Howler1003March

Editorís Note

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he beach is changing. Daily we see new rocks where yesterday was sand, two new Indian fish traps recently exposed on Tamarindo Beach, excess sand threatening to overflow into the gardens at Hotel Diriá. My rottweiler likes to chase small fish in the surf and rock pools, but for three months we have seen scarcely a sardine. These are signs of the constant changes taking place on anybeach in the world. And, just for once, it’s not our fault.

In many coastal areas of the world, inhabitants wage a constant battle against the ocean. Sands move, coastlines shift, expensive homes slide into the sea as storms slash or peck their way into the defences. Authorities spend sacks of money – residents’ money - to preserve beach defences – sea oats and marram grass to hold dunes in place, rock and concrete riprap to soften the ocean’s wrath, huge plastic bags full of sand to stabilize the sea bed.

We are lucky. The word Pacific means peaceful, and we see a different face of the ocean than do people on the Atlantic barrier islands, where the ocean causes losses of millions every year.

We are from many different countries, with different customs and holidays. Why don’t we teach each other about our own homeland, with articles in The Howler? This month we look at Wild Wales, a little-known but fascinating country rich with history and song.

Send in your article of interest to dmills@racsa.co.cr.

One day it wasn’t there, the next it was complete. A 250-foot communications tower at the ICE compound went up faster than a bamboo shoot. ICE says it will improve cellular phone reception in the area.

Don’t you want free publicity? A Tortugas concert is staged at the Diria amphitheatre; the only publicity was a banner across the street on the day of the show. A Haiti fundraiser at Pasatiempo was totally unannounced – no e-mails, no phone calls. I noticed it at 8 p.m. as I drove by. A triathlon was held in Tamarindo February 14. I stumbled upon it by accident as I was walking the dog. No posters, no e-mail, nada!

The Howler is here to publicize your events. The feature “Around Town” shows people what is happening – and it’s free.

The Howler Since 1996

March 2010

FEATURES 8 Dining Out

If you were closer to the beach you’d be in the water, at Camaron Dorado seafood restaurant in Brasilito.

14 Around Town Openings, closings, parties, music. The Gold Coast has it all, and bar-hoppin’ David is in the groove.

15 Surf Report

Thousands watched Costa Rica’s Jason Torres win the Reef Classic Mar del Plata 6 Star in Argentina.

16 Margie in the Morning The very popular morning show on Radio Dos (99.5) is heard all over Costa Rica. We interview its DJ, Margie Flaum-Scott.

17 The Frozen North Rapport

Visiting her family in Michigan, Kay sees her first snow in eight years.

20 Perla Bows Out After running her “Canadian Club” bar in Surfside for thirty-four years, Perla has decided to retire - at 80.

26 What’s Developing?

Mountains, valleys, creeks and lots with ocean views, are all part of Black Stallion Hills, just outside Tamarindo.

33 Good Fences Make Good Neighbors

We all need fences - or walls - to keep us in and the rest out. Here we look at various options in fence construction.

34 Surviving Costa Rica

What do you call a person who hangs out with musicians? A drummer!

Jesse remembers some of the drummers in his long musical life.

Cover Caption: March is the hottest month here on the Gold Coast. It gets so hot even the insects take a break in the heat of the afternoon.

Cover design and photo: www.johnlymanphotos.com

DEPARTMENTS 10

CD Review

11

Book Review

12 Yoga 13

Soccer

23 Slice of Life 27 Puzzle 29 Tide Chart 32 March Forecasts 36 Sun & Moon 37 Student Voices

The Howler Founded in 1996 Vol. 15, No. 3 - March 2010 Issue No. 162 Editorial Office: Casa Equinox, Playa Tamarindo Guanacaste, Costa Rica Ced. Juridica: 3-101-331333 Publisher, editor and production David Mills dmills@racsa.co.cr www.howlermag.com Tel/fax: 2-653-0545 Contributors: TONY OREZ TOM PEIFER JOHN LYMAN DIANE MADSON ELLEN ZOE GOLDEN CYNTHIA CHARPENTIER JEANNE CALLAHAN JESSE BISHOP NINA WEBER KAY DODGE

Deadline for April: March 15

Howler advertising

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All comments, articles and advertising in this publication are the opinion of their authors, and do not reflect the opinion of Howler Management.

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Dining Out

David Mills

Restaurant Camaron Dorado Brasilito

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few years ago, the misguided folks at the central government decided, “in the interests of improving tourism” to destroy all buildings on every beach in Costa Rica. Living in San José they didn’t realize that what tourists want to do is lunch or dine in a restaurant right on the beach. Some buildings along the Gold Coast were knocked down; one that survived was Camaron Dorado on Brasilito Beach, and we are very glad it did.

Camaron Dorado has been operated by Jorge Sequeira, Sra. é hijos on Brasilito Beach for over 30 years and is very popular with residents and visitors. Its specialty is, of course, seafood, and this it does very well under chef Carlos Gaudamuz Fernando. It is right on the beach; wiggle your toes in the sand while you eat. We dined there and watched as children of other diners played in the surf a few feet away.

All courses (except dessert) are based on seafood, with just a nod to those who prefer meat. Salads are heart of palm, shrimp, chicken and tuna; ceviche is shrimp, fish and squid; spaghetti comes with seafood, shrimp and calamari, Bolognese and Milanese; rice with seafood, shrimp and calamari plus oysters (in season), pork and chicken; main dishes are fish - dorado, corvina or snapper - filet or whole and tuna in garlic, putanesca or blackened. Lobster and shrimp are available in many guises. Meat includes pork chop, chicken filet and a variety of sirloin presentations. There are also sandwiches, burgers and casados.

For first course we settled on a mixed salad with just about everything in it and a lobster bisque, which included shrimp, calamari and mussels, very rich and delicious. Our main choices were rice with shrimp and a whole snapper. All choices were fresh and delicious.

Camaron Dorado, 100 meters north of Brasilito Plaza, is open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. All credit cards are accepted. For reservations, call 2-654-4028 or 2-654-4363.

Croeso y Cymru (Welcome to Wales)

Dafydd Mills

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f you are reading this on March 1, say a little “iechyd da” (good health) to David. Not just this writer, but to Davids everywhere, for this is Dewi Sant, the national day of Wales, of which David is the patron saint.

David, or one if its derivatives – Dafydd, Dewi, Taffy, Dai – is a very common name in that tiny country attached to the west side of England. Tiny, but hugely rich in history, tradition, poetry and song, and blest with breathtaking scenery, from its craggy mountains and bleak rainswept moors to the steep rocky cliffs that face the Atlantic breakers.

TripAdvisor honours Los Altos de Eros

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os Altos de Eros Luxury Inn and Spa, just outside Tamarindo, was chosen for three International Awards

by TripAdvisor in its 2010 Travelers’ Choice Awards.

Now in the eighth year, these awards honor the world’s best hotels, earning their distinction from those who know them best – real travelers.

For 2010, Los Altos de Eros was awarded Top Hotel in Central and South America for luxury, second hotel in Central and South America for service, and fourth place in Top Ten Luxury Hotels of the World.

Wales is nicknamed, in its own language, Gwlad y Gan, or Land of Song. Walk into a Welsh bar any evening, and you will probably hear singing, as the patrons get together in beautiful harmony in Welsh, often of hymns, because every Welshman learns at an early age to sing in the choir of the Methodist church or Baptist chapel.

When one person starts to sing, everyone in the crowd, sober or a little tipsy, will join in with his, or her, natural voice - alto, soprano, bass, baritone, descant - even if nobody knows anyone else, and the result will raise the hairs on the back of your neck.

Another nickname for Wales is Gwlad Beirdd, or Land of Bards, and the extremely weird language lends itself perfectly to poetry about natural beauty, or the deeds of long-dead chieftains and heroes. An annual event, dating back to 1176, is the Eisteddfod, a festival of musicianship, singing, recitation and dancing, all in the Welsh language. Roughly 6,000 performers compete annually for trophies.

Does your surname begin with “P” or “B”? If so, you just might be descended from Welsh parentage. The word “ap” means “son of”, and John ap Robert has been shortened to John Probert. Other similar names are Pritchard (son of Richard), Price, Brice or Preece (Rhys), Powell (Hywel), Parry (Harry), Bellis (Ellis), Pugh (Huw), Bowen (Owen), and so forth.

The Welsh countryside is littered with castles, mostly in poor condition, though some are kept up as tourist attractions. In its long history, Wales has been subjected to invasions from many exterior armies, and its heroes – Owain Gwynnedd, Dafydd ap Llewellyn, Owain Glyndwr and others - are proudly celebrated in song and verse.

The castles are ancient; at Harlech Castle, a plaque on the wall tells us that “this tower was renovated in 1364”.

In the past few decades there has been a revolution in Welsh nationalism, with a large increase in the number of speakers of Welsh.

This is an extremely challenging language, one of the Celtic languages, with difficult pronunciation, and some strange twists of (continued page 28)

TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice winners are based on the millions of real and unbiased reviews and opinions about hotels on Trip Advisor and content from across the web.

“Travelers’ Choice awards have once again highlighted the finest hotels in the world,” said Christine Petersen, chief marketing officer for TripAdvisor. “From remarkable bargains to the trendiest hotels, travelers worldwide are recognizing more than 700 hotels for their outstanding service, value and quality.”

Owners Calvin and Jacqueline Haskell indicated this brings to eight the total number of international awards the 5-Star Hotel has captured over the past four years. They remarked “95% of our success has been a direct result of our outstanding Costa Rican staff, most of whom have been with the hotel since its opening in 2005”.

For more information, see ad on back cover or visit the hotel website www.losaltosdeeros.com.

CD Review A Musician for all Seasons Tony Orez

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uillermo Anderson is a hard man to nail down. This Honduran musician recently released his ninth CD, “Del Tiempo y del Tropico”. Each of his CDs has its own distinctive flavor, direction and mood. The term “versatile” to describe his music seems to fall short. Instead, I think a brief synopsis of each album will demonstrate the point.

His first CD, “Desde el Fondo del Mar” was recorded in Italy with his AfroCaribbean band Ceiba, who play on all his non-solo efforts. The disc contains the song “En Mi Pais”, which has become something of a modern national anthem for Honduras and is used as a closer for two of the three national television stations each day.

“Costa y Calor”, his second album, is an experimental album with the band, blending the popular Honduran coastal musical styles of Paranda and Punta into a unique, new sound. It’s a good example of how Anderson takes chances that sets his career apart from the conventional.

“Mujer Cancion, Cancion Mujer” was produced in association with the Honduras National Institute for Women. One humorous song, “Historia de Manuelito,” follows a day in the life of a man who has agreed to do the home chores and take care of the kids. The rest of the songs have women as the main character.

“Haydee,” for example, is a song about a woman who washes clothes by hand during the day and is the Queen of Calypso and Reggae by night.

“Para Los Chiquitos” gets so much airplay in Honduran schools that many people who learned about Guillermo this way thought that he only recorded music for children. The goal of this CD is to make children aware of rainforest species that are in danger of distinction.

“El Tesoro Que Tenes” is dedicated to calling attention to La Mosquitia, a lesserknown area of Honduras. Guillermo uses regional musical instruments from the Mosquitia zone, as well as inviting musicians from the area to participate. Some of the songs are sung in the region’s indigenous language. The production of this CD is in conjunction with Biosphere of Rio Platano.

“Escarguitos Del Caribe” is a musical collection of folklore from the coastal regions of Honduras. The CD includes a video for the title song, which depicts immigrant Hondurans longing for some home cooking. The song has been used as the opening and finale for four of the most popular television stations in Honduras.

“Pobre Marinero” is my personal favorite, an acoustic solo CD. The songs are stories about a variety of people whose lives overlap with stories about the author himself. An interesting concept, indeed. It is also a wonderful vehicle to demonstrate Anderson’s incredible voice and his equally incredible guitar picking.

Anderson’s newest album is basically the soundtrack to a book by photographer Hannes Walraffen which depicts historical Honduran sites. The album definitely stands on its own, an eighty-minute opus that visits the old banana railway, seaport bars and indigenous Garifuna towns.

Recently, Papaya Records in Costa Rica felt a need to broaden Anderson’s audience by releasing the compilation CD “Llevarte Al Mar”. Check him out sometime. All his CDs are available in Playa Tamarindo at Jaime Peligro.

Book Review Crazy Fom the Heat Tony Orez

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riting humor is a cruel, nasty and thankless endeavor more times than not. Trust me because I have tried.

Telling a humorous story in person to a group of people is completely different because the speaker can control the pace, the cadence, the intonation and eventually, the punch line. Writing these same words onto a page, handing it to a complete stranger, walking away and allowing the writing to convey humor on its own takes a leap of faith and a unique storytelling talent for the humorist to succeed. And Matt Casseday has pulled it off.

Sr. Casseday is a fifty-something expat who has been calling Costa Rica home for more than two decades. He has been living in the Quepos area for about half that time and writing columns for Quepolandia, the local monthly magazine there, for more than five years. He recently culled through his collection of articles, selecting fifty-four of them to compile into a publication of his own, titled Crazy From the Heat. I think the operative word in that title is the first one, and I mean that in a good way. Matt takes a wry look at the trials and tribulations of living within another culture, specifically, being a “gringo in Ticolandia”, as he calls it. Sr. Casseday has lived and worked in a few different locales as well as owned a car and a business in Costa Rica, is married to a Costa Rican woman, and in short, has easily garnered enough material for his book with first-hand experience.

I’ve lived in Costa Rica for nearly eight years now and I could recognize myself and relate to many of the situations he describes in his stories. At times I found myself literally laughing out loud at some of Matt’s stories.

His use of tongue-in-cheek and dry observational humor hooked me in more than once or twice. Certainly, not all the stories tickled my funny bone to the same degree. Humor is an individual taste. But I really enjoyed his piece titled “Gringos in Paradise” which describes four classic ex-pat caricatures.

Despite the disclaimer, I swore I had really met each of these exaggerated personalities. I also laughed heartily at his article about the lack of political correctness embraced by the local gentry.

Matt Casseday could certainly never be labeled discriminatory; to the contrary, he appears to be more than willing to take a jab at everyone and anyone in this country (including himself) with equal verve. And it is this quality that for me lends to his credibility. The popular knock on satiric literature is that it lampoons the folly of existing situations without offering any viable solutions. I beg to differ. I think Matt has demonstrated a perfectly logical way to navigate contentedly through an illogical and at times frustrating scenario: with humor, and yes, compassion, the all-purpose salves to soothe your emotional wounds. Hey, maybe this gringo isn’t so crazy after all!

Crazy From the Heat is available at the Jaime Peligro book shops in Quepos, Playa Tamarindo and Tilaran.

on the Beach

By Nina Weber CertiďŹ ed Yoga Instructor

YOGA AT CASA AZUL in Tamarindo Beachfront provides a combination of Dynamic * Challenging * Inspiring * Encouraging and Relaxing Yoga * Small groups and individual adjustments *Most important.: Yoga is fun !!!

Come and Play Yoga with Jack and Jason

While “playing� yoga, kids can move, play breathing games, make funny animal noises, act in stories, or pretend to be animals. Kids can move and dance like a snake. Jump like a howler monkey and learn how to balance on one foot, while standing tall and strong like a Guanacaste tree. This will be accomplished using game strategies, music, art, or toys to engage children, both physically and mentally.

When children do yoga in a playful but structured environment, they begin to develop more body awareness and build the initial tools for better concentration, coordination and balance.

For more information email me at nina@tamarindoyoga.com. www.tamarindoyoga.com

They develop emotional intelligence, communication skills, trust, empathy, teamwork, and leadership. It can also provide and result in a calmer and more productive school environment.

Kids will improve concentration and focus. This will stimulate their imagination and help release all that energy in a fun, safe environment.

A great way to celebrate yoga with children is, for example, a Yoga Birthday Party, Yoga Jungle Party, Yoga Beach Party.

Hop and jump, fly, or picture yourself as a train, all you need is your imagination.

Fun-filled yoga with props and music for up to 8 children. You can let your child choose a fun theme with party favors, yoga mats, birthday cakes and balloons. Please call for details.

When children are given these gifts, they learn how to live in ways that are beautiful and supportive of their own true nature.

If you are interested in planning such an event, please call Nina in Tamarindo at 2-653-0294 or email at nina@tamarindoyoga. com

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Soccer in the United States

any attempts have been made to introduce football (OK, soccer) into the pantheon of U.S. sports.

Despite huge promotions and visits by superstars, little success has been achieved to date. Even the World Cup of 1994, which was held all over the United States, was a big yawn to the American public. Although there is a major soccer league in the United States, it is very ill-represented on television. Why would this be, when soccer is the most popular sport worldwide?

padding, sticks, bats, skates, gloves. Who is going to pay to put the games on television?

Ironically, the very reason that soccer is popular among parents of schoolchildren, that it costs so little to outfit a kid – boots, shinpads – is the reason that soccer has not made it as a televised sport. It is too cheap! There is no product to sell, therefore, no advertising.

Compare hockey, baseball, football, etc, with their helmets,

Maybe another reason is that the game can be very boring – a large percentage of soccer games end in a 0-0 score after two hours of play. American audiences like to see scores – think of football, basketball and baseball. Unless some changes were made to soccer rules to increase the scoring rate, it is unlikely that the situation will ever be reversed.

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Another possible reason is the format of the game. Soccer, with its many unscheduled stops for fouls, free kicks, tickets, histrionics and (often fake) injuries, doesn’t lend itself to controlled commercial breaks as do downs in football, innings in baseball, periods in hockey. And, as ad spots pay the way on television, soccer is not a contender. Every viewer is familiar with the brand name Motorola from between the plays in American football.

La Paz School Celebrates the Past, Present and Future

a Paz Community School’s third annual Fundraising Fiesta was a huge success! The event, held at Flamingo Marina Resort on Saturday, January 23, and attended by 300 guests, raised over $18,000 from silent auction and raffles to support scholarships for local students and other programs at La Paz. Such generous, continuous support from the community continues to drive the La Paz board and administrative team towards achieving their goal of financially supporting 25% of the school population.

Now in its third year, La Paz Community School is a k-9, nonprofit, bilingual school offering a rigorous academic program through innovative, experiential, community-based learning. The scholarship program ensures that children from all socioeconomic levels can attend La Paz. With a school population of 100 this year, 15 local students are receiving scholarships.

The school offers its thanks to Bob Benjamin and Don Carlos Lopez for the live music, and Mar y Sol, Cecile’s Panaderia, Playa Grande Inn, Season’s, Lola’s and many parents for donations of food.

Building off of the successes of the past two and a half years since its humble beginnings, La Paz Community School will continue to grow as it has already nearly doubled in size. Fulfilling its promise to expand at a sustainable but deliberate pace, La Paz will offer a new grade 10 program as well as a potential preschool for 3 and 4 year olds for the 2010-2011 school year which begins in August.

The expanding La Paz high school will be accredited by the MEP in Costa Rica with an ultimate goal of attaining IB (International Baccalaureate) accreditation in the future. While preparing students to attend top Costa Rican and foreign universities, the La Paz secondary experience is the culmination of the students’ path to the discovery of their self, family, and community in the greater context of the world. Graduating La Paz students will have interacted with fellow students from Costa Rica and around the world in a challenging academic environment that educates the whole child to generate thoughtful, progressive change in an increasingly complex and interdependent world.

Applications for the new school year will be accepted until April 30th, 2010 and may be downloaded from the La Paz site at www.lapazschool. org.

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he Centro de Nutricion in Cartagena, which looks after 90 kids, burned down recently. Cepia is organizing efforts to resupply the center. See Cepia announcement on page 22.

The New Monkey Jungle near Santa Rosa opened under new management and with a fine crew to receive visitors with joy, security, and with a great spirit of service. See the ad on page 21.

Hotel La Estancia is available in two locations for travelers who stay overnight in Santa Cruz or need to catch an early bus.

Salón El Toque Magica gives beauty treatment in air-conditioned comfort at Hotel La Estancia in Santa Cruz.

For a wide range of ready and custom-made furniture, visit Tico Furniture Factory in Huacas, up the hill 200 meters after the main junction (see ad page 3).

A new salon has just opened for all your beauty needs. Jennifer Lake’s La Diva is in Tamarindo Commercial Centre, three doors south of Banco Nacional (see Diva’s ad on page 2).

A team of researchers from the University of California has found that drinking beer is good for the bones. Both barley and hops contain silicon, a key ingredient for bone health.

Our February cover generated a lot of comment, almost all favourable. But, no, the leaves around the border were not cannabis, but bamboo.

A garage sale will be held at Perla’s Restaurant in Potrero, March 13. Proceeds will go towards protecting beaches from erosion by planting trees and placing large rocks. See ad on page 23.

With the help of Cruz Roja and a few volunteers, Hélene from Destination Adventures raised $800 in Tamarindo for the Haiti relief efforts.

Restaurante and Pizzeria El Padrino is open in Tamarindo, and serves four different sizes of pizza. Come and check the prices. See ad page 20.

Kelly’s Surf Shop in Tamarindo has just expanded into next door with a tour company and a bike rental store.

www.howlermag.com

Surf Report Story: Ellen Zoe Golden

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t was only a matter of time before our Circuito Nacional de Surf DayStar top level surfers would leave Costa Rica and try their hands at the next level contests. That’s exactly what’s happening so far this year to mixed results.

In his first attempt this year in the Asociacion of the Latinamerica Surfing (ALAS) Latin Pro Tour, Jaco’s Jason Torres threw it all to the wind and won the Reef Classic Mar del Plata 6 Star, in Argentina, scoring 6,000 ranking points and $4,400.

According to reports from Carlos Brenes of the Federacion de Surf de Costa Rica, the win took place in front of thousands of spectators. Jason reiterated his skills in conditions affected by a lot of wind, as he surfed man to man against Venezuelan Jesús Chacón.

Torres earned a combination of 11.33 against Chacon’s 9.20.

Their final conditions were complicated, as the location of the peak was uncertain, forcing the two of them to paddle a considerable amount for a good wave.

However, the real show took place prior to that series when Jason faced the surfer from Argentina, Leandro Usuna, who was familiar with the break. Usuna had until the last seconds of the semifinals heat a score of 10.77, but Jason in the middle of an aggressive mount for the end, found a wave the he could apply a series of vertical moves and an aerial, forcing the judges to give him a combination of 12.67.

“The series of Torres against Usuna will be remembered. The Argentinean had the win in the pocket, and a few seconds to win the heat, but the Tico managed to capture that last wave and destroy it with verticals and an excellent aerial to redeem himself.

With that wave he assured himself the first position and a place in the finals,” said Pablo Panizo, Head of Press for the ALAS Latin Tour. With Jason’s win of the Reef Classic Mar del Plata, he is now the #2 ranked surfing on the ALAS. According to José Ureña, President of the Federacion de Surf de Costa Rica, Torres is going to do as many ALAS dates as his sponsor will allow. (continued page 25)

Margie in the Morning

David Mills

Margie Flaum-Scott is the host of the morning show “Margie in the Morning” on Radio Dos, Costa Rica’s popular English-language station at 99.5FM on your dial.

She is a very welcome visitor to many homes between 6 and 9 a.m. on weekdays, with a mix of contemporary music plus news, traffic and weather reports.

Radio Dos is one of the Grupo Columbia of stations, playing pop, rock-and-roll and instrumental favorites from the 1960s to the present day in English and Spanish. With five transmitters, it covers most of Costa Rica. Radio Dos has a sister station, Jazz 95.5.

Born in Philadelphia, Pa, Margie soon moved to New York, where she co-founded “The Radio Band of America” (RBA), creating publicity for radio and television. RBA won more than 30 Clio awards with work for some famous world-name brands.

Ten years ago, Margie came to Costa Rica on vacation, and stayed. While walking on the beach at Manuel Antonio she met Dave Scott. They became good friends and eventually married. Dave is a founder of the blues band Blind Pig, well-known all over Costa Rica, and was, for 11 years, DJ at Radio 107.5 in Escazú. He was the first English-speaking DJ in the country and introduced many Ticos to rock and roll.

Howler: You are known as both Maggie and Margie? Which do you prefer?

Margie: Margie.

H: How long have you been with Radio Dos? M: Three years this Valentine’s Day. H: Did you initiate the 99-and-a-half seconds of news?

M: Yes. Calling it 99-and-a-half seconds was my idea. But doing news reports has always been part of the DJ’s job.

H: Were you always in the radio industry?

M: You might say I married into it. I wanted to be a filmmaker. I worked on features and TV movies, ads and sales films, editing, coordinating, producing. Then I met my first husband, a radio journalist. And we started Radio Band of America.

I would go off and work on pictures but once we hit it big, it was radio and jingles full time. That was about 1980. We also built a recording studio called Penny Lane. In addition

to commercials, we recorded Kiss, Aretha Franklin, The Cars, The Go-Gos, Ashford and Simpson.

H: What do you enjoy most about your job?

M: The phone calls, talking to people. They tell me the most remarkable things about themselves. We also talk about the music. Just last week a young man called and asked me whether it was true if you played Revolution #9 backwards, it says Paul is dead. It’s a real high when you turn people on to the classics and the history of the music. Mostly, though it’s making people happy that gives me the greatest joy. I came to Costa Rica with a broken heart. My husband had died suddenly from cancer. I found my smile here. Sharing music is my way of giving back to this beautiful country.

H: You have a pretty distinctive voice. Are you recognized by your voice when you meet someone new?

M: Yes. And it always surprises me.

H: Do you enjoy the celebrity status?

M: No. I’m shy. Give me a microphone and I’ll talk all day.

But outside that DJ booth, it’s impossible. I don’t know how Dave does it, gets up on stage. Not for a million.

(continued page 35)

The Frozen North Rapport

by Kay T. Dodge

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y fingers are frozen. I just put on another layer of sweatshirts before I cover up with the quilt to watch the Olympics and write some winter musings for all the Howler readers basking in the sunshine of just another 90-degree, sun-filled Guanacaste day.

I haven’t seen snow for more than eight years, and the day I flew into Grand Rapids, Mother Nature was dumping a fluffy eight inches on my hometown.

My Ariat ranch work boots had to double for snow boots, but fortunately my daughter-in-law had a coat waiting for me. The heater in the car was welcome after jumping over the salt-laden slush, but then I remembered the down side of the hot air warming my icy fingers – soon my skin would resemble the famous Guanacaste iguanas – dry, dry, dry and flaky. Break out the Carmax and skin lotion.

Yes, snow is beautiful as it balances effortlessly on the blue spruce branches until it is too heavy and drops to form a white skirt around the stately pine, genetically shaped to accommodate the winter burden. As a child, I remember my father taking me out on one of those crisp winter nights after a winter snow, bundled up so just my eyes showed, to take an exciting ride on my favorite sled. Nothing is better than catching the one-of-a-kind giant snowflakes falling gently on my tongue, but never again would I stick my tongue on the metal of the sled. Do kids still investigate the outcome of putting one’s tongue on a frozen metal surface, I wonder. Well, it sticks, and the skin comes off painfully when you pull your tongue off, and if you don’t learn that life lesson on the first try, sticking your tongue on frozen monkey bars does the same, except it takes you longer to pull away, hoping for a quick thaw. When I read this little story to Carol, my daughter-in-law, she told me she and her sister did the same tongue research in their home freezer, something she had never told another soul, not even my son.

