Last week, the National Museum finished the first of what promises to be a fascinating series of excavations of a tunnel system in its own house.

The existence of the tunnels was long contested, but a renovation project to install a wheelchair ramp finally answered the question with certainty. What was revealed was a tunnel leading away from what was the prison for political prisoners in the Cuartel Bellavista – as the museum was known.

For Myrna Rojas, director of the department of anthropology and history at the National Museum, the question had surfaced from confusion over the original blueprints by architect José María Barrantes.

“It was difficult to really say for sure if (the tunnels) were there or weren't there, because they only existed in some of the blueprints of Barrantes,” but not others, Rojas said.

But “when they cleaned the area, we realized (a tunnel) was there. He stopped (remodeling) and we continued with the excavation.”

What was eventually unearthed was a tunnel, about 80 centimeters wide and two meters high, leading away from the barrack's holding cells, which were mostly used to hold political prisoners, Rojas said. Although only a small portion of the tunnel has actually been revealed, Rojas said she estimates that its entirety runs about 300 meters across the long section of the rectangular courtyard, and probably intersects with three to four others along the way.

Two buttons from shirts, two fragments from the butts of rifles, a collection of artillery casings and bullets, and a few other fragments of metal that could not be identified were found in the dig.

Very little is known about the tunnels because they were closed off before the museum took control of the barracks. Most likely, they were used to transport soldiers to the different defensive points of the fortress and to move prisoners unseen, Rojas said, though they aren't fully sure. The fortress was first commissioned in the late 19 th Century. Construction was begun in 1915 and finished by 1930, Rojas said.

See full article in the August 14 edition of The Tico Times.

Officials from the Costa Rican Coast Guard and the Ministry of Public Security confiscated 37 kilograms of green turtle meat on Wednesday in Cineguita, a city in the province of Limón on the Caribbean coast.

Agents found the meat in the back room of a house in Barrio Cristóbal Colón, along with a 12 gauge shotgun which they believe was used to kill the turtles.

A suspect has been detained and is facing criminal charges.

Costa Rican law prohibits killing and selling turtles because the animal is on the endangered species list.

But along the Caribbean Coast, the reptile has long been used as a source of food and even of luxury items. Residents often use the turtle's meat as an ingredient in soups, string parts of its shell on necklaces and bracelets, and extract the acid from its skin to make hand creams and moisturizers.

Ingrid Luna, a spokeswoman for the Public Security Ministry, could not say how many cases of turtle meat confiscations have occurred this year, but she said police are receiving increasing numbers of calls each month about the illegal turtle trade.

“This region is known for this, but even more now with the (hard) times we are in,” she said. “Jobs have been lost in this area, so people dedicate themselves to capturing and selling turtles.”

Randall Villalta, owner of a turtle rehabilitation center in Limón, said turtle meat can sell for ¢5,000 ($8.53) per kilogram on the black market. He added that another factor that may be giving the turtle trade an extra economic boost is the poor fishing the zone has seen lately.

“In Limón this is normal,” he said in a frustrated voice. “It's bad, but it's normal. Everyone here eats turtle meat. It will be hard to stop because the culture revolves around it, and there aren't many other sources of jobs.”

It was a week to remember for the Costa Rican national surfing team. Throughout the week at the International Surfing Association (ISA) World Surfing Games, the Ticos were showered with support from the home crowd, as they proved they were one of the top surfing teams in the world. On Saturday, the ISA World Surfing Games ended at Playa Hermosa, and the Costa Rican team left with their heads held high, earning a seventh place finish in the competition.

“Seventh is a good result,” said surfer Lisbeth Vindas. “We would have liked to finish higher, but the competition here was very strong and, overall, we had a great tournament.”

The final Costa Rican surfer, Jason Torres, was eliminated Friday afternoon, finishing as the seventh best Open surfer in the ISA World Surfing Games. With only 16 surfers remaining in the Open competition on Friday, Torres entered with hopes that he could best the fifth-place finish he earned in 2008. In the first heat of the day, Torres finished fourth in his heat and was demoted to the repercharge competition. Torres bounced back, winning his first repercharge heat, much to the delight of the vibrant Costa Rican crowd lining the beach.

