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Photo: Sairen42, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
East of downtown Cartago, this garden hosts the largest collection of orchids and epiphytes in Central America, they also have collections in open air of bromeliads, cacti, succulents, heliconians, bamboos, palms, ferns, a secondary growth forest and a Japanese garden donated by the Japanese Embassy.
The Lankester Botanical Gardens are a set of gardens outside of Cartago, Costa Rica. The garden is open to the public, but is operated by the University of Costa Rica (UCR) as a research center and is a major center for orchid research in both Central America and the Caribbean.
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Our Lady of the Angels Basilica
As the legend goes, the Basilica was built on the exact site where a figurine of the Virgin Mary appeared to local native girl Juana Pereira in 1635, the girl brought the figurine to her house but it disappeared, without her noticing she found another figurine and brought it back again to find that the first one was missing, this happened many time and she told the local priest, who locked the figurine in a copher and the same thing happened again, therefore they built this site. Holy Water is available on the premises and is customary to fill a bottle by the visitors to bring back home. Also, the stone where the figurine kept appearing is located to the left and behind the altar of the Basilica.
Mirador de Orosi
Beautiful view of Orosi valley.
Saint James the Apostle Parish Ruins
In the middle of the Main Square of downtown Cartago, these carefully preserved ruins include a small garden, but this garden is barred by steel gates most of the time and not commonly open to the public. As the legend goes, two brothers were in love with the same woman, one was single and was chosen by the woman, and the other a priest. In the first day of the year 1577 he saw his brother celebrate Mass, and he killed him in the night. For penance he built the church, which was obliterated by an earthquake the same day it was finished. This happened each time it was rebuilt, and it was never attempted again after the 1910 earthquake.
A fun river to cross by foot, the locals ask for a collaboration, ₡1,000 or more is appropriate. If travelling in group by car, have the driver drop the group on the east side and then pick the rest of the group on the west side in Orosi town, which for the driver means driving to a road bridge down south, continue north and arriving to Orosi town.