We were up bright and early Monday morning for our first full day in Costa Rica. A shuttle picked us up from the resort at 8:00 to take us to our destination, La Hacienda Guachipelin (located in Rincon de la Vieja). It was about an hour and a half trip, but we were entertained by our driver and guide for the day, Julio.
Upon first meeting Julio, we told him that he had the same name as a famous football player from Alabama. Of course, he immediately assumed we meant fútbol (American's call it soccer), and was a little disappointed when he found out that was not the case. All in all, we had a fantastic experience with Julio, and learned many interesting facts about the country:
- Among all the Latin American countries, Costa Rica ranks at the top in regards to economic growth.
- The American dollar is not necessarily stronger in Costa Rica.
- While tourism is one of the largest economic engines in the country, many high tech companies (like Intel and Proctor & Gamble) are investing heavily in the area.
- Julio's basic business philosophy (People + Product = Profit) is that if you treat people the right way and have a good product, then you'll do well.
- There is a family first philosophy with most Costa Ricans.
- Female cows were unusually skinny because of how often the farmers bred their stock.
