Monteverde, Costa Rica

I visited CR as part of a study-abroad program. We were hosted in in 3 of the 7 providences. I do plan on going back, as, the communities I visited (in my experience) were very community oriented, health conscious, and very environmentally friendly. The only thing that I didn’t like is how dependent on tourism the country is. Because of this, you’ll definitely notice that some locals (including foreign born business owners) in tourists hot spots tend to be somewhat weary of us compared to our white counterparts. These sentiments were shared with me first hand. However I only really experienced this in the capital of San Jose. We spent most of our month there in the providences of Puntarenas and Guanacaste, which is where I preferred to be (somewhere more rural, close knit, and simple) though we did stay near tourist attractions.
While in Monteverde in the neighborhood of Santa Elena, I had the pleasure of living with a mother whose family owned local businesses like hostels and taxi services. I visited one of the hostels with her and it was very nice in every aspect. There were few hotels in this area (to my knowledge), but it comes to no surprise as they encourage truly living with a sense of community and hospitality; hence the phrase “Pura Vida”. When I return, I plan on visiting the providence of Limón (the Caribbean side) for Día del Negro y la Cultura Afrocostarricense (Black Peoples and Afro-Costa Rican Culture Day).