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Overview of Costa Rica for Travelers
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The Republic of Costa Rica is
located in Central America and is an amazingly beautiful country.
Following is an overview of the past and present of Costa Rica for
travelers.
Overview of Costa Rica for Travelers
Christopher Columbus discovered Costa Rica and the indigenous people
living there in 1502. The Spanish subsequently colonized it. The name of
the country, Rich Coast, comes from their mistaken belief that gold was
prevalent. It wasn't, but the name stuck. In 1821, Costa Rica joined
other Central American countries in declaring independence from Spain.
True independence didn't occur till 1838 when Costa Rica broke away from
a federation of Central American countries.
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In a major departure from many Central America countries, Costa Rica has
largely been a free and peaceful democracy since 1899. It has a system
of checks and balances similar to the United States, but more power is
invested with the President and executive branch. The President and
congressional members are elected to 4-year terms.
Costa Rica covers an area of 19,730 square miles. The capital is San
Jose, which has a population of 2.1 million people. The terrain is
rugged and tropical with dormant volcanoes, a rain forest in the south
and immaculate beaches. Rainfall is heavy during summer months, but
temperatures are consistently in the 70 to 90 degree range.
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The people of Costa Rica are known both as "Ticos" and "Costa Ricans."
The total population is 4 million, but growing at 1.5 percent. Roman
Catholic is the dominant religion, although 15 percent of the population
claims Protestant as their faith. Literacy is at 96 percent. Average
life expectancy for a woman is 79 years while men average 74 years.
Spanish is the dominant language.
Costa Rica is both a hot tourist and relocation destination. The country
is simply beautiful and the people are friendly. There has been a lot of
construction and expansion over the last 15 years. Places like Tamarindo
are no longer sleepy little coast towns. If you want to see the sleepy
Costa Rica of old, now is the time to go before it is to late.