Sights in San José
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Teatro Nacional
On the southern side of the Plaza de la Cultura resides the Teatro Nacional, San José’s most revered public building. Constructed in 1897, it features a columned neoclassical facade that is flanked by statues of Beethoven and Calderón de la Barca, a 17th-century Spanish dramatist. The lavish marble lobby and auditorium are lined with paintings depicting various facets of 19th-century life. The most famous is Alegoría al café y el banano, an idyllic canvas showing coffee and banana harvests. The painting was produced in Italy and shipped to Costa Rica for installation in the theater, and the image was reproduced on the old ₡5 note (now out of circulation). It is clea…
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Parque Nacional
One of the nicest of San José’s green spaces is the Parque Nacional, a shady spot where retirees arrive to read newspapers and young couples smooch coyly on concrete benches. At its center is the Monumento Nacional, a dramatic statue (erected in 1953) that depicts the Central American nations – with Costa Rica in the lead – driving out American filibuster William Walker. The park is studded with myriad monuments devoted to key figures in Latin American history, including Cuban poet, essayist and revolutionary José Martí, Mexican indepen-dence figure Miguel Hidalgo and 18th-century Venezuelan poet and thinker Andrés Bello.
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Catedral Metropolitana
To the east of the Parque Central is the Renaissance-style Catedral Metropolitana, built in 1871, after the previous cathedral was destroyed in an earthquake. The interiors, in keeping with the period, are graceful neoclassic, with colorful Spanish tile floors, stained-glass windows, and a Christ figure (near the main entrance) that was produced by a Guatemalan workshop in the late 17th century. On the north side of the nave, along the passage to the Capilla del Santisímo (Chapel of the Holy One), a recumbent Christ that dates back to 1878 draws devout Ticos, who arrive here to pray and deposit pleas scribbled on small slips of paper.
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Parque Metropolitano La Sabana
Known simply as Parque La Sabana, this 72-hectare green space at the west end of the Paseo Colón was once the site of the country’s main airport. Today it is home to two museums, a lagoon, a fountain and a variety of sports facilities. It is also home to the Estadio Nacional (National Stadium), where international and Division-1 soccer matches are played (it will soon be replaced by a bigger stadium that, at the time of research, was under construction in the northwest corner of the park). During the day, it’s a great place for a stroll, a picnic or a relaxed jog. On weekends, it is packed with picnicking families and kids playing ball.
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TEOR/éTica
On Amón’s northern limit lies TEOR/éTica, a contemporary art museum housed in a vintage mansion, each of its elegant rooms featuring cutting-edge works by established and emerging figures from Latin America (such as Costa Rican artist Priscilla Monge, who is well known for her wry embroideries). This young museum features the private collection of the TEOR/éTica foundation, a nonprofit organization that supports Central American art and culture. It is an important gathering spot for regional artists, who arrive to attend lectures, workshops and other events.
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Plaza de la Cultura
For many Ticos, Costa Rica begins here. This architecturally unremarkable concrete plaza in the heart of downtown is usually packed with locals slurping ice-cream cones and admiring the wide gamut of San José street life: juggling clowns, punk-rock teenagers and pop-lite Christian bands. It is perhaps one of the safest spots in the city since the entire plaza serves as the ceiling of the Museo de Oro Precolombino y Numismática, which is located one level down, and is therefore considered private property (this gives security guards the right to shoo away ‘unsavory’ characters).
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Museo de Jade
You will find the world’s largest collection of American jade (pronounced ‘ha-day’ in Spanish) at this small museum on the 1st floor of the Instituto Nacional de Seguros (INS; National Insurance Institute). The pieces are varied: expect to see display cases cluttered with translucent jade carvings that depict fertility goddesses, shamans, frogs and snakes, as well as some incredible pottery (some of which reflects Maya influences), including a highly unusual ceramic head displaying a row of serrated teeth. The craftsmanship is generally excellent and pieces are in a fine state of conservation.
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Parque España
Surrounded by heavy traffic and flanked by MADC and the Museo de Jade, the Parque España may be small, but it becomes a riot of birdsong every day at sunset when the local avian population comes in to roost. In addition to being a good spot for a shady break, the park is home to an ornate statue of Christopher Columbus that was given to the people of Costa Rica in 2002 by his descendants, commemorating the quincentennial of the explorer’s landing in Puerto Limón.
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Mercado Central
Though josefinos mainly do their shopping at chain supermarkets, San José’s crowded indoor markets retain an old-world feel. The main market is the Mercado Central, lined with vendors hawking everything from cheese and spices to coffee beans and obligatory pura vida souvenir T-shirts.
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Museo de Ciencias Naturales La Salle
Near the southwest corner of the Parque Metropolitano la Sabana is the Museo de Ciencias Naturales La Salle, which has an extensive collection of dusty stuffed animals and minerals. The exhibit has definitely seen better days, and although some of the animals look like they’re about to disintegrate, you’d be hard pressed to find a more bizarre display of taxidermy. It’s in the old Colegio La Salle (high school).
