266 dpi, at the appropriate size (above).
DEPARTMENTS 9 Slice of Life
22 Yoga
10 CD Review
24 March Forecasts
11 Book Review
25 Parents’ Corner
12 August Odysseys
28 Sun & Moon
16 Word Puzzle
31 Tide Chart
20 Doctor’s Orders
All comments, articles and advertising in this publication are the opinion of their authors, and do not reflect the opinion of Howler Management.
www.tamarindobeach.net
www.tamarindohomepage.com
Cover Caption: Playa Grande is the subject of a new law designed to protect Leatherback turtles. Cover Photo: David Mills Cover Design: David Mills
¡Fiesta!
Summer is Fiesta Time! From October to May every town and village holds its community party with typical foods, loud music and all-night dancing, clowns, parades, brass bands, bombetas and the famous “bullfights”. Often a fairground with ancient rides. And usually on the Sunday a tope, a horse parade with up to 300 dressedup riders on their dressed-up steeds (photos). Fiestas normally run from Thursday until Monday. The town of Villarreal, just outside Tamarindo, holds its Fiestas Patronales between March 11 and 19. This year celebrates the 100th anniversary of these fiestas. From the 11th to 13th are cultural activities. The fiesta starts on the 14 th with the Baile de Polvo that opens the events. This “Dust Dance” celebrates its twentieth anniversary. Each day there is the rodeo-style bullfight beloved of the Ticos, followed by a dance to various local or national bands. Typical food and beverages are available each day, and there is a fairground with dodgems and carousels. Tourists are invited to come along and join the locals in their annual party which raises funds for community projects.
Cabalgata Luna y Mar The annual cabalgata Luna y Mar starts from Tempate March 8th at 5 p.m., to celebrate the full moon and the ocean. The ride down the mountain ends with a party at Potrero Beach. Entrance is free, just bring your horse.
C
osta Rica’s official voice, La Gaceta, recently published decree No. 36918, which deals with new laws referring to the Parque Nacional Marina Las Baulas de Guanacaste, the national park in which many of Howler’s readers live. The law applies to the beaches between Cabo Velas in the North to Playa Langosta to the South. (Note: Playa Langosta is, officially, the beach that stretches south starting at the estuary adjacent to Hotel Barceló, not the heavily populated beach north of the hotel, which is actually Playa San Francisco). The beach in Tamarindo is not included in the law, probably because it is a “lost cause” and too developed to be subjected to the new law, so the affected beaches are Carbon, Ventanas, Grande, San Francisco and Langosta. Limits of the National Park may be seen by going to Google Earth and clicking “ocean”. The law, which contains seven chapters, may be read at www.gaceta.go.cr/pub/2012/02/07/ COMP_07_02_2012.html#_Toc316288478. It lays out the restrictions designed to protect the nesting Leatherback Turtles, their nests and offspring. Among the restrictions are: • No motorized vehicles • No outboard motors • No bonfires • No dogs, cats, horses or other pets • No surf tournaments during nesting season (Oct. 1 to March 15). • All houses and hotels to have only yellow or red lights, shielded so as not to be visible from the beach • No removal of eggs, baby turtles, shells, stones… So the new law will affect many residents of the Gold Coast. However, we know from experience, that it will not be enforced. Ironically, some of the same scientists named in the Law told us a few years ago that 95 percent of leatherback deaths occur in the open ocean as a result of commercial fishing. So this new law, even if totally enforced, may save a minuscule percentage of turtles.
•
•
•
•
•
COPA Airlines announced that it will offer a service between Panama and Liberia starting June 24. Two flights per week – Thursday and Sunday – will connect Costa Rica with many destinations in South America. Flights will leave Panama 9:52 a.m., arriving Liberia 10:23; from Liberia at 11:25 a.m. arriving Panama 1:58 p.m.
Blue River The Perfect Mountain Resort
J
ust two hours drive from Tamarindo is the unspoiled mountain retreat of Blue River Resort and Hot Springs, famous for its hot volcanic springs and many associated activities such as hot pools, water slide, mud baths and private waterfall. In addition there are wildlife areas featuring a butterfly garden with the famous Blue Morpho butterfly, botanical gardens with over 800 varieties of plants and flowers, humming-bird garden and ponds with frogs, tropical fish and turtles. The resort offers spacious air-conditioned accommodations in comfortable surroundings with queen-size beds, security box, coffee maker, satellite TV. Guests can enjoy relaxation in the hot pools, spa, dry and wet sauna or participate in any of the available ecotours including horseback riding to the waterfall and swimming holes in the beautiful blue river, Río Celeste, or zip-lining with nine lines up to 600 meters and a Tarzan swing. For your dining enjoyment, the Tiki Bar and Restaurant, surrounded by water, features delicious international and local cuisine and exotic drinks.
Come to Blue River for a day or a week and pamper yourself with the ultimate in relaxed, intimate luxury. You will feel the healthy effects of the hot mineral springs on body and mind, the thrill as you shoot down the “bullet” waterslide. The stress drifts away as you use the spa, sauna and mud baths or work out in the fully equipped gymnasium. For the best time of your Costa Rica vacation, call 2206-5000 / 2206-5506 / 2206-5705 or e-mail info@bluerivercr. com. Visit web site at www.bluerivercr. com. See ad on page 21.
B
istro Langosta is back in business again after a prolonged hiatus, and it is better than ever, and doing good business as a result. New owner Mario del Mastro is Argentinian, and offers a fine selection of his country’s cuisine, prepared by chef Alejo Catdevila. Although it is out in Langosta, it is worth the drive, and the road is in pretty good condition during the current summer season. Ambience at the Bistro is unchanged, always comfortable, open-air and in a quiet neighbourhood away from heavy traffic. We sat at the long bar and enjoyed a cocktail while deciding which table would give the best view of the group that would be playing later. Appetizers include: garlic shrimp; chicken strips with balsamic reduction; mushroom bruschetta; lobster croquettes with spicy tomato sauce; fried calamari; and a couple of salads. We chose Caesar salad well-laced with chicken, and Argentine beef empanadas, four small tasty pies. Pastas, home-made, include spinach tagliatelle with seafood and lamb ravioli with mushroom sauce. For our plato fuerte we chose fish of the day (mahi-mahi) tender and flaky with fries and vegetables, and rib-eye of beef, juicy and perfectly broiled to my order, with baked sliced potatoes. Other options were New York steak with criolla sauce or Philly Cheese steak with fries. All the wines are Argentinian or Chilean. We ordered a bottle of Chilean Malbec, delicious and fruity as always. Dessert tempts with mousse de maracuya, mango cheese cake and our selection, chocolate temptation. All our choices were delicious. Bistro offers live music three nights a week – Wednesday, Friday and Saturday – with local musicians such as Fabienne, Jesse Bishop and the Latino group Matixando. The music was professional and entertaining without intruding on the dining mood. Bistro Langosta is open from 5 p.m. to midnight, closed Mondays. All credit cards accepted. Tel: 2653-4749. From Tamarindo, take the road to Langosta and take the right fork for 300 meters, just past Hotel Cala Luna.
