Posted by admin on Nov 21, 2008
Tamarindo beach an the town located in Guanacaste, northernmost pacific province, has a long tradition as a tourist destination in Costa Rica, especially among people from United States. Even there are fast food restaurants, which caused several protests, even from foreigners as it is considered that threatens the cultural identity of the area. The tamarind trees in this area of Costa Rica offer shade on the wide beach and is the origin of the city name. In the north along the beach, only separated by the Rio Matapalo, it is located also Playa Grande, another important tourist destination of Costa Rica. This region is part of The Leatherback National Park and one of the most important sites for turtles nesting across the Pacific coast.
In the coastal town of Tamarindo - as in most of Costa Rica - the sun shines every day and the temperature is warm and pleasant throughout the year, with very low humidity levels. Bordered by national parks on the north and south, and east by mountains that provide a stunning ocean view, Tamarindo is a privileged area of great beauty, with a white sandy beach which extends for three miles and a half. It is also a place rich in biodiversity and on the north side of the bay, the leatherback turtles come each year to lay their eggs creating an almost surreal spectacle. It is also common to observe howler monkeys, also known as congos, swinging through the trees around the village. In the evenings you can hear the little parrots screaming, preparing for the night. Due to its location in the middle of two estuaries (El Tamarindo and San Francisco), Tamarindo is the perfect home for migratory birds, monkeys and a great diversity of wildlife. During the rainy season, from May to October, is likely to fall small downpours in the afternoon, making the beach shining and clouds full of color create an unforgettable sunset.
As in many other beach communities of the Pacific North, the population of Tamarindo beach and the town itself comes from countries around the world. This raised an incredible variety of restaurants for all tastes and budgets, as well as many shops and galleries that sell ceramics and other interesting craft items. At the center of Tamarindo tourists can find a selection of restaurants, bars, clubs, surf schools, tour operators, language schools and shelters. The offer is very diverse in activities: scuba diving courses, fishing on the high seas, horseback riding, excursions with boats to secret locations for surf and much more is possible in Tamarindo. The waves of Tamarindo are so good that came to the movies in the movie Endless Summer! Who still have energy at night can come out to dance in one of the nightclubs or try to test the luck at the casino.
Tamarindo in Costa Rica has a place reserved in the schedule for the national championship of surfing; international competitions were also held in this beautiful city of surf. Another category of competition which comes frequently to Tamarindo is the sport fishing. Los árboles de tamarindo ofrecen sombra en la playa ancha, es la causa del nombre de la ciudad. En el norte la playa bordea, sólo separada por el Río Matapalo, con Playa Grande. Esta región es parte del Parque Nacional Las Baulas y uno de los lugares más importantes para las tortugas de toda la costa pacífica.
Posted by admin on Nov 19, 2008
Puerto Jimenez in Costa Rica is now for the majority of tourists a starting point to Corcovado National Park. It has gradually grown to become one of the largest towns in the Osa Peninsula. This city is has grown during the past decades because of the tourism and with the gold rush in the 80s. Puerto Jimenez was the place where they were exchanges of gold with other products, such as liquor.
You can get to Puerto Jimenez by car or bus. However, you can spend up to 10 hours on the trip so it is best to fly to the domestic airport from San Jose. From Pavas there are also flights arriving here. Puerto Jimenez has a small airport where planes can land. There are also many routes in Puerto Jimenez from where you can travel to another interesting places in the area.
More than 3,000 people came here even when there was not much gold, many trees were felled and part of what is now a national park was contaminated with mercury that was used in the search for gold. In 1986 it was forbidden the search for gold in the Corcovado National Park. Now, however, is home to several species of animals like turtles, alligators, caimans freshwater, which took the rivers and trees were colonized by the beautiful and impressive red macaws.
