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Deep Advice: Georgina Bustamante, a Cuban-born marine biologist, is visiting the country to advise the Costa Rican government and NGOs on ocean protection strategies. |
Whitney Martin |Tico TImes |
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Hangin': Elver Castillo, 25, is a member of the Colombian break dance group Fusion Crew, which will participate in the 2nd edition of the FADAU Street Arts Festival from Aug. 21 - 23 in Curridabat. |
Ronald Reyes |Tico Times |
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| Marine protection expert visits Costa Rica |
| Dr. Georgina Bustamante, an expert in the field of marine biology, is visiting Costa Rica this week to offer her advice on Costa Rica's marine areas. |
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Chinese have finished 25 percent of
Costa Rica’s new National Stadium |
In the first five months of work, the Chinese labor force working on the new National Stadium has completed 25 percent of the structure, Costa Rican officials learned after a meeting with representatives of the Chinese Embassy. |
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Costa Rica’s new Heredia train being
sanitized after Arias’inaugural run |
Train employees are taking Lysol to the railings and seats of the new Heredia-San José train after President Oscar Arias came down with the H1N1 flu virus. |
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Digital signatures initiated in
Costa Rica to safeguard against identity theft |
On Tuesday afternoon at the Central Bank (BCCR), Presidency Minister Rodrigo Arias, standing in for flu-stricken President Oscar Arias, was the first Costa Rican citizen to receive a digital signature card, which serves to protect user identity and financial information when making online transactions. The digital signature, which was created by the National System of Digital Certification, is a plastic card with an imbedded chip that contains personal statistics and financial information. |
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Bingo! Fun Game
Helps Red Cross |
Bingo has always been associated with the Red Cross here. Since 1994, the humanitarian organization has held exclusive rights to this universal game in Costa Rica, so while bingo is a good fundraiser for churches, communities and organizations, they must clear it with the Red Cross first. |
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| Marine protection expert visits Costa Rica |
By Mike McDonald
Tico Times Staff | mmcdonald@ticotimes.net |
Dr. Georgina Bustamante, an expert in the field of marine biology, is visiting Costa Rica this week to offer her advice on Costa Rica's marine areas.
Bustamante, born in Cuba, has worked with the United Nations Environment Program to develop protected marine areas across Latin America and the Caribbean islands.
Her visit comes two weeks after the Environment, Energy and Telecommunications Ministry (MINAET) defined two new categories of marine protected areas: the “marine reserve” and the “marine management area” (TT, July 31).
Bustamante will meet with non-governmental groups to offer her advice on Costa Rica's coastal areas and try to convince government officials to sign the Specially Protected Area and Wildlife (SPAW) protocol, which was established by the 1986 Cartagena Convention – an umbrella agreement among Caribbean and Latin American countries aimed at protecting the region's marine resources.
Costa Rica signed the convention, but it has not yet signed the SPAW protocol, one of three specific protocols put forth by the broader convention agreement. If Costa Rica signs the protocol, it will be eligible for United Nations funding for protected marine areas.
See Friday's Tico Times print edition for a full interview with the marine biologist. |
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Chinese have finished 25 percent of
Costa Rica’s new National Stadium |
By Daniel Shea
Tico Times Staff | editorial@ticotimes.net |
In the first five months of work, the Chinese labor force working on the new National Stadium has completed 25 percent of the structure, Costa Rican officials learned after a meeting with representatives of the Chinese Embassy.
While only the first two levels of the western stands have been completed, the workers have laid the foundations and pillars for the entire stadium, said a spokesman for the office of the presidency.
The $83 million stadium was offered as a donation by the Chinese government after the two countries initiated diplomatic relations in June 2007. The Chinese designed the stadium and sent more than 620 workers from China to construct the project – with an additional 130 workers on their way, according to a statement issued by the office of the presidency.
The stadium will accommodate up to 35,000 spectators, some 11,000 more than can currently fit into the Ricardo Saprissa Stadium in the northern San José suburb of Tibás, which is filling in as a substitute until the new structure is built.
The building is on track to be finished by its projected February 2011 completion date, according to the statement.
The new stadium, in Parque Metropolitana La Sabana on the western edge of San José, will flaunt much of what previous national stadiums have lacked. In addition to the main soccer field, there will be a running track, office space, underground parking, souvenir shops and a food court.
The stadium also will serve as a concert venue and a shelter for national emergencies (TT, April 11, 2008).
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Costa Rica’s new Heredia train being
sanitized after Arias’inaugural run |
By Chrissie Long
Tico Times Staff | clong@ticotimes.net |
Train employees are taking Lysol to the railings and seats of the new Heredia-San José train after President Oscar Arias came down with the H1N1 flu virus.
The president was a passenger in the cars for its inaugural run on Saturday; Aug. 8. Ariasshook many hands and held the train's bars for stability.
Railroad officials were scheduled to disinfect the cars before its afternoon run on Wednesday using Lysol products, said an INCOFER employee.
According to health officials, the virus can live on hard surfaces for up to 24 hours, but it has an incubation period of up to seven days.
Arias began experiencing flu symptoms on Sunday, Aug. 9, and on Tuesday, testing confirmed he had the same virus that has spread across the globe and claimed 27 deaths in Costa Rica.
“The pandemic does not discriminate,” Arias said in a statement released Tuesday. “I am (just) one more contagious case in the country.”
Arias said he will follow protocol and remain at home for a period of seven days, until he is no longer contagious.
On Wednesday, Arias' brother, Rodrigo,who serves as minister to the president, said, “He is feeling well.”
Responding to a flood of phone calls and e-mails from citizens concerned about the health of their president, the Casa Presidencial created an e-mail address (holapresidente@casapres.go.cr) to which people can send get-well-soon wishes and other personal notes.
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Digital signatures initiated in
Costa Rica to safeguard against identity theft |
By Adam Williams
Tico Times Staff | awilliams@ticotimes.net |
On Tuesday afternoon at the Central Bank (BCCR), Presidency Minister Rodrigo Arias, standing in for flu-stricken President Oscar Arias, was the first Costa Rican citizen to receive a digital signature card, which serves to protect user identity and financial information when making online transactions. The digital signature, which was created by the National System of Digital Certification, is a plastic card with an imbedded chip that contains personal statistics and financial information.
The digital signature also includes a personal key code, provided by the Central Bank, which confirms the identity of each user. The code is included in the card chip, though it is invisible to the eye. The primary difference between the digital signature card and a regular credit or debit card, is that when making an online transaction with the digital signature card, the private key code number, which was provided by the bank, is mandatory in order to make the transaction. The key code number is private, and known only by the card owner.
Currently, businesses and institutions lack the appropriate software to conduct transactions with the card containing the digital signature, though the Finance Ministry and Association of Engineers and Architects (CFIA) are at work to permit transactions with the digital signature in the coming months. The bill to allow for digital signatures was first presented to the Legislative Assembly in 2001 and approved in 2005. However, the creation of the necessary software took over four years.
According to the Central Bank, use of the digital signature would help eradicate bank fraud and credit card theft, which continues to be a growing problem with online transactions.
To use the digital signature card, a user must first obtain a personal key from the Central Bank. Then, to make a transaction, the user must insert their card into a small card reader, which will cost an estimated ¢40,000 ($67). The card reading device connects to a personal computer through a USB port and verifies the identity of the user. When making the transaction, the private key code and digital signature card are both needed to validate the user and make a secure transaction.
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Bingo! Fun Game Helps Red Cross |
Bingo has always been associated with the Red Cross here. Since 1994, the humanitarian organization has held exclusive rights to this universal game in Costa Rica, so while bingo is a good fundraiser for churches, communities and organizations, they must clear it with the Red Cross first.
Bingo parlors in or near Red Cross installations once drew crowds for an evening's entertainment. But times have changed, and bingo has changed as well. In 1988, Tico Bingo, a lottery-type bingo with volunteers selling bingo cards on the streets or going door to door, changed the game. With huge support from the public, Tico Bingo comes out every three months and helps fund Red Cross units around the country.
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| B-I-N-G-O: Drawings offer extra chances to win at Bingo Rohrmoser. |
Joan Bougie | Tico Times |
So why not have casino-style digital bingo with around-the-clock hours, snacks and drinks, and walls lined with machines that put the game on a screen in front of your eyes? Add attendants circulating with food and drink orders and the chance to win the big, accumulated jackpot.
Two relatively new electronic bingo halls – Multicolor on Avenida Central, between Calles 0 and 2, and Bingo Rohrmoser in western San José's Rohrmoser Plaza, on the road to the U.S. Embassy in Pavas – give you a chance to win, enjoy a lively afternoon or evening, have lunch, dinner or a snack, and help the Red Cross help us all.
Digital or electronic bingo gives you many different versions of the game. The ¢1,000 (about $1.70) bill in the slot lets you choose how much to place on each game, which in turn determines how much you win – or lose. But remember: You're helping the Red Cross.
For those who prefer conventional bingo, each hall has a section apart from the machines, with games starting in the afternoons when more people come to play. Bingo cards are ¢200 ($0.30) a game, and numbers are selected automatically and shown on huge screens. Comfortable chairs surround tables for six to eight, and waiters serving refreshments add to game enjoyment, win or not. Prize money depends on the number of players. Jackpot drawings throughout the day give you even more chances to be a winner.
Bingo Rohrmoser Manager Bob Dunning, from the U.S. city of Las Vegas, has many years of casino experience. He says the bingo salon, which opened in January, has good prospects, and he is already thinking of expanding to other locations.
If the machines with their multiple forms of bingo and winnings are confusing, joining a table of players in the parlor can be more relaxing, Dunning says, especially with a restaurant and snack bar right there. With parlor bingo, too, there's always a chance to win the big accumulated pot or one of the drawings. Parking is convenient at Rohrmoser Plaza, and doors are open from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Parlor bingo, or bingo cantado, starts at 4 p.m.
Multicolor Bingo on Avenida Central is open 24 hours a day and has 150 digital machines divided between the smoking section downstairs and the no-smoking area on the second floor, where there is also a separate section for parlor bingo and a restaurant overlooking Avenida Central. Although this bingo salon is full of customers at any hour, evenings and nighttime are when the crowds really come in, making the winnings more tempting. The machines take only ¢1,000 bills, but “winning cards” will let you play on and on. Weekend evenings also present local musical artists and karaoke.
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