San Jose, Costa Rica (February 2007)

San José, Costa Rica cover page.	Map of Costa Rica with the star indicating San José.	People walking in Culture Plaza (Plaza de la Cultura) in San José, Costa Rica next to the National Theater.	The plaza is a central meeting point for people in San José.
Like most major cities, the pigeons are ever-present in San José.	A mother and child were feeding the pigeons.	Here is another mother and child scene in Culture Plaza.	Another kid feeding the pigeons.
A family scene in Culture Plaza.	Ongoing street acts like this clown provide for great public entertainment in Culture Plaza.	A wide angle shot of the National Theater, San José's foremost architectural showplace.	This ornate opera house was built in 1897.
It was built because a spoiled Italian opera diva, Angela Pelati, refused to perform in San José until the theater was built.	Impressive sculptures adorn the top of San José's National Theater.	A modern flutist sculpture with a sign for Cafe del Téatro Nacional which has the best coffee in San José.	Interior shot of the National Theater with a marble staircase, a chandelier and a golden ceiling.
This is a very ornate lounge on the second floor where people converge between acts.	This very decorative mirror is in the lounge.	This marble sculpture is also in the lounge.	The theater is adorned by these beautiful chandeliers.
View of the interior of the theater and the chandelier.	The theater has many different levels.	View of the back of the theater with people leaving.	Outside of the National Theater is this fountain with the Grand Hotel in the background.
A park bench scene in front of the Grand Hotel.	Statue of Pope John Paul II outside of Metropolitan Cathedral.	Close-up of the homage to John Paul II who visited Metropolitan Cathedral in 1983.	Traffic passing by Metropolitan Cathedral in San Jose.
View of the neoclassical Metropolitan Cathedral which is the biggest church in San José.	Façade of the Metropolitan Cathedral which was built in 1871 after the original was destroyed in an earthquake.	The interior of the cathedral is adorned with a small dome and stained glass windows.	The interior is also decorated with patterned-tiled floors, painted wooden columns and plenty of bas-reliefs.
In front of the Metropolitan Cathedral is a spider-like pavillion donated by former Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza.	Parque Central is known for its free music concerts and for its pickpockets!	These bird-like fountains are attached to the side of the pavillion.	Water is spouting from the mouth of the fountain.
Close-up of the fountain showing the bird's prominent beak.	An unusual tiled-flag stand with the Costa Rican flag on display in Parque Central.	View of Teatro Melico Salazar, built in the 1920s and named after Costa Rica's most famous opera singer.	As a young man, Melico Salazar moved to Italy and trained in Milan. He moved back to Costa Rica in 1937 (at age 50).
Close-up of the ornate baroque façade of Teatro Melico Salazar (across from Parque Central).	From Parque Central, I walked down Avenida 2 and passed this street vendor selling colorful beverages.	A lone man standing on the balcony of a deserted-looking apartment building on Avenida 2 in San José.	Close-up of the lone man on the balcony.
View of the Gothic-style Church of La Merced on Avenidas 2-4 with neoclassical elements. It is the oldest church in San José.	Built in 1909, La Merced is noted for its sculpted wooden ceiling, slender spires and arched windows.	Statue of Braulio Carillo Colina (1800-1845) who was President of Costa Rica. The statue is in the park in front of La Merced.	He proclaimed Costa Rica a sovereign and independent nation in 1838.
Plaque dedicated to Braulio Carillo Colina under his statue.	People walking down the busy Avenida Central at lunch time in San José.	Street sign for Avenida Central.	An interesting entrance sign to a nightclub on Avenida Central with colorful maracas on display.
This wall with a watchtower is part of the Museo Nacional of Costa Rica.	The museum building is housed in a 114-year-old Bellavista Fortress last used during the 1948 revolution.	Entrance to the Museo Nacional in San José.	There were many people coming and going to the Museo Nacional on the day that I was there.
Pre-Columbian pots and bowls on display at the Museo Nacional.	More unusual pre-Columbian artifacts on display at the museum.	Stone carvings of pre-Columbian figures at the Museo Nacional.	Display at the museum of Spanish conquistadors arriving at an Costa Rican settlement in the 16th century.
Statue of an indian warrior with exquisite gold decorations.	A beautiful golden artifact on display in a separate Sala de Oro at the Museo Nacional.	I saw another exhibit at the museum honoring immigrants who have come to Costa Rica.	Display at the museum showing the many ethnic groups of immigrants.
