Central America Map Belize Capital Belmopan Only coast is on the Caribbean 60 70 miles across Only English speaking country in Central America Guatemala Capital Guatemala City Mayan Ruins El Salvador Capital San Salvador Only coast is on the Pacific Smallest Honduras Capital Tegucigalpa Nicaragua Capital Managua Lago de Nicaragua freshwater lake only place you ll find fresh water sharks Costa Rica Capital San Jose Panama Capital Panama City Good relationship with the U S Location of FSU s first international study abroad program Used to be part of Colombia History Central America originally belonged to Mexico Belize Originally called British Honduras Original capital was Belize City but was destroyed by a hurricane Only English speaking country in Central America New capital Belmopan Gained their independence in 1981 British shipwrecked sailors established a settlement British Honduras in 1638 British left their army behind to protect Belize s independence and keep Guatemala from taking over Beautiful coastline Small population 79 80 degrees year round Many U S Retirees go there Many religious groups have settled here Two million tourists visit Belize every year Key Tourist Attraction Barrier Reef World s second largest reef Runs parallel to the reef Ridges are called Cayes Over 200 isles Two largest Cayes 1 Caye Caulker 2 Ambergris Caye Northern Belize La Ruta Maya begins north of Belize Altun Ha Head of the sun god was carved in jade Crooked Tree Wildlife Western Belize San Ignacio the district s center and base for exploration Mayan site of Caracol Houses Central America s largest cave system Chiquibul Caves Best time to explore March May Many caves used as Mayan burial grounds Southern Belize Home of the Black Caribs who fled Honduras after failed riot Garifuna Settlement Day November 19 Dangriga is the largest town Tourist attraction Costa Rica Democratic Nation DOES NOT have an army but has a police Nicknamed the rich coast Top of Ecotourism green tourism started in the 1970s when it begun funding for national parks 75 literacy rate Most of population lives in Central Costa Rica San Jose the area is surrounded by coffee bean plantations 25 of country is protected and cannot be developed due to ecotourism Popular for surfing and sport fishing Pacific Contains 5 of the world s bio diversity Politically stable has issues with illegal immigration people leave their countries and come to CR Tico are the people of Costa Rica Most cruise lines come to Puerto Caldera Puntarenas is a BIG port Size of New Hampshire and Vermont combined Agricultural Center 1 Coffee trees surround the capital 2 Bananas Known for night life Symbol of the country is an ox cart Parks Biological Reserves Volcan Poas Most visited park Steam belching crater Furn aroles Monteverde Cloud Forest Tortuagero National Park Where the turtles come Liberia area s principal town Nicoya Peninsula new hotels Pan American Highway from Mexico to Panama cutoff Called the Crossroads of the World because of ships Caribbean to the North Pacific to the South About the size of South Carolina 1 3 of the country is tropical rainforest much is protected by the government Soberania National Park borders the Panama Canal 80 miles from the Caribbean to the Pacific Panama Many Panamanians are bilingual During the Vietnam War the green braes were trained in panama Over 1 600 islands off the coasts Similar to Costa Rica with eco tourism but doesn t promote like CR Colonial times Spaniards built a road across Panama to carry gold from Peru Once the gold was on the ship it went to Havana Cuba to congregate with other ships and then sailed to Spain traveled in groups because of piracy many ships sank due to hurricanes 1878 Columbian government contracted the French Ferdinand Lesseps to build Suez Canal Tropical disease yellow fever prevented the French from completing it 12 000 died Roosevelt wanted to take over the project Columbia refused Roosevelt s offer 1903 the U S pushed Panama to revolt against Columbia Panama gained its independence Canal named Big Ditch Built narrowest point between Atlantic and Pacific 51 miles takes ships 8 10 hrs to pass through Took 10 years to build 352 million dollars and 5 609 American lives Panama Canal Opened in 1914 Ships traveling from Atlantic to Pacific sail from NW to SE 1 3 of Panama s GDP comes from allowing ships to pass through 2 billion dollars a year Jimmy Carter gave ownership rights to the canal to Panama Entry Colon is entry city in Caribbean Panama City is entry city in Pacific Darien Gap links Central and S America It is the ONLY gap in the Pan American Highway San Blas Islands Cuna Indians live on the islands self governing live with ancient ways have their own language Visited by cruise ships Guatemala Lake Antitlan is the mile high lake Guatemala City is the capital and largest city Great archeological sites Political instability within country Antigua is a colonial city center of a weaving industry Surrounded by 3 volcanoes and 12 Indian villages Tikal Greatest of the Mayan cities Near the border with Belize More than 2000 archaeological sites hidden in the tropical rainforest Honduras Mosquito Coast located in the NE got its name from the Miskito Indians Most popular Mayan ruin is El Copan in southern Honduras Was the original Banana Republic El Salvador Doesn t have a Caribbean coast Politically unstable Smallest and most densely populated country in Central America Nicaragua The capital and largest city is Managua President Ortega Friendly with Cuba Largest but most sparsely populated KNOW All capitals and key cities Mayans populated many Central American countries Where the Mosquito coast is Honduras Where eco tourism is big Costa Rica and somewhat Panama 90 of population in Costa Rica is of European descent Where do the Ticos reside Costa Rica Who built the Panama Canal U S Who started the Panama Canal France What happened to the French workers They died due to illnesses such as yellow fever What was the original name of Belize British Honduras What language do they speak in Belize English Why was Belize s capital moved Because the original was destroyed by a hurricane Where is the surfing best in Central America Along the Pacific coast Belize is known for what Their coral reefs Panama is known for what The Canal What is Tikal and where is it located Mayan ruins in Guatemala What is the smallest most densely populated country in Central America El Salvador What is known as the
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