No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeTopicsArts and CultureSan José Cabécar: A Hidden Indigenous Treasure in Costa Rica

San José Cabécar: A Hidden Indigenous Treasure in Costa Rica

SAN JOSÉ CABÉCAR, Limón – Visiting the San José Cabécar indigenous community, located in the mountains of Talamanca, Limón, is not something many people have the chance to do. This community is one of the few in Costa Rica that has maintained a significant part of its identity; they still use natural medicine, hunting and fishing techniques, traditional cultural activities and language.

Getting there is not easy. I started my trip in the tourist town of Puerto Viejo, in the southern Caribbean, took a bus to the town of Bribrí, another bus to Suretka, and from there a boat to the town of Amubri. Here I found a local radio station called La Voz de Talamanca, which offered me a place to stay overnight since it was already getting dark. They also helped me find a guide who could take me to San José Cabécar, my final destination.

I left Amubri early the next morning, took a boat to a small town called Sepecue, and then another bus to an even smaller town called Sibodi. There I met my guide, Rodrid García, a 19-year-old Bribrí who knew the area perfectly from trips he took with his father when he was a child. We walked for eight hours up the mountain, climbed walls and crossed rivers before making it to the Cabécar community, an area almost untouched, and where money is worthless. Local residents grow and hunt what they eat, and the sun is their clock.

Trending Now

Jane Goodall dies at 91 after transforming chimpanzee science and conservation

British primatologist Jane Goodall, who transformed the study of chimpanzees and became one of the world's most revered wildlife advocates, has died at the...

US Marines Head to Panama Jungle for Joint Drills

US Marines plan to join forces with Panamanian security teams for a joint exercise in the country's thick jungle next month. The move comes...

Costa Rica Traffic Accidents Drive Up Insurance Premiums

Costa Rica's roads have turned into a deadly trap, with traffic accidents claiming more lives and causing more injuries than ever before. On Friday,...

Bank of America Predicts Stable Exchange Rate for Costa Rica

Bank of America has released a fresh analysis of Costa Rica's economy, pointing to steady conditions ahead. The report predicts the dollar exchange rate...

Compassion in Costa Rica: Tales from The Bribri and The Bridge

The book The Bribri and The Bridge: Tales from Life with the Indigenous People of Costa Rica is both a celebration and a portrait of...

Back North from Costa Rica: An Expat’s Culture Shock

I am presently away from Costa Rica. I am in a foreign country. I was born here, but it is now a different place...
spot_img
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica