Limón Celebrates Its Heritage With 100 Year Anniversary Parade.

We pulled into the city of Limón on Monday 30th August 2010 and circled the town checking to see what it was like. I had been to the Province of Limón a lot of times during my 8 years in Costa Rica but it had been almost 6 years since my last visit.

I was very surprised; the city has become more cosmopolitan. You see such a variety of nationalities in the city, unlike any other area in Costa Rica.

Our reason for visiting Limón was so we could enjoy the 100 year Anniversary parade celebration of when Marcus Garvey came to Limón. If you read their history you will see that he played a major role in the lives of the people in Limón. I know a little bit about Marcus Garvey, because my late husband’s grandfather, Mr. Walls showed me tickets he had purchased to ride the ship Marcus Garvey was chartering to take folks back to Africa.

When we drove into town we stopped at a supermarket, picked up some fruit and headed out to our hotel in Cahuita. The hotel we selected was right on the beach. We had a beach front row seat! It was a very nice view. The hotel was modestly priced; in fact it was cheap. The rooms were nicely furnished and clean. We checked in and begin to unwind after a long trip from Grecia, which is about 5 hours northwest of Cahuita.

I was meeting with a real estate lady at about 6:00 pm that night who is a wacky N. American from Texas, hiding out in a small town in the Province of Limón. That girl talked my ear off, but at the end of the conversation she told us about this restaurant named “Relax” that was supposed to be a knock-down-roll-me-over wonderful place.

We jumped into the van went to the little restaurant and the cuisine was New York City, right in Cahuita, Costa Rica. We ate until it was impossible to do anything but go back to the hotel and get ready for bed.

The next morning we got up and enjoyed the wonderful view. While watching the view we decided to go to another popular tourist spot on the beach: Puerto Viejo. When we entered Puerto Viejo, we were immediately attracted to a sign that said, “Welcome to Cafe Ivon, your place to taste the warmth of the Caribbean”. What a nice invitation! We parked the car, went into the cafe and had a seat. When we entered the cafe we immediately experienced the merging of cultures: Caribbean, British and Costa Rican. What a nice atmosphere to start the day off with!

We went back to our hotel and left again around 2:00 p.m. We headed to the city of Limón, about 45 minutes from Cahuita. When we entered the city of Limón, we quickly located a real nice spot to view the parade.

Carlos, my driver arranged for us to purchase some stools so we could sit and watch the parade. Crazy ole me, I did not think the parade was going to last long enough to warrant sitting. I’m so glad that Carlos got those stools now; that parade lasted for about 2 hours! It was the most fascinating parade I’d seen since being in Costa Rica. The music, the people, the costumes; it was just wonderful! The way they celebrated made me proud of my heritage! I’m proud anyway, but these little extra touches sure help!

I had attended this parade once before about 6 years ago and it was nice, but not as well organized and not as beautiful as this one. The floats were beautiful, but the African costumes were just drop dead gorgeous and the women were beautiful as well! Carlos could get away with looking at the girls because, after all, he was taking pictures.

It is a good thing Charles was not around! I may have not been able to get the old boy home! The ladies were all shapes, sizes and heights but every one of them was just as beautiful as the next. It must be in the water; their skin looked so beautiful. There were so many shades of blacks, browns, tans, whites and sort of a peach colored complexion. People of all colors were marching and displaying pride in their African heritage! What a wonderful sight to see!

You are going to have to take a trip to the Province of Limón. Do not miss the opportunity to visit the city of Limón. I love the people of Limón. They are a people that have seen difficult times, but through hard work and perseverance, they are making it through.

The economy of Limón is a mystery. It is the richest province in all of Costa Rica, but yet is one of the most impoverished areas. The time of impoverishment is coming to an end. In order for Costa Rica to grow, Limón will have to prosper.

I take my hat off to the proud people of Limón, they have worked hard and suffered long, but their day of victory is swiftly approaching. You find that the entrepreneurial spirit is very much alive in the hearts of the people of Limón. They are prospering in education, business and in many professions. Many have migrated from Limón to other areas in Costa Rica as well as to the US, Canada and Europe.

Wherever you are, people of Limón, I celebrate you!

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Written by Jeanetta Owens who owns the lovely La Terraza B&B in Grecia which is about one hour from San José, Costa Rica. For a taste of living the good life in Grecia, Costa Rica, may we suggest you to book yourself into Jeanetta’s B&B for a nice long vacation.

Jeanetta’s B&B has been rated the #1 B&B in Grecia, Costa Rica by Trip Advisor. You can find her blog here at La Terraza Blog

Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.