But less than two hours later, with only eight surfers left in the Open competition, Torres narrowly finished at third place in his second repercharge heat, eliminating him from the games. Torres started the heat slowly, but halfway through the 20-minute heat, he rode a long, hollow wave inside, and then finished a series of cutbacks with a 360-spin maneuver. The Costa Rican fans erupted in joy and Torres momentarily moved into second place.

The euphoria was short-lived, however. French surfer Jeremy Flores and South African surfer Brandon Jackson followed Torres with impressive rides of their own and, as the 20 minutes elapsed, Torres was in third place with a 12.94, 0.8 of a point behind Jackson's 13.74. If Torres had finished second, he would have advanced to the finals on Saturday.

Flores, from France, went on to win the Open championship on Saturday. In the four heats, Flores and Torres were pitted against each other. Torres beat Flores on three occasions.

“That's just how the competition goes,” Torres said. “The tournament is about survival. You can beat somebody one day and they beat you the next. Flores is a great surfer and I am happy he continued on and won the tournament.”

Torres was the last member of the Costa Rican team to be eliminated. Earlier in the day, Carlos Muñoz, a 16-year old who advanced through three repercharge rounds to reach the final 16 of the Open, lost in the first heat of the day. Muñoz' run through the tournament was one of the most dramatic and exciting of the competition, in particular his repercharge heat wins on Wednesday, which he carried despite incurring two interference penalties.

“I am disappointed I didn't get the waves I was hoping for (on Friday),” said Muñoz. “But I am happy with how I did and know that I can compete with the best in the world. I am already thinking about next year and setting my goals to finish higher.”

The U.S. team won the overall championship and ascended the podium Saturday to celebrate and sing the U.S national anthem. France finished in second place, the defending champion Australian team finished third and Hawaii took fourth. U.S. surfer Courtney Conlogue won the women's Open championship and French surfer Antoine Delpero won the longboard competition.

Although no final attendance estimation had been made available by the organizers this weekend, thousands lined the beach for the finals on Saturday, by far the biggest turnout of the week. Overall, the competition, which drew teams from 36 different countries, was a huge success for Costa Rica and the world of surfing.

“ Costa Rica is a wonderful surfing country,” said U.S. coach Ian Cairns. “The fans were fantastic all week long and supportive of every team. The beach is beautiful and there were overhead waves all week. You couldn't have asked for much more from a surfing event. This was a world class tournament.”

At 10:20 Saturday morning, not quite on time, a new era in transportation in Costa Rica began as the new inter-urban train from San José to Heredia rolled out of the Atlantic station on its ceremonial, inaugural run.

The train, which carried President Oscar Arias, much of his cabinet and two carloads of dignitaries and invited guests (as well a number of children invited to ride in the lead car with the president), brimmed with laughter and good feeling as it slowly made its somewhat bumpy way towards Heredia, the provincial capital just north of San José.

Small, happy crowds gathered at each intersection, waving and taking photographs with digital cameras and cell phones. The principal intersections were guarded by traffic police to avoid collisions.

At the main stops at Cuatro Reinas de Tibás, Santa Rosa de Santo Domingo and Miraflores in Heredia, the train was met by enthusiastic crowds, bands from local schools and folkloric clowns and dancers. At each stop, the local mayor climbed aboard as the train continued on its way.

Just beyond Tibás, as the train approached the Black Bridge – now painted bright silver – which in 1926 was the scene of a train wreck that sent several cars plunging into the bed of the Río Virilla below and killed hundreds, nervous laughter gave way to silence, then an audible sigh of relief, as the cars cleared the bridge and rolled once again over solid ground.

The train arrived at its last stop, in downtown Heredia, one hour after having left San José. There, Arias, a native of Heredia, delivered a speech celebrating his hometown as a curious and appreciative crowd pressed around both him and the train. The president said he was gratified by the reception and proud to have delivered on his earlier promise to bring the train once again to Heredia

The return trip to San José, during which the train was less burdened by VIPs, made short, efficient stops and took only 25 minutes.

The Heredia to San José train begins regular service on Monday, Aug. 10, with trains leaving Heredia center and the Atlantic Station every half hour from 5:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m., and again from 4:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.