On April 12^th, in the pretty Italian town of Casalecchio di Reno, province of Bologna, Ambassador Jaime Feinzaig Rosenstein was the guest of honor during the inauguration of the Giardini della Casa per la Pace alla Repubblica di Costa Rica (Park of Costa Rica at the House of Peace). Two historic events motivated the kind gesture: The brave sacrifice of Tico doctor Carlos Collado Martinez, who died at the hand of Nazi occupiers during World War II, and Costa Rica’s subsequent decision to abolish her armed forces in 1949.

As reported by daily tabloid Diario Extra, the nice people of Casalecchio di Reno decided to be the first municipality to formally dedicate a public space to Costa Rica in memory of Dr. Collado, who was admitted to the University of Bologna in July of 1938. His thesis on cranial neoplasia (tumor formation) received the Victor Emmanuel II award.

According to an official press release by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Costa Rica, Dr. Collado became an active member of the 63^rd Garibaldi Brigade under leadership of Commander Corrado “Bolero” Masetti. Dr. Collado made the brave and conscious decision to serve the Italian resistance movement against Nazi-Fascist rule after his academic mentor was rounded up by paramilitaries loyal to the Black Brigades.

On October 10^th, 1944, Dr. Collado was captured by a mechanized unit of the 16.° SS Panzergrenadier ”Reichsführer.” Along with 12 fellow resisters, he was tortured, crucified and left hanging from a bridge over the river Reno. The fallen physician from Costa Rica was posthumously honored with the Garibaldi Medal in 1945 and one of the streets in Casalecchio di Reno was named after him.

Italians in Costa Rica

Prior to World War II, Costa Rica and Italy had already enjoyed good relations as during 1887 and 1888 about 1,500 Italian migrant workers helped build the railroad connecting the Caribbean coast to the capital city. More Italian workers immigrated to expand the railroad system and to help build the beautiful National Theater in San Jose.

The strong labor union system in Costa Rica owes a lot to the Italian workers who organized the first major workers’ strike. In the first decade of the 20^th century, a steady immigration from Italy to Latin America took place in Argentina, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic, and later the town of San Vito on the border with Panama was settled by Italian farmers.

In recent years, Italian expatriates have been arriving in Costa Rica for two major reasons. First of all, they think that Costa Rica, like Italy, is bellissima. Second, the Eurozone debt crisis and the pension uncertainty in Italy during the 21^st century has made Costa Rica very attractive to many Italians, who mostly settle in the southern regions of the Coto Brus canton (where the San Vito settlement is located) as well as Puerto Viejo in Limon. To this effect, we have Signor Alfredo Igegno of Puerto Viejo, who runs the fine blog ItaliaCostaRica.com, and who has been interviewed by online magazines Caboto and MolloTutto about his expatriate experience in our country.

In the past, The Costa Rica Star has featured the work of Chef Ernesto Spinelli, an ethnic Italian born in Ethiopia, whose gastronomical and mosaic tile skills can be respectively appreciated at Finca Luna Nueva in San Ramon and the Angel Valley Farm Bed and Breakfast. Many Italian-Americans in Costa Rica work in the sportsbook industry, and in 2012 we interviewed Mr. Antonio Moretti of Philadelphia (not his real last name, he chose it from a popular beer in Italy) on the fascinating subject of artificial intelligence in the world of Internet wagering.

The following previous articles also feature certain parallels between Costa Rica and Italy:

• Bunga-Bunga or Jail? The Ex-Con, Ex-Presidents of Costa Rica
• Anonymous Coffee: Italian Trend Arrives in Costa Rica
• As the Sexist Media Era in Italy Comes to an End, Costa Rica Sees the Beginning
• Ciao Belli! Italy Ends Costa Rica’s U-17 World Cup Hopes

If you read Italian and are interested in unarmed, peaceful conflict resolution, please review the cultural activities of Casalecchio di Reno in April.