A Slice of Life Lady Pilot
A.V. Aytor
A
well-spoken woman called me: Hello, is this Adventure Aviation?” Having confirmed that it was, she told me she would like to rent a small aircraft for a couple of weeks, so we arranged to meet for a check flight. My small business was the block rental of light aircraft, so much per hour and the renter is responsible for running costs – fuel, oil, parking, landing fees, etc. We met at the airport and I watched as Adele did the pre-flight inspection. Medium height, middle-age, medium appearance. Just a housewife who likes to chase clouds at weekends. So I’ll go easy on her. “I’m ready,” she announced, “let’s go,” and off we went into the wild blue yonder. She climbed to 8,000 feet and I set her a crosscountry exercise. After we arrived at the destination I asked her to do a couple of stalls – power on and power off. Some people do not like stalling an aircraft but it is an essential part of the check flight. After the stalls, she asked me if I wanted her to do spins. “No, that’s not necessary. These things don’t spin easily,” I answered. Truth of the matter was that I am not comfortable myself in an aircraft that has stopped flying and is imitating a spinning brick. Especially with a woman at the controls! “Oh, yes they do, if you want them to. Let’s try one, just in case.” she insisted. Without waiting for a reply, she chopped the throttle, pulled the wheel into her chest, stomped on the rudder, and we fell into a flat spin, the stall warning shrieking and the horizon rotating rapidly in front of me. I sat with my hands in my lap, but ready in an instant to grab the wheel and take over control. After about four rotations Adele kicked the rudder, pushed the wheel forward and gunned the throttle. “I just love these Cessnas,” laughed Adele, “so responsive.” We returned to home base at YTZ. “So, do I get to borrow your little aeroplane?” asked Adele. We did the paperwork, and she took the plane for a thirty-hour rental, paid in advance, very nice work for me. Two weeks later Adele brought the aircraft back, and that was the last I heard from her. Two years later, I was watching the news, a T.V. story about two women who had just returned from their second flight in a light twin to the North Pole. One of the pilots was, of course, Adele. A few years later Adele, now president of Aviation International, was in the news again when, with two other female pilots (combined age 202 years), she flew in the Around the World Air Race. I guess my little Skyhawk was safe in her hands.
CD Review Mama’s Got a Squeezebox Tony Orez
W
ho is Roxanne Oliva and what is that style of music she plays? This is the question I ask myself as I listen over and again to her solo album “Box Candy”. The first song, “FiFi’s Closet” sounds Middle Eastern, while the second song, “Willow Slip” sounds Celtic, like an Irish jig. The third song has an ear-catching intro and what sounds like an Arabic and Medieval wedding, with a rock drummer for backbone. When I looked at the CD jacket, I discovered the song is titled “Playa Negra”, which really piqued my interest. I also noticed that the CD was recorded in Sonoma County in California, where I lived prior to moving to Costa Rica nine years ago. It truly is a small world. Contacting Roxanne to write the article, conduct an interview and compare our Guanacaste and Sonoma overlaps was a sheer joy; she truly is a Renaissance woman, and yes, she plays that style of music as well, along with Cajun, polka and whatever else you can imagine. She also plays the harp, and percussion and wind instruments. Although she has a formal music degree, she told me that she generally plays by ear and/or by improvising. Unbelievably, she did not pick up an accordion until the age of twenty-six. But back to her instrumental CD of original compositions: “Blue Box Waltz” would fare well anywhere along the Danube. “Mr. Missing” is a rich harmonic tango, half steamy, half light-hearted, her “tribute to bipolar men”. Roxanne lives in the Playa Negra area for about two months each year, and it is her favorite place to practice and compose; she stores three of her twenty-one accordions and several wind instruments there. “The tropics are not gentle with musical instruments,” she recounted, “so I store them in layers of thick plastic. Once, after months of storage, I unwrapped an accordion, started playing, and a scorpion crawled out!” Inspiration, perhaps, for a forthcoming song. This CD is peppered with guest fiddlers, guitarists, percussionists and several songs backed by KAZAMOZe. One of their songs, “Pay My Way” is a collage of sound and utilizes the only vocals on the disc, as well as a barrage of stringed instruments. Roxanne also plays with the “post-eclectic” trio Youkali, and the all-girl accordion band Sweet Penny Royals. She has appeared on more than thirty albums, including the soundtrack “Liberty Heights” which she recorded with Tom Waits, after he scoped her out incognito at one of her live shows. And, I am not making this up: she was the cover girl for the Accordion Babes 2011 Pinup Calendar. But back to her CD: my favorite song, “Each Part Was Played” has an atonal backdrop and a sweet, sentimental accordion riff up front, sounding at times like an immense cathedral organ. And “Freedom’s Fanfare” is an up-tempo affair, a danceable song that sounds like it has gypsy and Eastern European influences. So who is Roxanne Oliva and why do I keep listening to her CD “Box Candy”? One way to find out is to start a campaign to entice her to play live in Tamarindo the next time she is here. In the meantime, “Box Candy” is available at Jaime Peligro Book store, where they will sample the CD for their customers.
Book Review A New Kind of Wealth in Costa Rica Tony Orez
I
have to admit it: before I began reading “Happier than a Billionaire (Quitting my Job, Moving to Costa Rica & Living the Zero Hour Work Week)”, I immediately lumped it into a catch-all category inhabited by dozens of other books I had seen with a similar premise. Boy, was I wrong. To begin with, I have since met the author, Nadine Hays Pisani and her husband Rob. They are definitely not a pie-eyed New Age couple, afloat in their own naïveté (not that there is anything wrong with that), nor are they a Bonnie & Clyde couple fleeing some lurid past. In fact, they are a level-headed professional couple who got fed up with the rat race and opted for a more rewarding lifestyle. In her book, Nadine presents the dilemmas and angst of taking the gamble, cutting the cord of a secure job (they were both chiropractors with a private business), and allowing yourself to freefall. I remember and it’s scary. But Nadine’s approach in her writing is unique because she uses humor to tell their story. She is able to laugh at herself and I admire that. She also does not candy-coat their experiences, presenting the beauty, the splendors and the reward of a more-relaxed lifestyle alongside the frustrations, tiny remorses and fears that come with relocating to a new culture. Paradise has its nuances, after all. But it’s delivered with a quick East Coast wit where anyone and everything is fair game. Nadine also uses the book as a kind of memoir, often reflecting back to earlier experiences in her life, many times including her sister and her dad, who appear to be cornerstones in Nadine’s life. Her real anchor in this new environment is her husband Rob, a knight to her rescue in perilous times, the brunt of her venting episodes and generally an even-keeled genuinely nice guy. She is also able to include helpful facts about Costa Rica seamlessly into her story so they don’t feel like a history or geography lesson, not an easy feat. I particularly enjoyed Nadine’s depictions of the friendliness of people here throughout the course of everyday life, be it shopping for vegetables, walking your dog or chatting with friends and nearby customers in a restaurant, likening it to life in the States in the ‘50s. “You may spend more time at the bank because the teller speaks to every person about their day,” she told me, “but then she gets to you and asks about your day…and it feels nice when she does”. One point Nadine learns from her experience is that we are all allowed to choose how we ingest what life deals us and I thank her for reminding me. And her humor! If she ever wants to look for a second occupation, she might want to consider “stand-up comic”. She told me she is actually already considering writing a second book about life here. Considering the fact that “Happier than a Billionaire” was featured on CNN, I think she is making a wise decision. Her book is available at the Jaime Peligro book stores in Playa Tamarindo, Quepos and Nuevo Arenal.
August Odysseys
Robert August
Why I am not a Dentist
L
ast month’s Odyssey dealt with a dentist whose dream came true. This month we meet a would-be dentist who took a trip and changed his dream.
The year 1962; age 17. I was at High School preparing to go to University and learn dentistry. My star was in the ascendant. I had good grades, played all the sports, was school president. Then Bruce called! I had surfed in several movies before then, small lecture movies that were narrated by a surfer. There were no video cams nor surf magazines; these were all the surfer got to watch and learn from. Director Bruce Brown called me to ask if I would go with him to Cape Town because he had heard there were surfers there. In those days information from the other side of the world was non-existent. My response was “No! I am just about to start university. I’m going to be a dentist.” He invited me to stop by his office, which was OK because I was going surfing Sunday near his office. As I walked in I saw on the wall a huge map of the world showing his proposed trip – West Africa, South Africa, Kenya, Arabia, India, Singapore… Australia. A load of short flights with 10-day stops between; there were no direct flights. “Sounds incredible,” I told Bruce, “but I am focussed on my dental school.” But I went home and talked to my parents. “Go!” said Mom and Dad. “You can always go to school later. Nobody ever gets a chance like this.” (This was especially true in 1962). I talked to my teachers, and got the same response: “You’d be crazy not to go. This is the trip of a lifetime, exciting, fun and educational.” I called Bruce: “I’m in!” In the next two weeks I had obtained a passport, visas to numerous countries, shots for yellow fever, diphtheria, malaria, etc., and soon I was on the ‘plane to New York. Then to Senegal, and onwards to the most thrilling adventure of my young life. That six-month trip changed my life and opened up a new world for me.
