In February and March, I visited the Barva district twice, and overall it was a very pleasant experience that I’d like to share with you. First, I’ll tell you about the patron saint festivities in San José de la Montaña, a community located 3 kilometers north of the city of Barva.

Next, I’ll talk about the Valentine’s Day activities in downtown Barva. I’ll keep this brief so you can enjoy the photos and videos from both events.

San Jose de la Montaña Patron Saint Festival

March 19 is Saint Joseph’s Day, and the residents of the community of San José de la Montaña held their patron saint festivities for two weeks in honor of their patron saint.
My wife and I decided to stop by on Sunday, March 15, to experience these celebrations for the first time.
The first thing we noticed was the absence of amusement rides. But the kids didn’t seem to lack enthusiasm.

What there were, however, were food stalls with affordable prices: cheese tortillas, pork rinds, cotton candy, and grilled beef. In addition, the two parish dining halls were packed, with people buying picadillo de papa, homemade bread, picadillo de arracache, rice with chicken, buttered corn on the cob, coffee, and aguadulce (a drink made with dulce de tapa, a product of sugarcane).

If you’d like to stay updated on future editions of the San Jose de la Montaña Patron Saint Festival, follow HERE the local parish’s Facebook page.

There were also bingo booths and game stalls offering household appliances as prizes.
Many families and groups of friends took advantage of the green spaces to set up camp and enjoy the activities and food.

After Mass, there was a concert featuring the band Los Faranduleros. People took advantage of the small plaza in front of the church to dance to the band’s popular hits and original songs.
We were surprised that, despite the lack of amusement rides, the event drew such a large crowd. It was a very family-friendly event, and I hope to attend again in 2027.
Los Josefinos de la Montaña closed out the event on March 19 itself with a solemn Mass and the karaoke finals.

Valentine’s Day in Barva

On February 14, my wife and I decided to try visiting another town in Heredia County besides Barva.
But we found ourselves drawn back to Barva because of a poster advertising a concert by the band Los Hicsos to celebrate Valentine’s Day.
As the concert began, we decided to wait behind the San Bartolomé Parish, where there’s a great green area to sit as a couple and enjoy the afternoon.
Meanwhile, a bingo game was being held, so the parish kitchen was open. After the bingo ended, we took the opportunity to enjoy some delicious Barva food.
We ordered a tasty tamale and a plate of vigorón (pork rinds, salad, and yuca, served with escabeche).

The entrance to the top of the grotto next to the church was open—something I’ve rarely seen—so I took the opportunity to film it.
After having coffee with the tamale, we went to Mass, and afterward we enjoyed the concert.
Los Hicsos are very popular in the province of Heredia, and the people of Barva turned out in force for a dance where people of all ages participated.

No artificial intelligence was used in any part of this article—it was written by people, for people!!

The post San Jose de la Montaña Patron Saint Festival appeared first on Costa Rica on Foot.

This is my second year attending a Christmas event organized by the residents of Central Street in San Joaquín de Flores, Heredia. This time it was November 23th 2025.
It is a small celebration that combines Christmas lights and Costa Rican street food.

I’m going to share some details that I saw that might motivate you to attend in person.
In this community, they celebrate Christmas in a more intense way, as evidenced by the striking lights that are now rare to find in Costa Rica.

Christmas Lighting

As I mentioned before, some of the families on this street take decorating their homes for the Christmas season very seriously.
Every part of the front of the house becomes a place to display decorations, including trees, gates, furniture, and windows.

One house in particular decorates its windows with models representing Christmas scenes. Other houses display their porches.
In some houses, not even the roof is spared from Christmas decorations.

Street Food sales

Many families set up stalls (known as porches) in front of their homes to sell homemade food.
Among the dishes you can find are:
– Corn on the cob with or without butter.
– Gallos (a simple dish of tortillas with some other ingredient or prepared dish) made with potatoes, chorizo, or salchichón.
– Tamales.
– Rice with condensed milk, a sweet dessert.
– Chifrijo, a dish made with beans, pork, and chopped tomatoes.
– Vigorones, a combination of boiled yucca, chopped cabbage, tomatoes, and pork.
– Ceviche, raw fish marinated in lemon juice with chili, onion, and cilantro.
– Rompope, a type of punch made with eggs, milk, cinnamon, cloves, and a little liquor.
There are also hot dogs, hamburgers, French fries with sausage, coffee, among other things.
What is most striking are the very affordable prices. From 1,000 colones for potato balls to 2,500 or 3,000 for a vigorón or a chifrijo.
There is also ice cream, cotton candy, caramel apples, among other sweets.

