Sights in Costa Rica
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Avenida 2
Heading inland from Parque Vargas, Avenida 2 is the pedestrian mall that caters to the cruise-ship traffic. Keep an eye out for vendors selling home-burned CDs by local hip-hop and reggaetón bands; you can also expect to see CDs by Los Trinitarios, a Limón band that has been fusing calypso and salsa since the ’70s.
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Volcán Arenal
Arenal was just another dormant volcano from about AD 1500 until 29 July 29 1968, when something snapped. Huge explosions triggered lava flows that destroyed three villages, killing about 80 people and 45,000 cattle. Although it occasionally quieted down for a few weeks or even months, Arenal produced menacing ash columns, massive explosions and streams of glowing molten rock almost daily from 1968 until it all quite abruptly ended in 2010.
Still, any obituary on the Arenal area is quite premature given the fact that the volcano has retained its picture-perfect conical shape despite the volcanic activity, and there is still plenty of forest on its lower slopes and in the…
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Parque Central
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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Parque Central
The somewhat shady but not particularly picturesque Parque Central frames Iglesia Inmaculada Concepción de María. The park is also the seasonal hangout of the Nicaraguan grackle, a tone-deaf bird that enjoys eating parrot eggs and annoying passers-by with its grating calls.
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Cerro Chato
The La Catarata de la Fortuna falls are the trailhead for this seriously strenuous five- to six-hour climb to the beautiful lake-filled volcanic crater that is Cerro Chato. Starting from here, you’ll have to pay a US$10 fee for crossing the finca (farm) leading to Cerro Chato; a slightly cheaper (though you’ll still pay a fee) and only slightly less physically taxing alternative would be to hike up the other side from Arenal Observatory Lodge.
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Cathedral
To the east of Parque Central is the 19th-century cathedral, which suffered severe damage in the 1991 earthquake. The hemispherical cupola is unusually constructed of sheets of red corrugated metal. Two presidents are buried here.
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Radio Towers (Las Torres)
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Playa Madrigal
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Playa Llorona
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Playa Corcovado
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Granite Spheres
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Old City Jail
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Sea Wall
West of the park, the sea wall offers pleasant views of the rocky headland and the mesmerizing waves crashing against the concrete jetty. After dark, this is a popular mugging and make-out spot.
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Asamblea Legislativa
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Springs Resort & Spa
If you're looking for a luxurious hot springs experience, the Springs features 18 free-form pools with various temperatures, volcano views, landscaped gardens, waterfalls and swim-up bars, including a jungle bar with a waterslide. You can sleep here too.
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Eco Thermales Hot Springs
A large forbidding gate leads to this recommended, reservation-only complex. Everything from the natural circulation systems in the pools to the soft, mushroom lighting is understated yet luxurious. Just 100 visitors per four-hour slot are welcomed at 10am, 1pm and 5pm. During the evening session, guests have the option to choose from one of three set dinner menus.
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La Catarata de la Fortuna
You can glimpse the sparkling 70m ribbon of clear water that pours through a sheer canyon of dark volcanic rock arrayed in bromeliads and ferns with minimal sweat equity. But it’s worth the climb down and out to see it from the jungle floor. Though it’s dangerous to dive beneath the thundering falls, a series of perfect swimming holes with spectacular views tiles the canyon in aquamarine. Keep an eye on your backpack.
From the turnoff on the road to San Ramón, it’s about 4km uphill to the falls. If you decide to walk up, you’ll enjoy spectacular views of Cerro Chato as you hike through pastures and past the small hotels lining the road. You might appreciate a stop at…
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Ecocentro Danaus
This reader-recommended centre, 3km east of town then 600m down a dirt road, has a well-developed trail system that’s good for bird-watching, and there are frequent sightings of sloth, coati and howler monkey. The price of admission also includes a visit to a butterfly garden, a ranarium featuring poison-dart frogs and a small lake containing caiman and turtles. Various tour operators in town run guided night toursto the ecological center.
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Museo de Guanacaste
It's not much of a museum but Liberia's old city jail is definitely interesting. Depressing dorms and cells surround a barren concrete courtyard. It does have occasional student concerts here, and there are plans for an actual museum to be staged here...at some point.
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Refugio Nacional de Vida Silvestre Camaronal
A good beach and point break lies north of Punta Islita at Playa Camaronal, a charcoal gray stretch of sand strewn with driftwood and sheltered by two headlands. This beach also happens to be a protected nesting site for leatherback, olive ridley, hawksbill and black turtles, and is officially known as Refugio Nacional de Vida Silvestre Camaronal.
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Playas Corzalito
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Playa Camaronal
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Friends Meeting House
In 1949 four Alabama Quakers (a pacifist religious group also known as the 'Society of Friends’) were jailed for their refusal to be drafted into the Korean War. Since Quakers are obligated by their religion to be pacifists, the four men were eventually released from prison. However, in response to the incarceration, 44 Quakers from 11 Alabama families left the USA and headed for (much) greener pastures, literally. The Quakers chose Monteverde (Green Mountain) for two reasons – a few years prior, the Costa Rican government had abolished its military, and the cool, mountain climate was ideal for grazing cattle. Ensconced in their isolated refuge they adopted a…
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