Tamarindo residents are protesting the erection of cell phone towers in residential ares. Cell towers in residential areas create a health hazard, destroy Tamarindo’s beautiful scenery and lower nearby property values. How can you help? Call the Defensoría de los Habitantes to report your concern; the more that call the better. Tel: (506) 2666-3837 (506) 2258-8585.
On my return I spoke to my own dentist, also a surfer. He was no longer thrilled about his decision and didn’t enjoy his occupation. He told me of the 8-10 years of study, the huge set-up costs. He said “I’d rather be shaping surfboards. The two jobs are similar: I dig out decay, fill it, sand it and polish it. The difference is that I cause pain, people hate me, and I am always the last to get paid. But every time I go into a surf shop I am surrounded by happy, excited people. By this time the movie “Endless Summer” was circulating, and I was becoming known. I approached manufacturers and got started shaping boards. That has been my life since. In my job, a happy customer walks away with a new surfboard which he will cherish for life. Beats dentistry.
Do omsday Fact or Fantasy? “Have you heard? It’s in the stars. Next July we collide with Mars”. song from the movie “High Society” The End of the World is at hand! So have predicted prophets for thousands of years, and it hasn’t happened yet. But this time it is for real, claim some doomsayers, and it is this year, in December. Don’t buy any Christmas gifts! Rogue Planet A rogue planet, Niburu, was supposed to crash into our planet in May 2003, but it didn’t show, so Niburu Nuts have revised the devastation date to December 12 of this year. Aficionados claim that it is hiding behind the sun. NASA astronomers deny the existence of such a planet, but what do they know? Mayan Calendar The coming December 21, the winter solstice (if Niburu doesn’t do us all in nine days earlier), marks the end of a 144,000-day cycle of the Mayan Long Calendar. This calendar begins at the start of creation, 5,200 years ago, according to Mayan culture, and each cycle takes about 400 years to complete, so there have already been 13 cycles, none of which has brought disaster to the world. Asteroids and Comets These bodies are real, and there are millions of them, monitored regularly by astronomers for threats to earth. NASA spokesman Don Yeomans says that, at present, “there are no known near-earth objects – zero, zip, nada”. A 2012 visit of the newly-discovered comet Elenin has doom nuts predicting that it will smash into the earth with disastrous results. This, also, is a no-no. The comet at its nearest will be no closer than 22 million miles, ninety times the distance to the moon, and its effect, if it did hit the earth, would be “like a mosquito smashing head-on into an ocean-going supertanker” according to NASA. Flipping Poles Other nuts fear that the planet’s poles will flip over on December 21, 2012, but that just is not possible. The poles do change position, but only gradually over 500,000 years. “There is no evidence of a flip,” says Yeomans. Even if that did happen, there would be no cataclysm, except for having to change our compasses, and Costa Rica would be in the southern hemisphere. Solar Radiation Solar storms, vast emissions of particles from the sun, are also predicted in this infamous year. Solar storms do happen quite frequently, and can damage communications for short periods of time, but they cannot be predicted. Their effects will probably be less than the combined outages of ICE, Coopeguanacaste and Amnet. (continued page 23)
AROUND TOWN
N
ot just for kids! Black Moon Bar is now open on street level in Tamarindo’s Pacific Park, and wants to attract “older people” with jazz and blues. Also serving bocas and tapas. See ad on page 12. Everything for your windows – blinds, drapes, valances, etc. - can be found at Noily’s Window Treatment, in the Paseo del Mar Commercial Centre between Playa Conchal and Huacas. See ad page 7. Yvona is back and will do any type of sewing: clothing alterations and repairs, cushions, pillows, covers and curtains and so on. She also gives great manicures and pedicures. Tel: 8824-2905; kejnovska@gmail.com. Mr. Tom now has, at his Tamarindo store, a high-quality photo printer for sizes to 13” x 19”, and a full-color printer for 11” x 17”. They can also have your posters and billboards printed by associates in San José. Call 2653-1267 for details. Guaymy Pizza Restaurant (ex-Tano) has reopened with Marco Rosestolato making great wood-oven pizzas and pasta dishes. In Huacas 150 meters west of SuperCompro. See ad page 7. Chillerz has opened in Tamarindo Circle, serving frozen daiquiris and good food. Big screens, Happy Hour, Ladies’ Night. See ad page 9. The Garden Grill Restaurant, located at the entrance to Playa Grande, is now serving a diverse menu of breakfast, lunch, and dinner. For more info call 8979-3469. For great sushi call Temptations Sushi at 8345-0248, next door to Banco Nacional in Flamingo. See ad page 5. Del Toro Bikinis and Children’s Boutique are adjacent at Centro Commerical Arlinka in Huacas for fine fashion wear, See ad page 17. Curiouser and curiouser....Run like the White Rabbit & get your tickets for the Alice In Wonderland extravaganza, 23rd to 25th March. Hear the Queen screech “Off with her head”. Tickets available at Jaime Peligro in Tamarindo and Cafe Mocha at Plaza Paseo del Mar on the Huacas/Brasilito road. Commencing March 5, El Quetzal Natural Health Center is moving to Villarreal, above Veterinario El Tuanis and INS. The new phone number is: 2653-4784 or 8888-7393. March 31st: Flea Market at The Village (in front of Country Day School.) Come buy, sell or entertain. Spaces are $10 or $20, depending on size. 10 a.m.-2 p.m. To reserve a space, email info@conchalvillage. com or call 8355-9993. Las Brasas serves terrific steaks and homemade pastas on Langosta Road 100 meters east of Super2001. See ad page 11.
Surf Report
W
ith the new year of the Circuito Nacional de Surf about to be announced, the first International Surfing Association contest in China in the books, and 18-year-old Carlos Muñoz just completing a magnificent run at Hawaii’s Volcom Pipe Pro, there’s one man who has been extremely busy. That man is Carlos Enrique Brenes. As the public relations man for Costa Rican surf, Brenes is the spokesperson for every major surf event that takes place in this country. It’s his job to gather information about surfers, contests, sponsorships and activities and get it out to the media so that people like me can write the stories that you want to know about. This month, before I actually deliver the news that Brenes has supplied, I’m going to tell you about this hardworking fellow. After all, there would be very little known in the Costa Rican surf world without him. Born in San Ramón de Alajuela, Brenes spent his earliest years at the beach, but didn’t grow up there learning anything about surfing. As a matter of fact, he was landlocked for most of his life in San Ramón, and then San José, where he earned a degree in Media Production from the Universidad Latina de Costa Rica. Ellen Zoe Golden: How did you become interested in surfing? Carlos Brenes: I think it is a very interesting story. I went for sports journalism in my last year of university, and decided to combine study with work. I bought the newspaper one day to search the classified job opportunities in the sports section and happened to read the first article of surfing I saw in La Nación. It was about the Pan American Surfing Games and Junior Champion Jason Torres. That was in 2005 when he won the first major title for Costa Rica in Peru. In the same newspaper, I saw an ad for a journalist at Surfos magazine. So I sent a request and six months later I was editor of this magazine and I knew little or nothing about surfing EZG: Did not knowing how to surf affect your job performance at Surfos Magazine? CB: Never. I even think that those who were passionate surfers always had their mind on the sea and not on the work making a good magazine. I learned to surf on the recommendation of Kiki (Christophe Commarieu), the director of Surfos, so I went overboard with a longboard. I could ride waves, but my biggest problem was always that every time I went to the beach, there were so many tasks; the time to enter the surf was limited. I decided not to be a surfer, but a journalist specializing in the subject. I hope that my knowledge of the theoretical part can help grow the surf areas that previously were served, but surfing would still be my favorite sport. Also, I am certified as an International Judge of the International Surfing Association, because I think it’s even more important to know the qualification criteria than to be a surfer who learned to surf when he was 25 years old. And on the question of whether this affected anything in my work, I respond with this: Mourinho, coach of Real Madrid, he never played football.
