Costa Rica Geography - Essay Example

Costa Rica of Country: Costa Rica Country’s Flag: horizontal bands of blue, white, red, white and blue, with the country’s coat of arms on the red band at the center. Map of the country: Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Costa_Rica-CIA_WFB_Map.pngName of the capital and population (primate city: bigger than 2+3): San Jose, 1.515 million in 2011Population: 4,695,942 (based on a July 2013 estimate)Growth rate of population: 1.27% (based on a 2013 estimate)Population density (in km2): 92.

79Total fertility rate (vs USA): 1.91 children born for every womanInfant mortality rate (vs USA): 8.95 deaths for every 1,000 live births% Urban Population: 64% of total population, Major cities: San Jose 335,007; Limon 63,081; San Francisco 55,923; Alajuela 47,494; and Liberia 45,380.Total Land Area: 51,060 sq. km.% Arable Land: 4.89%GDP PPP per capita: $12,800Poverty rate: 24.8% (USA: 15.1%)Unemployment rate: 7.8% (USA: 6.6%)Top three languages spoken in Costa Rica: Spanish, EnglishMain religions: Roman Catholic, Evangelical, Jehovah’s Witnesses, ProtestantsNoteworthy Physical Geography Features:The Pacuare River in Costa Rica is world-famous because of its whitewater rapids.

The Nicoya Peninsula, which is 80 miles long, is famous for people who live for a long time, and is also a tourist spot. Lastly, the world-famous Cocos Island is the best when it comes to diving because of its sea caves.Noteworthy Cultural Geography Landmarks:The Cartago Ruins is a group of colonial capital houses in Costa Rica built in the 18th century. The Isla San Lucas is a world-famous island prison which is a tourist spot. Finally, the Guayabo is a national park that preserves a traditional cemetery and traditional houses.

Noteworthy Items for Export:Electronic products are one type of products exported by Costa Rica and it is mainly Intel products. Despite the bug plague, Costa Rica still remains as a major banana exporter. Lastly, although harvested by mostly Nicaraguan migrants, bananas are also another major export product from Costa Rica. Noteworthy Items for Import: Generally from the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica imports medicines. The country also imports petroleum products from other countries in order to finance its industrial operations.

Lastly, Costa Rica also imports integrated circuits from other countries as many are needed in the emerging industries of the country. Opinion on the Geographic Strengths and Weaknesses of Costa Rica: Despite the rich Spanish cultural heritage of the country, Costa Rica is beset with several problems and two are worth mentioning. The first issue, and probably the most important, is deforestation and the destruction of natural resources. There are only few laws to protect the flora and fauna in Costa Rica and many existing laws are not properly enforced.

Another thing is that the country does not have a military force thus this poses as a risk for the country. Nevertheless, there is still good quality exports, an equally great tourism industry, and relatively low unemployment and poverty rates plus the beautiful land and water forms. That is still so much to be thankful for.Top of FormBottom of FormWorks CitedAdams, Becket. “U.S. Unemployment Down to 6.6 Percent, Labor Participation at 35-Year Low.” 2014. The Blaze. 5 Feb 2014. “Blue Zone Photos: Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica.” 2014. National Geographic.

5 Feb 2014. “Costa Rica.” 2014. Central Intelligence Agency. 5 Feb 2014. “Costa Rica.” 2014. World Bank. 5 Feb 2014. “Costa Rica: Largest Cities.” 2014. Geonames. 5 Feb 2014. “Doing Business with Costa Rica.” 2009. Caribbean Export. 5 Feb 2014. “Geography of Costa Rica.” 2014. Costa Rica.com. 5 Feb 2014. “Historical Sites in Costa Rica.” 2014. Nature Air. 5 Feb 2014. “Population Density.” 2011. Trading Economics. 5 Feb 2014. “Poverty in the United States.” 2010. National Poverty Center of the University of Michigan.

5 Feb 2014. Sala, Enric. “Ultimate Adventure Bucket List 2012.” 2014. National Geographic. 5 Feb 2014.