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TM
The Costa Rican Notion
Different, Fresh and Waiting for You
By Marty Martindale
Costa Rica is a great location for vacation fun due
largely to her rich geography. She has a chain of mountains peaks over
12,000 feet high, two active volcanos, gulfs, peninsulas, deep sea
playgrounds, rainforests and a upbeat capital city, San Jose, located in the
country’s center. Costa Rica is becoming a popular choice for family
vacationing, adventure travel, family reunions and business meetings. Best
of all this little gem is only a four-hour flight from the U.S. northeast.
She has highest percentage worldwide for literacy and
ranks third highest when it comes to life expectancy ages. This 20,000
square-mile republic is bounded on the north by Nicaragua, on the east by
the beaches on the Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by Panama and on the
south and west by the Pacific Ocean. Destination Management, or tour
companies, adhere to rigid certification. TAM is one of the major players
and takes groups on a variety of tours year ‘round in deluxe vehicles.
Better than a zoo, with few cages or fences, it’s
pretty difficult not to have fun in Costa Rica. On water trips see breaching
sperm whales, yellowfin tuna which average 125 pounds and curious, flat,
fluttering rays with wing-like attachments. In the mix, also see
bottle-nosed dolphins swim up to 30 miles per hour. Inland prepare to meet
the mysterious bushy, band-tailed coatimundi and nocturnal, piglike, tapirs
with long, flexible snouts. Birdwachers take their chances with over 850
species including exotic parrots and toucans. Monkey watchers see New World
primates, while outrigger canoes and water rafting is the ticket for
others. Two active volcanos are viewable inland as are museums,
agricultural tours and the special lure of the rainforest.
What can a simple rainforest do for you? From its lofty
canopy down to its lowest layer, these awesome natural niches of over 1400
tree species give a valuable gift of peace, plus renewed self-confidence, if
you seek them with an open mind. Get to lock into your memory the awesome
silence only a rainforest offers. Take a tram ride for this. Then trot this
memory out when you’re back home and the work-a-day world presents too much
noise and confusion. Find increased self-confidence from the rainforest when
you conquer the high canopy glide. Those who do, come back with fulfillment
they had not expected.
Very cosmopolitan, Costa Rica has restaurants featuring
many cuisines. In the suburbs of San Jose, Escazu and Santa Ana, visitors
find several fine restaurants. Read about
CHEF BAUSSON whose dining room (pictured) at the Real Intercontinental
Hotel serve up outstanding cuisine. For a treat in Peruvian food, visit
Chancay in the new Plaza Itskatzu. Try one of their potato appetizers with
delicate sauces. Other restaurants in this Plaza feature Italian,
Continental food and Spanish tapas. Inside the city San Jose, Café Parisien,
serves great food all night.
Email:
Costa Rica Tourism
www.tourism-costarica.com
Real Intercontinental Hotels
http://www.iccostarica.gruporeal.com/
United Airlines
www.united.com
Rainforest Aerial Trans
www.rainforestram.com
Villa Lapas Rainforest Canopy Tour
www.villapas.com
Tam Tours
www.tamtravel.com
Chancay Restaurant,
Phone: 289-6964
Your can contact Marty Martindale at
mm@FoodSiteoftheDay.com
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