As I watch the tremendous athletes performing their individual feats at the Olympics, I look outside and see more snow here than is on many of the Canadian slopes. Here, the large flakes are gently moving sideways as they drift down from white skies to an even whiter blanket covering roofs, yards and, of course, streets. Just above freezing, the television newsperson reports a “warm” trend. When I arrived, it was a chilly two below zero Fahrenheit. I still think in Fahrenheit, to the chagrin of David. Wind chill, lake effect snow showers, freezing rain and other winter words have almost disappeared from my vocabulary. (continued page 24)

¡Qué Tuánis!

Bar Restaurant & Cabinas

I

WHAT ARE WE DOING COSTA RICA?

f you enjoy lunch or dinner and a drink in a typical Tico atmosphere, take a side trip off the main road in Huacas to Bar Qué Tuánis, a new restaurant with rustic wood accents, wide screens and music videos. The restaurant opens at 12 for lunch. Full menu of typical foods is served (casados at $2,000) and steaks and seafood, or choose a boca from the extensive menu at very reasonable prices.

Why commercials?

Because they can help you or be annoying...

For would-be songbirds, there is karaoke on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday, and every night is dance night in true Tico style.

We need information, For example:

Cabinas $30 double

Last month a row of cabinas with private bathrooms, cable TV and A/C was opened, just a 15-minute drive to the beaches.

Turn at the Boya sign 300 meters east of Huacas junction.

Reservations Tel: 2-653-6231 / 8-354-1041

Commercials in Costa Rica

Cynthia Osborne Charpentier

Makeup, food, credit cards, lessons for kids and teenagers, light food, exercise machines, vitamins, hair problems, skin problems...Name it!

Plus for arthritis, bones, headaches, stomach problems, etc.

Commercials get people to buy their products. Some of them don’t tell you the truth.

Losing weight it’s hard, but with “XXXXXX” is easy.

What do you think about commercials?

“Losing weight is good. Health. Companies have to sell their products” - Mariana.

Diets do not work. Only eating healthy and exercising does. But most people don’t care about it. They prefer to listen to commercials and take those pills or creams.

The other side? “ We may not to be available to see movies, or music shows or sports, if commercials didn’t pay for it. They pay the television station to show the commercial. If they don’t get any money, why are they to show movies? Same with papers and magazines, they need commercial advertisers, so do we” - Norman.

Commercials get people to buy their products. Some of those companies don’t tell you the truth. You can believe them, then you stop those pills and go back to your problems.

So: LLAME YA ! Appliances about TV, cars, etc.

Good and bad? Good to do something else.

“I think they’re needed, just like salesman are needed. They need to sell their product” - John M. “Commercials are important, from TV, papers, magazines or radio.

Because it depends on them what we decide about a product for all the people. Including football products during a game” - Roberto.

“If I didn’t have to watch them I wouldn’t” - Craig.

Sometimes when you are watching a program, suddenly the commercial comes really loud. So, I take time to do things in the house or go for a walk or go fishing. Commercials can be forever...

“To me they’re too loud, I don’t like them when they’re loud. If they’re the same volume as what you’re watching they wouldn’t be as bad. (continued page 19)

WHAT ARE WE DOING COSTA RICA? (from page 18) I like some of them, the ones that are funny” - Tim Barrow.

That’s truth! I have a dog. He (Freud) likes to watch important programs with me. But when the loud commercials comes he goes out of the house to start barking. Then he comes back to continue watching his program.

I have my remote control, he has his barking. He is louder then commercials, but his voice is natural.

“Commercials are good, because we see many new things. To me it’s important” - Nezelia.

“It’s too much! If you ever noticed the volume always goes up on the TV to grab your attention. They use the most expensive guys on the magazines to grab your attention. Mostly it is BS that you don’t need” - Jamie Peligro.

“Puro cuento, like gossip coming and going, coming and going and nothing” - Esteban.

“It depends what kind of commercial whether they are productive 100%, I agree, if not they don’t have a message, to me they don’t have relevance. (Rodolfo Brizuela, Tamarindo).

“It depends on the creativity of people, some are good, some are bad. If they are about politics,bad. And if it’s something to show people like a new product they are attractive in general, but not all of them” - Rafael Caruzo.

“They are lies, only commercials, to amuse people, but they don’t teach anything. Some of them teach, the others, ‘tonteras’ (gossip)” - Noilly.

“About commercials here in Costa Rica, I think they are good in general.

They are a good vision and image to many people, but some we don’t understand. To me commercials are good so people learn things from them.”

“We have good commercials talking about nutrition, recipes are important too” - Alex, Numar Company.

“They are important because we understand changes of the products, new invention for their buyers” - Angelita Azucena Ruiz Gomez.

I studied Publicity Design at the Costa Rica University. Commercials have to do something else. Some commercials are so interesting, they show you life, they are creative, wonderful and positive. I made many commercials for TV, radio shows and magazine modeling. I was there, I can understand that world. And I learned.

The most important thing is education, if not you can be included in “La Teja” (Costarrican paper).

Commercials should be serious about health.

Commercials are necessary, they give us information.

But you don’t know if the information is truth...

Good luck!

Perla Bo

Potrero Pionee

H in a Central American country?

o w many of us in the 1970s had the courage to strike out from Canada’s west coast (Lotus Land compared to much of Canada) and blaze a “pioneering trail”

Turns out there were a few, one of them being Pearl More who first came to Potrero in 1973, returning in 1974 and 1975, then starting a restaurant in 1976.

Pearl was 43 years old when she arrived in Potrero in 1973 from Canada’s west coast.

Three years later she opened a restaurant, which became Bar La Perla. The bar has continued to operate through the years, and is known as “The Canadian Club”.

On January 14, 2010, Perla celebrated her 80th birthday in the bar in Playa Potrero, Surfside. For Perla, her birthday has always been an occasion to celebrate with a live band and dancing - this year requiring that the tradition continue, especially since she has declared it to be her “last birthday dance at the bar”. Pearl plans to retire in April this year, the take-over date for the bar’s sale to Blake Snider of Sacramento, California.

In honour of her birthday and upcoming retirement, Pearl flew her son, Arden Coldicutt and his daughter, Janie and son, Tommy, from British Columbia, Canada, to Costa Rica to be with her for the Christmas season. In addition, a niece, Shelley McKenzie, also from British Columbia, was here for the birthday event itself.

Other 1970s adventurers from North America who landed up in Surfside and befriended Pearl were Al and June Heesaker (Al having just passed away this past March of 2009 - see last month’s Howler), Maggie Lother and Bob and Diane Taylor, all from British Columbia. From the USA

ows Out

er retires at 80

Diane Madson

were Brent Hoffmeister and Larry Barrow. Of these early friends, June Heesaker, Bob and Diane Taylor and Maggie Lother were all able to be present for the party. Larry Barrow, having mistakenly made another commitment, still attended in spirit.

Over Perla’s 35 years as a part-time member of the Potrero and Surfside communities she sponsored many events for local residents. Her baseball interest has always been strong and her currently sponsored team, the Bar La Perla’s, has won the “league championship” the past two seasons in a row.

Although retiring from the bar, Perla told me she has every intention of continuing to sponsor the team!

Bar la Perla’s nickname “the Canadian Club” came about because of Perla’s staunch support for her birth country and its flag. Of course, patrons are from many countries, but devoted supporters have created a theme song for la Perla’s – the song phrase: “We love this bar” being at the heart of it.

At “the big event” on January 14, a heart-warming surprise for Perla was a video produced by Melanie and Ray Gertz and a skit by the Perlitas, portraying nostalgic events and times of Perla’s 30 + years in Potrero.

The evening started with entertainment supplied

by Carlos Lopez and drummer Mathieu Groulx.

Joining Carlos for several numbers was one of Canada’s icons in the music world, Donnie Walsh, Mr. Downchild himself, of the Downchild Blues Band. In addition, singer Sabrina Paton and guitarist Brent Sabo teamed with Carlos and Mathieu, adding to the musical entertainment. Music continued through the evening with dancing to a live band, Las Tropicales from Cartagena. All in all, what a party! (continued page 30)

Recently the CEN (Centro de Nutricion) of Cartagena, that receives 90 children aged 2-5 per day for educational support and food, suffered a devastating ďŹ re during the night. Almost the whole building is destroyed.

CEPIA hopes to coordinate the help towards the Center, allowing 90 children to go back to school by this Friday. We need to supply them urgently with the following: 1 big refrigerator, small and big chairs, big rice cooker, pots and pans, plates, spoons and cups, school supplies (paper, crayons etc..). Please contact me as a soon as you can to coordinate the support.

Your help is really needed right now!

After these initial items, we want to start re-building the place.

If someone has contact with the Mardi Gras event, please let them know funds are needed to rebuilt the place.

