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This schedule was printed this morning in AM Costa Rica. Some of things scheduled might appeal to some CRT guys who will be town during the season. Sadly the Zapote fair will not be held this year.

Christmas season kicking off with concert Thursday

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff


The Christmas season goes into full swing this week. Thursday an annual concert takes place at Parque Morazán.

This is the event sponsored by the Asociación Costarricense para Organizaciones de Desarrollo, a financial services firm. From 11 a.m. there will be expositions of art work, including paintings, sculptures and crafts. The music starts at 5:30 p.m. Fireworks follow at 8:30 p.m. The firm provides chairs.

The Centro Nacional de la Cultura in the downtown will be hosting its Festival Navideño this weekend with artisans, contemporary dances, storytellers and Costa Rican movies. The event will be from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. to noon Sunday.

Saturday the Festival de Música Campesina begins at 1 p.m. and runs until 7 p.m. at La Sabana. The Fundación Costarricense de Boyeros and the Municipalidad de San José are the organizers. This is the staging event for what takes place the next day.

Sunday the boyeros or ox cart drivers bring their beasts and statues of saints into San José for the traditional Christmas parade. This is a must-see event for tourists and residents.

Law enforcement officials said Tuesday that they are beefing up patrols all over the country with 3,000 officers with the help of 18,000 private security guards. The alliance will run from Monday to Jan. 26 and include the festivals in Alajuelita, Palmares de Alajuela and Santa Cruz de Guanacaste.

The Teatro Nacional will inaugurate its portal or nativity scene at 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 1. Choirs will sing there at 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2, and 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 3.

The theater will host the XXIII Festival de Coreógrafos Graciela Moreno Dec. 1 and 2 at 8 p.m. and Dec. 3 at 3 p.m. This event requires an admission. The dancers and the audience are scheduled to leave the theater to perform in the open air, too.
The "Nutcracker" will take over the theater Dec. 8 and 9 at 7 p.m. with an 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. performance Dec. 10 and 17. The ballet also will be presented Dec. 13, 14 and 15 at 7 p.m. This, too, is an admission event.

At the Archivo Nacional in Zapote, the nativity scene will be installed in the front gardens of the agency Dec. 1.

The Museo Nacional has made a change. Now the inauguration of the portal there will be Tuesday, Dec. 5, at 5 p.m.

At the public libraries, the inauguration of the portal or nativity scene will be Dec. 1 in Hatillo at 2 p.m., Heredia, also Dec. 1 at 3 p.m., Limón Dec. 4, Sarchí Norte Dec. 4 and Poás de Alajuela Dec. 8.

The Annual Christmas Dinner Dance, sponsored by the Canadian Club and the Residents Association, will be held at the Cariari Hotel Dec. 2 at 6 p.m.

In Nandayure, Guanacaste, the townspeople are getting ready for the VII Festival Navideño 2006 Dec. 1, 2 and 3.

Also in Guanacaste, in Liberia, the big party is the V Festival Blanca Navidad with a parade and floats at 6 p.m. Dec. 2, on Avenida 25 de Julio.

In Guayabo de Bagaces, the Semana Cultural is six days long, from Dec. 2 to 7 in Guayabo centro.

In Cañas, the illumination of the nativity scene will be Dec. 2 in Parque Central. The III Desfile Navideño will be Dec. 8 at 6 p.m.

In the southern zone, Ciudad Cortés will have a parade for the Festival Navideño Dec. 17 at 6 p.m.

The gigantic Festival de la Luz parade from La Sabana to the downtown takes place Saturday, Dec. 16 with events in the afternoon near la Sabana and the parade after sunset.

Sunday, Dec. 17, the annual Angel of Love concert will take place at the Blanche Brown Theatre, Bello Horizonte, Escazú, The quartet El Ebano will perform for the former Tom & Norman Home for the aged in La Rita de Pococí.

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Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
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