The Tico Times Dispatch

Costa Rica is known for its beautiful beaches and abundant biodiversity, but for women, it also means street harassment. Tico Times reporter Alissa Grosskopf talks to experts and men on the street to figure out why they do it, how to fight it and what happens when you do.

In this episode of The Tico Times Dispatch, we look over the month's biggest stories. Former two-time Costa Rican president Oscar Arias was accused of sexual assault, Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro faces the biggest challenge to his power yet and the Catholic Church in Costa Rica is facing a sexual abuse and cover-up scandal.

For this Valentine's Day we have a special episode of the Tico Times Dispatch. We're talking about love, Costa Rican love. Listen to these Costa Rican love stories that range from everything to sloth-on-sloth hugfests to backseat encounters in Costa Rican cabs.

The streets of Costa Rica have been bogged down by protests since Sept. 10, when public-sector unions called for a general strike to oppose a proposed tax-reform bill. Public sector unions say the bill, which raises taxes on everyone and cuts benefits to public employees, puts too much of a burden on the working class. The government says 80 percent of the new taxes come from the top 20 percent of Costa Rican earners. We interview Costa Rican journalist and economist David Ching to find out what's in the bill.

In our first episode of The Tico Times Dispatch, we talk with Tim Rogers, the Latin America editor for Fusion about the uprising in Nicaragua. Rogers discusses the protests, the government's attempt to silence the press and Daniel Ortega's violent crackdown.