It’s a funny thing about music: it does not recognize the imaginary boundaries men have drawn on maps or in the ground. Put simply: music transcends borders.  It travels into the ear of its listeners then, hopefully, into their hearts as well, no matter where they live. And music does not need a passport to accomplish this. That is part of the appeal of World Music for aficionados from anywhere on the globe. We have had a plethora of Euro café discs, Middle Eastern lounge CDs and Indonesian trip-hop fusion albums while, regretfully, Central American music has been nearly unheard during this wave of international awareness. Until now. A joint venture by the four most popular and progressive recording labels in this part of the world has begun to fill that void with the release of La Caja de Musica Centroamericana, the Central American Music Box.

This compilation of sixteen songs showcases musical styles that ignore the borders of places we call Nicaragua, Belize, Honduras, Guatemala and Costa Rica. The Garifuna music represented here from Ivan Duran’s Stonetree label from Belize is a good example. The Garifuna culture was spawned nearly four centuries ago when survivors from two sinking slave ships began cohabitating with the indigenous Carib tribes, including the Arawaks on the islands of Saint Vincent (in the Lesser Antilles), Dominica and Santa Lucia, as well as with other escaped African slaves. Later, under British domain, they were relocated to the Honduran island of Roatan and from there they migrated to the surrounding countries in Central America. The resulting music is unique, mesmerizing, and anything but Latin.

Then there is Perrozompopo, a rock singer from Managua, Nicaragua, who records with Costa Rica’s premier label, Papaya Music. It’s a nice touch on this historic album to have Manuel Monestel with his calypso band Cantoamerica sing “Calaloo”, a song written by his mentor, the legendary Walter Ferguson and the contribution by the Calypso Limon Legends. This style of music has certainly travelled outside the Caribbean coastline and contributed to the creation of other musical styles, including reggae. The Moka Discos label from Nicaragua is represented by the fabled Duo Guardabarranco, along with Moises Gadea, internationally acclaimed Clara Grun and Katia Cardenal, the label’s founder. And the ethereal voice and variety of musical styles of Guillermo Anderson who co-founded the Honduran label Costa Norte with Max Urso is testament to the wide scope of rich culture here. Of course, no Central American compilation album would be complete without a song from the immensely popular Costa Rican band Malpais, and they are here, along with a solo piece from their pianist Manuel Obregon, one of the founders of Papaya Music. One of my favorites is Belizean Leroy Young, discovered by Ivan Duran doing his thing while washing cars in Belize City. He went into the studio and recorded his infectious art and now he’s a dub poet.

I have to admit that when I moved here nearly eight years ago, I had no idea of the wealth, diversity and depth of Central American music. This collaboration between the four major labels, under the name The Central American World Music Network, has done an excellent job of offering a sample of the broad scope of culture that lies within these imaginary boundaries.

I could not review this impressive new album without mentioning the artwork and overall production. In sharing the duties of production executive, Luciano Capelli from Papaya Music and the aforementioned Ivan Duran of Stonetree Records, along with Sylvie Duran from Costa Rica, who was instrumental in getting the key players together at the World Music Expo (WOMEX) last year in Copenhagen, have collectively done an incredible job putting this coalition of diverse talent together; Priscilla Aguirre from LaCabeza Estudio and Paula Cruz from Papaya have done a first class job in packaging and presentation, complete with classic Central American watercolor artwork and a bilingual booklet, with text by Yazmin Ross.

I have a feeling that this project is just the tip of the iceberg. Indeed, each of these four labels has an abundance of talent that could easily make this album the first of a series. As they say in the business: “It’s a monster!” Already, I can’t wait to hear the songs playing on Central American Music Box II.

As a solar energy company, we hear from a lot of people who want to reduce their energy bills.  Some, like us, want to “save the world” by using renewable energy, others want solar or battery backup because of blackouts and excessive power bills.  Either way, the first step is to look at how much energy is being consumed in the first place.

Solar energy does not reduce your power consumption.  It simply supplies electricity from a different source.  The equipment for capturing solar energy is expensive, which means that the first step is to reduce your need for energy, thereby reducing the size—and cost—of the system.