Ellen Zoe Golden EZG: Surfos magazine really improved while you were the editor. You added Front of the Book news stories, more interviews and the Latin American country roundup in the back. Can you tell me about the changes you made while you were there? CB: I tried to give more spice, or aid to areas in need. I looked at a lot of the best magazines in the world that are not necessarily surf, such as Time, Soho, Cosmo, National Geographic ... and of course Surfer, Surfing and Transworld SURF. However, I always found that the surfer also wants to read about his favorite subject but from a professional viewpoint, especially from Latin America and the public is not the same as that of the magazines mentioned above. So many thanks to Kiki for allowing me to give my style to the magazine. It worked out, because along with Kiki, we received first prize for Best Latin Surf Magazine. EZG: How did you come to work at the Federación de Surf de Costa Rica (FSC)? CB: The first tournament I worked was the final meet of the National Tour in Costa Rica in 2006 when the champion was Isaac Vega. Right then there was, I felt, a need for someone to do the announcements, as the person in charge had more responsibilities and sometimes left the microphone neglected. So Antonio Pilurzu (former president of the FSC) gave me my first opportunity to take the microphone and I tried to make some journalistic narration, with interesting facts, statistics... also what to serve a beach announcer at work. A couple of years later Luis Castrillo, journalist for the media, would leave the Federación after doing a great job. I was there as a broadcaster and journalist of the tournaments, so I took over as the journalist for the Federación. That was my biggest training with respect to surfing, as you had to keep your eyes on the water all day and it became much easier writing notes for the media, too. EZG: What did you bring to the FSC? What experience? CB: I think Surfos took the experience of working for the Federación and the Federación took the experience of working at Surfos. I was studying a subject 24/7, so it was easier to learn a sport that was not easy to understand. It is complex and even more difficult to write about it. EZG: You eventually left Surfos to work fulltime at the FSC. What does the FSC mean to you? CB: Now it is my biggest challenge. Since January, I am also the director of the National Tour for the Federación. Now the managers will rely on my experience not just with the press, but in the organization of the events. (continued page 29)
N
DREAMS BECO IN COST
ovember 2004 was a magical month for Wes and me. We decided to take a vacation in Costa Rica. We both had been there before and loved the country. While our relationship was new this trip became some of the mortar cementing it in place. A friend had told us of a possible piece of land we could buy for $10,000 near Flamingo Beach where many ex-pats land up. He had bought a similar plot and it had doubled in value in one year. This sounded intriguing and we could vacation besides. So off we went to explore and rediscover this sleepy, lush, beautiful land. The red and yellow flowers against the bluest of blue skies, the clear water, and a massage on the beach, all deepened our love for each other and this country. However, when we saw the tiny square piece of land for sale it held no life for us. We did not want to buy something that we would not ever want to live on ourselves. Thus, we were referred to a couple of developers, both from the states, to continue our game of exploration. Ron was a multimillionaire character who seemed to have laughed his gaudy way to his first million. He drove us off to his next project. This lot was gorgeous and I gazed around at the wonderful view through the trees. “We can cut down all these trees and build a highway up the middle.” I almost burst into tears. I could not bear to see the land bludgeoned in that style so we said adios to Ron. Our next developer Greg was a sweet, apparently hard-working man possibly on his way to his first million. What a spectacular mountaintop lot he showed us with a 360o view of forest and Flamingo Beach. It made me tremble in anticipation. But alas, all our questions were answered the same, “I do not know yet.” Greg was still in the pre-planning stage. He suggested we head south to explore other areas less popular than Flamingo Beach and Potrero. So off we went in our tiny rented car, bumping over rocks and gullies as we dodged pot holes. Suddenly it was more than a deep hole that made our car tilt, it was a flat tire. As we turned around to head back to nearby Tamarindo Beach to fix the tire, I breathed a sigh of relief. Surely this would discourage Wes, especially after spending a few hours hanging out in the dusty, greasy tire shop. We could relax, have dinner, and enjoy the beach. Wrong! Sometimes it takes a while to fully know another person. Wes’ eyes were boyishly alight. “Let’s get back on the road south.” He wanted to restart the aborted adventure. We had no idea where we were going but that was not a factor to Wes. Off into the unknown, returning to the dusty road, driving hop-scotch around the holes, through cowboy terrain we went. While the cowboys were friendly enough, waving their hats and smiling broadly, this did little to assuage my city girl qualms. We often were stopped by cattle being herded across the road, pigs or dogs enjoying siesta in our path, and roosters running by. I felt as if Wes had encapsulated
OME REALITY TA RICA me in his own time capsule, as if we had been swept back in time to how folks lived in the ‘40s or ‘50s. I feared I could never live in Wes’ fantasy world of rustic country living. I blocked any sense of peace I could have felt. We bounced along for what seemed days, which in reality was perhaps two hours. We breathed in pounds of dust despite the closed windows, Wes’ eye pointedly focused on the road to nowhere. I refused to even glance at the inviting mountains or experience the relaxing quaintness. “If he thinks I would live here he is loco.” Suddenly the road ended smack dab on a huge stretch of beach. I jumped out of the car, gleeful to escape my metal prison and breathe in the smell of my beloved beach environment. Over to our left was a small beach shack. We were jolted back to the 21st Century as our eyes blinked unbelievingly. There was a huge sign: “Come watch the Super Bowl here.” A somewhat scruffy American inquired as to how we had suddenly dropped into his oasis. Wes described our mission as I gazed out to sea. “You must meet my friend Ben. Turn around and go back the way you came for about one mile. I will call Ben and have him meet you.” I followed numbly, “what was this about?” I was sure skeptical. Sure enough, in a few minutes a handsome professional landscape architect from California was showing us Tierra Pacifica in all its well-planned grandeur and respect for the land. Ben’s words of “community”, including “preserve the monkey migration path” and “keeping acres of greenery”, started melting even my heart. To my amazement, I felt a sense of homecoming. We drove around the well-maintained roads, hiked through waist-high grass to ultimately “the last lot for sale with an ocean view.” Over the final three days of our vacation we explored the wider community of Junquillal and experienced the friendliness that further melted our hearts. The sense of community, the blending of Ticos, Americans, Europeans, and Canadians was just the mix we craved. Some would gasp as we found ourselves making the decision to follow our dream. Our initial investment went from $10,000 to just over $100,000 with two acres. Maybe we were a bit loco but it sure was exciting and we hoped rewarding. A few years later we built our house in Tierra Pacifica. Still, I tend to pinch myself in disbelief as we found Paradise. The road has even cooperated and is mostly paved! Our fruit orchard is richer each day. Some of the frosting is our adopted hotel dog Bisquit. Who would have ever thought Judith, a cat person would have fallen in love with a dog? Miracles do happen daily in Paradise. We awake each morning with the monkeys and revel in the joy of each other that this generous country has given us. And that is how 2004 became the year of magic for Judith and Wes in Costa Rica.
Story by Judith Donovan
Alcoholics Anonymous Schedule of Meetings
Flamingo
Tuesdays: 5:30 - 6:30 pm (open) Fridays: 5:30 - 6:30 pm (open)
Location: Hitching Post Plaza Unit 2, Brasilito Contact: Don H. at 2-654-4902
Tamarindo
Saturday: 10:30-11:30 - Open General Meeting Monday: 5:30 Open Meeting Thursday: 6:30-7:30 - Open Meeting Location: Behind Restaurant La Caracola Contact: Ellen - 2-653-0897
Ar
rld
nd the Wo u o
T
reasure hunter Greg Brooks has discovered a British ship, torpedoed in WWII off Cape Cod, which he believes contains platinum bars worth more than 3 billion dollars, making it the most valuable wreck ever found. The platinum was part of a payment from the USSR to the US for munitions. A woman who jumped the queue at a McDonald’s drive-through service window near Raleigh, N.C., was refused service by employees. After she blocked the line for 20 minutes, police used a stun gun to take her into custody. A British campaign against excessive drinking warns that drinking two glasses of wine or three pints of beer a day can cause mouth cancer, stroke and increased risk of heart attack. Men are advised to keep to a maximum of four “units” of alcohol a day; women three. Researchers at Dalhousie University, in Halifax, Canada, have determined that smoking pot up to three hours before driving doubles the risk of an accident. The study was based on 50,000 people world-wide who had been in accidents. A delay in delivery of new concrete caused the closure of I-10 in Palm Springs, CA, stranding hundreds of motorists and backing up traffic for 25 miles with no way off the highway. The interstate was closed for 14 hours. A man suffered a heart attack in downtown Las Vegas after stuffing down a “triple bypass burger” in the Heart Attack Grill. The aptly-named restaurant states that the menu boasts “taste worth dying for” and offers free meals to anyone weighing over 350 pounds. The patron survived the attack. A Portland, OR, couple, having a little harmless Valentine’s Day bondage fun, set police on a 12-hour chase looking for a Subaru after witnesses had seen the woman bound and gagged, naked, in the back of the car. Lawmakers have found that $11 million of U.S. taxpayers’ money has been spent to analyze comments, on Facebook, Twitter and other social networks, which reflect badly on the U.S. government. Be careful what you write; they are watching you. Yes, YOU! High flight: A small Cessna aircraft was directed by F-16 fighters to land after approaching too close to Air Force One at LAX. When he landed at Long Beach airport it was found he was carrying 40 pounds of marijuana.
