Independence Day for Costa Rica was the 15th of September. Atenas celebrates with a lantern parade on the 14th and a parade on the 15th. Everyone gathers downtown for both celebrations. As new community members, we traveled into town to participate for both events. Wednesday, the lantern parade was started with songs, music and the national anthem while all the children held their homemade lanterns like the one in the picture below. Every lantern was different. The next day, the parade included many bands, dancers, schools marching and cowboys. Both celebrations really focused on the history of the culture. This is a video of one of the groups in the parade.
Location: Atenas, Costa Rica
Loading map...
It’s so interesting to see how different countries and cultures celebrate their Independence Day. Your post caught my eye when I saw you wrote about the lanterns. I actually went to a Lantern Festival in Florence, Italy recently and even though it was celebrating a totally different thing, it was neat to read about your experience and make the comparisons. I hope you’re having a wonderful time!