Even if you don’t plan to invest in a solar or battery backup system, taking stock of the construction of your home or business and your energy use patterns is a great idea that may allow you to dramatically reduce your bills and increase your comfort!  Humans are very adaptable animals; some simple adaptations to your home and habits could significantly improve your day-to-day experience.

For those who use it, air conditioning is generally responsible for the bulk of a home or business’ electrical consumption.  The problem is, few buildings in Costa Rica are built appropriately for A/C.  It’s true we don’t have to insulate against the cold here, but trying to air condition a space without adequate insulation to keep the heat on the outside is a recipe for outrageous power bills.

Real life example

Our office is in a warehouse-type space in Santa Ana.  With high ceilings, low room dividers and a standard corrugated roof, we knew when we moved in that we were going to have to put some effort into making the space livable!  Although we were working to improve our indoor environment without air conditioning, the exact same principles will apply if you are looking to reduce the cost of running an A/C unit.

Many Costa Rican buildings have little or no insulation, and our new office space was no exception.  The two most common culprits for heat gain are the roof and the windows. In our case, the roof was our biggest challenge. With only a sheet of corrugated metal between us and the blazing sun, we had our work cut out for us!

Before moving into the space, we installed two skylights (for illumination) and a roof-mounted hot air extractor; the bubble-shaped kind with fins that catch the breeze and draw air up and out. We also installed two ceiling fans inside and, most importantly, insulated the underside of the roof.

Although white Styrofoam (open cell) is popular here and does provide a decent sound barrier, it is actually not very effective against heat. Styrofoam’s R-factor (insulation index) decreases at higher temperatures, and what’s more under a metal roof it will begin to outgas immediately, losing mass and eventually providing just the right amount of space for bats, tree rats and other critters!  Instead, we used Prodex, a closed-cell flexible insulation material that comes on a roll.  A single or, ideally, double layer of 3mm Prodex (with a little airspace between them) will go a long way toward blocking unwanted solar gain through your roof.

Once the underside of the roof was insulated, we painted the outside.  Most painted roofs here are red or green, but white paint will reflect significantly more heat back away from your roof, noticeably reducing the solar gain.  All of these measures did help, but we were still uncomfortably hot by mid-afternoon. We put a sprinkler on the roof, turning it on for brief periods as the day grew warmer and this, too, helped somewhat.

What really made the difference was a ceramic paint additive we bought in the U.S.  The additive, a “super-reflector” developed by NASA for use on the space shuttles, comes as a powder to stir into standard paint (again, white).  The week after we repainted the roof with the additive, one of our regular delivery guys walked into the office and said, “Hey, you got air conditioning!”  Now, it’s not as cool as all that, but between the effective insulation and some attention to when we open and close the windows (open overnight to let the cool air in, closed when we arrive in the morning to keep it in), we have achieved a comfortable work environment under the blazing direct Santa Ana sun.

Solar Costa Rica can be reached at 2582-0623, www.SolarCostaRica.com, or solar@SolarCostaRica.com.

Yumeiho Massage is an oriental massage technique that strives to achieve and maintain the balance and harmony of the body. The father of the method is professor Masayuki Kotsuban.

Yumeiho is a complex method to reestablish and maintain bodily symmetry and harmony by applying pressing and kneading techniques, as well as joint-stimulating energetic elements all over the body.

The massage activates the self-healing elements of the body that prevents it from becoming ill. Its origin goes back to the shaolin era, where it was initially used to increase physical and psychical capacity of body and mind.

Today – apart from its ancient function – it is frequently used in locomotion therapy and cardiologic treatments. This thousand-year-old healing massage technique is usually applied onto the dressed body on a special rubber mattress called tatami.

THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

The human body is asymmetric. Examining even parts of the body, asymmetry is found everywhere, which is acceptable to a certain degree. There are two forces affecting the body of all human beings. One is gravity; the other is the force that holds the whole structure against it. These two forces meet “around” the hip bone area creating a critical pressure point, which can cause the dislocation of the two “si” joint in the backbone.

