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San Jose |
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General Information:Area of San Jose City: 47 sq. km (18 square mi.) Weather: Moderate; best weather conditions between December & April; nighttime showers between May & November Temperature: 20-22 C (68 - 72 °F) year around, See San Jose climate Annual Rain Fall: 69 inches Altitude: 1,150 meters (3,772 feet) See also Central Valley Weather Region and the San Jose (Central Valley) Tourism Region
About:San Jose’s close proximity to airports and popular attractions makes it a convenient place to begin and end your trip to Costa Rica. Local and international airports are only a 20 to 30 minute drive from the capital and many visitors use San Jose as a home base for day trips to nearby sights. The sprawling capital is nestled in the fertile “Valle Central” (Central Valley) and surrounded on all sides by large forested mountain ranges, some of which include active volcanoes, perennially green savannahs and working coffee plantations. San Jose City is more immediately surrounded by suburbs where many of the country’s homeless find shelter. Neighborhoods in these areas are for the most part, poorly maintained, their sidewalks and streets riddled with potholes.
A Brief History of San Jose:San Jose City, known simply as San Jose, was designated as the capital of Costa Rica in 1835. Until 1835, the capital of Costa Rica was Cartago. In 1737, San Jose, then called “Villa Nueva de la Boca del Monte del Valle de Abra,” was founded by a group of Spanish and Native American dissenters, who left the capital in search of political freedom. Villa Nueva de la Boca del Monte was just a small village with a handful of adobe houses. A short time later, its name was changed to San Jose after Saint Joseph, the patron saint of the city. The development of the coffee exports industry, the influence of the French revolution and the country’s declaration of independence from Spain all had a huge impact on Costa Rica. The declaration of independence from Spain and Guatemala’s similar declaration split the country’s political and economic powers into two factions: the Democrats who wanted the country to remain a Spanish territory and the Republicans who wanted to centralize power and make Costa Rica an independent country. In 1823, these two camps engaged in a 15-minute civil war called the “Guerra de la Liga” (War of the Union), in which the Democrats from Heredia and Cartago fought the Republicans from San Jose and Alajuela. The Republicans won, the capital was moved to San Jose and Costa Rica became an independent country. San Jose’s culture and architecture were heavily inspired by the Europeans, especially the French and Belgians. Many structures were modeled after European buildings, incorporating ironwork, lattice- work, long corridors and bright painted exteriors into their designs. San Jose currently dominates the country’s political, economic and cultural scenes. It is also home to a number of international businesses.
Other Nearby Cities:• Alajuela • Escazu
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