Test 2 Central and South America Central America Belize Little known about life in Belize prior to explorers in the 1500 s Spanish ignored Belize Shipwrecked British sailors established the first settlement in 1638 This colony was called British Honduras until 1973 In 1981 Belize became independent English is the official language of Belize Barrier Reef and the Cays The Barrier Reef is the principal tourism attraction Ranks as the world s second longest reef The reef runs parallel to the coast The ridges of the reef are called cayes also spelled cays The 2 largest are Caye Culker and Ambergris Caye More than 200 isles San Pedro is the most important access point for dive sites Northern Belize La Ruta Maya begins north of Belize City Altun Ha has been extensively excavated Northern Belize has the Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary The head of the Sun god carved in jade the national symbol was found here Western Belize San Ignacio is the district s center and base for exploration or the area Mostly a savanna terrain that gives away to Maya mountains Maya site of Caracol rivals the Tikal ruins Chiquibul Caves is Central America s largest cave system The best time to explore Chiquibul is from March through May Southern Belize Considered by many as the place to visit in Belize Dangriga is the area s largest town November 19 is Garifuna Settlement Day Inhabitants are descendants of black Caribs who fled Honduras after a failed revolt Costa Rica Heavily associated with ecotourism One of the world s best systems of national parks 25 of the country s territory is protected Lies between Nicaragua and Panama Coasts on the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea 5 of the world s biodiversity the country is as big as New Hampshire and Vermont combine Puntarenas is the principal Pacific Port Puerto Caldera to the south is where cruise liners go Most of the country s population lives in the central area where San Jose is o San Jose the capital was founded in 1937 o Located in the agricultural center of the country o Coffee trees surround the city o Known for nightlife o Butterfly farm coffee plantation oxcart factory called Carretas are found here Volcan Poas is the most visited park steam belching water fumaroles Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve is in western Costa Rica Tortuguero National Park in the north eastern part of the country is an important nesting site for green turtles and many other species The Pacific Coast resorts are popular for sport fishing and surfing Nicoya Peninsula is the site for new hotels Daily flights to San Jose Only country in Central America that isn t mostly Indians and Mexicans The people of Costa Rica are called Ticos Costa Rica translates to Rich Coast Panama The Crossroads of the World Carribean Sea is the North and the Pacific Ocean to the South Approximately the size of South Carolina Many rivers and 1600 islands More than 940 bird species 1 3 of the country is tropical rainforest much of which is protected by the government Soberania National Park borders the Panama Canal In 1878 Columbian government awarded a contract to French diplomat Ferdinand Lesseps to build a canal o Tropical disease such as malaria and yellow fever prevented the French from building the canal o Theodore Roosevelt wanted to take over the project o Columbia would not agree to Roosevelt s terms o In 1903 the United States pushed Panama to revolt against Columbia o Panama became and independent country and allowed the U S to build the canal o The canal is referred to as The Big Ditch o It was built across the narrowest point between the Atlantic and the Pacific o Canal extends for 51 miles o The canal took 10 years 352 million and 5 609 lives to build o It opened in 1914 o The United States control of the canal ended in 1999 o The average ship takes 8 10 hours to cross the canal o Generates 2 billion dollars in revenue per year o A ship traveling from the Atlantic to the Pacific sails from the northwest to the o Colon is the entry city in the Caribbean and Panama City the capital is the entry southeast city on the Pacific side o The deepening and updating of the canal will affect Florida s economy Darien Gap links Central and South America The gap is the only break in the Pan American Highway San Blas Islands is Panama s largest archipelago o It is often visited by cruise ships o Cuna Indians live on the islands o They are self governing and live according to ancient ways o Although they have their own language they speak Spanish FSU s oldest international program is in Panama it started in the 1950 s In colonial times Spaniards built a road across Panama to carry gold from Peru In the 19th century Panama was part of the Gran Columbia Guatemala Honduras Shares boarders with Honduras El Salvador Mexico and Belize Guatemala City is the capital and the largest city Antigua is a colonial city center of the weaving industry Lake Atitlan is a mile high lake Tikal is one of the greatest Mayan cities which is near the border of Belize o Fly to Tikal from Guatemala City o More than 2 000 structures are hidden in the tropical rain forest Honduras lies between Nicaragua Guatemala and El Salvador Most of the territory is covered by mountains Tegucigalpa is the capital Mosquito Coast located in the northeast is mostly uninhabited Only inhabited by Miskito Indians Bananas is the country s biggest export In the 1990 s Hurricane Mitch destroyed 90 of the infrastructure The smallest and most densely populated country in Central America Does not have a coast line on the Caribbean San Salvador is the capital Political unrest very unsafe due to gang crime El Salvador Nicaragua Located between Honduras and Costa Rica Managua is the largest city and the capital Largest but most sparsely populated country in the region Slightly larger in size than the state of New York Lago de Nicaragua used to part of the Pacific but became an enclosed lake Lago de Nicaragua is known for having sharks in it Review questions for Central America 1 What is Tikal 2 Know the directions of coming in and going out of the Panama Canal 3 Where is Mosquito Coast 4 Know the location number and capitals of the countries in Central America 5 Know the history of the Panama Canal a How many hours does it take to cross the canal b When did the canal open c How long did it take build the canal d What is the canal s nickname e Who started building the canal 6 What is the smallest country in Central America 7 What country is the most densely populated
View Full Document
Unlocking...