At about 3 km east of Puerto Jimenez is located the beautiful white sand beaches, the water around these beaches is green jade, is a fantastic Gulf and a very interesting travel for the tourists. In Puerto Jimenez there are many vacancies and can be purchased comforts of all kinds and budgets. Located in the Golfo Dulce, Puerto Jimenez has a wonderful beach where you can relax while you walk through the stunning beauty of the Osa Peninsula. This small town “border” has a good number of hotels and resorts, both at very good prices and others very luxurious. It has many tourist leasing companies and travel agencies where you can organize excursions in the region.
There are many things to see in and around Puerto Jimenez. You can arrange excursions of sport fishing and for the more adventurous there are hiking tours, rappeling, mountain biking and kayaking. If you prefer a more tranquil and relaxing holiday, you can take a tour to observe the dolphins from the charming Golfo Dulce and Pacific or simply sit on the beach to watch the most surprising sunset of Costa Rica. During the day you can explore the town and its environs to observe the beautiful and rare Scarlet Macaw parrot when it is flying over. With the best fishing pole in the world, ecotourism is the biggest attraction of this town where you can see up to four different kinds of species of monkeys such as congos monkeys, white face monkeys and many colorful and brilliant birds.
Posted by admin on Nov 10, 2008
There is archaeological evidence that allow the experts to place the arrival of the first humans to Costa Rica between 10,000 and 7000 A. C. In the valley of Turrialba sites have been found in areas where quarry and workshop tools were manufactured typical of that era. The residents of this time were nomadic band of about 20 to 30 members of hunter-gatherers. From the development of Mesoamerican cultures, the northwestern part of the country gradually fell under the influence of those, while the rest became part, gradually under what is called Area Intermedia, which had influences from the Chibchas.
In 1502, in his fourth voyage to the New World, the Genovese navigator Christopher Columbus became the first European contact in the area, specifically in what is now known as Isla Uvita, Limon.
During this period, in the sixteenth century, the natives of the country were conquered by the Spaniards. Thus, Costa Rica became then in the southern province of Spanish territory, now called New Spain. The capital of the province was located in the newly founded city of Cartago.
For nearly three centuries, Spain administered the region as part of the Captaincy General of Guatemala under a military governor. With optimism, the Spaniards called the area “Costa Rica” because it had found deposits of gold and other minerals in value in the territory.
In 1821, Costa Rica joined other Central American provinces in the declaration of independence from Spain on Sept. 15. After a brief period, during which joined the Mexican Empire of Agustin de Iturbide, Costa Rica became a state in the United Provinces of Central America between 1823 and 1839. In 1824 the country’s capital was changed to San Jose, but followed a period of rivalry with Carthage or Cartago A few years later the Central American Federation ceased their functions in practice (1838). Costa Rica formally declared, on August 31, 1848, as a Sovereign and Independent Republic, under the command of José María Castro Madriz.
In 1856, under the command of Juan Rafael Mora Porras, the country was threatened by an American adventurer William Walker, who wanted to make the country and the rest of Central America a U.S. colony. However, the country rebelled and defeated the filibusters in a series of battles, including Santa Rosa on March 20, 1856 and Rivas on April 11, 1856, in which the soldier, Juan Santamaria, today national hero, managed to burn the Meson de Guerra, the headquarter of the filibusters.
Since the last years of the nineteenth century, only two periods of violence have marked on its democratic development. In 1917, Federico Tinoco Granados ruled as a dictator two years after a little revolution. In 1948, José Figueres Ferrer led an armed uprising in the due to a fraudulent presidential election. Following this, a board was created founding the Second Republic. The following year, the same Figueres abolished the army, and since then, Costa Rica has been one of the few countries operate under the democratic system without the help of an army.
During this conflict around 2000 people died in the 44 days of the civil war produced for this uprising, the bloodiest in the country’s history in the twentieth century, but the board funded by Figueres established a constitution, guaranteeing free elections with universal suffrage and the end of the armed army. Figueres became a national hero, winning the first election under the new constitution in 1953. Since then, the country has conducted twelve elections, most recently in 2006.
