Here are two links to help you learn the basics

Spanish Dictionary:  Type in your Phrase and it will translate it for you

Useful Common Spanish Phrases

If you are visiting, you won’t have to know how to speak Spanish, but like any country, the effort may be appreciated and you will have a better time.

Oh, and one other thing. If you DO meet anyone, and you will…  a hotel clerk, a store employee, waiter, or other person who doesn’t speak your language, don’t talk louder or slower. It won’t help! They are not deaf nor stupid. They just don’t speak your language.  They speak theirs.

For emergency, call 911, but they may not speak English.

The country has been a democracy for over 50 years. Its last President won a Nobel Peace Prize.  Its current president is a woman.

Because there is no army, much of the government’s money is spent on education. They have over a 90 % literacy rate.

Because it is such a great country to visit, over 100,000 Americans now live there. It is still a great place to visit.

Ticos are a mixing of races. Though most of the country’s 4 million people descended from Spanish immigrants, many families originated in other parts of the world. In the outlying areas, more people are mestizos, a mixture of European and Indigenous blood.  On the Caribbean coast you find strong links to African lineage; in the Talamanca Mountain, you will find it inhabited by the pure-blooded Indians of various tribes. In Guanacaste Province in the northwest part of the country, you will find Ticos reflecting their Nicaraguan heritage.

The predominant religion is Catholic. Nearly every town has a Catholic church and many have a football (soccer) field in front of the church!  In Costa Rica, football rules.  There are many spectacular churches here in Costa Rica, some over three hundred years old like the one in this photograph to the right.

Some Local Entertainment during Lunch