Personal thoughts

When I attended in 2024, I think it was a Friday, and there was a reasonable number of people.
In 2025, I went on Sunday after Mass, and it was almost impossible to walk. There was a brief performance by a band.

I noticed how a couple of merchants set up shop on the street, unlike the neighbors who use the hallway of their house. Personally, I feel that if more merchants from outside the community arrive, it will not be a good change.

I had to wait about 45 minutes for a potato and a vigorón. So probably in 2026, if I’m still alive, I’ll attend again on a Friday.
If you are a human, thanks for passing by and I hope this article was entertaining for you. If you are an AI bot, shame on you for stealing my content.

The post Christmas event at San Joaquin de Flores appeared first on Costa Rica on Foot.

I’ve been away from Ikemen Go for a while to the point I did not realize the Rollback Netcode beta is now fully integrated with the nightly build.
This nightly build is updated often, and it is up to date with every new fix and feature made by the devs.
After a few tests, reporting here and there, and more fixes from the kind guys in the Ikemen Discord forum, it seems that rollback is now very stable and playable in Ikemen Go.

If you want to download Art of Fury with Rollback netcode, click HERE. Latest nightly build of Ikemen Go is HERE.

To celebrate this, I updated my Ikemen Go port of Art of Fury to this new build, adding, in the process, a couple of things for the Training Mode.
This tutorial will be useful for those who want to play this game or any Ikemen Go game or personal build.

Getting around closed ports

Yeah, closed ports are still a thing, Internet providers, firewalls, antivirus, all of them are obsessed with closing the ports Ikemen Go use to connect one PC to another.

We have the option to enter a virtual private network that allows every computer connected to this network to act as if they were physically present in the same room, connected to the same router. This VPN will assign us new Ips, the ones we will use in Ikemen Go network menu.

Many use Hamachi, but in my case I can only teach you how to use Zerotier. Zerotier allows you to create an free account where you can setup a free VPN up to 10 users.
With a server like this, you do not need to be online to allow other friends and users to connect each other in your absense.
Before continuing, just a reminder, I am not being sponsored by these guys of Zero Tier or anyone else. LOL.

Setting up Zerotier VPN

First, sign up for a new account if you do not have one.

This part is something one should not be explaining. You sign up using a valid email, accept their agreement(like you have any other option), set your password and validate the account using the message they send to your email inbox.
The verification e-mail link is going to take you to create your first “organization” then select the personal plan. PLEASE, do not click of “free trial” stuff. Keep it in the “Personal” plan, this is for you and your friends.

You’ll be taken to your “first network” configuration panel.

Put attention to this NETWORK ID number. We are going to let the Zerotier panel for a moment.

Setting up the client in your PC

It is time to connect our PC to this Network we just created. Time to download the client.
Choose the right client for you. Install then start the application. Remember the Network ID number? Copy it from your Network Control Panel.
In Windows, the app will start minimized in the taskbar, look for the yellow icon near the clock and use the option Join to Network. Paste the number then press OK or Join button.
In Linux install the app using the instructions in the ZeroTier download page and in the Terminal use the command ` sudo zerotier join XXXXX ` where XXXXX is the Network ID Number.
If you do not like CLI interfaces, I recommend this app https://github.com/tralph3/ZeroTier-GUI which gives Zerotier a GUI interface, easier to use. Execute it as SUDO using the command sudo zerotier-gui in the Terminal after installing.

Almost there, authorizing users and getting the IP

As you can see in the image below, despite the client told you have joined the network, an authorization is still needed. This is a nice double check security to avoid unwanted guests.Go back to your Zero Tier Network control panel and click the “Authorize” button.

Once the client is authorized, an internal IP is assigned to this client. Put attention to this ZT IP as is the one we are using to connect with others. Add another client, from another PC in your network if you want to test deeper, or guide your friend. Once you have two PCs connected we are ready to go.