Doctor’s Orders Jeffrey Whitlow, M.D.
P
eople often ask me what they should eat or how they should eat. I have written many times here as to what constitutes healthy versus unhealthy food. Although my diet is not 100% perfect, it is pretty good, so I thought it would be helpful to lay out my dietary routines here as an example for those people who are still unclear on this matter. When I shop for food, I start in the produce section. I buy items to make salads, like lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, mushrooms, carrots, and broccoli. I also buy my salad dressings in this section, as I only use salad dressings that require refrigeration. Then I buy red onions, red and green bell peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, asparagus, garlic, jalapenos, fresh salsa, and fresh herbs like dill, rosemary, thyme, and cilantro. Finally for this section, I buy pineapple, grapes, mandarin oranges, and watermelon. Next it’s the meat section, where I pick up chicken breasts, ground beef, ham, bacon, and turkey breast. Then on to the seafood section for the fish and shrimp that are on special, and for crab meat. Next I go to the dairy section for butter, heavy cream, eggs, cheeses, and sour cream. The only canned goods I buy are canned tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tomato paste, pickled jalapenos, banana pepper rings, pepperoncini, and pickles. I never buy pre-packaged processed foods like cereal, pastries or baked goods, pasta, canned soups, or prepared frozen products. What do I do with these items? I make salads from the lettuce, tomatoes, etc. I use the bell peppers, onions, garlic, and other vegetables to make stuff like ratatouille, stewed tomatoes, squash medley, and sautéed mushrooms, onions, and bell peppers. With the dairy products, I can combine equal parts of butter and cream to make a cream sauce. I can add shredded cheese to the cream sauce to make a cheese sauce, or add cheese and fresh salsa for a Mexican queso sauce, or herbs like dill to make a dill cream sauce. I can the use these sauces to dress up veggies like the broccoli, mushrooms, or asparagus.
Casagua Horses The greatest variety of tours and riding experiences for all ages, featuring spectacular countryside, howler monkeys, colorful small towns and fun-filled fiestas. Cantina Tour - Nature Tour Fiesta & Tope Rental - Old Tempate Trail Tour Located near Portegolpe on the main road, opposite the Monkey Park, just 20 minutes from the beach.
Phone us at: 2-653-8041 • kaydodge@racsa.co.cr www.paintedponyguestranch.com The best horses on Guanacaste’s Gold Coast!
With the meats, I can sauté the chicken breasts or pan-braise the ground beef, and cover either with the cream or cheese sauce, the sautéed vegetables, and/or the bacon to make a smothered chicken or a smothered chopped steak. I can cover the chicken with ham and cheese or cheese sauce to make a chicken cordon bleu. I can combine the canned tomatoes with tomato sauce and spices and make a marinara sauce for chicken marinara. Or I can combine the canned tomato products with bell peppers, fresh tomatoes, and/or mushrooms to make chicken cacciatore, or I can add the pepperoncini for a chicken puttanesca. I can sauté the fish in butter or olive oil and then cover it with a cream sauce. I can combine the crab meat with sour cream, pickles, and cheese and bake that mixture for a crab imperial. Or I can make a remoulade sauce with mayo, mustard, dill relish, and lemon juice, boil the shrimp in Old Bay seasoning, and make a peel-and-eat shrimp platter. Next month I will give you more healthy ideas for home dining.
Now Begins the Study of Yoga Shoulders Part I To the avid readers of this column, my apologies. In my rush to avoid the monthly “get your article in now” note from the editor, I sent off my February column, not realizing that I sent last year’s. So this month I’ll actually match the text to the pictures. If you want to improve your posture, breathing, and digestion, try out the series of poses in this month and next month’s column to help bring about better use of the muscles of your upper back, arms and chest. 1. Sit in a comfortable cross-legged position. Use a blanket or two if necessary. Then put your fingertips on the floor to each side. Lightly press down and feel how your shoulder blades come into your upper back and how your collarbones spread out. Take 5-10 nice deep breaths. 2. Have a friend help you do the next two stretches. Standing, take your hands behind you, palms facing away from each other, thumbs up. Remember the muscles you used in the first pose? Engage them as you inhale and gently move the back of your hands towards each other. Have your partner lightly place his hands on the inside of your wrists and hands. On the next couple breaths try to move your hands away from your partner’s. When you have gone as far as you can, decide if you want your partner to lightly provide a light pressure or not. If so, work together to go a little farther, inhaling together and moving a little deeper on the exhales. Only if your shoulders are feeling ok is it safe to go farther. Stop when your body tells you to and hold there for five breaths. Release together and relax your arms. Switch and assist your friend. 3. Face away from your partner. Either clasp your hands behind you if you have pretty good flexibility, or use a strap between your hands (this will give you more movement if your shoulders are tighter). Standing tall, again activate the muscles around your shoulder blades, reach back through your hands on the inhale, and on the exhale begin to lift your arms up. Have your friend then place her hands lightly under your wrists, without pushing up. On subsequent exhales, you keep lifting your arms away from the input of your partner’s touch. In this stretch and in #2, keep your neck and throat soft, keep your legs active, and keep breathing! If you find you are carrying a lot of tension in your neck and throat or are holding your breath you are going too far. Enjoy your open shoulders and heart! Namaste, Mary.
Mary Byerly is one of the owners and the yoga teacher at Panacea. An oasis of tranquility and health 10 minutes from Tamarindo. Discover Paradise and Bring a Peace Home www.panaceacr.com • 2653-8515
Do omsday (from page 13) Stars and Galaxies Concerns that a planetary alignment will cause havoc are totally unfounded. First, such alignments are not uncommon, and are no threat to the earth; second, no such alignment will occur this year. The earth’s crossing of the plane of the Milky Way Galaxy will devastate the earth. Astronomers say such a crossing will have no effect on our planet, and it will not happen for millions of years anyway.
Past Prophesies that didn’t work Prophet Hen In 1806, in Leeds, England, a hen started laying eggs with “Christ is Coming” written on them. He didn’t! Deadly Comets In 1910, the earth passed through the tail of Halley’s Comet, causing widespread panic that poisonous cyanogen gas in its tail would kill all on earth. Wrong again - nobody died! In 1997, rumours that aliens were approaching the earth, using comet Hale-Bopp as cover, caused thirty-nine members of the Heaven’s Gate cult (in California) to commit suicide. Nuclear Holocaust That Sword of Damocles suspended over our heads for so many decades is now somewhat blunted, unless the new members of the Nuclear Club get itchy fingers. Certainly, the best thing about the nuclear threat was Tom Lehrer’s satirical song “We Will All Go Together When We Go” (yes, it’s on YouTube). Murderous Computers In the later years of the 20th Century, many warned that incorrect dates on computers world-wide would trigger nuclear launches causing a holocaust, or widespread crashing of airliners, just after the New Year fireworks ended. No nuclear missiles were launched; no aircraft crashed. Conclusion Looks like we will get to see Christmas and 2013. Noooh! Not the dreaded “Number 13”! No doubt the world will be struck by severe cataclysms from time to time, such as the Chicxulub meteor, said to have eliminated the dinosaurs. That is just another tile in the rich mosaic of life. Those who still believe that December 21, 2012, is Doomsday should make peace with their God and assuage their fears and guilts by sending all their wealth prior to that date to Howler Publications S.A., c/o Banco Nacional, Tamarindo (no postdated cheques, please).
