LEARN SPANISH IN

COSTA RICA

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LEARN SPANISH IN COSTA RICA

Costa Rica, has become synonymous with stability and prosperity - Costa Ricans enjoy the highest rate of literacy, health care, education and life expectancy in the isthmus.

About Costa Rica

In recent years Costa Rica has also become the prime eco-tourism destination in Central America, if not in all the Americas, due in no small part to an efficient promotion machine that trumpets the country's complex system of national parks and wildlife refuges. Every year hundreds of thousands of visitors - mainly from the United States and Canada - come to walk trails through million-year-old rainforests , raft foaming whitewater rapids, surf on the Pacific beaches and climb the volcanoes that punctuate the country's mountainous spine.

The national parks , which cover 12 percent of Costa Rica's protected land, provide more services and activities than the refuges and reserves, and tend to be more heavily touristed. That said, it's important to remember that none of the protected areas has been set up with tourists in mind - biologists, scientists and researchers make up a large portion of visitors. While we give information as to which animals inhabit the specific parks, bear in mind that you are in no way guaranteed to see them - although you'll probably see some of the more common or less shy ones, you'll be very lucky indeed to spot the larger mammals such as the jaguar, ocelot or tapir.

The locals refer to themselves as tico or tica (female). "Tico" comes from the locally popular usage of "tico" diminutive suffixes (e.g., 'momentico' instead of 'momentito'). The tico ideal is that of a very friendly, helpful, laid back, unhurried, educated and environmentally aware people. The phrase "Pura Vida" (literally pure life) is a motto ubiquitous in Costa Rica. It encapsulates the pervading ideology of living in peace in a calm, unflustered manner, appreciating a life surrounded by nature and family and friends. Costa Rican traditions and culture tend to retain a strong degree of Spanish influence. Their spoken accent is rather different than its Central American counterparts.

Population: 4,327,000 (119th)
Capital: San José
Currency: Costa Rican colón (CRC)