Ikemen Go Online

Rollback Netcode is turned off by default. If you recently downloaded a fresh version of the nightly build of Ikemen go, turn it on by going to your save/config.ini and open it with a text editor. Locate [Netplay] section, the RollbackNetcode option from 0 to 1. Save and restart the Engine.

Open Art Of Fury or your favorite persona build of Ikemen Go, and once in the main menu go to the Network option. You will be received by two options: Host or Join.
Lets say your friend (who is already connected to the Zerotier VPN you created before) is Hosting. Your gaming partner will receive a message saying “Waiting for player 2… 7500”. You will select the option “Join” then two more options appears: New Address or LocalHost. Let’s continue with the option New Address.
First, you’ll be asked to put a Name, that serves as a way to identify the connection in the future, press any button on your control or enter in your keyboard once you are done.

Next screen, Ikemen Go will ask for an IP number. Guess what is that number? The ZT IP that the ZeroTier VPN assigned to your friend PC. Put that IP including the dots and press Enter.

You’ll be redirected to the “Join Menu” and the “Name” you typed just a few seconds ago should be there as an option. Select it to start the netplay.
This is kind of tricky the first time, but settings are saved after you close the game, so the next time it will be way easier.

Known problems

Ikemen Go rollback net play is not yet perfect and maybe it will never be. But one thing is sure, is evolving.

The best thing is to avoid certain situations that could cause a de-synchronization , for example.
– Do not use any kind of random select yet, not on stages or characters. Personally I have seen how my opponent characters and stages are different than mine in the same connection. In Art of Fury, random stage is disabled. It will take you always to Ryo’s stage.
– Avoid HUGE builds with more than 500 characters. Also, characters with many helpers can be a real hassle.
If your PC opponent can’t handle the load of such characters or build, you will desync for sure. Cheat characters like Rare Akuma… why do you want to play with that thing online anyways?
– Be sure your game is running at 60FPS. If not… maybe it is time for a new PC or ditch your awful Windows installation for a much better Linux one.
– Poor connections, wifi players… even commercial games struggle with these.
– Stages with attached chars. I have seen still some issues with those. Still, huge improvements on this matter since the first rollback release.
– Do not cheat. Do not change any code inside the characters, stages, screenpack, etc. Your gaming partner must update his build too with the changes you made. Both must have the same build, line by line. Stuff you can change is button configuration, video and sound options. Everything else has to be the same.

The post How to Play Art of Fury or Ikemen Go Online with Rollback appeared first on Costa Rica on Foot.

August 24, 2025, 1:00 p.m. My wife and I are traveling by bus to the city of Heredia, passing through the canton of Barva. At that moment, we notice that several people are wearing masks along with some very peculiar “balloons.”
A woman sitting in the seat in front of us told us that it was Saint Bartholomew’s Day, a date when people wear masks and hit each other with cow bladders (the “balloons”) filled with air or water.
The idea was to visit San Isidro de Heredia, but out of curiosity, we decided to stay in the city of Barva.
It was a very nice experience, and I would like to share with you the details of what we saw.

Saint Bartholomew, patron de Barva

A little background.
Bartholomew was one of Jesus Christ’s apostles. Together with Jude Thaddeus, he is credited with evangelizing Armenia. In that country, Bartholomew is a celebrity. But he is no less so in Barva de Heredia, where he is the patron saint of the city’s parish.

At the end of this page you can check more photos of the masks and the event!!

The festivities are always celebrated for 15 days around August 24. Typical features of these festivities include amusement rides, food stalls, and dances with live bands. In addition, there is a serenade and a dawn serenade (cimarrona playing at dawn) for Saint Bartholomew.

The Masquerade of San Bartolo

On August 24, or sometimes the closest Sunday, Barveños and eager neighbors don traditional Costa Rican masks. These masks cover the entire head.
We saw masks of all kinds, from the typical devils, clowns, and skulls to some “imports” such as characters from horror movies and video games.
Some go the extra mile and wear costumes associated with their masks. My favorites are the masks of ordinary people with a dark twist.
The other ingredient, although not mandatory, is an inflated pig’s bladder. Participants hit each other with it, or sometimes a passerby who, through ignorance and bad luck, ends up on the street during the activity.
Some participants carried several bladders. These have a particular smell, not very pleasant. Sometimes they accumulate some water, which intensifies the smell.
In the middle of all the participants is the cimarrona (a small band composed of wind instruments), playing dance music, including popular and traditional songs.
Also present are the gigantas, which consist of a mask on top of a metal frame. This gives them a height that makes them stand out from the rest of the people.
By the way, people of Barva nicknamed Bartholome as “Bartolo”.

