Costa Rica - 100% Natural Beauty

PARADISIACAL COFFEE COUNTRY BETWEEN OCEANS

Just the name of this country awakens longings and dreams. However, the wealth of the country does not lie in the gold which the Spanish conquistadors hoped to find in Costa Rica. Its true treasures are the magnificent scenic beauty, the hospitality of its people, and its fine coffees.

Costa Rica is a small, democratic and peaceful country, located at the center of the Americas, between Nicaragua and Panama. With a national territory of about 51,000 square kilometers (20,000 square miles), Costa Rica is slightly larger than Switzerland (3/4 the size of West Virginia) and it is the third smallest Central American country.

In 1502, on his fourth voyage to the New World, Christopher Columbus landed on the Atlantic Coast, close to what is now the port of Limon. The Spaniards were greeted by friendly Indians. Columbus was so impressed by the golden mirrors they wore around their necks and their stories of gold mines along the coast to the south that he named the land Costa Rica, the "Rich Coast."

volcano poas pacific beach sun set tortugero

Costa Rica has two distinct coastlines: the Atlantic (or Caribbean) coast, and the long Pacific shore. Its diverse beaches attract a multiplicity of wildlife and its waters are home to gigantic whales as well as tiny mollusks in delicate circular shells. A small country, Costa Rica is packed with more beauty than almost any on earth. Tropical rainforests and beautiful beaches, active volcanoes, windswept mountaintops, cloud forests and a high density of wildlife make Costa Rica an exciting, wild, adventurous and exotic destination.

The majority of people live in and around San Jose, Costa Rica's capital city. San Jose is nestled in the heart of the Central Valley between giant volcanic mountains and miles of green foothills. Costa Rica is characterized by an impressive scenic beauty, a consolidated system of protected areas, social and political stability, high educational levels, and efficient infrastructure and services.

The people - the sympathetic face of Costa Rica

"Pura vida" is a Costa Rican expression that means "The good Life." Costa Rican's use it to say hello or goodbye, as affirmation or approval, and just to express themselves in casual conversation.

Not without pride, the inhabitants of Costa Rica call themselves Ticos and Ticas and are eager to share the beauties of their country with visitors from all over the world.
Ticos are famous for their hospitality, and are quite happy to live up to their reputation. An important aspect of Costa Rica's cultural legacy is their love for peace and democracy.

They like to point out that their nation is the exception in Latin America, where military dictatorships have long dominated politics. They take pride in having more than one hundred years of democratic tradition, and almost half a century without an army.
Costa Ricans take pride in the National Theater, which is considered to be the most impressive building in San José.

In the 1890's, the ruling coffee barons voted for a tax on coffee exports in order to fund the construction of the Theater, and European artisans were imported to design and construct the baroque-period building.
Completed in 1897, the Theater features a classical Renaissance columned facade topped by statues symbolizing Dance, Music, and Fame. The most famous of the paintings is one showing coffee harvesting and export. It also graces the back of the 5-Colon banknote.

La Carreta - Oxcart Tradition in Costa Rica

The traditional oxcart, or carreta, is Costa Rica's most famous type of craft. From the mid-nineteenth century, oxcarts were used to transport coffee beans from Costa Rica's Central Valley over the mountains to Puntarenas on the Pacific coast, a journey requiring ten to fifteen days.
The tradition of painting and decorating oxcarts started in the late Nineteenth Century.

Originally, each region of Costa Rica had its own particular design, enabling the identification of the driver's origin by the painted patterns on the wheels. While in most regions of Costa Rica, trucks and trains replaced oxcarts as the main means of transport, but they remain strong symbols of Costa Rican former country life, and the carretas still feature prominently in parades and in religious and secular celebrations. In 2005, UNESCO added the painted carreta to its world registry of national art treasures.

A natural paradise like no other in the world

Costa Rica is a natural paradise in the tropics, unmatched by any other place in the world. The facts speak for themselves: 6 % of all species that can be found on the planet are concentrated here, in this tiny area that represents only 0.03 % of the earth's surface. Nowhere in the world will you find such a spectacular biodiversity per square kilometer. Even better, Costa Rica is proactive in the conservation of these natural treasures for future generations, and has protected more area per capita than any other country in the world.

A total of 26 % of the country's area is protected in national parks, biological reserves, national wildlife refuges and privately protected areas. 12 ecosystems in eight climate zones are the home of 850 species of birds, more than in all of North America; as well as 205 kinds of mammals, 376 different species of reptiles and more than 9,000 species of flowers, among them 1,200 types of orchids.

More than 1,400 tree species can be found in Costa Rica and until today, more than 35,000 insect species have been discovered, including 2,000 species of butterflies alone; new species are still being discovered.

Costa Rica ...located between two great oceans, it is the gateway between North & South America. Known for it's incredible biodiversity, Costa Rica is a land of cloud forests and volcanoes, arid lowlands and pristine beaches where the tropical jungle meets the sea.
The scenery is so spectacular that from many of the highest points it is possible to simultaneously view the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.

Costa Rica is an ideal place to cultivate coffee. Its volcanic-rich soil, high altitude, afternoon sun, plentiful rain, and cool evenings together create perfect conditions for yielding beans that are rich and intense in flavor.