We are eagerly awaiting your e-mails to cepiaofďŹ ce@racsa.co.cr. sincere thanks, Laetitia Deweer Presidenta Asociacion CEPIA www.cepiacostarica.org TEL (506) 8-301-8282 Huacas, Santa Cruz, Guanacaste, Costa Rica

A Slice of Life Free Vacation

O

n one of my first trips to Costa Rica I joined my friend Bob in Montezuma, where he had travelled a couple of days earlier. Bob was a physics professor at the University of Toronto, and a very smart mathematician.

After a very unfortunate incident in which we drowned Bob’s rental car in the River Bongo, we set out in my car and drove to Tamarindo and stayed at Zully Mar, which then had about eight small cabinas.

After a night out, exploring the very few nightspots - Zully Mar and Fiesta del Mar - and sinking a few cool Imperials to avoid dehydration, we returned to the cabina and hit the sack.

In the early hours of the morning I was awakened by a noise, and saw Bob take a beer from the small fridge on his way to the bathroom. Just as I fell back to sleep I heard the empty can drop into the trash can.

Awakened at about five by Costa Rica’s special alarm clock, the howler monkey, I saw Bob’s bed was empty. Going outside, I found Bob on the patio chair, a beer in hand and a few empties on the floor.

“Morning, Bob,” I greeted him, “did you have trouble sleeping?”

“No,” he answered, “but I’ve been doing some calculation.

These beers cost 80 cents each, against $3:75 in Canada. The flight cost $359. I figure that if I drink 122 beers, I get a free vacation from what I save on each beer, and I just have a few to go.”

Long on math, our Bob, but short on logic.

Do you have a short anecdote, weird, interesting or funny, to share with our readers? Please e-mail to dmills@racsa.co.cr

ICE Tower I just write this letter out of frustration.

As we all can see ICE has built their new tower 100 meters from the beach in view of everybody during the last week in a rush tempo, working 7 days a week and 24/24. Why would that be?

It is another stab at the beauty and at the tropical experience called Tamarindo. We now have in the middle of our little town uninhabited ghost 7/10-storey condos and ICE towers 50m high and less than 100m from the beach!! For everybody to enjoy while surfing or walking on our beach!

Do we really think that tourists will keep coming to visit when they have a choice of towns without these features? That families will want to move here, where there are no rules, where they can have any day a 7-story building or a tower in front of their newly purchased home??

Will the already negative comments concerning Tamarindo in travel guides, such as the lonely planet, get any better with this?

Many will say that these comments come from rich foreigners and that if they do not like it they should go home. It is not about poor or rich, about foreigner or Tico. It is about people who love Tamarindo and want to see it develop in a sustainable and controlled way with respect. So that we can all enjoy a future here and there is work for many people, ticos and foreigners alike.

Because what kind of respect is it to sell lots and homes to people and then build 10-storey buildings or towers in front of their nose, to take money from clients (the muni, the government, the realtors) and then halve their purchase prices overnight by building towers in front? To build a tower basically overnight without any warning?

Not to speak about the safety concern of a GSM tower!

Just for your info, our personal view is not obstructed but I still think this is very bad and disrespectful. And I or you could be next! As long as there is no Plan Regulador with enforced regulations, everybody is at risk and nobody knows what is next !!

Toni Vandervelle in Tamarindo since 1993.

Proceeds to help stop beach erosion with large rocks and tree planting

Taberna y Restaurante

El Rinconcito de Doña Elda Restaurant Local and International Cuisine Delicious Bocas Catering Service

Tavern available for

Parties • Meetings Concerts • Weddings Live Music • Wide Screen • Dance Floor Opposite Gas Station Oasis in El Llano Tel: 8-842-2635 / 8-356-1370

Frozen North... (from page 17)

Before I arrived in Michigan, Esteban and I spend five nights in Fort Worth, Texas, at the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo and the famous Stockyards Rodeo at the turn of the 19th century coliseum.

Guanacaste is not the only place where rodeo is king; however, in Texas-style rodeo there are both kings and queens performing in the dirt. Fort Worth is a great place to shop for cowboy boots at the Justin F a c t o r y, w e s t e r n wear at Shepler’s, and take in the historic stockyards with a real taste of the American West. To prepare me for what was coming, Fort Worth was experiencing record cold weather and hunkering down for a snowstorm the day we were to leave. We Michiganders know how to handle snow and cold, especially driving in it. I was glad I didn’t have to drive the rental car on Texas roads with all the unschooled winter drivers. However, in Michigan, I did wait for a couple of hours for the road crews and salt to work, before I hit the road for my first winter drive on ice and snow in eight years. It took a bit of careful advancing and braking to bring my skills back, but, like riding a horse, you don’t forget.

It is amazing that the cold northern climates have generated so many athletic events around ice and snow. Northerners love being outside, playing and competing in freezing temperatures. Whether throwing rocks, shooting guns, flying on skis, snow boards or skates, the hardy northern races have invented enough events to support the spectacular Winter Olympics. I am cheering for the US and Canada seeing that thus far I have not seen any Costa Rican entries.

This year there has been a struggle with snow, fog, mud and up and down temperatures...sounds like Michigan. There is a saying here, “If you don’t like the weather...just turn around”. Tonight, I will don another sweatshirt and borrow a down coat to watch my 17-year-old grandson play a hockey game – indoors.

Yes, the snow is beautiful, and watching the winter birds come to the snow-covered feeders brings back memories of Christmas Bird Counts, waking at 4 a.m. to find owls, cross-country skiing in state forest areas, and the best of all, ice skating on a frozen lake before it is covered with snows.

Do I want to return to the frozen north? Nah, but I do think I enjoy a visit every eight years or so. I miss the warm sun and blue skies of Guanacaste, but I know I will be home in just a few days to warm my bones.

Go USA!

Surf Report (from page 15) Now, Torres heads to Hawaii’s North Shore to join Puerto Viejo’s Gilbert Brown for freesurfing and training in those great waves.

“It’s really great because they get the chance from Quiksilver to stay with the rest of the teammates and they get to learn a lot of stuff, not just inside the water, but outside the wáter as well,” said Ureña.

Already learning from Volcom teammates in Hawaii were Costa Rica’s current national surf champion Carlos Muñoz (photo page 15) of Esterillos and Ronald Brown (photo below) of Puerto Viejo (Gilbert’s brother). Both Muñoz and Brown are Volcom-sponsored surfers and they were in Hawaii for the Volcom Pipeline Pro. This was the first time that Costa Ricans had ever competed in the world famous Pipeline wave on the North Shore of Oahu. This was also a World Qualifying Series (WQS) event.

The first Tico in the water was Brown who, in epic conditions during the first day of the competition, surfed in Heat 8, Round 112, coming in 4th place with a 3.24 and behind 1st place Reef Mcintosh (17.00), 2nd place Kaupeu Miranda (7.13) and 3rd place Rico Jimenez (4.17)—all from Hawaii. During the battle, where Brown surfed early in the heat two waves, then did not manage to find exit to the tubes later on, he ended up breaking his board on the reef in the last 5 minutes.

On Day 6, Muñoz had his chance in Heat 12, Round of 96, also against 1st place David Gidding from the U.S. (8.06) and 2nd place Andrew Bennett from the U.S (5.40), as well as 3rd place Alex Smith of Hawaii (4.60). Though the conditions were reduced in size, the Tico could only manage a combination of 3.36 and 4th place. Like his countryman, Carlos broke his surfboard, a situation that wasted a lot of time.

With this action, the Costa Ricans enter the general ranking of the contest with 84 points out of 2,000 for Muñoz and $400 in prize money for coming in 81 in the event. Brown ranked 105 without money. (continued page 28)

THE RIDE OF YOUR LIFE!!!

CANOPY, HORSEBACK RIDING AND ATV www.CanopyPuraAventura.com info@CanopyPuraAventura.com Tel: 2-658-0781 / 8-883-5703 / 8-873-7236

What’s developing?

J

ust outside Tamarindo, Black Stallion Hills is a very large development, but its aim is to fit neatly into the environment. “We do not have a greedy commercial money-grabbing philosophy. We are more concerned about the long-term vision of the place, the clients and the future of 10-15 years,” says Alex Urbaniak, chief designer of the project.

“We are very focused on being an exclusive eco-residential project. It’s a beautiful peaceful place to live, enjoy and invest in. The location is prime, so central; Black Stallion is positioned perfectly and we will continue to add to and enhance its beauty.”

The total property covers 620 acres (248 hectares) stretching almost from Linderos to Santa Rosa (the map shows only one half). It is being developed in 20 phases, of which phases 1, 2 and 3 are being developed. “It will take forever, but that’s the beauty of it.

It’s long-term to completion,” continues Urbaniak. The threeyear master plan is now complete, and home sites are being sold at prices between $60,000 and $180,000. The whole project is a condo horizontal, with guidelines for construction designs and colours to preserve the “rustic luxury” atmosphere.

The project is within a trust with Chicago Trust. Owners can buy and sell within the trust, and financing is also available without the need for bank assistance. Of the 288 lots available in Phase 1, forty-five have been sold. Many of the lots have ocean views, others mountain; some have both.

