Costa Rica (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Matthew Firestone [117]
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Eating
Sodas and bakeries abound.
Pastelería Merayo (Calle 2 btwn Avs 2 & 4; pastries ₡350-600) Founded in 1928, this informal bakery produces made-to-order coffee that is strong and delicious, as well as some excellent pastries. Tip: anything with custard – crema pastelera – is guaranteed to be good.
Restaurant Betico Mata (Hwy 10; gallos ₡600-800; 11am-midnight, until later on weekends) This carnivore’s paradise on the south end of town specializes in gallos (open-faced tacos on corn tortillas) piled with succulent, fresh-grilled meats including beef, chicken, sausage or pork, all soaked in the special house marinade. All go smashingly well with an ice-cold beer. The restaurant has a counter that faces the street – making it easy to park and pick-up a snack if you’re driving through town.
La Feria (Calle 6, north of Av 4; casados ₡1700, mains ₡2100-5550; 11am-10pm Wed-Mon, 11am-2pm Tue; ) This unremarkable-looking eatery has friendly service and excellent, inexpensive home cooking. Try the pollo a la milanesa, a crisp chicken cutlet served with cucumber-yogurt dipping sauce. Tasty!
Restaurant Don Porfi (2556-9797; ₡2700-5400; 11am-11pm) Four kilometers north of town (and a ₡2000 taxi ride), on the road to the volcano, this longtime local favorite whips up a mix of international and Tico cuisine, from grilled steaks to stacked seafood platters to chicken bathed in garlic. A wine list features a selection of South American vintages.
Bar-Restaurant La Garza (2556-1073; cnr Av 6 & Calle Central; mains ₡4000-5300; 10am-11pm) A Turrialba institution, this corner place has been serving traditional Tico dishes to locals and tourists alike as long as anyone can remember. It’s an excellent place for an evening beer.
Self-caterers can find supplies at the well-stocked MegaSuper (cnr Calle 3 & Av 2).
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Getting There & Away
A modern bus terminal is located on the western edge of town off Hwy 10.
Monumento Nacional Arqueológico Guayabo ₡400; one hour; departs at 11:15am, 3:10pm and 5:30pm Monday through Saturday, 9am, 3pm and 6:30pm on Sunday.
San José via Paraíso & Cartago ₡1200; two hours; departs every 45 minutes 5am to 6:30pm.
Siquirres, for transfer to Puerto Limón ₡1000; 1¾ hours; departs every 60 to 90 minutes from 6am to 6pm.
La Suiza & Tuis ₡300; departs every 60 to 90 minutes from 7am to 10pm Monday through Saturday; every two hours on Sunday 7am to 8:30am.
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MONUMENTO NACIONAL ARQUEOLÓGICO GUAYABO
Nestled into a patch of stunning hillside forest 19km northeast of Turrialba is the largest and most important archaeological site in the country. Guayabo is composed of the remains of a pre-Columbian city that was thought to have peaked at some point in AD 800, when it was inhabited by as many as 20,000 people. Today, visitors can examine the remains of old petroglyphs, residential mounds, an old roadway and an impressive aqueduct system – built with rocks that were hauled in from the Río Reventazón along a cobbled, 8km road. Amazingly, the cisterns still work, and (theoretically) potable water remains available onsite.
The settlement, which may have been occupied as early as 1000 BC, was mysteriously abandoned by AD 1400 and Spanish explorers left no record of ever having found the ruins. For centuries, the city lay largely untouched under the cover of the area’s thick highland forest. But in 1968, archaeologist Carlos Aguilar Piedra of the University of Costa Rica, began systematic excavations of Guayabo, finding polychromatic pottery and gold artifacts that are now exhibited at San José’s Museo Nacional (Click here).
In 1973,