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SAN
JOSE - COSTA RICA
San José is the capital and largest city of the nation of Costa Rica. It is
also the capital of San José province.
San José is located in the center of the country at 10.0° N, 84.2° W; it is
on a mountain plateau at an elevation of about 1,170 meters (some 4,000 feet)
above sea level. In 1997 the city had an estimated population of 329,154
people: the latter half of the 20th century was a period of rapid growth for
the city, considering that in 1950 its population was a mere 86,900.
History
San José was a small village of little importance until 1824. In that year,
Costa Rica's first elected head of state, liberal Juan Mora Fernández,
decided to move the government of Costa Rica from the old Spanish colonial
capital of Cartago and make a fresh start with a new city. This was a time
of much optimism in the newly independent nation of Central America, of
which Costa Rica was at that time a state (see: History of Central America).
The new capital of San José grew rapidly. Because of its late 18th century
origin, San José has little of the Spanish colonial architecture common in
most other Latin American capitals.
The University of Costa Rica was established here in 1843. San José also
serves as the headquarters of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
Night Life
There are numerous bars around San Jose, with 3 major 'night life centers':
A Street known as the Calle de la Amargura in San Pedro near the University
of Costa Rica, with a couple of bars and discos where students like to hang
out, thus offering 'reasonable' prices.
A group of discos in Escazu with more elevated prices.
Centro Comercial "El Pueblo" which resembles a old, colonial-style town with
little alleys and a lot of discos and bars.
Tourism
San Jose is Costa Rica's main transportation hub due to its central location,
and tourist travelling around the country usually make stop-overs there.
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