The property comprises rolling hills and valleys forested with natural Guanacaste trees. There are six creeks, two of them year-round. A vivero provides young cocobolo, cenicero, oak, mango, citrus and malinche trees for use by property owners. Trees are being planted along the creeks, which are common green areas for home owners to enjoy. Many species of birds and animals – howlers, iguanas, turtles, deer, pizotes and big cats - call the area home The water supply, always a concern in this dry part of Guanacaste, is assured. In fact, Black Stallion has donated a strong well to the ASADA in Santa Rosa, with approval for 400 homes. Electric power is being installed during each phase, and 22 miles of roads have been designed and created.

With 620 acres of nature, Urbaniak saw the potential for horse riding, and has built stables for 20 horses. Now he offers three-hour horse tours,

w i t h a ride to the top of a mountain for a sunset view, returning in the dark for a barbecue supper at the ranch’s café. The café area, with restaurant and kitchen, is also available for parties and special events.

Black Stallion is located 8 minutes out of Tamarindo, 5 from Hacienda Pinilla and 15 from Avellanas. Santa Cruz is 30 minutes away, and Liberia International airport one hour.

For information, call Alex at 2-653-1828, 8-869-9765 or from the USA (310) 746-5958. E-mail to blackstalliononline@yahoo.com.

Website is at www.blackstallionhills.com

A REGAL LIFESTYLE IN A SECURE GATED COMMUNITY TROPICAL DREAMING OVERLOOKING THE BEACHES AND NATIONAL PARK RESERVE OF PLAYA GRANDE AND TAMARINDO SURFING, SUNSETS, FISHING, GOLF, TURTLES AND BREATHTAKING PANORAMIC VIEWS LOTS ARE NOW READY WITH RUNNING WATER AND UNDERGROUND PO0ER

CORONA DEL CABO DEVELOPMENT IS LOCATED ON THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST COAST OF COSTA RICA, IN THE SUNNY PARADISE PROVINCE OF GUANACASTE, 55 MINUTES DRIVE FROM LIBERIA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AND THREE MINUTES FROM THE BEACH

Sales OfямБce: (506) 2-654-4919 Cel: (506) 8-392-9237 E-mail: coronadelcabo@gmail.com

Word puzzle Miscellany

All words from the list below can be found in the word block on the right.

Answers may be forward, backward, upwards, downwards and diagonal. annually aumento borracho button carretera catastrophe colon communicate ejecutivo extricate founding futura highway inauguracion increible

invertir mesonero mezcla palabra pensar pertain pugilism reunion servicio suddenly taller tantalus televisora tension waitress

David Mills

Surf Report (from page 25) In order to see the series of heats on video that Ronald Brown and Carlos Muñoz performed, click on http://www.volcompipelinepro. com/videos/heats-on-demand-2/ “I think its a great opportunity for Carlos that the brands are pushing the WQS,” explained Ureña. “It’s also something really new for Ronald.

But they proved that they have the skills to surf in those big waves.

The results just prove they need to spend more time in those waves to surf at that level. If they get the opportunity to stay they should.”

Ureña let us know that Muñoz is going to be doing some more WQS events this year thanks to Volcom. These will take place in the United States and all over the globe, wherever the sponsor wants to send him.

Enquire about special rates for residents

Back home, the Circuito Nacional de Surf Daystar 2009-2010 continued on February 27 and 28, at Westfalia de Limon, for the first time a date has taken place in that local. Look for a full report in my next column, since deadlines prevented me from covering it this month.

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.

Croeso... (from page 9) grammar. We are here familiar with the adjective changing to suit the noun; so it does in Welsh, but often the noun mutates to suit the adjective, too! Some of the purest spoken Welsh is heard, not in Wales, but in Argentina, where a community of Welsh colonists was established in Patagonia in 1865, and the colony has grown and withstood the external effects that have tended to corrupt the language elsewhere.

TAMARINDO - LOTS 1,200 TO 4,000 M2 Fully titled, water and electricity Very quiet location 5 min. from Tamarindo and beaches 3 min. from Hacienda Pinilla Golf Best prices, below the Bank’s appraisal!!

Financing available!

Lot 2B: 1201 m2 - $42.000 Lot 12A: 1322 m2 - $46.000 Lot 9A: 1601 m2 - $51.000

Lot 3A: 1734 m2 - $60.000 Lot 3B: 2044 m2 - $71.000 Lot 22: 4000 m2 - $84.000

Web Site: www.fincaarwen.com Email: finca.arwen@gmail.com TEL: 8885.8706

The resurgence of nationalism is very visible as you drive through the countryside. Towns are now signed in their Welsh names – Mold is now Yr Wyddgrug; Denbigh is now Ddynbuch; and there is a host of almost-unpronounceable names - Dwygyfylchi, Mwynglawdd, Bwlchgwyn and so forth, not forgetting the famous Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwll-llantisiogogogoch. It may help you to know that, in Welsh, the letters W, U and Y are vowels.

Apart from singing and writing poetry, the Welsh are crazy about rugby football, beer and foods such as Welsh Rarebit, Lava Bread (made from seaweed), and Mutton.

So now you know more about Wales than you ever needed or wanted to. Just suffice it to say that, if you meet a David on March 1 you should invite him to a small libation of cwrw da (good beer) – come to think of it, on any day of the year. Diolch yn fawr!

1M

2T

3W

4T

5F

02:54 09:01 15:20 21:29 03:42 09:47 16:06 22:16 04:29 10:33 16:52 23:03 05:15 11:18 17:38 23:49 06:02 12:03 18:24

9.6 -1.1 10.2 -1.2 9.9 -1.4 10.5 -1.4 9.9 -1.4 10.4 -1.3 9.6 -1.0 10.1 -0.9 9.1 -0.4 9.5

6S

7S Last Qtr 8M

9T

10W

00:37 03:51 12:50 19:13 01:27 07:45 13:42 20:07 02:23 08:45 14:41 21:09 03:29 09:55 15:53 22:19 04:41 11:08 17:10 23:29

-0.3 8.4 0.3 8.7 0.4 7.6 1.1 8.0 1.1 7.0 1.8 7.3 1.6 6.6 2.3 6.9 1.9 6.6 2.4 6.8

11T

12F

13S

14S

15M New Moon

MARCH TIDE CHART 05:50 12:12 18:18

1.8 16T 6.8 2.1

00:29 06:45 13:03 19:10 01:18 07:29 13:46 19:52 02:01 08:07 14:23 20:29 02:38 08:41 14:57 21:04

7.0 1.5 7.2 1.7 7.4 1.2 7.7 1.2 7.7 0.8 8.1 0.8 8.0 0.5 8.5 0.4

17W

18T

19F

20S

03:14 09:14 15:30 21:37 03:49 09:47 16:03 22:11 04:23 10:19 16:37 22:45 04:57 10:53 17:11 23:21 05:33 11:28 17:47 23:59

8.3 0.3 8.8 0.1 8.4 0.1 9.0 -0.1 8.4 0.1 9.0 -0.1 8.3 0.2 8.9 0.0 8.0 0.4 8.7 0.2

21S

06:12 12:08 18:28

7.7 26F 0.7 8.4

22M

00:42 06:56 12:53 19:15 01:31 07:50 13:48 20:13 02:30 08:55 14:55 21:23 03:39 10:08 16:12 22:39

0.5 7.4 1.0 8.0 0.9 7.2 1.4 7.6 1.2 7.0 1.6 7.4 1.3 7.2 1.5 7.5

23T 1st Qtr 24W

25T

27S

28S

29M Full Moon 30T

04:51 11:19 17:27 23:49 05:58 12:23 18:33 00:50 06:57 13:18 19:30 01:44 07:49 14:09 20:21 02:34 08:38 14:56 21:09

1.1 31W 7.6 1.1 7.8 0.6 1T 8.3 April 0.4 8.4 2F 0.1 9.0 -0.3 8.9 3S -0.5 9.7 -0.8 9.3 4S -0.9 10.1 -1.2

03:22 09:24 15:42 21:55 04:08 10:09 16:27 22:40 04:54 10:54 17:12 23:25 05:40 11:39 17:57

9.5 -1.0 10.3 -1.3 9.5 -0.9 10.1 -1.1 9.3 -0.6 9.7 -0.7 8.8 0.0 9.1

00:10 06:28 12:26 18:45

-0.2 8.2 0.6 8.4

Perla...

(from page 21)

When putting together this article, I couldn’t help thinking that the theme was really “A dream that happened”. I asked Perla about this and she seemed to like it. She said the dream that happened was that she “found the warmth”. Having been raised in Canada’s prairie province of Saskatchewan where the winter months are notorious for being cold, “finding warmth” readily strikes a chord of understanding in the hearts of those who “have been there”.

Meanwhile, Perla, “Congratulations” on living your dream, it was a great birthday party January 14, and best wishes for many more!

Thanks to Perla for providing the information necessary to produce this article; also to Sandy Blair and Diane Taylor for their consultation and Hope Cordery for her photo of the “pioneers”.

