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GEOGRAPHY
Costa Rica is divided into
7 provinces:.
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San
José
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With
the bustling and booming capital city of the same name.
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Cartago
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With
its picture perfect
Orosi Valley and where
the climate is cool year round.
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Heredia
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Home
to the “El Fortin” national monument
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Alajuela
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Where
the international airport is located
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Limón
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With
its unique blend of afro-caribbean, chinese, Bribri culture
and nowadays home to people of more than 45 different nationalities.
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Guanacaste
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In
the north, with beautiful beaches.
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Puntarenas
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Which
includes surreal Osa Peninsula.
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GOVERNMENT
Costa Rica is a democratic country with a government divided into
3 branches: executive, legislative and judicial.
The
president is elected for a period of 4 years.
The
present incumbent is Abel Pacheco and has been in power since 2002.
Costa
Rica is the only country in Central America where the army has been
abolished for almost 50 years.
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CLIMATE
There are 2 seasons in the major part of the country.
It
is dry from December to April and rainy from May to November.
The
Caribbean region is an exception to this rule where it is rainy
during November, December,
July
and August and sunnier during January to May, September and October.
VISAS
Citizens of
the USA, UK, Canada and most eastern and
western European
countries do not need visas to enter the country.
Check www.rree.go.cr/visa-ingreso
for more information.
HEALTH
CARE
Costa
Rica can boast to one of the best health care services in all of
Central America.
Hospitals,
public and private clinics can be found almost everywhere with a
highly educated and efficient personnel.
Life
expectancy is about 76 years for both men and women.
TRANSPORTATION
AND COMMUNICATIONS
Bus
transportation is efficient and cheap throughout the country.
However,
potholes are a major problem in the country even though the government
is doing a great effort fixing them.
Public telephone service is good and affordable with coverage throughout
the country.
Cell
phones are becoming more and more popular especially among the younger
generations.
Internet
services are available in almost all
major
tourist destinations.
LANGUAGE
Spanish is the
official language but English which is a mandatory subject at schools,
is widely spoken.
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