What does exactly it mean? It means the alteration of the static and dynamic state of the back that muscles try to compensate. Some parts become overstressed, will therefore overdevelop, while others will act just the opposite. Overstressed muscles will have less chance to relax, causing stiffness. Due to its imperfect state, blood supplement of the cells will deteriorate causing muscle ache and stiffness.

Most of the back problems of our present days are simply the symptoms of overstressed back muscles. It can also effect the functioning of the internal organs, as well as the energy channels of the body. Yumeiho helps to release these stress points in order to achieve the ideal blood and energy circulation of the body.

Traducido por Rosa Arechederra

Dr. Alfonso Gaspar Martínez del Pino, nacido y educado en Cuba, dice que  pensó en quedarse en Costa Rica desde el momento en que decidió aceptar la invitación para asistir a una conferencia aquí, en 1995. Dejando a sus amigos y familiares se vino  con 63 libras de equipaje (59 libras de libros), 145 dólares en el bolsillo y se dedicó a empezar  una nueva vida aquí. Dio varias conferencias en la   Escuela de Veterinaria de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma en el Barreal de Heredia, y a continuación, dice, “me quedé.”

Trabajó  como administrador en un hospital de animales en San José y vivía en el trabajo. Solicitó la condición de refugiado y revalidó  su título de Veterinario en un tiempo récord. Lo hizo todo en tres meses, entre Mayo y Julio del 1995 . “Todo fue muy rápido”, sonríe. “Yo tenía que trabajar. La vida era muy difícil.”

Yo sabía que quería entrevistar al Dr. Martínez, desde el momento en que salvó la vida de mi gato de 20 años llamado “ Salvo”. Completamente paralizado por una picadura de alacrán y no pudiendo comer le entregué toda temblando a Salvo al Dr. Martínez esperando lo peor. De hecho, explicó que no podía prometer nada principalmente debido a la edad del animal. Sin embargo tras  tres inyecciones y unas cuantas palabras de aliento Salvo se fue recuperando.  Después de volver tres veces más a por inyecciones, el Dr. Martínez le enseño  a mi marido cómo inyectar el gato y Salvo se recuperó bien.

El Dr. Martínez se crió en pueblo de campo en Cuba donde su padre, ingeniero mecánico, tenía una fábrica de quesos y mantequilla. Después de graduarse como  veterinario, inició su vida laboral como control de calidad en el matadero provincial. Martínez hizo dos años de servicio social y posteriormente laboró en la Universidad de Camagüey como profesor e investigador en la disciplina de Patología Veterinaria por 17 años. Sus últimos cinco años en Cuba los trabajó en acuacultura, ganadería y médico de los gallos de pelea para exportación. La pelea de gallo, dice, es ilegal en Cuba (como lo es en Costa Rica).

En Costa Rica, el Dr. Martínez tomó una trayectoria diferente, pasando de lo académico a la práctica. Dice que tuvo que volver a aprender muchas cosas – para reorientar su especialidad – porque no había ejercido como  veterinario clínico en mascotas durante  muchos años. Su experiencia en la industria del pescado le sirvió de mucho. Se ofreció como Médico Veterinario Regente en Industrias Martec S.A., Quepos y se mudó aquí en 1997. Después de aprender las chispas del oficio en Martec, se fue a Vetcomer  para trabajar medio tiempo.  ”El Dr. Jorge Rojas me ayudó mucho, me dio un trabajo magnífico! Trabajaba de 2:00-6:00 pm – medio tiempo.” Los dos veterinarios vieron juntos crecer la clínica de tan sólo un puñado de clientes a un negocio bueno.

En 1999 abrió  su primera clínica  en Manuel Antonio, donde la  Escuela de Idiomas Cosí está ahora. “Era un lugar humilde,”  dice, “trabajaba por la noche y al aire libre. Necesitaba luz, pero la bombilla atraía insectos que interferían en mi trabajo, entonces instalé una mosquitera encima de la mesa y con la luz sobre de la mesa así podía operar.”  Volvió a Quepos en 2001 y a la par de la actual Chikas abrió la clínica privada  que es una empresa próspera.  Ahora divide su tiempo entre Martec en la mañana, la clínica privada en la tarde y la clínica en la Inmaculada en la tarde-noche.

