San
José
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Specialists in Central America adventure travel, GAA operate good value, small group tours of Costa Rica. Discounts |
Click top or bottom San José photos to see Costa Rica volcanoes
But first, a quick glance at where you probably WON'T want to spend much time...Parque Central in San José - the country's charmless capital.
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Unless
you're planning to spend your time in the northwest Guanacaste
area - in which case you should fly to Liberia's airport - you
will almost certainly need to overnight in San José and
pick up domestic transportation in the morning. So, welcome
to San José where the coffee is great, the climate is
good, the cuisine is terrible [unless pizzas, beans or burgers
are your staple diet] and indigenous culture is close to nonexistent.
On a more positive note there is a reasonable selection of dining
and drinking places, a couple of museums and theatres offer
some intellectual stimulus, the ATMs work, the city has a lively
night scene and the people are pleasant.
However, if you've efficiently pre-booked accommodation in one of the delightful hotels north of San José in the Central Valley then don't hesitate to head straight there, you won't be missing much, you'll be in a much nicer location and you'll be nearer to the country's main sights and action core.
A Costa Rican architectural guide: If it's new, build it with the all the style of a Stalinist barracks. If it's old, paint it technicolour, like this one in San Jose. And don't forget the wire drapes! But that's enough about the urbs, let's head for the hills. Smokin!
South
America in general has an attitude problem with construction,
not just Costa Rica. Firstly, new buildings are designed by
engineers, not architects. Secondly, they are built as large
as possible for as little money as possible. Thirdly, the fat
cats who finance new projects couldn't care less about the style,
they have several very nice villas of their own thank you very
much, mostly in Miami.
That being said, it is still possible to find some spectacularly
attractive structures in the country - mainly upmarket, out-of-town
tourist hotels and fat cat villas.
One of the few Costa Rica buildings with any style, the National Theatre in San José
© Jan Csernoch, Dreamstime.com
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