On September 8th, 1502, Christopher Columbus arrived on the Atlantic coast of Costa Rica and took refuge in the calm waters just off the coast, between tiny Uvita Island and what is now the port of Limon. The native Indians greeted the Spaniards with interest and brought out goods to trade with them. They swam out to the ship carrying cotton cloth, shirts, tumbago pendants (an alloy made of copper and gold) and weapons such as clubs, bows and arrows. The Spaniards in turn found the Indians friendly, clever and intelligent, and admired the unusual animals of the region. With two Indian guides, the explorers made short to the Spaniards' great dream, remained to be discovered by those who followed. Today, twenty-seven percent of Costa Rica is designated as national park, biological reserve, wildlife refuge or some other category of protected area, both private and public. That is, more than a quarter of the country has been set aside in some capacity or other, by human beings to protect it from the potential exploitation and ravages of other human beings. No other country in the world even comes close to such a statistic. There are other astounding statistics concerning Costa Rica: somewhere between 500,000 and a million total species of flora and fauna, 50,000 species of insects, 2,000 species of orchids, 208 species of mammals, 850 species of birds, and endless thousands of species of moths and butterflies.

The above photo shows how cashews grow. The cashew nut actually grows outside of the fruit, just one nut per fruit, and only 200-250 nuts per cashew tree! The nuts are processed by hand, so it is no wonder they are on the expensive side.