¿Qué diferencias encuentra en la práctica veterinaria entre Costa Rica y Cuba?  Él responde que, al contrario que en otros campos como el derecho, no hay diferencias esenciales en la ciencia médica de un lugar a otro. Una de las ventajas de la medicina es que la gente y los animales son esencialmente los mismos en todas partes. Sin embargo, el enfoque de la salud animal en los dos países es totalmente diferente. En Cuba, la filosofía es casi enteramente de prevención – control de parásitos, vacunación, prevención de la enfermedad – mientras que en Costa Rica, es casi enteramente curativa. En Cuba, la práctica veterinaria se centra en las especies productivas, es un servicio estatal (no existe la clínica privada), la atención a las mascotas es mínima. En Costa Rica, dice, los servicios veterinarios son esencialmente privados y tiene un enfoque más curativo que preventivo, la mascota tiene un peso importante en la atención médica y existe más desarrollo en esta especialidad  que en Cuba. “En Cuba es la medicina del rebaño, aquí la tendencia es la medicina individual.”

Pregunto al Dr. Martínez por qué trabaja tan duro, sin duda tres turnos al día con esa carga de trabajo  debe ser agotador.  Él responde que rara vez está cansado, prefiere hacer algo útil para  la sociedad que  perder el tiempo viendo la televisión o
navegando por Internet.

Le pregunto sobre  su trabajo en la Inmaculada, la zona más pobre de Quepos y responde que él ve esto como un servicio a la sociedad ya que para los residentes de la Inmaculada tomar un taxi a Quepos para ir al veterinario es muy costoso. Al poder ofrecer un servicio a nivel local  todo el mundo puede permitirse el lujo de tener una mascota. “Es el servicio social de un veterinario”, argumenta. ¿Por qué a un niño o a un pensionista se le va a negar  el placer de tener un animal porque no tienen dinero?, se pregunta. Todo el mundo debería tener derecho a disfrutar de una mascota sana. “La medicina debe estar al alcance de todos y para todos”, dice.

Le preguntó qué cambios ha visto en Quepos, menciona el progreso económico, el empleo, mejoras en la infraestructura y el aumento del turismo. Con los años, también,  se ha observado una diferencia en el comportamiento de la población local hacia los animales. Los  primeros clientes venían principalmente para recoger una receta para un animal enfermo. “La costumbre de llevar la mascota al veterinario no existía cuando yo llegué aquí,” comenta. Ahora, dice, es una cosa común. Él atribuye este cambio a mayores ingresos  en la economía local y la influencia de los extranjeros en la zona. El turismo no es sólo diversión y  creación de puestos de trabajo.  ”Un turista también trae su cultura y esta cultura impregna poco a poco la comunidad local”.

Señala que también se han producido cambios negativos  sobre todo el aumento en el consumo de las drogas y la delincuencia. Estos problemas deben abordarse urgentemente, dice, porque el futuro de Quepos depende de como los afrontemos  “Si nosotros no controlamos estos problemas  los turistas  dejarán de venir. Cuando la gente vea que no es seguro aquí se van a ir  a otra parte.”

El Dr. Martínez emplea a cuatro personas en su negocio, su esposa, Doña Rosa Williamson, su hija menor Leticia y  dos empleados.  Doña Rosa administra sus asuntos financieros. “Esto es muy importante, ¿no?”, se ríe.  Leticia se ocupa de los temas bancarios y tiene dos empleados para atender al público y la tienda. El Dr. Martínez tiene otros dos hijos Harris y Dayamí que son  figuras conocidas en  Quepos. Harris trabaja como camarero en el Gran Escape y Dayamí es la    dueña de la Agencia de Viajes Lynch Travel en Quepos. Leticia está estudiando para hacerse veterinario.  Los  otros miembros de la familia son los perros, Princesa, Zeus y  Pinky y la gata Miniú.

