Laura Chinchilla at the Tope. Costa Rica’s Next President? Is that a Red Bull she’s drinking? In Costa Rica, a ‘Tope’ is a horse parade. The big daddy of them all occurs in San Jose the day after Christmas, December 26th. Starting at about 1pm, the main boulevard is blocked off and riders come from
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Starting Christmas Day, the Zapote Fiesta begins, where you can ride carnival rides, mingle (very closely) with hordes of Ticos, eat a variety of highly-caloric food, drink beer, listen and dance to loud music and if you want to, risk your life in the bull ring against some very annoyed toros.

Variety, quality, you name it… Costa Rica has got it. It’s available everywhere, from the supermercados to sidewalk vendors to farmer’s markets. If you could live on fruit, you could live very well here, and on the cheap.

A ‘soda’ in Costa Rica is a small restaurant that offers ‘tipico’ (typical) Costa Rican food at modest prices. More often than not there will be nothing on the menu over $4. If you are hungry and short of cash, you can get something for under $2. Let’s take a look at a ‘tipico’ menu
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What do the Dalai Lama and Britney Spears have in common? Both Pisces? Scratch golfers? Well, we can’t comment on the Pisces or golf bit, but one thing we can say for sure is that they have both made trips to Costa Rica. These are just two of the many celebrities who visit and even
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Music plays everywhere in Costa Rica, and you will hear it whether you want to or not. They play it in the bars, in the restaurants, and it even from stores, appliance stores to clothing shops. To gringo ears, much of “Latin” music sounds the same. But make no mistake, there are many distinct styles
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