Perla’s Alter Egos Always the party animal, Perla loves dressing up for Hallowe’en and Mardi Gras - or any other excuse! Here she is caught in a variety of disguises - from Rasta to Redneck - by Flamingo photographer Caterine Milinaire. Check out other examples of Caterine’s work at www.globalfiestas.com Drag Race 2009

Mardi Gras 2008

Mardi Gras 2006 Drag Race 2010

October orecasts March F F orecasts

by Jeanne Callahan

28

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

The big news for you this month is that your ruling planet, Mars, will go into direct motion on the 10th thereby allowing you to make headway and not feel so hemmed in by circumstances beyond your control. Your mood will also be elevated by Venus entering your sign around the same time so love and enjoyment of life’s beauty will fill your energy field. Sounds like fun to me! Best days to look are the 17th and 18th.

This is the month to expand your business and network with others who are like minded or looking for what you have to offer. Taurus is dependable solid energy that doesn’t flake out under pressure. They know how to keep at it and finish things. Your confidence will win you the supporters you’ve been lacking of late. Launch new projects or business after the 10th. Best days for it are the 19th and 20th

Gemini: 22 May - 21 June

Big action this month for your career and professional stature. Put yourself in the public eye, particularly after the 10th when your words and promotions hit the bull’s eye! You will have to be aware of time management as demand for your services is on the increase throughout the next 2 months. Avoid financial speculation as the good vibe doesn’t extend itself to increase on that level. Best days to shine are the 21st and 22nd.

Cancer: 22 June - 22 July

Money starts to flow into your life again and you regain lost footing in your professional life. Make an effort to put yourself in the public eye or give a free informative talk about your services. Don’t hang back and wait for something to happen—get out there and participate to generate a positive wave of interest in who you are and what you do. Best days this month are the 23rd and 24th.

Leo: 23 July - 23 August

Finally you get to step back into the spotlight this month as the planet that has been holding you back, Mars, moves forward in your sign on the 10th. Now the choice is yours which direction to take. You are ready to roar; however, choose your words carefully or you might regret any casual but aggressive inferences. Or to use textspeak...

STFU! Use the positive lunar vibes on the 25th and 26th to assert your will.

Virgo: 24 August - 22 September

What to say to you poor darling Virgos who’ve suffered through Saturn being in their sign, like, forever. But things are looking up this month as you get a handle on what internally is holding you back with Mars going direct in your 12th house. On the really bright side, some good planets are transiting your solar 7th making the love vibe bright.

Those who want to get lucky should make their moves after the 10th! The 27th and 28th are very positive.

With Saturn in retrograde in your sign it feels like you aren’t getting any breaks right now. Don’t neglect networking after the 10th; you’ll get plenty of potential clients at that time. Keep plugging away at the smaller prospects; the big ones are underground now and not likely to manifest till later in the year. Best days to build your confidence are the 2nd, 3rd, the full moon on the 29th and the 30th are your best days.

This is a positive creative cycle for you as you can pretty much access the intuitive source energy right now to manifest what you want to create in your life. The energy is better after the 10th but use the time up until then to internally store it for a big burst later. Take care to not alienate authority figures with your ego...won’t work out for you in the long run. The lunar vibes on the 4th and 5th and 31st are your most positive days.

Sagittarius: 23 November - 21 December

This is a busy month for you as you seem to have many places to go in your neighborhood. Family members are also clamoring for your attention so just get in the flow and enjoy it. This is also a good month to do some remodeling or planning for future remodeling of your home. Keep positive and stay focused on broadening your horizons.

Network like crazy after the 10th. Best days are the 6th and 7th.

Capricorn: 22 December - 21 January

There’s still a big of a backlog of energy for your sign as Saturn is squaring Pluto now and not letting you gain complete control of the action. Part of the lesson here is to allow the energy to come to you in a receptive mode as opposed to oppressive, controlling everything and everyone around you. Hard to do when you know your way is the “right” way, but that’s not how it will work for you. Best days to gain headway are the 8th, 9th and 10th.

Aquarius: 22 January - 19 February

The vibe this month is focused on money and relationships.

There is plenty of money available so don’t worry about that. Relationships are where the real work is now. Ego clashes are always present as you try to balance power in partnerships but take note that harsh words can do a lot of damage that is not repairable. You’re not always right, you know...best days to move forward are the 11th and 12th.

Pisces: 20 February - 20 March

This month has a golden vibe around it for you as four planets and the Sun are transiting your sign. The pleasant ones, Venus, Jupiter and Mercury insure you will have plenty of pleasure and kindness directed your way. So if you aspire to advance your professional cause this is the month to do so. Those interested in love can find ample opportunities to meet people now. The 14th and the new moon on the 15th are your best days.

Namasté

Good Fences

make good neighbors

Tom Peifer

Love your neighbor as yurself - but don’t take down the fence Carl Sandburg The only fence against the world is a thorough knowledge of it John Locke

O

n your next drive through the highways and byways of Guanacaste, how about trying a little observation exercise? Try tuning out all the normal stuff that clamors for your attention—or usually catches it. Try focusing in on the diverse and constantly evolving ways that people demark their ‘turf.’ Try to go tunnel vision for a bit and zoom in on fences, walls, field boundaries and just let your brain absorb a bit of the variety that abounds.

It helps to bear in mind that fences (note to semantic purists, I’m lumping in walls here) have been around for a long time. It is not hard to imagine early hominids piling up rocks or sticks to ensure that the cave was a bit warmer or more secure. A bit more work and you have an enclosure out in the open. A hop skip and jump in time, enslave a couple million people for centuries and you have the 5,000 plus miles of the Great Wall of China. Keeping the ‘bad guys’ out has obviously been big business from the 8th century B.C. to the modern incarnations of tilt-up panels, pointy steel stakes, concertina wire, high-voltage systems and god-only-knows what else.

Fences and walls often serve multiple functions, a point we will come back to later on. The Great Wall was also a de facto highway with inns and fortresses incorporated into its structure. As the alien concept of private property was introduced to the newly conquered Americas, fences became more than just a way to keep livestock in or out, but a stake through the heart of the idea of ‘the commons’, as if to banish any doubt among the Native Americans that “this land is my land, no longer your land.” (Sorry Woody.) It is sometimes astonishing to note the acrimonious disputes that can emerge merely as a result of on which side of an imaginary line a 6-inch post has been installed. But let’s return to our drive through Guanacaste.

Long before Chinese steel mills were capable of stamping out security bars or spinning Australian ore into barbed strands for dividing pastures in our area, people made do with what was on hand. On the rock-strewn plateau around the airport near Liberia one sees miles of stacked rubble walls. Nearer the coast, a common practice was to transplant pinuelas, a spiny terrestrial bromeliad reminiscent of agaves, into lines around homes and between pastures. Here I have to forego

all pretense of objectivity. ‘Living fences’, as they are called, are totally cool!

In traditional rural settings all over the world, people have figured out which plants to use to keep livestock out, chickens in, deter trespassers and in many cases actually produce something useful. Hawthorn hedges in Europe provide a dense spiny maze that makes an intruder think twice and produce a small fruit commonly made into jam.

The flor de jitavo hedges, common in higher elevations in Costa Rica, furnish a showy spray of flowers that has a sauerkraut taste when cooked. I have seen people tapping into mature agaves along their fences in Mexico to extract the sweet liquid that is fermented and distilled into tequila. Live fences truly provide an opportunity for using one landscape element to fulfill various functions. Let’s consider some examples.

A neighbor of mine has a tightly planted row of vetiver grass along the perimeter of his yard that keeps dogs out and his baby chickens in. In the winter it also keeps soil from flowing out of his property and into the streams. In the town of San Pedro, there is a farm with a hedgerow of ciruelas, a spiny-stemmed evergreen shrub with tasty berry-like fruit. Further along the road into Santa Cruz you can see a leafed euphorbia—looks like cactus—but the leaves help as a privacy screen and dust block for the adjacent yard.

Boundaries planted to live bamboo afford privacy, (continued page 36

Surviving

C hapter LXXVIII

J

COSTA RICA

ust to get you warmed up for this month’s column let’s start off with a few of my favorite drummer jokes:

What do you call a four-piece band?

Three musicians and a drummer.

What do you call a drummer without a girlfriend? Homeless.

Needing more literary filler I Googled “drummer jokes” and got over 3,500,000 hits, which turned out to be the same ten jokes over and over again so we’ll just stick with these two.

As a possibly interesting aside, there was also a “guitar player jokes” link that I went to but quickly realized there’s nothing funny about playing the guitar.

The first drummer I worked with was a guy named Keith Miller, a fellow Boy Scout whose main credentials were that he actually owned a drum set. My first performance ever was with Keith and myself on my Sears acoustic guitar (built out of two-by-fours) in front of our Boy Scout troop in McLean Virginia. I don’t remember much of the gig as it’s shrouded in the distant mists of time, but I do remember Keith’s spiky crew cut!

Over the years I’ve played with numerous practitioners of the drum trade, some memorable and some not. I will therefore focus on the ones whose names I actually remember.

Not too long after my debut with the Boy Scouts I was playing with progressively better groups and drummers. This was the mid-sixties and everybody was in a band. Eventually we started The Incredible Fog with Jon Chase on drums. He’d already established himself as a guy who played with “college types” and was probably as good as high school guys got. The “Fog” actually had a couple of record contracts over the following years and played a lot of sock hops and proms, eventually disbanding during the college years.

