There is a blended community effort going on in Uvita Costa Rica to make the town beautiful. The group spear-heading the effort has a name and even a Facebook page: Pueblo Alegre Uvita (click to view).
This past Saturday was the third occasion of the community getting together to paint the town, and the numbers of voluntary participants is growing. The effects of their efforts is starting to make a notable difference on the town.
Uvita has an interesting problem. Travelers come from all parts of the globe to vacation here, largely due to its natural beauty. The mountains are dotted with those trademark “paradise” settings of a waterfall spilling into a pool all surrounded by gorgeous rainforest. The trees are populated with toucans, monkeys and all manner of rainforest wildlife. Unpeopled beaches that stretch on forever and humpback whales spend a good portion of the year just off the coast of Uvita. Turtles lay eggs on the beaches and the sunsets would be contenders in the World Cup Sunset Bowl… and then there is the contrasting human element.
The town of Uvita has seen exponential growth over the past 5 years. In previous years, just the act of getting here served as a filter of sorts, screening out those not so hardy or determined to brave the bumpy roads to get here. The day that the highway was paved between Quepos & Dominical was the day that life as we then knew it in Uvita, changed.
The demand for shops, restaurants, lodgings & services resulted in a boom-town type of effect. The town exploded and the architecture (or lack thereof) shows this. Its a bit ironic really. Uvita could be one of the most beautiful towns in the world with all its surrounding natural splendour, but unfortunately, it comes up short.
There isn’t much that can be done about the architecture concerns (short of tearing everything down and starting over again) but there is still quite a bit that can be done to enhance the beauty of the town and it is this that Pueblo Alegre Uvita is setting out to do.
Uvita is a wonderful community that is a blend of many European countries and the Americas, with smatterings from other parts as well. Pueblo Alegre Uvita wants the beauty of the colors its using to show the happy place that it truly is. Check out the photos. The town is becoming a spectrum of bright and truly upbeat colors, and they are just getting started.
All the work is voluntary, and the paint is contributed. If you want to be notified of the next town painting event, visit their Facebook page and give ’em a Like.