by Dr. Evetta Borden
alone; as a black female with an interest in biology and the
rainforest I was hooked. I also had the desire to see how
people of my color fared in other parts of the world.
Usually I only travel in a group that consists of family
members, but this tour seemed to be worth traveling with a
diverse group. I did not know it was the first black culture
tour ever done in Costa Rica, although knowing that would
not have influenced my decision.
pharmacist, a lawyer, and a retired realtor, nurse, doctor and school superintendent. Passengers came from Florida,
Georgia, Illinois, Missouri, and North Carolina
The tour was from August 27 to September 3, 2003. Most of us met at the airport in Atlanta on the way to Costa Rica. We
were told that Costa Rica was a Spanish and English speaking country, but Spanish is the national language. I believe that
speaking Spanish would be a definite benefit. There were many opportunities to interact with the people of Costa Rica, and
speaking the language would have made it more enjoyable. Many Costa Ricans struggled through the language to interact
with us, and all were more then willing to be helpful and to share the country and culture with us.
Our Costa Rican tour guide, Fernando, was fluent in English and Spanish. He was able to give cultural, historical, and
relevant information of the day. As you can image from such a diverse group of travelers, we had many and varied
questions, but they were all answered well. Travel magazines warned about the dangers in the Limon province on the
Caribbean coast; however, we walked to most of the areas and never felt threatened or unsafe. I felt safer in Costa Rica
than I would have in a city like New York or Los Angeles. I did not feel discriminated against, but it seemed that most
people knew our destination was Limon without our telling them. After getting to Limon I understood: that is where I found
brown skin and ethnicity in abundance. Limon’s diverse population also includes Chinese, indigenous BriBri and Cabecar
Indians, Hispanic and European inhabitants.
The trip started with San Jose capital, and we stayed at the Hotel Villa Tournon. Spanish was not needed here, and they
offered services we needed like running to the post office for stamps. The hotel is also black-owned. We left San Jose to
go to Tortuguero on the northern Caribbean coast. If you don't like water you want to skip this part of the trip since the
only way to Tortuguero is by boat. In Tortuguero we saw how living the simple life can be fulfilling when all the necessities
are there. The attraction in Tortuguero is the sea turtles and their nesting habits. The nesting was interesting to me, but again I
was a biology major; however, the stars and the night sky on the beach were extremely romantic. The Costa Rican sky had
more stars then I have ever seen. The lodging was the Pachira Lodge.
the Hotel Maribu Caribe (a two hour boat ride). Maribu
Caribe sat on a small hill over looking the Caribbean Sea. I
recommend the back bungalows to have a wonderful view.
The food here was magnificent and allowed you to try
varied dishes both ethnic and those from home. The
shopping area which was the area full of locals was
approximately a two dollar cab ride; and a cab ride to the
beach is $1.50.
On Sunday we were presented with options of
denominations of where we could go and worship. Most of
the churches offered services in Spanish and English at
different times of your choice.
of Black Culture. They have cultural foods, music and history of blacks in Costa Rica with their contributions. This is a
week long celebration ending with a parade and block party. We participated in the parade and had our own small banner.
We were joined in the parade by members of the black civic organizations who had hosted a dinner for us the night before.
We had enjoyed the Afro-Costa Rican food and several oral readings from a well known local poet. Afterwards, a well
known Caribbean Costa Rican band played. We also had a welcoming dinner upon our arrival in San Jose where we met
with several authors and professors. The culture that we were exposed to on this tour more than exceeded my expectations.
After our stay in Limon, we traveled by tour bus to Manzanillo on the southern Caribbean coast. Our lodge, Almonds and
Coral, was in the middle of the rainforest of Gandoca-Manzanillo National Park. This is an area I had longed to visit. I did
not know that I would actually be staying in the Rain Forest on a wild life preserve.
with the modern conveniences of
electricity, beds, and porcelain
commodes. The tents are elevated off the
ground so snakes were not a worry;
however you will see a variety of insects.
The sounds of the rain forest are
unmistakable and memorable.
It was here I also took a Canopy Tour
through the rainforest on zip cord, which
was an awesome experience. After
Manzanillo it was back to San Jose with a
stop for shopping at the crafts town of
Moravia.
all wonderful and service was excellent, however, I recommend packing light since most of the resorts did not have
bellboys. The lack of development of the Caribbean coast is due to the government not spending money there, and that
may be due to the color of the population that resides in the area. I believe it is one of the last unspoiled areas in the region.