Merry Christmas - maybe
October March Forecasts Forecasts
by Jeanne Callahan
Visit Jeanne’s site at CelestialAdvisor.com
Aries: 21 March - 20 April
Libra: 23 September - 23 October
Taurus: 21 April - 21 May
Scorpio: 24 October - 22 November
This month’s vibe may prove to have some challenging changes for you. With Mercury entering your sign on the 4th and moving into a conjunction with Uranus soon after, you will experience some disruption to your routine or hear some shocking news. This energy remains strongly in place for a couple of weeks as Mercury goes retrograde on the 11th, passing over Uranus again. You regain some power on the new moon on the 22nd and on the 23rd.
Relationship issues are likely to be chaotic, unsettling and hard to control this month as the Mercury retrograde makes solid ground impossible to find. Neither side is certain of what they want so knowing that can help you direct your energies towards finding what is true for you. Getting angry, being secretive or plotting against someone will only backfire on you. Use the positive lunar vibes on the 9th and 10th to restore yourself.
Pay attention to your dreams this month as you are likely to have some unusual or disturbing images come into your consciousness. People from your past may contact you and want to confide in you. With Jupiter in your sign you have some protection around you and can advise with wisdom. The end of the month has Venus in your sign, making life so much more beautiful. Take a trip, if possible, on the 25th and 26th.
Situations in your workplace may get a little crazy this month as Mercury Rx and its conjunction with Uranus happens in your sixth house this month and you are likely to find yourself working under very disruptive conditions. Be sure to back up all information on your computer before the 11th. Relationships can go surprisingly well at this time and those looking for love can find it. The vibes on the 11th and 12th favor your interests.
Your ruling planet, Mercury, goes retrograde on the 11th while conjunct Uranus, so expect a roller coaster ride of changes, confusion and shocking bits of information all month. New people with unusual backgrounds will come into your life, bringing opportunities or information about new ways to make money. Just roll with it and don’t be too quick to solidify things until mid-April. The 1st, 27th and 28th are your days of power.
This month has a positive creative vibration for you. Something completely original or very innovative may capture your attention at this time. Follow through with your investigation and allow yourself to get excited about a change for the better in late spring. Fix anything that is broken in your home this month, or search for a better place to live. Best days are the 13th and 14th.
Gemini: 22 May - 21 June
Cancer: 22 June - 22 July
Some stagnant situation regarding your public image or career will undergo some upheaval this month as the Mercury retrograde and conjunction with Uranus impacts your tenth house. Be prepared for change, reversals, and yet a new plan emerging in April. Don’t worry, this will actually improve your income stream when it all settles down. You have very favorable days on the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 30th and 31st so push for your agenda.
Leo: 23 July - 23 August
You will have some interesting experiences with foreigners, international entities, or the legal system this month. You are perceived as good guy right now with Jupiter and Venus close to the midheaven, so your actions have a positive effect on whatever cause you devote them to. If travelling, things don’t go so smoothly so postpone any trips abroad this month. The 5th and 6th are your best days.
Virgo: 24 August - 22 September
The vibe this month will be quite disruptive for you, as you like a solid routine but are unlikely to find it this month. Don’t let the stress of uncertainty affect your health. This upheaval will work in your favor in April and you will find yourself in a more solid position in the late springtime. Take a trip to a familiar place sometime this month to restore your equilibrium. The 7th and full moon on the 8th are productive days for you.
Sagittarius: 23 November - 21 December
Capricorn: 22 December - 21 January
This month holds the potential for some major changes in your home, with your family, or in your whole belief system as unusual events occur that disrupt your conventional way of doing things. What used to work in your career doesn’t deliver the same rewards so you are being forced to look at new ways of achieving results. The 15th and 16th are good days to ponder such an expansion.
Aquarius: 22 January - 19 February
This month you may experience changes in your neighborhood or have lots of interactions with siblings and the outside world. This will be good for you as your mind needs to connect with the general flow of life around you. Share your thoughts, insights and observations with others right now as they will benefit from your unique perspective. Home life is favorable and it would also be a good month to entertain in your home. The 17th, 18th and 19th are your best days.
Pisces: 20 February - 20 March
Finances may get a little wacky this month as there is a potential disruption in your income stream. Relationships are likely to be less than perfect as your partner may distance from you a bit. Give space and know that this is just part of a larger cycle as he/she works something out internally. The equinox on the 20th and 21st are good days for you.
Namasté
Parents’ Corner Brains in Motion
S
urfers and skateboarders are so typical of our beach community that we probably don’t stop and admire their art as often as we should. Yet, it is absolutely amazing what our young ones are able to accomplish on a board on wheels, or on a wave. The concentration that these sports require is of the highest level, all senses are alert, and motor coordination and precision are indispensable. Surfing and skateboarding, amongst other sports, are superb manifestations of kinesthetic intelligence, kinesthesia being our sense of movement. It simply refers to an awareness of changes in momentum, balance, pressure and body position in general. People who are mainly kinesthetic love physical experiences; they learn by doing and are highly intuitive. Kinesthetic learners don’t like to be told how things work, they rather find out through their own “physical” experience; they learn well through moving and doing, and they’d rather touch than look. Albert Einstein said that he “felt it in his muscles” when he was thinking about a problem; Aristotle walked while discussing ideas with his pupils… typical kinesthetic learner traits. Can you imagine young Albert or a teenage Aristotle in any of our school classrooms today? Einstein would probably get in trouble as much today as he did back in his school days, and Aristotle would be constantly reminded to “sit down and stay on task”. Kinesthetic children don’t necessarily follow the norms set by society and are often perceived by parents and teachers as hyperactive, rebellious and difficult, which many times results in restrictive measures that inhibit these children’s natural creativity. Kinesthetic intelligence is present in every child, as learning is an active process and the first learning experiences are all regulated by gross and fine motor experiences. Learning is also a natural desire – all children want to learn and are intrinsically motivated to do so. Each child learns at his own personal pace, and learns best if he can follow his own learning style. Why do so many children struggle with learning, then? A big part of the problem is our adult expectations: we tell our children what they should learn, when, how and where. We also tell our children how fast they should learn, and why they should learn (for college, to be a good student, to make us proud). Our society makes learning a duty and takes control of this natural, individual and personal process. As a consequence, learning motivation is more and more determined by external factors and less intrinsically regulated. Our children’s and teenagers’ daily reality shows how restrictive our education system still is: a child is “not allowed” to count above a hundred because she is still in Kinder; school libraries restrict book access by age and grade level, forcing children to read what adults consider appropriate or understandable for them; students are asked to “think in silence”, to “copy page 7”, to “not make up stories”, to “not walk around”, to “not make noise”, and to “not ask stupid questions”. Fidgeting, doodling, singing, jumping, swinging are the kind of manifestations that are usually not accepted in a classroom, even though they are manifestations of an active brain… Even the most progressive educational programs seem to struggle with providing a learning style-oriented structure that aims at “facilitating” learning, not imposing it. Maybe it’s a matter of changing the approach… what if we stopped teaching and allowed learning instead? “I never teach my pupils; I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn.” Albert Einstein Msc. Mónica Riascos Henríquez Psychopedagogist – Member of ASOLAP – Code 2024 consultariascos@live.com
Surviving
C hapter LXXIX
T
COSTA RICA
he first time I ever bought a car in Costa Rica was in the final decade of the previous millennium. This was a simpler time and so were we, and as such were not accustomed to how things got done. In this particular case we got off the airplane at the San José airport, got a taxi, and we asked the driver if he knew where we could get a car. He headed into Alajuela and after a few blocks pulled into a car lot owned by Costa Rican guy who had also been a cop for fourteen years in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. For those of a less North American orientation, that is in the United States. Of America. Within three hours and after a quick trip to a lawyer we were driving to Tamarindo in our newly-bought and only cosmetically damaged Isuzu Trooper, which we soon found was the car of choice among the expatriate crowd. We kept that car for four years. Of course that was way too easy and has turned out to be a rather glaring exception to the rule. I had an Isuzu Rodeo, and when I bought it six years ago it was still fairly economical to run and could carry all the band’s equipment. However as regular gas hit $6 and continued its march upward it was costing me close to $100 to fill it up. Miraculously someone answered my ad on Craig’s List and relieved me of my burden. Thus began the search for something smaller and newer on a modest budget. I got on the internet and found several used-car sites and came to the conclusion that if I wanted to buy a beatup Hyundai Accent I’d come to the right place. If you’re not familiar with the Accent, a product of South Korea’s mega-gigantic Hyundai Corporation, just go down to one of the local taxi dens and you’ll find a plethora present. These of course have all been spray-painted that bright yellow that my over-colorsensitive wife describes as “hideous”. The taxis in San José are mostly Accents too, the big difference with their Tamarindo cousins being the “Chepes” have meters and are legal. The taxi drivers in San José like their Hyundai Accents because the cars are very economical, a word that translates to “cheap”, and all would prefer to be driving Toyotas. I then used up an entire day driving to Liberia and then through Santa Cruz all the way to Nicoya stopping at about twelve usedcar joints on the way. Here again is a good source for buying a beat-up but still enthusiastically running Hyundai Accent with varying colors and dent sizes along with the monolithic “one price fits every Accent” policy adopted by the local used-car “syndicate”. This “one price fits all” policy goes into effect the moment a person of the “foreign” persuasion shows up and even more so if he’s also a “Gringo”.
