On July 30, 1950, Costa Rica witnessed a quiet but groundbreaking revolution: for the first time, women voted alongside men, marking a turning point in the country’s democratic history. The occasion was a local plebiscite to determine whether the communities of La Tigra and La Fortuna would remain part of the canton of San Ramón …
Monsignor Daniel Blanco, Auxiliary Bishop of San José, Costa Rica, presented Pope Leo XIV with a special gift during the general audience held at the Vatican. The offering consisted of Costa Rican coffee and honey, sourced from small-scale and predominantly women-led producers supported by the Catholic Church. “Coffee and honey were chosen because they are …
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I love my life in Costa Rica, so it is more than a little ironic that I also once hit my own personal rock bottom here. Within four years of arriving, my then-wife and I had two children, bought a property, built a cabina, and divorced. I was torn between the need to return to …
Read more “Costa Rica in the 90s From Mushrooms and Hammocks to a New Beginning”
The resurfacing of the runway at Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport (AIDOQ), completed this past February, is now under judicial investigation, and at the center of growing controversy over construction quality. The work, carried out by the firm MECO, is facing multiple technical and administrative questions, just months after completion. A new report from the …
Read more “Costa Rica Report Uncovers Serious Flaws in Airport Runway”
President Rodrigo Chaves Robles has announced that he will not resign from the Presidency, ending months of speculation fueled by political rumors and legal pressures. The decision comes as the legal deadline nears for government officials to step down if they intend to run in the 2026 legislative elections. Chaves, who has been in office …
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In a weird way, stinky turtles have led to my current life as a guy in Costa Rica working in wildlife monitoring. Up until the age of ten I lived in southern New Jersey. The area I grew up in wasn’t exactly a hotspot for species diversity, but it did have a positive feature for …
Read more “From New Jersey Ponds to Costa Rica’s Mud Turtles: A Wildlife Story”
The National Emergency Commission (CNE) has issued a public alert for Costa Rica’s Pacific coast, warning of dangerous ocean currents expected on Wednesday morning, triggered by a tsunami generated by a magnitude 8.8 earthquake off the eastern coast of Kamchatka, Russia. While the tsunami does not pose a flooding threat to Costa Rica, the CNE …
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An 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck off Russia’s Far East coast on Wednesday, one of the most powerful quakes ever recorded, triggering tsunamis with waves up to four meters high and evacuation alerts from the United States to Colombia. Russian authorities reported minor injuries from the earthquake but no deaths. Officials in the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia’s …
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At least seven people were killed and 13 wounded in an armed attack Tuesday night at a funeral in downtown Guatemala City, which authorities have linked to gang disputes. Guatemala has long been plagued by the notorious Barrio 18 and Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gangs. Interior Minister Francisco Jiménez attributed the massacre to their ongoing rivalry. …
Read more “Guatemala’s Gang War Funeral Attack Leaves 7 Dead and 13 Injured”
Costa Rican authorities took down a cocaine smuggling operation Tuesday that moved drugs from South America to the United States, with a judicial worker caught in the mix. Police arrested about ten people, including the group’s leader, his family, a traffic officer, and the judicial employee. They faced charges of tipping off the group about …
Read more “Judicial Corruption Exposed in Costa Rica’s Latest Drug Bust”