Founded in 1880, San Jose's Central Market (Mercado Central) offers a great insight into daily life in the capital. Exploring this bustling market on a two-hour small group tour,  your local guide will point out the wide array of tropical fruits and vegetables, meats, seafood, spices and other items that can be found here. You will meet some of the people who work in the market, watch fresh tortillas and empanadas being made, perhaps sample some delicious guava marmalade and freshly brewed coffee. The Mercado Central is also particularly well-known for its 'sodas' (small, informal restaurants), some which present in the market for more than fifty years. Many of these businesses have remained in the same family for up to four generations and their owners show great pride in this legacy, and there is a real sense of community here.