Page 26 - The Magazine of AAA Ohio Auto Club – November 2021

LIVING THE PURA VIDA IN
COSTA RICA
From Lake Arenal to Monteverde Cloud Forest, this Central American country knows how to relax.
By John T. Garcia
Located just more than 2,000 miles due south of Columbus, Ohio, lies the Republic of Costa Rica, a land with untouched nature, amazing food and breathtaking scenery. With all that and plenty of hotels and flights available, it is no wonder that Costa Rica continues to rank among the most popular foreign
countries for U.S. travelers.
Costa Rica sits on both the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, offering the best of both worlds with the
incredible surf of the Pacific and the blue waters of the Caribbean. Your adventure will start in the country’s capital of San Jose, which is almost exactly in the center of the country and toward the northern end of the large Central Valley.
Making up nearly 4,400 square miles, the Central Valley is where more than 70% of Costa Ricans live, especially since the annual temperature ranges from 59 to 86. This makes it perfect for agriculture and farming as well. The export of coffee, as well as bananas, had been Costa Rica’s main revenue generator for nearly two centuries until tourism took over. Coffee is still popular, as are the tours of a local plantation where you can see how coffee beans are grown, harvested and turned into the liquid that fuels many of our lives.
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