Located in the Central American isthmus between Nicaragua and Panama, tiny Costa Rica is a rugged, rainforested country with coastlines on the Caribbean and Pacific. Costa Rica is known for its beaches, volcanoes, and biodiversity and owes its physical origin to the movement of the plates in earth’s crust. Volcanoes and frequent earthquakes are typical of this unstable zone. Roughly a quarter of its area is made up of protected jungle, teeming with wildlife including spider monkeys and quetzal birds. It has been a democracy for over 100 years and abolished its armed forces after Civil War in 1948, remaining free of the coups and dictatorships which beleaguer neighbouring countries.
