Costa Rica

Wow, Costa Rica, what can I say! This was a must see destination on my list for several years before I eventually visited it last year! I am so glad I finally did! Costa Rica is in Central America, with Nicaragua to the North and Panama to the South. It is a small country that speaks Spanish. Costa Rica has two coastlines- one on the Atlantic side and one on the Pacific side. The Atlantic coast is technically called the Carribean coast, due to the location of Costa Rica just a few degrees of latitude above the equator. I was quite worried before I went to Costa Rica, because I had heard bad things about safety. I was ...

White sand, palm-fringed beaches, warm turquoise sea...... Costa Rica has this and more. (For those of you whose geography is as bad as mine - Costa Rica is on the skinny piece of land that connects North and South America and is only about the size of Switzerland). Politically, this is a country that is relatively stable (which is more than can be said for its neighbours, Panama and Nicaragua). It boasts a democracy, which has existed since the late 1940's. Perhaps most significantly, they have no army - a fact which they are intensely proud of. The money that would have been used on weapons goes towards improving their education and world-class ...

Until a year ago, I wouldn't even have considered Costa Rica as a holiday destination. Basically, like probably the vast majority of people, I knew very little about it. I knew it was in Central America, and could have had a stab at pointing it out on a map, but that was it. However, just about a year ago, a friend of mine moved out there. Fairly soon, the invitation came to go and spend a couple of weeks with her. We decided to take the plunge and go, and I can honestly say it was one of the best holidays I've ever had. We went in September, which isn't actually the best time to go. It's in the rainy season, which usually means torrential ...