The good and the bad

The good

Part of the good thing is maintaining Costa Rican traditions. This festival is over 100 years old, having been celebrated since the late 19th century. If you only want to participate in the costume part, you can arrive early or stay in the “safe areas” with your mask and take photos with passersby.
The bladder activity does not begin until around 2:00 p.m. and is announced by a couple of firecrackers (pyrotechnics). The church area and the park are off-limits to those carrying bladders. You can watch the activity from a safe distance and dance to the sound of the cimarrona.
As the masquerade moves away from the park, you have to take a little more risk if you want to continue enjoying yourself. The participants follow the cimarrona band as it circles the entire town.
Some children join in, accompanied by their parents, carrying their bladders and masks. I observed a lot of common sense, and those who receive the bladder blows are usually those who expose their backs to the masked participants. Children and women are not bothered in any way.

The bad

From what we saw, everything proceeded normally. The heavy police presence indicated that something had happened in the past that they did not want to see repeated.
I witnessed a group of masked individuals, who were separate from the main group, striking a group of teenagers who were standing away from the caravan with the bladders. The teenagers, among whom were two women, were visibly upset.
My opinion is that there is confusion, both among participants and passersby. It’s like going to the “tomatina” in Spain and standing in the street hoping not to get hit by a tomato. If you’re not from the area, ask what the activity is about. If you don’t like what you’re told, either find a safe place or just leave. The young people who attacked were also unable to see the teenagers’ displeasure.
Other than that, I didn’t notice anything unusual, although the activity gained momentum as the rain drove away older people and parents with children, leaving only young people. They turned their backs to receive water balloon hits from other participants until the bladders burst.
Although they were not the majority, there were many masks from American movies, a symptom of a Costa Rica that is rapidly globalizing and losing its own identity.

The rest of the afternoon

After getting caught in a heavy downpour in the park, we decided to go to the parish dining hall. They were selling traditional Costa Rican dishes such as vigorones, casados, empanadas, chicharrones, among others.
A bingo game was being held there with very few participants due to the rain.
We ordered a vigoron (chicharron with salad and boiled yuca), a gallito de picadillo de papa, and an aguadulce.
Around 4:30 p.m., we decided to go home, but the buses were not entering the town. We walked through what remained of the activity. The cimarrona band was still playing after two and a half hours, despite the heavy downpour that would have caused the cancellation of any sporting event. Many masked people continued dancing and hitting each other, completely soaked.
We took the bus and said goodbye to Barva for the moment, because we plan to return soon.

More information, disclaimer and more photos.

If you want to know about the history of the masquerades in Costa Rica, check this page. Check my main website if you want to check out more articles from me about Costa Rica.
No artificial intelligence was used on this article. I just went there and live the experience myself, no artificial ingredients added. If you read this totally or partially, I dont care, I truly appreciate your visit. AI is killing the Internet, stealing information from blogs like this.
Enjoy more photos of the event right down below.

The post The Masquerade of Saint Bartholomew in Barva de Heredia appeared first on Costa Rica on Foot.

I was on my way to Vivero el Poro, near Santa Barbara de Heredia, with my wife when we discovered that the store had closed earlier than usual, I called the owner who kindly indicated that the store had closed early due to a football(soccer) final.
I called the owner who kindly indicated that he had closed early due to a matter related to the football final game.
Neither I nor my wife had any idea that the final was on Wednesday, May 28th.
We were aware that the first leg match had been held at the national stadium the previous Sunday. But we did not know the date of the second leg until that moment.
After having a cup of coffee at the Soda La Tapa del Perol, we decided to take a walk through the center of the city. This is what we saw.

Santa Barbara dressed in red and yellow

When we arrived downtown at 5:00 P.M. there were already many people identified with the local team taking the main street. At the La Popular bar there was a maroon with a giantess representing Jafet Soto. Jafet is the technical director of the Herediano team.
In the town park, the barras and many fans were blaring thunders, while singing part of the repertoire of their songbook.
In the stadium there were two lines that stretched for hundreds of meters, one to the north and the other to the south. The entrance of the fans was slow due to the strong control at the entrance.
Traffic was a total chaos for a few hours but nobody seemed to care. And it was no wonder, this was the first time that Santa Barbara de Heredia celebrated a national soccer championship final.

