Page 20 - NORTHERN GUANACASTE TOURIST GUIDE

Cultural Heritage
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ICE Building
The tradition of the tope de toros is the only one of its kind anywhere in Costa Rica. It consists of a “tope” or town meeting, with the partygoers and dignitaries entering on horseback or on foot, along with clowns, and musicians called cimarronas. The bulls (“toros” in Spanish, hence “tope de toros”) are brought down from the farms in the Puente Real highlands along the Río Liberia, arriving every day at noon during the civic festivities. The bulls are handed over to the Master of the Plaza or the President of the Festive Committee, who then begins the herding of the bulls through the city’s historic center.
Route through the Historic Center of Liberia with its vernacular architecture on display
MOPT Building
The Liberian Barracks
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(Liberia Cultural Association, 2015)
People on foot...
who spontaneously engage in the tradition of meeting and exhibiting the herding of cattle through the streets of the city
The clowns...
The giant, the dwarf, the devil, the witch, the skull, la muerte quirina, the tiger, the naked devil, la segua, la llorona, el cadejo.
The reins in her own hands or led by a footman
Design: Rosslyn Sánchez
Researcher: Ma. Soledad Hernández Source: Liberia Cultural Association, 2015
The queen of the festivities on horseback
The bulls may be steers or oxen
The band of cimarronas
The cowboys and horseback riders
Museum of Guanacaste
Mario Cañas Ruiz Park
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