Drummers

Jon and I actually stayed in the music biz while other members went on to more respectable employ. The last time I played with Jon was twenty years ago with the band at my high school twentieth reunion. I remember he was complaining on the condition of the Tuxedo he wore professionally but apparently hadn’t cleaned recently. I remember still being hung over from a gig in some Texas bar I’d played two nights earlier.

I’m actually going to see Jon again this summer at our 40th high school reunion where once again The Incredible Fog will get back together. I’m not sure what Jon will be saying this time but I’ll probably be hung over from some gig I’ve just played in some joint in Guanacaste.

I remember a guy named Randy with the band Sackweed, an extremely counter-cultural affair I was involved with in the early seventies. He joined us in Connecticut when we were evolving from a street music group to something more electric.

Randy was a really sharp intelligent guy with a serious case of “the dropouts”, a common affliction amongst people my age, and brought his wife and three children to all the gigs. We’d be playing some Mafia-owned bar somewhere and his wife would insist on breast-feeding her youngest at the table in front of the stage. Last I heard from Randy he had semi “rejoined” society and was managing a high-tech factory somewhere in New England.

As the years continued so did the drummers. Eventually I ended up in Texas and played for many years with a drummer named Debbie, who had about ten

Story by Jesse Bishop

girlfriends also named Debbie, causing me to write a song called “Knee Deep in Debbies”. I was once refused employment at a “Christian” coffee house in Corpus Christi, Texas because I used the word “horny” in the aforementioned song.

Debbie was cool and is still a good friend, and, as is apt to happen among her gender, she eventually got pregnant. She played into her eighth month, enabling us to refer to ourselves as “the only rock and roll band in Texas with a pregnant drummer”.

Debbie returned after the birth of her daughter and whenever we get back to Texas we’re still playing gigs. She may be a little more “matronly” looking than before but she can still play the tubs.

The guy I’m playing with now in The Banana Kings is John Francis Waddington III, who lives in San José de Pinilla (on the way to Avellanas) where he’s been building his home for the last six years. John is an extremely committed Christian who frequently travels to Nicaragua with a missionary group to do good works. John is an extremely unaccomplished drinker bordering on the “sober”, possibly a first for me.

It was not too long ago that John called me up to inform me that he’d broken a rib or maybe two while surfing, which may complicate our playing schedule. We hired a “ringer”, Pettillo from the Leatherbacks, and John returned to the drums about a week later, injuries and all.

As it turns out John was playing better than ever, causing us to contemplate breaking another rib or two after he heals.

Margie...

(from page 16)

H: Where do you live?

M: Escazú.

H: What is your favorite song?

M: Today it’s Snow Patrol’s “Just Say Yes.” Tomorrow, who knows?

H: Do you have a favorite band or musician?

M: The Beatles. The Stones. U2 and Oasis.Van Morrison, Bob Dylan, Nina Simone. Plus I’m a sucker for a Motown tune.

H: Any idea of the total music inventory at Radio Dos? M: Thousands of songs and CDs. We don’t play downloads though. It must be original source.

H: What is the most-requested song at the station?

M: Stairway to Heaven and Hotel California are requested a lot as they are everywhere in the world. But I can tell you on my show I get at least one request per day for the Beatles and Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Remodelling & Home Repairs

H: Do you have any idea how many people listen to your show?

M: Our ratings tell us we’re #1 in the pop/rock market.

Carpentry • Block Walls Stonework • Ceramic Tile Drywall • Concrete

H: What hobbies or pastimes fill the rest of your day?

M: Swimming, writing, reading news. Loving Dave and our little black cat Albert.

Free estimates Rex Barnes - Tel: 2-653-1432

H: What plans and hopes do you have for the future, in both your career and private life?

M: To live it.

H: Thanks for the interview, Margie. Keep the good music coming.

Any Work Undertaken

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 Fiesta del Mar Contact: Ellen - 2-653-0897

Good Fences... (from page 33)

organic matter for compost and a source of lightweight construction material. After your observation exercise in the campo and assuming you have plenty of space to work with, you can start thinking in three dimensions.

The possibilities are endless.

Most people who get involved in their own landscaping here become acquainted with the seasonal use of ‘liveset’ planting materials. Called pega pega locally, the most commonly used species in fences is hibiscus. Again, the possibilities are unlimited. On a ride through the backcountry, a neighbor of mine commented favorably on the technique employed in a certain fence. A far-sighted landowner had planted extra-long, live posts of pochote.

Twenty-some years later and the guy was looking at a long line of marketable lengths of timber. Other species can be used as living posts to provide fruit, edible foliage and a dose of much-needed summer shade during our dry season. A multi-story living fence can help to provide a buffer between the “heat island” effect of the road and your plantings and property. Hot winds off the road will lose heat as they pass through the shade and gain humidity due to the transpiration of plants in the lower levels. Throw in some of the bougainvillea and ornamental malinches that you jotted down during your observation exercise and you add both color and hummingbird food to the assembly of plants.

Ironically, ‘progress’ and ‘development’ in our area have had the most negative effects on the living forests along the roads. Closed canopies over the roads have been obliterated in many areas due to road widening and power grid upgrades.

March ( a l l

t i m e s

2010 l o c a l )

Sun

1st - rise 5:58; set 5:54 15th - rise 5:50; set 5:54 31st - rise 5:41; set 5:54

Last quarter: New: First quarter: Full:

Moon

7th 15th 23rd 29th

8:42 a.m.

3:01 p.m.

5:00 a.m.

8:25 p.m.

Over time, trees will establish by seed dispersal, some will be planted and tended for and a few people will plant species that can be maintained under the power lines.

A coordinated national effort to speed up the process would be nice. In addition to helping the birds and the bees and taking the glare off the summer sun, it would help our new ‘presidenta’ advance Costa Rica’s stated goal to become carbon neutral by 2020.

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, agriculture and development.

Web site: http://www.elcentroverde.org/

Power Outages

David Shear

I

nteresting interviews in the January issue on why we have our power shut off so often here in Tamarindo. I would like to add to this.

Tampering With Intelligence

First, the grid system here is marginal at best, the poles are spaced too far apart, there are too many wires, no deterrents for wildlife crawling up and shorting things out. I’ve personally witnessed metal signs being blown off their supports into the transmission lines.

Tampering with Intelligence is not only dangerous; it could lead to multiple negative endings. In Charlie’s case, if he wanted to become smarter from a surgery, his opinion should count. This could also have a negative affect on the people around Charlie. I do not agree with somebody tampering with somebody’s brain. There are many reasons why the operation is not something good.

Secondly, one of the biggest problems is the amount of houses being fed off one transformer. It’s very easy to go outside, count the amount of service drops coming off the three low-voltage wires tapped off the transformer. I counted 40 houses on one transformer in Llanito! In this particular case, a client had an oxygen machine that would randomly shut off. When I put a voltmeter on his main breaker, I saw that every five minutes the voltage would drop to 98 or so.....when his neighbor turned on a saw! Low voltage is as bad as a surge in voltage.

One person that doesn’t agree is the nurse at the hospital where Charlie is staying. The nurse kept on talking to herself as if she was talking to Charlie, as he lay in the bed, asleep. I also think the doctor should know the end causes of this; this is something very dangerous. Not only dangerous, if God wanted Charlie to be smart he would have made him that way.

There is no way this can be legal, this is basically giving somebody a new brain!”

A surge can be cause by several things. An animal crossing phases is quite common here. An air conditioner or fridge compressor can cause a surge, fluorescent lighting requires around 600 volts for a ballast output, utilties switching from hydro to wind can cause surges.

The operation is something extremely dangerous; this is the first time ever that somebody has done this operation to a human. Not just that it’s the first time, Charlie might not recover from the operation. Anything could go wrong during the operation, Charlie might not wake up, and he might become even more retarded too.

I do believe that many problems here are caused by insufficient transformers. A typical ‘’Gringo’’ house will need at least 125 amps or more to power all the appliances we like, hot water heater, washer/dryer, oven, multiple air conditioners and much more. If you have, for example, a 50 kva transformer, this will give you 208 amps of power; if two houses are tapped off it, well, you can do the math. An easy way to determine transformer size is multiply KVA X 1,000 and divide by voltage; in this case 240 should be what you have to your house. Kva rating is the bold black number printed on the transformer, usually something like 15, 25, 37.5, 50, 75 and 100.

Unfortunately, Coopeguanaste makes you buy your own transformer and they run about two or three thousand dollars, depending on size. The other problem is that Coopeguanacaste has no problem tapping your newly-bought transformer to bring power to someone else’s house. I can’t tell you how to fix that.

The nurse was beginning to calm herself a little, but then she freaked out once again. I told her in a calming way Charlie already has a small amount of friends, ten at the most. People are going to like him less than before because he has become smarter. He should think about the people at the bakery. This might affect him getting a different job, in a different place. Charlie is going to lose some of the small amount of friends that he has in the beginning; he is not going to like the ending of this operation.

After about thirty minutes of the nurse sobbing, and talking to herself about the negative aspects of the operation, she came to an end of saying one thing.

“This will end negatively.”

I hope this enlightens your readers about local electricity.

David Shear is a professional electrician located in Langosta.

Griffin Hull - English Grade 8 Country Day School Guanacaste

S T U D E N T V O I C E S • C D S G