How to Buy a Car in Costa Rica Story by Jesse Bishop
It is common knowledge here in Guanacaste that Gringos and foreigners in general have way too much money even though they’re not as smart as us and it is perfectly acceptable behavior to try and rip ‘em off. I did my best to disappoint them, opting for the inevitable trip to San José. The capital city is the only place to get anything done in Costa Rica, the problem being you actually have to go there to do it. I went back to the websites and contacted every single nonAccent car in our price range, about twelve out of seven thousand, and quickly found out most, if not all, had been sold several months earlier and they’d forgotten to cancel the ad. It was off to the big city in search of a car and involved several days of intense scrutiny that eventually took us to Grecia, the “Used Car Capital of Costa Rica”, where the price goes up every year a car gets older. I found an acceptable non-Korean four-cylinder sedan at one of the big-time downtown Uruca car dealers, put down a healthy deposit and made plans to return the next day and sign the lawyer papers. The next morning I returned to the showroom to be told that my car had “accidently” been sold that morning to someone else. However they’d be glad to apply my deposit to a shiny recently repainted you-know-what from Korea with only 300,000 km on the dial. Although I didn’t go for the deal they were feeling generous that day and gave me my deposit back, after which my wife called and told me that a mechanic friend in Liberia found a car for us whose owner had just e-mailed fifteen photos of the early turn-of-the-century Nissan product for $6,500, an incredible deal. I, the wife and the dog were soon in Liberia checking it out and indeed it was a helluva deal, almost too good to be true though he rather nonchalantly signed a receipt for a $1,000 deposit with the balance (saldo) also in dollars. In case you haven’t figured it out yet; Susan and I are enthusiastic but not overly proficient Spanish speakers and our friend with the Nissan was maybe a tad bit better at English. What we heard was $6,500 when he was asking ¢6,500,000, or $13,000, way out of our budget. At least we’d made a new Costa Rican friend on whom we can practice our fractured Spanish. And I’m still looking for a car.
Gardening the Forest Tom Peifer
W
e’re heading into the dog days of the dry season here in Guanacaste.
For would-be home gardeners, landscapers and anyone trying to keep plants alive, green and edible this time of year in Guanacaste, life is a 24/7 struggle against the reality of desiccating winds, scorching heat, thirsty soils and starving herbivores. It’s the myth of Sisyphus, written in Spanish and set in the New World at latitude 10 degrees north. A recent visitor had a rather annoying daily routine that put all the toil of gardening into rather bleak perspective. He just went surfing every day. Over the course of a week, Jorge also shared glimpses into his professional world, agroforestry, which he was working in when I first met him in the water at Playa Negra over ten years ago. Put simply, agroforestry is the mixing of trees and crops in both space and time. If you want a more complex explanation, well, the sky is the limit. Jorge has looked at the sky through any number of complex agro-forest ecosystems. As I was flailing through the daily chores of composting, weeding, watering, seeding, transplanting and dealing with herbivores from microscopic to my neighbor’s fiesta bulls, Jorge was propounding another perspective in our evening parleys. “Your soils are depleted. It’s so much work to try to build them up with organic matter that breaks down so fast here, especially with warmer temperatures due to climate change; try to harness the dynamics of natural forest regeneration in your area.” If there was anyone interested in a smarter approach to growing food at this time of year it was my three heroic seasonal garden interns from Bennington University in Vermont. Bree, Maddy and Dale have been dutifully executing all of the garden chores in our daunting summer weather. They can recount the frustration and disappointment when carefully tended seedlings go from perky to post mortem in the blink of an eye if the water goes off, the shade cloth blows away or the dog gets a bright idea to cool off by rolling in the soft, moist soil of a newly formed and planted garden bed. Without trying to dampen their enthusiasm for gardening, my visitor from Brazil simply opened a whole different book on growing food in the tropics, leafing through the pages of his own studies, projects and travels around the world. “Imagine you’re on the soil and looking at the sky…” In a forest, the soil doesn’t ‘see’ the sky. The light is intercepted by many layers of leaves on the way down through the multi-layered canopy. Ecosystems develop to get the most possible out of all resources
available: sunlight, rainfall and the nutrients in the soil, and to recycle these inputs through the food chain with a minimum of loss to the outside. “It’s like a good business plan and it’s also the same strategy that builds up and maintains the wonderful biodiversity that you see in the forests here in Costa Rica.” Try to incorporate both the structure and the functions of forests into your food system. On a walk around my farm, Jorge turned over the occasional piece of wood debris that I am constantly hounding my workers to clean up. “Micro habitat”, he exclaimed with a bit more enthusiasm than I felt justified given the mid-day heat. “Notice the little spot of humidity and these burrowing beetles?” “These guys are building and restoring your soil for free, more fertility, better infiltration of heavy rainfall and longer storage of water into the dry season.” The take-home message: don’t burn all the debris but figure out how to make it work in your favor without your place looking like a dump or tripping you up as you walk around your garden/orchard. Jorge also had both praise and criticisms of my modest efforts to implement some agroforestry techniques around here. He liked the bumps and dams and various water-control earthworks to hold back rainwater and infiltrate it on site. But he was a bit relentless on the need for more management and more intensive planting of the different levels of canopy. “Think of it like gardening, just more macro. You have done a good job of getting your over-storey (the long-term tallest trees), established, but now it is time to start thinning and pruning for shape. It is like weeding in the garden.” Before Jorge returned to the cold waters of southern Brazil, the chain saw came out and the ‘to do’ list grew longer and longer. Where gmelina trees had been removed and a 30-foot-high canopy of hardwoods are now thriving he said it is time to get in a lower layer of citrus or even coffee plants on drip irrigation. A couple of lines of mangos that produce more shade than fruit were mercilessly reduced to refill for a pit and berm system to catch more runoff for a seasonal stream. The process is not pretty. It’s akin to transforming the proverbial broken eggs into omelets. In agroforestry, much of the dry season work is all about breaking eggs for the omelets on tomorrow’s menu. Pruning and tree felling at this time of year are analogous to natural cycles of branches breaking and trees being toppled by our strong seasonal winds. When the rains come, the nutrients that are locked up in the leaves, branches and stems on the ground become available to the litter layer and topsoil lifecycles that provide the fertility for new growth that spurts into the ‘light gaps’ in the canopy above. (continued page 28)
Gardening... (from page 27) Turning the theory into practice is fascinating, challenging and very satisfying when the pieces of the puzzle begin to fit together as planned. At present, my own ‘great leap forward’ in applied water harvesting and agroforestry practice looks more like an overturned truck from the Pipasa egg production facility than the ingredients for a 3-egg omelet. Still, I’m cautiously optimistic that there’s enough time till the first rains to iron out a few of the wrinkles, come up with a plan of attack and take real good care of all my seedlings in the tree nursery. By the way, people often ask me on what date it is OK to begin planting in the rainy season. Year in and year out, the response never varies: As soon as my neighbors start planting their corn, I’ll be planting several hundred more trees. Best wishes to all of you who are helping to green up Guanacaste!
