The first time I hiked into the dry tropical forest along the Tamarindo Estuary, I found a narrow trail and a sign warning of crocodiles. Although I searched, unfortunately, I never found any crocodiles. I did find many reptiles, colorful birds, and unique plants, along with trash, lots and lots of trash. Costa Rica’s lush …
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The Indigenous populations of Costa Rica have suffered from the neglect of the government and its institutions. In this case, unfortunately, a 29-year-old woman died after being bitten by a snake in the Indigenous village of Alto Blei in Telire, Talamanca, in Limón. On Sunday, at around 1 p.m., the 29-year-old woman was bitten by …
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Costa Rica abstained from recognizing and condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The country’s representatives refrained from voting on a resolution discussed during the recent United Nations (UN) assembly, which condemned Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and labeled it a “full-scale invasion.” The resolution reiterated support for Ukraine and its territorial integrity, three years after the beginning …
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Saudy Palacios crossed the dangerous Darién Gap jungle, on the border between Panama and Colombia, with the dream of reaching the United States, having a job, a home, and educating her son. Now she returns to Venezuela by sea with “broken dreams” due to President Donald Trump’s migration policy. Hundreds of migrants, many of them …
Read more “American Dream Dies: Migrants Flee Trump’s Deportation Push”
Eavesdropping – the very word in English suggests a rude and invasive action. It conjures up images of a wiretap, or an ear against the door. To listen in on conversations of people unknown to you may be frowned upon by society at large, but I highly recommend it when learning Spanish (or any new …
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With a monthly salary of $15, a teacher in Venezuela earns nowhere near enough to cover their basic food necessities, never mind rent or medicine. Many in the crisis-stricken South American country are forced to work multiple jobs or pool their money with family. Thousands have emigrated in pursuit of greater financial stability. “For the …
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The Jícaro reef, located in Culebra Bay, Guanacaste, has died. According to records from the Center for Marine Science and Limnology Research (Cimar-UCR), which has been monitoring the area since the 1990s, its decline is due to a combination of factors such as increasing water temperature, mass tourism, and pollution caused by urban growth. The …
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A boat carrying 19 South American migrants blocked from entering the United States sank off the coast of Panama as they returned to their home countries, leaving an 8-year-old Venezuelan girl dead, authorities said Saturday. The boat went down Friday night “due to strong waves caused by bad weather” in Caribbean waters off northeast Panama, …
Read more “Tragic Migrant Boat Capsizes Near Panama in Reverse Migration Crisis”
Today we meet the long-tailed weasel, a high-energy predator that may be dancing for two very different reasons.The long-tailed weasel (Mustela frenata) is known as the comadreja de cola larga or more simply the comadreja in Spanish. They are one of the seven members of the weasel family to call Costa Rica home and by …
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In a shelter in the jungle province of Darién, guarded by Panamanian officers, around a hundred Asian migrants wait to be found a country to go to, after being deported from the United States by Donald Trump’s government. Green fields where cattle graze surround the San Vicente refuge, located about 220 km southeast of the …
Read more “Inside Panama Migrant Shelter Housing Deported Asian Refugees”