The landsmanship of the Costa Rica tenth annual UJCL conference was more than expected. It was, in a word, fabulous. The UJCL, in a few words, “has arrived”.

The program was exhilarating, the social engagements were lovely, allowing time to mingle, greet old friends and to make new ones. Both the cocktail party and the gala dinner went well. Our good Costa Rican (Tican) hosts were precisely that, good hosts, and made all very welcome. The evenings at homes, with families, were well planned and delightful.

And let us not forget that we came to work and work we did, one could say almost non- stop. The Holocaust remembrance was so tasteful, so poignant, so meaningful. The workshops were well thought out and even better presented although perhaps too many competing for one’s attention. They covered the most appropriate subjects and you could not attend more than one at a time.

The youth encounter seems to have been good judging from the faces and the interaction of the youngsters when they came into focus. The idea surfacing to arrange age group camps seems to be a way to go as the mix of ages was wide and the encounters will have to be more structured in the future.

We came away with the enormity of the task to make Jamaica, next year’s conference venue, even better that the last one and better if possible than the huge effort that Costa Rica put out. Thanks, B’nei Israel, and see you at Shaare Shalom in 2008 in Kingston, Jamaica.