An open porch in the interior of the Museo Nacional with beautiful tiles.	This is the interior courtyard of the museum which is housed in what was formerly the Bellavista Fortress.	I combined about 5 photos to make this panoramic picture of the interior courtyard of the Museo Nacional.	These canons probably date from the days when the Museo Nacional was a fortress.
Close-up of the canons.	As I was leaving, I took this photo of an old and ornate wall of the Museo Nacional.	Entrance sign to Morazán Park in San José.	There were some wonderful park benches in Morazán Park.
A young girl was holding a pigeon in the park.	Statue of Domingo Faustino Sarmiento (1811-1888) in Morazán Park.	He was an Argentine statesman, educator, author, and was the President of Argentina from 1868 to 1874.	Plaque for Sarmiento under his statue. His well known work "Facundo" (1845) made him famous all over Latin and Central America.
View of the central gazebo Morazán Park with nice flowers in front of it.	Sunday concerts are often held in the gazebo.	A close-up of the gazebo with a statue in the foreground.	These two young lovers were hanging out in the gazebo.
Close-up of the young lovers.	Monument to Daniel Oduber Quirós in Parque Morazán. He was President of Costa Rica from 1974-1978.	I walked by this interesting building on Calle 6 between Morazán Park and the Museo del Oro.	Close-up of the carvings and architectural details of the building.
Parque Nacional, San José’s largest park, was remodeled between 2000-2001. While improved, it is full of prostitutes at night.	View of the 1856 National Warrior Monument in Parque Nacional, which was cast in Rodin’s Paris studio.	It commemorates the battle against William Walker who attempted to conquer Costa Rica but was defeated.	Costa Rican President Juan Rafael Mora launched a surprise attack forcing Walker’s men to flee.
Entrance to the Parque Zoologico Nacional Simon Bolivar (Fundazoo) in San José.	Balloon and souvenir stand outside of the Fundazoo.	Close-up of the balloons and souvenirs.	These caimans found in the zoo are of the crocodile family, but smaller.
These pizotes are member of the raccoon family, and they inhabit the wooded rain forests of Central America.	These white-faced capuchin monkeys found in the zoo are very intelligent and can be aggressive.	An exhibit of spider monkeys at the Fundazoo.	A spider monkey in motion.
Nice clock tower and fountain in downtown San José.	Close-up of the wonderful face on the clock tower spewing water. A pigeon was perched on the head.	Obese statue adorning a pedestrian street in San José.	The obese statue has a "maximus gluteus maximus!"
The beautiful Main Post Office building in downtown San José.	Side view of the beautiful Main Post Office building.	Architectural details with medallions on the Main Post Office.	Pedestrians stolling in front of the Main Post Office.
Details of the upper facade of the Main Post Office building.	Statue of Juan Rafael Mora who was President of Costa Rica from 1849 to 1859.	He was best known for repelling an attack by William Walker (in 1856) who attempted to conquer Costa Rica.	Statue of a man holding a torch under Juan Rafael Mora's tribute.
Banners advertising the Museo del Oro (Gold Museum) located off of the Plaza de la Cultura in San José.	These vent pipes outside of the Gold Museum looked like a modern sculpture.	Entrance lobby of the Gold Museum.	These stairs lead down to a lower basement level of the museum.
Pre-Columbian pots and bowls on display at the Gold Museum.	Display of warriors at the Gold Museum.	Indian going into battle wearing seashells, lots of gold ornaments including on his head, arms and neck and rings on his ears.	Pre-Columbian statues on display at the Gold Museum.
Bird, monkey and alligator images were frequently used as funerary offerings for people of high rank.	Preparing the corpse was the first step in a series of rituals necessary before burial.	In Bribri tribes, women were responsible for making the chicha (fermented maize) and the food consumed over the days of ritual.	Metallurgy required multiple artisans in the manufacturing process. Gold artisans worked together in these societies.
Shamans (who conducted rituals with spirits) had great prestige and power due to their knowledge of ancestral history and myths.	Parque Espana is located directly next to (east) of Parque Morazán. It has many benches, fountains and trees.	Fountain in the middle of the park.	Here, the is fountain spewing water.
Nice pathway and trees in Parque Espana.	Here's another dramatic fountain in Parque Espana.	Statue of Christopher Columbus who discovered Costa Rica in 1502. Spain governed Costa Rica as a colonial possession until 1823.	Nice rooftop of an old schoolhouse next to the park.
More nice architectural details with the Costa Rican flag flying from the rooftop.	This man was having a relaxing afternoon on the park bench along this pathway in Parque Espana.