San Jose - National Theatre

Sadly my last day in Costa Rica. As my flight was late afternoon I had a leisurely morning to wander around, plus d a tour of the National Theatre.

so first up on a nice morning, the weird Plaza de la Cultura. This is the host both to the National Theatre and the museums I visited yesterday, plus some tacky shops. Overall, possibly the least attractive cultural square in the world.That's the 1970s for you.

Side of National Theatre

 The National Theatre is really something else. Was built as a statement of National Pride - you weren't a real Central American state unless you had an opulent opera house for a touring opera company to come to) it is actually rather magnificent. The guided tour was well worth doing.

Ok, the expression is just a little over the top, but it was originally meant for the roof.

 With the theatre as my last sight ticked off I just wandered up through Parque Espana and around before lunch at a very decent Italian restaurant I ha found the night before.

Edifico Metallica, a school now, but its USP is that the exterior is entirely constructed of metal plates shipped from Belgium at the end of the 19th century.

Catedral Metropolitana

La Paz Waterfall Gardens

On my last full day in Costa Rica I took a day trip out the the La Paz Waterfall Gardens. This is very much a tourist creation. Perfectly manicured it is designed to get tourist coach parties through. It also meant that one couldn't get just a trip there and back. There was also the obligatory stop at a coffee field, which was fine, but then followed by an artisan shop for coffee, chocolates and knick-knacks.

The Gardens themselves were fine, but so carefully laid out that we didn't need our guide (which is code for it would have been better without him).

The place is essentially in two halves. The first is a wildlife, well they would call a wildlife sanctuary, but lets call a spade a spade, a zoo. Starts with an aviary.

 Then onto butterflies.

By this time I had got talking to an Italian physics PHD student, who spoke truly excellent English and had studied in Berlin and London. Just a really nice interesting guy to get chatting to. One of the advantages of doing these sorts of trips.

Me with blue morpho.

A snake-house

And then on to the big cat enclosure, starting with ocelots

Puma - top of the food chain

Jaguar

 Next the frogs

 The small colourful ones tend to be the poisonous ones.

 Then out into the second part of the park for a walk past a series of waterfalls. Which were very impressive.

 And finally views across the country. Satisfying day out.