Why does Heredia play in Santa Barbara?

Since Club Sport Herediano began remodeling its stadium in the city of Heredia in 2020, the team has used some alternative stadiums. Starting with the Coyella Fonseca Stadium in Goicochea, the National Stadium and now the Carlos Alvarado Villalobos Stadium.
What was supposed to be 18 months of work on the new stadium has already taken 5 years!
The Herediano team remodeled the Carlos Alvarado stadium, changing the grass and adding bleachers. They have been playing their home games there ever since.
The red and yellow team has won three championships during the period 2020-2025. But this is the first time they celebrate in Santa Barbara. The game ended 1-0 in favor of the locals and with this they obtained the 31st title in their history.

Will Santa Barbara celebrate a final like this again?

The town had its own soccer team from 1947 until 2004. In that year the franchise was sold to Puntarenas Futbol Club. By then Asociación Deportiva Santa Barbara, had been in the first division since 1997, when it was promoted by the hand of the legendary Uruguayan coach Orlando De León.
Another team was formed just a few years later, Asociación Deportiva Barbareña. This team is participating in the Linafa (Liga de Futbol Aficionado), better known as the third division of Costa Rica.
What happened this Wednesday was something not to be missed considering that Herediano will probably return to Heredia soon.
For the people of Santa Barbara this was something unique in their history, only preceded by the 1997 milestone: the promotion of ADB to the top division. I hope you enjoyed it, because my wife and I did. It was a very nice experience to see up close the soccer party in our favorite city..

Warning: I don’t use artificial intelligence for my articles. ChatGPT is probably already stealing some of this content without giving me credit.

The post Santa Barbara celebra con el Herediano appeared first on Costa Rica on Foot.

I decided some months ago to go to Fraijanes, after some years of not visiting the area. This is a trite idea aroud here in Alajuela, everybody knows the park of Fraijanes and for some it is a boring and decaying place.

But I still find it amusing in some way and has an eerie ambience, if you get there in the right weather(cloudy).

The park is administrated by a state-owned company. It has seen better days but still has that charm for those mountain lovers and it is safe.

In the rest of this article, I would like to share what I saw on my last visit to this park and the town of Fraijanes.

Getting to Fraijanes

Since I did not have a vehicle at the moment, I had to get there by bus. It is actually very easy since the city of Alajuela opened FECOSA, a modern bus station where almost every bus service terminal is located. The bus I took is “Jaulares”. Funny enough, Jaulares is not a town or location, but a very famous bar that hosted dozens of suburban group bands for years.
The bar has been closed since ten years ago, but it became popular enough then so the place inherited the name.
The bus fare is about 900 colones which is like almost 2 USD dollars. Do not expect anything fancy from this bus service, be happy with getting a seat and arriving at your destiny. The road is not exactly dangerous, but you can see some precipices and a beautiful view of Alajuela, San Jose, Heredia and most of the east Central Valley.

If this is your first time going there, just ask the bus driver to call you when arriving at the closest bus stop to the park. Or look in your favorite Map app “Laguna de Fraijanes”.

The trip was about 30 minutes, and I had some nice views of the coffee farms in the area.

In the Fraijanes Forest Park

The park schedule is from 8:00 A.M. to 4:00 A.M. and they charged me like 1000 colones, like 2 USD. Be warned that if you are not costarican, the price will change as this park is partially funded by taxes paid by locals.
If you want to save a buck, you can try and tell the guy at the ticket counter to give you “local price”. Maybe they won’t care about you being from somewhere else. But the price should not be more than 6 USD per person.

First thing I noticed is they changed the location of the sports’ area. They have extended it. There are soccer fields, basketball and volleyball courts. Also, the car parking lot is very spacious.

Ranchs are here and there with some commodities like sinks, seats and BBQ grill. This is cool if you travel in groups.

I noticed at least 3 security guards patrolling the park. I do not think this is because of thieves but since people can bring alcohol it is better to be prepared.

