Update#3:
Tuesday, March 15:
We woke up early and then made it to the best zip lining place in Costa Rica. Once we got our gear on, we listened to the instructions and did our first practice zip line. Then we rode a long gondola up to the next zip lines. The first real zip line seemed very scary, but after doing it, we all had a blast on all of the following zip lines. After the zip lining, we went to get lunch at a buffet. Then we finished our drive, reaching our hotel. We dropped our bags off in our rooms, got our swimsuits on and ran into the ocean. The water was so warm. Next we went and jumped into the pool and had a great time. We had so much fun that we lost track of time and we were late to this talk about Leatherback Turtles so we went in our swimsuits. The talk was interesting, but we were tired from the journey. Then we changed and ate dinner at the hotel and shortly after went to sleep. – Morgan & Lillie
Wednesday, March 16:
We woke up and had breakfast at our hotel. We got our bathing suits and beach stuff and drove part way to the beach. Then we walked the rest of the way. When we got to the surf school, we got rash guards and boards. We divided into small groups and started learning to surf on the beach by learning to paddle and stand up. When we finally got to go in the ocean, it was so warm! Most people got the hang of surfing quickly but with many wipeouts. We stopped to have a snack and water and then kept surfing. The sun was strong, so some people got sunburned. When we were finished, we walked a long walk along the beach back to our hotel. We had lunch there. After that, we all loaded into the bus and drove to a community center. Señora H. had already divided us up into small groups of two and three. Then we organized all of the tables and other supplies that we would need. Once that was done, we got into a circle with all of the kids and played the “Name Game”. The children were split up by age/grade. We then got into our groups and then began teaching the kids. We were told to teach them things about the body. Everyone was so creative when it came to teaching the material. Some people were teaching by singing, drawing, and acting it out. Once everyone had rotated all of the way, it was snack time. We gave the kids cookies and a fruit juice. They just loved it! Once they finished eating, we held a jump rope so that the children could jump; some of us did too! We then walked to a soccer field that was near us. Then we played soccer with them and they were amazing! Even though they were all younger then us… Once we were finished playing soccer, we got back into the bus and drove back to our hotel. After we got there, we had to go straight to dinner and after that we had free time. Once that was over, we went to a small area and watched a slideshow of us surfing. Once the slideshow was done, we watched “The Endless Summer II”. Then we had a short meeting and went to bed. All in all, yesterday was incredible. – Alannah and Grace
Update #2:
Sunday, March 13
We got up at around 7 and quickly ate breakfast in the lobby. Our bags were already so we walked straight to the bus. After everything was packed in the bus we began our journey to the jungle. It was a long car ride and everyone was happy to get out at the town called Orotina. When we were all out we got scavenger hunt sheets and roamed around town asking locals various questions. After the scavenger hunt we went to the market where we got coca cola and other various beverages in bags. After enjoying an ice cold beverage we got back on the bus and finished our long drive to Monteverde. When we arrived at Monteverde we ate lunch and unpacked. We then had some down time until we went on a hike where we assisted with trail maintenance work. After showering we went off to a bat museum and learned about these amazing creatures. After a long day of activities we went and grabbed food at an Italian restaurant. After a fantastic meal we went to our lodge and discussed what we learned that day. Then we all went to bed.
Monday, March 14:
Early in the morning there was a knock on our door. Or should we say knocks (15 minutes worth.) No one wanted to open the door, but finally Jack reached 4 inches and got the door. After a while the boys sluggishly made it to a fresh pancake breakfast only 15 minutes late. After we had eaten we hopped on the bus and cruised for 30 minutes down a dizzying road. After a bit of driving we arrived at a women’s co-op. They make very fresh, organic slices of paper. We helped them in a number of ways from shredding paper to hanging the organic papers on the walls. It was a very rewarding experience. After a couple of hours we meandered to the nearby water and had lunch. We gobbled up our lunch and hopped back on the bus. We drove for a while and arrived at Estacion Biologica Pajaro Campana (The Bell Bird Biological Station.) Here we filled small bags with soil. Eventually they would be planted and trees would grow. We only worked for a mere 2 hours, but we filled over 600 bags. After a full day work we were exhausted. We were given the privilege of going to a dairy store. Everyone got fresh milkshakes, it was the best! We went to dinner again at the Italian restaurant. After dinner, we had a night hike scheduled. We were split up into 2 groups, assigned a guide and headed off. The hike was SO COOL! We saw over 5 tarantulas, tons of bats, small frogs, countless insects, and extremely cool hollow trees. We were all disappointed when the hike came to an end. We all hopped in bed, turned off the lights and went to sleep. It was a very fun day.
Update #1:
The Alexander Dawson group arrived in Costa Rica on March 11th, here is the latest update from their trip!
Friday, March 11, 2011
The airplane may be boring for some people, but all of us had a really awesome time. First we took a two(ish) hour flight to phoenix where wen hung out near our gate drinking Starbucks, eating lunch, and playing various card games (some of which we were able to win gum provided by Owen). It was at least four hours before we boarded the next plane (flight was delayed). This plane ride went from Phoenix straight to Costa Rica and was at least seven hours. When we landed, we went through immigration and customs and were later met by Lola, our guide. She was energetic and friendly.
When we got to the hotel it was later than planned so we had to be *extra* quiet. We had a dinner consisting of sandwiches, then we had an orientation meeting. Unfortunately, we were all a bit tired from our travels, and headed back to our rooms to relax, which mainly consisted of people getting ready for the next morning – our big adventures river rafting! We all went to sleep, ready to get up at a way-too-early time for the next day.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
We woke up really early in the morning to get on a long bus ride. Once we got to the breakfast place, we had a great breakfast of rice, toast, and eggs. The view at the breakfast place was so pretty! After words we started the drive to our big rafting day, the whole drive the view was spectacular. We got into our rafting groups ( there were three groups) and loaded up into the rafts. You could tell that every one was nerves about tipping over during the ride (only Mr. Katzman and Zach did), but the river was low and calm enough that our nerves were eased. When we went over the rapids, it was really fun! They were really bumpy!! Everyone loved the way that the rapids felt like a roller coaster. It was even more fun when we were aloud to jump into the water and swim for five minutes. Then after about three hours, we stopped for lunch at this nice picnic area. We were all shocked when a wild, black boar walked by when were eating. It didn’t even care that we were there! It was so funny!!! We ate burrito type things that our guides mad for us. Although we weren’t able to relax for long, after we ate it was time to finish our rafting experience. Most people agreed that the first have of the day was more fun. We then went back to the hotel. We had some down time before we went to dinner. To finish the day we had a very interesting dance class at our hotel. Everyone was tired but it was a good way to end the great day!
We will post another update soon!