Equestrian parades in Costa Rica are longstanding holiday traditions that date back several decades; they are known as “topes,” and they are loved by just about everyone who enjoys the sight of magnificently trained horses that elegantly gait and gallop in the expert reins of their riders. After each tope, however, there is an unpleasant task at hand. What happens to all that’s left behind?

Between December and March, dozens of horse parades take place in Costa Rica. The crowded Palmares Festival in the province of Alajuela, for example, kicks off the activities for the following days. There are plenty of topes that can be enjoyed in Guanacaste as well. Any self-respecting tope will feature the participation of at least 500 horses and their riders, but the Grand National Tope in San Jose boasts 10 times that figure.

As reported by the Costa Rica Star just a few weeks ago, the Grand National Tope of San Jose featured 5,000 Equus Caballus carrying the burden of at least one Homo Sapien. A conservative estimate of the amount of equine fecal matter excreted by these splendid beasts during the tope is at least two kilograms per horse. This means that once these majestic brutes gallop back to their stables, they leave behind 10 metric tons of feces spread across San Jose.

It takes about two dozen municipal employees to clean up after a tope. According to Rebeca Madrigal from online news daily CRHoy.com, these sanitation technicians start at Plaza Viquez and Paseo Colon with brooms, shovels, wheelbarrows, and four special trucks that spray water on the asphalt and sidewalks. The 10,000 kilograms of horse fecal matter becomes manure, and it is nothing compared to the massive amount of beer cans, liquor bottles and food wrappers they also take care of. The crews work throughout the night, and it takes them about 18 hours to return San Jose to her lovable state.

Although topes are a lot of fun, they are not recommended for the ultra-squeamish. Topes are veritable assaults on the senses, particularly with regard to olfactory sensations. The powerful scent of freshly egested horse excrement begins to kick in after about 20 minutes, and it does not mix well with other aromas emanating from humans in attendance; we are talking about tobacco and herbal smoke, beer, liquor, human vomit, sweat, and more. This smell permeates San Jose for about 10 hours after a tope.

As an entertaining aside; San Jose’s Chinatown will celebrate the Year of the Horse at the end of January. Equine events have not yet been mentioned.