Monteverde is located in the Tilaran Mountain corridor on the continental divide of Costa Rica at an elevation of 1500 meters. Quakers settled the area during the 50�s and this is one of the ingredients that make Monteverde a unique place to live. Famous for its amazing biodiversity it is the home to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. It is a popular destination for tourists, retired ex-pats and biology students.

   Monteverde, which means green mountain, is specifically a small neighborhood from around the Cheese Factory, following the road up to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, though the name is often used in referring to the general vicinity, which includes a number of small hamlets. The main village, and home to most services, is Santa Elena.

MONTEVERDE CLIMATE

   There are many different climate zones within the Monteverde Region. Down on the pacific slope the weather is warm and dry. Up to the top of the mountain it is cooler and moist. Over the top it is cold and rainy. Something for everyone, I would say. All you need to know is what you like; when you tell me you like rain you better mean it because I�ll find you a place where it really rains! There are areas that I would say have a climate that is almost eternal springtime. If you your interested in gardening or cultivating in Costa Rica you�re looking at a year round growing season for most plants you know from
the north, plus many species endemic to the tropics.

MONTEVERDE SCHOOLS

   If you want to retire or semi-retire or if you are lucky enough to be able to work from anywhere in the world but have kids that need schooling, you are looking at the right place. Bilingual education in Costa Rica at its best. Education all the way through High School until the kids are ready to go to college in the US all on top of the Green Mountain. Schools are on par or better with counterparts in the States. Average test scores are above US average plus you do not need to worry so much about certain issues such as violence. You can be sure that they will enjoy a multi cultural environment which will enrich them with experiences, preparing them for a future that will be more and more like that, multilingual and multicultural. And that future can only be good if our kids learn to respect and accept the difference in others and learn how to live in peace with one another. This is a fundamental Quaker Philosophy. The English language schools in Monteverde are the Creative Learning Center and the Friends School. The Creative Learning Center is a school with an environmental emphasis in its curriculum. The Friends School is smaller and instills many elements of Quaker thinking.