"Do you think that maybe we do live at the centre of the universe?" I asked Ellen, not expecting an answer. No matter where our travels take us, at least once during every trip we come across people who simply don't like us. And it's not the dreaded Communist Chinese, the non-Christian Moroccans or the impoverished Nicaraguans who hate us so. It's the friendly, peace-loving folks from the Great White North - the Canadians. Last week a young Vancouver ...

  Tourism has been good for some small business' in Costa Rica. It's the only place in Latin America where you can get a $3.00 meal for eight bucks. And not surprisingly, because of this, the free-spending northerners have unwittingly created a thriving new enterprise - theft. According to the English-language Tico Times, robberies, which I take to include petty theft, have increased by 700% since 1990. North American women take to the streets in dress...

It all started in the late 1400's. The Spaniards came with their galleons and guns and disease. Upon arrival in the Americas, the Conquistadors, leaving their own women behind, must have thought they'd landed in heaven. The males were bludgeoned or more likely used to build churches and then bludgeoned. The women, I expect, were given "special" breeding status.  .......................................................................................... "...

The best beer in Central America comes from Nicaragua and it's called Victoria. It's a full-bodied brew with a very refreshing aftertaste. Costa Rica has a couple of decent choices in Pilsen and Imperial. These three golden thirst quenchers rank at least as high as any of the mass-produced beers of Canada. In Guatemala things change for the worse. The beer of choice there is called Gallo or "Rooster" in English. It could be likened to an American beer, wa...