The Mojito, Costa Rica's Famous Rum Drink

No one call tell you better than Marina Villatoro, the Travel Experta  about this wonderful drink made with rum called the Mojito.

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Hey you cocktailers! Welcome to the monthly International Cocktail Hour - Drinks 'Round the World. Your two lovely hostesses Lifecruiser and Travel Experta(Me) are super happy to have you here.And guess what - this round is on us!!!!!

Today I want to share my absolute favorite, hands down, drink in the whole wide World - the Mojito! I can't even tell you how much I love this drink.

Since I live in Costa Rica, I've figured I'll try a little Costa Rican flavor to yummy up my Mojito. Instead of the customary Cuban rum, I've added Cacique - Guaro to the mix. And so far, I'm loving it!

So here's one on me!

Ingredients

1.25 oz Cacique - Guaro
12 mint leaves
1 tbsp brown sugar
freshly squeezed lime juice
2 oz water

Shake It Up!
Get out your favorite cocktail glasses and stick them in the fridge for a cooler effect.

In a cocktail mixer pour in the Guaro (or rum), water, lime juice and crushed ice. Now shake it up!

Take out the glasses, throw in the mint leaves and mash it around to get the juice out, now pour and enjoy.
Your turn! What's your drink specia

Read more of Marina's fun filled articles about Costa Rica travel and Costa Rica daily life at www.travelexperta.com

Tortuguero Village, and the "Green Sea Turtles"

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This is a  short story about Tortuguero Village  and the green sea turtles by Marina Villatoro, a young travel writer who lives in Costa Rica.  It's about Tortuguero Village,  situated between  the banks of the river and  the  blue waters of the Atlantic Ocean.   We hear so much about the Tortuguero Canals but so little about the village.  Here there  are  no cars, only small boats docked along the river bank.  Dirt pathways take you to the one room school house, then to the colorful central park,  and the cute little restaurants lining the banks of the river, and small locally run hotels.   Keep walking and we come to small houses painted the bright colors of the Caribbean, where children laugh and play in the mud puddles of the afternoon rain.   Yes, the Afro- Caribbean influence is quite evident here especially in the local food,  the style and colors of the houses, and the language.  Both English and Spanish is spoken.  Then,  down a long path thru palm trees we come to the soft beige  sands of a beach that seems to go for miles in the distance.  Here is were the  Green Sea turtle comes to lay its eggs every year  from June through October.

These green sea turtles are protected by  an organization called the Caribbean Conservation Corporation (CCC)  located here to do research and education.

A little history:  In the 1950 Dr. Archie Carr, a biologist from the University of Florida, came to here to study these turtles and convinced the Costa Rican government to protect the area from logging, thus in 1978 the Tortuguero National Park was established to protect the green sea turtles and also for visitors to enjoy the awesome natural beauty and wildlife of the Tortuguero Canals.

You can read more of Marina Villatoro's interesting stories about Daily life in Costa Rica and Costa Rica travel  on the web  www.travelexperta.com

Here at  costaricalearn.com to hear from you, my readers.  Do you have a story about The Tortuguero Canals or Village.  I'd love to share it.  Simply click on comments or reply at the end of this article.

Costa Rica's Farmer's Markets

This article about Costa Rica's Local farmers  markets is written by  Marina Villatoro who has lived in Costa Rica for six years.  She is the creator of www.travelexperta.com She writes about her travel and living experiences in Central America.

Costa Rica's Farmer's Market. It's not just a local thing.

What's my favorite thing to do in Costa Rica?  I can give you a long list, but I'll narrow it down.  I love going to the local farmers market every weekend and it never gets old.

Costa Rica's  markets don't have the colorful trinkets filled markets or markets filled  with jewelry like in Mexico and other Central American countries. But it does have the weekend "ferias" or farmers markets.   I live in a relatively large town so on Sunday mornings the main street , by the church  is filled with fruits and vegetables that will delight any chef.

And the best part is the prices are really cheap.   1 lb. fresh, red plump tomatoes 25 cents          1 lb.  juicy carrots 30 cents        1 lb. cucumbers 50 cents

And that is not all you get here.  Fresh orange juice,  mango juice, carrot juice, sugar cane water, and coconuts!    And if you wait until near closing time, they lower the prices even more.  So when visiting Costa Rica be sure to check out one of these markets.