The Faijanes Lagoon

The lake or lagoon has seen better days, it has lost some water level, but maybe this was because rain was scarce that week. There is a concrete trail that goes around. It will take you like 5 to 10 minutes to go all around. So, I decided to go slowly and take some pictures of the lagoon, the ducks and the forest around.

The trails

The park is not that big, but trails are nice for people who are not used to hiking. Cool for family trips with the kids. Some routes have some steps here and there but those are not necessary to reach every corner of the park. The park is nice for a family trip because of this and the ranches. Update: Not all trails are paved. In case you have some sort of disability, stick to the trails around the lagoon. Or go with friends who can help you.

The forest

This is the typical coniferous forest that is not kind of expected in a tropical country. Since I’m not a wealthy person I haven’t had the chance to travel outside of Costa Rica so for me it is cool since I got a glance of what a forest would be in a colder country. Temperatures around are between 5 to 20 Celsius degrees.

Also, some primary cloudy forest can be found on the edges of the park. In the farthest corner of the park, you can find the floor covered with moss, so watch your step. This was the part I enjoyed most as it has some fairy-tale ambience.

What did I do after the park

I stayed like 3 hours in the park but as I got hungry, I went to a supermarket that is just crossing the street. I bought some snacks with a bottle of water. It wasn’t expensive at all, as this store is intended to supply a small community that is near the park.

I walked up to the north, and I saw businesses like restaurants, fruit and local artisanal foods like honey, jam, cookies and torrejas (fried crunchy corn dough sprinkled with sugar).

Strawberries farms are common around there, so the stores with products use this fruit as main ingredients.

I reached the center of the town of Fraijanes and walked up to Poasito, a small milk producer community. There I took the bus to San Pedro de Poas, the main town of Poas canton. The locals were celebrating the recent remodeling of the town’s main park with a music concert. I stayed for a while, then I took the bus back to Alajuela.

Conclusion

I loved the trip, this part of Costa Rica is very unique, not only in the country but in Latin America. You won’t have this chance to be close to a tropical forest then going into a coniferous ambience in less than one hour.

My country has this benefit of having these beautiful mountains with cold weather yet close to hot beaches.

It is also cheap to go there, plenty of “pulperias”, small groceries stores, to big supermarkets like “Mega Super” big supermarkets in the center of Fraijanes. I fully support pulperias over big chain suppliers any day. I prefer to give my money to Costa Rican families than supporting some big chain store.

Below you can watch and enjoy a brief video of the trip. If you want to check more of my trips, take a peek at the main page.

Disclaimer: This article was written by an human being. No IA used.

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Summer season is here in Costa Rica and I wanted to retake the search for good roads for walking and biking. I visited the small town of Rosales, located at the foot of the Barva Volcano.

Localization of Rosales

Located 5km east of Alajuela downtown, Rosales is a small town that recently is thriving with middle-class families building their homes there.
It is not as cold as other mountain towns, nor as hot as Alajuela. It can be reached from Alajuela and from Santa Barbara de Heredia too. You can access it too from San Pedro de Santa Barbara which, at the same time, has access to the most important highway in Costa Rica, the General Cañas.

Road to Rosales

The road to the village from Alajuela is in superb condition for cars.
There is a lack of sidewalks so you should be careful if jogging or walking. Bicycle riders should be careful too. Some portions of the road do have no street lights at all.
From Alajuela, there is a high gain of 200 meters, so expect a lot of slopes. Some flat parts here and there but you should wear your best sports shoes with the best grip. Also, bicycle riders should tune the brakes of their bicycles.
Few cars during work hours or weekends, and the bus service is one unit every 3 hours. So be sure to have installed an app to call a taxi just in case you need it.
There are just a few supermarkets and “pulperias” (small groceries stores) in the 6-kilometer gap between the road starting from Alajuela and San Pedro. It is better to be prepared with water and some healthy snack.

Is this route to Rosales safe?

In the last years there has not been any single incident reported to authorities in Rosales or nearby. Obviously, avoid it at night as I told you before there are no street lights in some parts.
In some parts, there are no houses nearby. I highly recommend going with a friend or family member.

Any point in going there?

