Independence Day in Costa Rica

Celebrate with the Costa Ricans by car hire during one of their biggest holidays of the year.  Although Christmas and Holy Week are also celebrated with fun and festivities all through out Costa Rica, another benefit of visiting the country during the Green Season (or slow tourism season) is to see their wonderful Independence Day festivities.  Rent a car hire from Juan Santamaria Airport for your next tour of Costa Rica.

The days leading up to September 15 are full of marching band practice, parades with painted carts and oxen through city streets, and hundreds of children dancing and singing in traditional Costa Rican outfits.  On September 13 I went to catch a bus at a park in the city of Heredia, only to find that the entire park and the streets around it were all closed down for parades and celebrations. 

It was all very wonderful; there was an announcer talking about Costa Rican independence, followed by a choreographed performance by the local children, all in costume.  Thankfully I had arrived with time to spare, otherwise I would have needed a rental car because navigating the busses on a schedule would have been impossible this week!

On September 15 1821 Costa Rica declared its independence from Spain.  As the happiest country in the world in 2009's Happy Planet Index, Costa Rica seems to have done well for itself in its short history.  It has a functional national healthcare, great education for all, and no military.  

Freedom is a beautiful thing, and its wonderful to see multigenerational celebrations like these, with traditions passed down to help us remember our histories.