Costa Rica
 
 

This country in Central America is a peaceful heaven with natural reserves protecting rain forest, rare species and natural landscapes from ocean coast to the mountains in the center. Travelling is safe and the capital San José is connected by bus lines with the towns and villages along the coast lines (Pacific Ocean, Caribbean Sea) and the central valley. A chain of volcanoes crosses the country from Panama in the South to the Nicaragua border in the North (geological situation on the Panama Plate). The climate is tropical while in the area around San José the temparature is more moderate. In the past, vast banana plantations were covering the low land, later replaced with palm oil plantations - unfortunately also a mono-culture. Coffee export made some locals rich in the 19th century, in 1821 Costa Rica became an independent state without war. It developed into a liberal society, and in 1949 the armed forces were abolished and resources diverted into education and ecological development. The capital San José has a historic center with some colonial houses and former palaces of wealthy trader and coffee aristocrats. The former airport La Sabana was converted into a city park, the modern international airport Juan Santamaria is near the town Alajuela. The city houses impressive museums as the Jade Museum showing handicrafts and the culture of the precolumbine population, the Gold Museum displaying jewellery made by the Indios living in the area before the Spanish colonialization and all the bank notes and coins issued in Costa Rica.

 

Casa Amarilla, Foreign Department	Freedom Monument in Parque Nacional
Castillo Azul, President Palace	Museo Nacional, Bella Vista Palace
Magic spheres - not filled with gold !	Wings in the park
Main Post Office	Opera
Palace home in the old town	Knoehr trader & sons
Lehmann bookstore	Theatre
Spheres at the museum entrace	Orpheus in the opera entrance
Precious metal jewellery	Pre-colombine pottery

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