Posted by admin on Oct 30, 2008
The town of Tambor is located in the Ballena Bay which is located in the south of the Nicoya Peninsula in the Puntarenas province at only 20 kilometers south of Paquera and almost 38 kilometers south of Naranjo. Tambor has a charming and long white sand beach, perfect for swimming and diving. This town is located within splendor and green hills, and is a quiet and well developed place which has its own airport, which is in fact the only local airport in the southern part of the Nicoya Peninsula.
Playa Tambor also was chosen as the location for a hit television series recently and is quickly becoming a destination of great fame among local and international tourism because its natural beauty. There are enough hotels and resorts located throughout the area, including one who has a golf course, perfect for demanding tourists.
The biggest attraction of this town is that every year the whales migrate from the north of the planet to the warm waters of Ballena Bay to search a couple and give birth within the abundant marine habitat that can be found there. Tambor is bordered by two rocky platforms in the north and south, making the beach of Tambor protected of the waves of the Pacific Ocean. The beach is ideal for swimming, snorkeling or diving. It has a privileged climate, warm and sunny during virtually the entire year, perfect for people looking to relax and sunbathe.
The best way to get there is to fly to Tambor from San Jose via a domestic flight. However, for those who are traveling with a very tight budget may better driving to Puntarenas city and take a ferry to Paquera. After this, the visitor has to drive for 45 minutes to Tambor. This trip despite it can be very rough, it is very nice because it offers a wonderful view of the coast and some wonderful green scenarios.
Tambor is also an excellent spot if you want to go to Isla Tortuga or if you want to visit the beautiful and diverse National Wildlife Refuge Curu. It has really lush foliage and it is quite common to observe tropical birds of all kinds, which contributes to the enjoyment of the ecological tourist. For the most active and adventurous persons there are many activities that can be enjoyed as hiking, horseback riding and various water sports. In addition there are excellent opportunities for deep sea fishing and playing golf, so it is easy to see that Tambor offers many varied activities for the most demanding tourist.
Posted by admin on Oct 23, 2008
Costa Rica is a small but beautiful and intensely biodiverse country in Central America. With just 51.100 square kilometers it host a great variety of flora and fauna both on land and in the water. Costa Rica has been steadily and increasingly becoming a very popular tourist destination because of this, because of it mild-moderate tropical climate and because the people in this country are characterized by being friendly and hospitable. This mindset has always been part of the Costa Rica population, and in efforts to make their country a model for peace and prosperity abolished the army in 1948. It is not that there are no people to defend the country because there are cops and heavily armed police forces for that, but an army as an institution was disassembled more that 60 years ago.
Costa Rica ’s favorite tourist destinations are the beach towns and the locations near National Parks and Volcanoes. The most popular destination in Costa Rica is the north pacific province of Guanacaste and it’s multiple dry-forest climate beaches like Santa Cruz, Papagayo, Hermosa, Tamarindo, Flamingo, Samara, Montezuma amongst many others available. After that the province of Puntarenas in the central and south pacific is very visited to. Quepos, Manuel Antonio, Dominical, Sierpe, Uvita, Drake Bay, Puerto Jimenez and Zancudo are the most popular destinations at this province of Costa Rica.
Closely matched by the number of people that visits this areas, the Atlantic or Carribean coast and the Northern Higlands of Costa Rica are third on our list. On the Atlantic Coast tourist like to head out to Barra del Colorado, Tortuguero, Parismina, Puerto Viejo, Cahuita and Manzanillo. On the Northern Highlands Monteverde, La Fortuna, Arenal Volcano and Caño Negro are the most visited localities.
San Jose - Costa Rica
Then there are also the very picturesque towns in and around the Greater Metropolitan Area, which is comprised by the towns of San Jose (Costa Ricas ’s Capital City) Alajuela, Heredia and Cartago. Together they comprise the most densely populated areas in the country, but also host a lot of activities and entertainments for the passing by tourist.