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Casa Amarilla
On the Parque España’s northeast corner is the Casa Amarilla, an elegant colonial-style house that is home to the ministry of foreign affairs (and is closed to the public). The glorious ceiba tree in front was planted by John F Kennedy during his 1963 visit to Costa Rica. If you walk around to the property’s northeast corner, you can see a graffiti-covered slab of the Berlin Wall standing in the rear garden.
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Plaza de la Democracia
The stark Plaza de la Democracia was constructed by President Oscar Arias in 1989 to commemorate 100 years of Costa Rican democracy. The concrete plaza is architecturally dull, but it has recently received a needed cleaning and some of its elevated terraces provide decent views of the mountains surrounding San José (especially at sunset). On its western flank is an open-air crafts market.
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Parque Morazán
To the southwest of the Parque España is another park, the Parque Morazán, named for Francisco Morazán, the 19th-century general who attempted to unite the Central American nations under a single flag. Once a notorious center of prostitution, the park is now beautifully illuminated in the evenings. At its center is the Templo de Música, a concrete bandstand that serves as an unofficial symbol of San José.
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Zoológico Nacional Simón Bolívar
It may seem ironic to visit a zoo in one of the most biologically rich countries in the world. But this is a popular spot with local families, who pour in on weekends to peek at the animals. It’s rough around the edges – the cages are cramped and some have complained of the animals’ filthy living spaces – but it can serve as a basic primer on area wildlife for small children.
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Teatro Melico Salazar
On the north side of the Parque Central is this theatre, which was built in 1928 in a beaux-arts style. It is named after the well-known Costa Rican tenor Melico Salazar (1887–1950), who performed internationally (among other places, he sang at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City). The theater was the site of the 2002 presidential inauguration, and regularly hosts fine arts engagements.
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Estación del Ferrocarril de Costa Rica
The old train station to the Atlantic, the Estación del Ferrocarril de Costa Rica, was built in 1908. Though the building is closed (it most recently housed a children’s museum), it’s nonetheless a remarkable example of tropical architecture (and a good photo op), with swirling art nouveau–inspired beams and elaborate stonework all along the roofline.
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Museo de Oro Precolombino y Numismática
This three-in-one museum houses a glittering collection of pre-Columbian gold and other artifacts, including historical currency and some contemporary art. The museum is owned by the Banco Central and its architecture brings to mind all the warmth and comfort of a bank vault. Security is tight; all visitors must leave bags at the door.
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Museo de Arte Costarricense
At the eastern entrance to the Parque La Sabana is the Museo de Arte Costarricense, in a Spanish-style structure that served as San José’s main airport terminal until 1955. In the midst of a top-to-bottom remodel (reopening in late 2010), the museum features regional art and other exhibits.
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Museo Nacional de Costa Rica
The Museo Nacional is located inside the old Bellavista Fortress, which served as the old army headquarters and saw fierce fighting (hence the pockmarks) in the 1948 civil war. It was here that President José Figueres Ferrer announced, in 1949, that he was abolishing the country’s military.
The museum provides a quick survey of Costa Rican history, with exhibits of pre-Columbian pieces from ongoing digs, as well as artifacts from the colony and the early republic. Among the many notable pieces is the fountain pen that Figueres used to sign the 1949 constitution. Don’t miss the newly restored period galleries in the northeast corner, which feature turn-of-the-20th-centu…
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Museo Postal, Telegráfico y Filatélico de Costa Rica
A few blocks north of the Parque Central, the diminutive postal museum has a small exhibit of Costa Rican stamps (including one that commemorates John F Kennedy’s 1963 visit). It’s a good way to kill time if your friends are waiting in line to mail letters home.
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Central Park
The city’s central park is more of a run-down plaza than a park. At its center is a grandiose bandstand that looks as if it was designed by Mussolini: massive concrete arches support a florid roof capped with a ball-shaped decorative knob.
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Spirogyra Jardín de Mariposas
A great spot for kids. This small butterfly garden houses more than 30 species of butterfly – including the luminescent blue morpho – in plant-filled enclosures. Visit in the morning to see plenty of fluttering. An airy new cafe serves fresh juices, sandwiches and salads. The garden is 150m east and 150m south of Centro Comercial El Pueblo, which can be reached on foot (about a 20- to 30-minute walk from downtown), by taxi, or by bus to El Pueblo, where there is a sign.
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Edificio Metálico
The recently remodeled Edificio Metálico is a century-old two-story metal building that was prefabricated in Belgium. The structure was shipped piece by piece to San José and today it functions as a school and local landmark.
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Galería Andrómeda
On Amón’s southeastern edge, the smaller yet charming Galería Andrómeda is a free local art space featuring works by emerging artists, as well as a selection of literary magazines (in Spanish), among other publications.
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Jacob Karpio Galería
Jacob Karpio Galería is the city’s pre-eminent gallery featuring established contemporary artists from around the region, including Priscilla Monge.
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