What is Guanacaste

From the Desk of Chris:

Guanacaste is many things.  It is a tree, a province, a town and perhaps more. Read here to understand what Guanacaste is.

The Guanacaste Tree

It is commonly known as Guanacaste Tree, Caro Caro, Elephant Ear Tree in North America, but is also referred to as Devil's Ear and Earpod Tree, Parota, Orejón or Huanacaxtle and in El Salvador Conacaste. It belongs to the pea family and is native to the tropical regions of the Americas.  It is known here in Costa Rica for its massive size, huge canopies and its strange seedpods and is prized for the shade that it provides from our Tropical Dry Forest climate.  The trees can grow to be 25 to 35 meters tall and the tree trunks 3.5 meters in diameter.  The shade is utilized in coffee plantations and for cattle to escape the sun.  The wood is reddish-brown and lightweight.  There are lot of practical uses and you will see it used in homes to make doors, windows, furniture, cabinets, and because it is water resistant, for shipbuilding.  You will often see articles in the giftshops which are made of Guanacaste as well as jewellery which uses the seeds from the pods.

Not surprisingly, it is the national tree of Costa Rica.

Guanacaste Province

The Province of Guanacaste is in the northwestern part of Costa Rica. The province is 10,141 km2 (3,915 sq mi) in area and as of 2010, had a population of about 327,000, which is the least poplulated province of Costa Rica. In 1824 the people of Guanacaste decided to join Costa Rica officially.  The annexation of Guanacaste is recognized every year on July 25th as a National Holiday.

Guanacaste is very unique compared to the rest of Costa Rica.  It is considered a Tropical Dry Forest and is considerably drier than the rest of the country.  What does this mean? Different flora and fauna of course!  The province has a rich cattle ranching history which drove the economy and cultural heritage.  It has, in the last couple of decades, diversified into rice, sugar cane, cotton, and melon.  More importantly, the largest growing industry has been Tourism.  The fact that there is a new international airport (Daniel Oduber Quiros International Airport - LIR) here just supports the ever-growing Tourism industry. It has the most beautiful beaches of the country in my opinion.  The Papagayo region is referred to as the "Gold Coast" because it is seen as so valuable.  The government has reserved the Papagayo Region as the "Premier" vacation destination and has invested heavily into the area especially in terms of infrastructure.  Everyone wants a piece of the "Gold Coast".  Another drawing card is the fact that Guanacaste has no less than 7 National parks.

Guanacaste the City

Way back in 1836 the town of Guanacaste was declared the capital of Guanacaste and then in 1854 the town of Guanacaste was renamed Liberia.  Liberia is the country's second-largest city with a population of about 98,750.

The Flag

Guanacaste is so many things but most importantly what Guanacaste is to so many of us is...

It is "HOME".