El Dr. Martínez dice que sus animales favoritos son los perros y los caballos, pero que también le gustan los gatos. Dice que había muchos gatos en su familia donde él se crió. Vivian  en la casa y comían en un plato grande bajo un árbol de mango. “Era un paraíso para los gatos!” sonríe.  Le pregunto si hay alguna verdad en el dicho de que los perros son más inteligentes que los gatos.  El Doctor Martínez mueve la cabeza y dice que no hay ninguna diferencia sino que al estar  los perros  más cerca de los seres humanos y menos independientes la gente piensa que son como ellos. Añade que no hay absolutamente ninguna verdad en el dicho – “peleando como perros y gatos” de hecho se llevan muy bien, dice.

El Dr. Martínez todavía visita  Cuba siempre que puede. Ahora que es costarricense  dice que no ha tenido dificultades para viajar  entre los dos países. De hecho, dice, él y su esposa  pasaron unas  vacaciones maravillosas en Cuba  a principios de este año.

The ASVO (Association of Volunteers) has been in Matapalo Beach for 5 years and patrols 5.4 KM of the beach. Olive Ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea)turtles nest on Matapaplo Beach from June to November. This year according to Mr. Roberto Solano, the scientist in charge of the project, they have had 180 Olive Ridley turtle nests and on 1 leatherback nest as of the 10^th of Dec. This is the first leatherback nest in the past 5 years of monitoring according to Mr. Solano. The Volunteers conduct night patrols, monitor the turtle hatchery 24 hours a day and clean up the beach in Matapalo. Night  patrols continued until mid December  to protect the nests from poachers and retrieve the eggs to the safety of the hatchery. Hatchings will continue through January.

The Coast Guard also helps to protect the nests from poachers and when caught will take the eggs from them. The eggs are thought to help with fertility and can bring between 250-500 colonies each. Once a nest is found and the eggs retrieved a radio call to the hatchery begins the construction of a nest  for the eggs. Incubation is between 45 -60 days and a nest will have  between 33 to 150 eggs. Average nests hatch around 80 to 100. The female turtle lays several nests per season. The hatchery provides a safe haven for the eggs with 24 hr monitoring, keeping them from predators (monitored every 15 mins.)  such as ants and crabs, and to prevent the hatchlings from burning up in the sun.  The turtle nest usually hatch at night, but can hatch at any time. Often after it rains, the sand is cooler and the baby turtles think it’s night.  Nests which hatch the night before are usually exhumed at around 3 or 4 PM and then released. Only female sea turtles return to the shore to lay their eggs after reaching maturity at 20 years of age. The male turtles never return to shore. Only 1 in a 1,000 turtles survive to adulthood.

Once hatchlings are retrieved from the nest 10 from each nest are weighed  and the length of the shell measured and recorded before releasing. The scientists at the facility are very informative & passionate about sea turtles & their enthusiasm for their work is contagious. Volunteers come from all over the world to participate. This year they came from Germany, Great Britain, Australia, Spain, Switzerland, Scotland, United States, Thialand and Costa Rica.

The Olive Ridley is endangered. They are threatened by poachers, pollution in the water including plastics, fishing line(causing entanglement and drowning) from shrimp nets and long line,  the loss of habitat due to beach development including hardening of shoreline(seawalls) and possibly global warming causing the sea water temperature to raise. They feed on shrimp, fish, crabs, and other small animals including jelly fish. The Olive Ridley inhabits  tropical waters of the Pacific, Indian & Atlantic Oceans. In Costa Rica, they live in the country’s Pacific  waters. Unlike other sea turtles, female ridleys often emerge together, by the thousands, to lay their eggs on beaches. This phenomenon is called arribada. In the past olive ridleys carried out their arribadas on dozens of Pacific coast beaches from Mexico to Panama. But today such emergences take place on just three: Playa Escobilla in Oaxaca, Mexico, and Playa Nancite & Playa Ostional in Costa Rica.

To celebrate the turtle project and releasing a Turtle Festival was held on Matapalo Beach in late November with music, food, kite flying, surfing contests and much more fun.

Quepolandia would like to thank Katherine Richardson of Manuel Antonio for contributing this information. Katherine and her 5  year old son, Garrett, were volunteers for 2 months of the project.