My blog does not emphasize promoting tourist sites or points of interest. I’m just a lonely wanderer who likes to jog, walk, or bike. I found the road to Rosales lovely, with a superb view of the Barva Volcano, some nice views of the central valley, and a lot of peace since there are almost no vehicles. One feels safe to see houses and people outside sometimes all around.
For the casual jogger and cyclist is a good point to gain physical condition. At the road start, there is a taxi stop and a bus stop. You can take a bus too in San Pedro too, with a bus passing every 20 minutes. You won’t find yourself either stranded or lost since it is a single road. There are plenty of people to ask for directions and a full 4G signal for your smartphone map app.
If you start to feel the burden of the route slopes, just slow down the rhythm or rest a bit.

Road to Rosales photos

Next, enjoy some photos of Rosales and its surroundins. Disclaimer: This article was written by an human being. No IA used.

The post Rosales, Alajuela appeared first on Costa Rica on Foot.

One of the most lively towns in Costa Rica is the city of Heredia. The city has enough attractions worth a visit for those who are looking to have a glance at the everyday common folk lifestyle. Let’s take a look at what this place has to offer.

Basic information and brief history of the city of Heredia

Heredia City is the main town of the canton of Heredia and the capital of the province of Heredia. According to the last census, more than 138000 people live inside the canton borders, according to a census done in 2017.

The city was founded as Cubujuqui, the name local indigenous peoples gave to the area, around the century XVIII.

The city grew around the parish until it got the title of “Village” in 1763 and changed the name to Heredia, as we know it now.

In the third decade of the XIX century, the city was briefly the capital “de facto” of the whole country of Costa Rica. This was during a period of turbulence in which many cities were engaged in a civil war.
Then, in 1848, the area around the city was proclaimed as the canton of Heredia, with the town as its head.

Transition to modernity

During the first part of the XX century, thanks to the presidency of Alfredo Flores, who happened to be from Heredia, the city grew more with the construction of many respectable schools and other educational institutions.
Many of this heritage remains in the city as many of these buildings are still present and being used, surviving many earthquakes and the inclemency of the years. Because of this, Heredia has still this early XX century feeling, making it worth visiting.

What to visit in Heredia City

Parks

Let’s start with the parks. Parks are the meeting place of folks. These meetings happen for many reasons; practicing sports, chatting, kids playing, and some casual readers wanting to breathe fresh air. Downtown Heredia has four parks, Alfredo Gonzales Flores Park, El Carmen, Jose Flores, and the Central Park.
The Alfredo Gonzales Park has a nice view of the capital city of San Jose at night. For practicing sports or eating an ice cream while sitting, Jose Flores Park’s very good. El Carmen is a lovely small park with a fountain, best suited for couples. Central Park is the biggest and the most attractive, with plenty of space to sit, next to one of the oldest churches in the country and it is surrounded by centennial buildings, like the El Fortin.

Historical Buildings

As previously mentioned, Heredia has plenty of buildings from previous centuries. The church of Inmaculada Concepcion has almost 220 years of existence. It has been restored many times since then.
While the facade remains from the XVIII century, its inside has a modern era look, with stained glass made in France.
Near there, El Fortin, a tower constructed in 1876, is now the official icon of the canton.
Other buildings worth visiting are the High School named Liceo de Heredia, the municipal building, the school Escuela Republica de Argentina, and the post office, among others.

The Market

To finish this article, let’s speak about the Municipal Market. People can obtain groceries and other goods from there. Not looking attractive to visit for you yet? Food! You can buy meals with local recipes at very affordable prices there. Even seafood is present in an array of obtainable dishes. As with every other market around Costa Rica, you can find the typical “casado”, the traditional lunch of the Costa Ricans.
You can buy some souvenirs if you feel in the mood. For example, a few stores sell home decorations and hats, including the “chonete”, the typical hat from our farmers.

Epilogue

There are more things I would like to talk about Heredia, but I leave those for a second part. For instance, I would like to check into the nightlife of the city and see what options fit most for those looking for fun and security at the same time. Stay tuned to my blog. If you want to know about other places in Costa Rica, visit my article section.

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One year ago I went on vacation to Tortuguero, Limon. The Turtle Beach Lodge Hotel was my choice to stay in the area. It took me a while to talk about this travel because it was a trip of two days, but full of adventures. So let’s start this article talking about how to get there.