Tom Peifer is an ecological land use consultant with 16 years experience in Guanacaste. Phone: 2658-8018. peifer@racsa.co.cr El Centro Verde is dedicated to sustainable land use, permaculture and development. http://www.elcentroverde.org/
March 2012 (all times local) Sun
1st - rise 5:58; set 5:54 15th - rise 5:50; set 5:54 31st - rise 5:41; set 5:54
Full: Last quarter: New: First quarter:
Moon
8th 14th 22nd 30th
2:39 a.m. 7:25 p.m. 8:37 a.m. 1:41 p.m.
Surf Report (from page 15) The Federación for me is the earth, sun and water that germinates the seeds of national surf and offers promise. That is my main task. EZG: How has the FSC changed over the years? CB: It has improved in many ways. I think we live in a “before and after” the ISA World Surf Games 2009. This is a world made mostly by José Ureña, (President of the FSC). He is the father of the idea and leader of the organization and allowed us to be at his side as we achieved our global best in the history of the ISA when the World Surfing Games took place here in Costa Rica. That did raise the level of the Federación. In addition, for us now to do international events in other countries is not a big challenge either, but we track the steps of a manual we wrote ourselves. EZG: How are your relationships with the FSC surfers? You work very closely to get them on TV and in the newspapers, right? CB: I think they are very good, but could be better. This is because I do not live at the beach, but in San José, where the Federación needs me. Over time, the press work has simplified. What were once called media contacts are now my friends, hence the importance of living in San José. As more and more good things happen in the national surf world, the demand for information from the media increases and so my job is to provide all the weapons for them to communicate. I think my work at the FSC has instilled a certain way for athletes, especially the most prominent people, to be open and understand that there job is to be available to media. EZG: You do more than work with the FSC, right? CB:Two years ago I opened my little company called CR Surf Media. This was the brainchild of José Ureña and thank you very much. It is purely private and is responsible for the promotion of tournaments and activities undertaken by brands such as Quiksilver, Roxy, Reef, Etnies, Red Bull, Volcom, O’neill, Emerica, which are currently applications for which I extend communication services in Costa Rica, thanks to a database I have collected with very good relationships with journalists. Last January, I was appointed Press Officer for the ISA and ASP China Hainan Cup Classic, which was the largest festival of surfing that the ISA has achieved through new relationships with China. As to the athletes, it is my responsibility, but they deserve to stand out every time I start a job of communicating about what they are doing. I thank the media, because the surfers are grateful and the overall growth of surfing benefits. This specific job I do pro bono. I do what is important to be exposed. How can I not tell the media that Cali ran a perfect ten at Pipeline, or that Jason won many dates of ALAS and what Anthony Fillingim does? I do not represent them.
They are my friends and I love this sport. I want surfing to be the number one sport in Costa Rica after football. So for me, I will go as far as I can because these guys continue to figure in the place they deserve in the media. EZG: Would you say that you are the premier public relations person for surf in Costa Rica? CB: Ha-ha! I would not, but I would say that I found my niche in the surf. I major in the subject and I do not ever report on anything other than surfing. You never know what can happen in the future, but my mind is the surf in Costa Rica and want to remain doing this for many years. And just a quick couple of items Brenes has given us: It was an amazing run for Carlos Muñoz at the Banzaii Pipeline in Hawaii as he finished four rounds of the Volcom Pipe Pro last month. Although he was out in the quarterfinals—a hell of an accomplishment for the Tico 18-year-old—he walked away from the Association of Surfing Professional (ASP) contest with $3,500 and the prestigious Todd Chesser Hard Charger Award for best performance at the event. The Award was given to the youngster for his amazing surfing at the contest which included a “perfect 10” tube ride that drew hoots and hollers from the crowd. According to the announcer during Round 4, where Cali came in first: “This is a fairytale run, coming from Costa Rica; he has bloomed in front of our eyes the last few days getting the 8s, 9s and 10s.” And from Muñoz himself: “This is unbelievable to me. This is the best day of my life and I just want to share with you guys this award, my happiness. Thank you very much to everyone who helped me to get where I am.” Looks like a host of Costa Rican surfers will be lining up in the waves of Santa Teresa this month from March 8 to 11, when the Asociación LatinoAmericana de Surfistas Profesionales (ALAS) brings the Reef Classic back to Costa Rica. Last year, ALAS skipped our country, angering a lot of people.
And finally, the Circuito Nacional de Surf 2012 dates have been announced (more next month): Tamarindo Parrita Samara Dominical Jacó Santa Teresa Playa Hermosa
February 25, 26 March 24, 25 April 28, 29 May 19, 20 June 16, 17 July 21, 22 August 24, 25, 27
That’s all I’ve got. Looking forward to hearing what you think. Keep those emails coming at EllenZoe@aol.com. Send your comments, information, errors or praise, because I can’t do this column without you, the real surfers.
1T
2F
3S
4S
5M
02:07 08:28 14:18 20:48 03:04 09:29 15:19 21:52 04:08 10:38 16:29 22:59 05:14 11:42 17:38
1.6 6.8 2.1 7.1 1.9 6.3 2.3 6.9 2.0 6.4 2.3 6.9 1.8 6.7 2.0
6T
00:02 06:13 12:37 18:37
7.3 1.4 7.3 1.4
10S
7W
8T Full Moon 9F
00:56 07:04 13:25 19:28 01:44 07:50 14:09 20:15 02:30 18:33 14:52 20:59 03:13 09:16 15:35 21:43 03:57 09:59 16:18 22:28
7.8 0.8 8.0 0.7 8.3 0.2 8.8 0.0 8.9 -0.4 9.5 -0.7 9.3 -0.9 10.0 -1.1 9.6 -1.1 10.3 -1.3
11S
12M
13T
14W Last Qtr 15T
MARCH TIDE CHART 9.6 -1.2 10.3 -1.2 9.4 -0.9 10.0
16F
00:01 -0.9 06:16 9.0 12:17 -0.5 18:39 9.5 00:52 -0.4 07:10 8.5 13:10 0.1 19:34 8.8 01:49 0.2 08:10 7.9 14:11 0.8 20:37 8.2
18S
04:41 10:43 17:02 23:13 05:27 11:29 17:49
17S
19M
20T
02:53 09:19 15:22 21:49 04:06 10:33 16:40 23:03 05:20 11:44 17:55
0.7 7.5 1.3 7.7 1.1 7.4 1.5 7.5 1.1 7.5 1.3
21W
00:11 06:25 12:45 18:57 01:08 07:19 13:36 19:47
7.7 0.9 7.9 1.0 7.9 0.6 8.3 0.6
24S
22T New Moon 23F
25S
01:57 8.2 08:04 0.3 14:20 8.6 20:30 0.3 02:40 8.4 08:43 0.1 14:59 8.9 21:08 0.0 03:19 8.5 09:20 0.0 15:35 9.0 21:44 -0.1 03:55 8.5 09:54 0.1 16:10 9.0 22:19 -0.1 04:31 8.4 10:28 0.2 16:45 8.9 22:54 0.0
26M
27T
28W
29T
30F 1st Qtr
05:07 11:02 17:20 23:29 05:44 11:38 17:56
8.2 0.4 8.7 0.2 7.9 0.8 8.3
31S
00:06 06:23 12:16 18:35 00:46 07:05 12:58 19:18 01:31 07:53 13:47 20:10
0.5 7.5 1.1 7.9 0.9 7.1 1.5 7.4 1.3 6.8 1.9 7.1
2M
1S April
3T
4W
02:23 08:50 14:45 21:11 03:23 09:54 15:53 22:18 04:27 10:57 17:00 23:23 05:28 11:55 18:01
1.6 6.6 2.1 6.8 1.8 6.7 2.1 6.8 1.7 7.0 1.7 7.1 1.3 7.6 1.1
00:20 06:23 12:46 18:56
7.6 0.8 8.3 0.4