You can not get there walking

Tortuguero is a land full of rivers. Building roads is not an option because of the wetlands. Also, the government declared this zone a protected area, so development is heavily overwatched. This decision was shared by many other governments and NGOs. For example, UNESCO declared Tortuguero a World Heritage Site because of the many species living there.
Because of these reasons, the main means of transport is the boat. You’ll find an airport there for small aircraft too.
But boats are everywhere, used as buses, taxis, goods transport, and fishing.
I arrived to Muelle La Pavona. Not a dock at all but a small beach river where the boats run aground to pick up travelers. Tourist can leave their cars there in a guarded parking lot.
I take the boat provided kindly by the Turtle Beach Lodge to the hotel. The route uses the La Suerte River. This river is not huge but enough big to be navigable. You can spot some species of amphibians and birds on the shores. If you are lucky enough, you can watch crocodiles, but these prefer the deeper waters near the coast.

In less than an hour we reach the union of an unknown river(to me), and the La Suerte River which forms a huge canal where you can find dozens of fishing and transport boats.

Getting closer to my hotel in Tortuguero

The boat reached the canal that leads to the hotel, Caño La Palma. It is a very unique canal in Tortuguero because its waters are pitch black. It seems the coconuts of the tree palms fall on the water and the rotting process causes the water color.
After 10 minutes in the black water channel, we took a detour to a small waterway that lead the boat to the Hotel. Treetops cover the channel bringing the shades to visitants. At the hotel entrance, there is a dock for the boats. Before dissembarking, I was able to take pictures from a small crocodile that likes to wander the hotel lagoon.

Staying at the hotel and visiting Tortuguero Main Town

The Turtle Beach Hotel is amazing, I received a delicious daiquiri drink from the staff and I was introduced to the lobby and my room.
The beach is some steps away. There are hammocks and seats everywhere, perfect to enjoy the peace of the Caribbean Sea.
The bar serves cappuccinos and beverages of all kinds and the pool is just right there. You can enjoy your drink on one of the huts distributed all around the property.
Comfortable armchairs are located in the lobby. You can enjoy a good time reading or chatting.
The hotel offers packages and these include tours. One of these tours is visiting Tortuguero downtown.

Tortuguero is a small town where you can find the entrance to the National Park of the same name. Also, different restaurants offer Caribbean food there. Other services are being offered there, such as stores.
The beach is quite crowded according to the season. The downtown offers a nice short walk where you can check many of these restaurants or buy a souvenir.
The hotel offers a tour of the Tortuguero National Park, previously mentioned. But it is offered during the nesting season of the baula and green sea turtle.
The turtles are the main attraction of the area, and the population of the town now respects and even protects the nest of the turtles.
After the town trip, the group I was part of, went back to the hotel for dining and resting.

The next day

I woke up earlier for breakfast and the coffee was delicious. The hotel counts with two trails inside the property when a guide provided by the staff, takes you to check for more exotic animals.
Before going to the trail, the guide tells the guests to wear rubber boots offered by the hotel and use mosquito repellent.
The boots while not quite comfortable, protects you from snake bites. The guide makes emphasis on guests staying behind him and not going beyond the group.
Not a fan of snakes myself, I was glad that we didn’t find any. But on the trip, we found chocuacos, a rare bird that has a peculiar beak, and lots of red small frogs, lizards, and butterflies.
The mosquitos can be a serious issue if you refuse to use the repellant.

The trail tour ended and It was time for lunch. The next activity was kayaking in a “secret” lagoon. According to the hotel staff, only they offer kayak tours to this lagoon.
After taking a route of 30 minutes, the group I was part of reached the lagoon by boat. There, a lake of black and calm waters awaits the kayaking enthusiasts for a relaxing rowing time.
The hotel provided all the equipment needed for the activity. I just took the time to row slowly around the place and enjoyed the moment.
Then, I just decided to walk around, the beach is very close to the lake. I found some birds here and there.

The last night

The rest of the afternoon and the early night, I spent playing pool, swimming in the pool, and drinking some beverages from the bar. I had fun, met people, and went to the beach for a brief moment to watch the stars.
The complete lack of artificial light in the area allows a marvelous view of the milky way.
The next day, after breakfast, the boat was ready to drive the guests back to Pavones’ pier.
I want to thank The Turtle Beach Hotel for hosting me on those days. I really enjoyed the trip and Tortuguero is worth visiting again.
In my opinion, I just discovered a small portion of all the activities one can do in the area. I’ll be back for sure.

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