Costa Rica – (CRL1B) – June 28th – July 25th

Welcome Global Works travelers, parents and friends.  We are excited to share with you trip updates from around the world.  As our main office receives updates from the trips we will update the page as we receive the updates.

Update #1: (Tuesday, June 29, 2010)
Bienvenidos a Costa Rica!  We finally arrived in country last night, tired but psyched for the 28 days that lie ahead.  After some snacks and phone calls home we were all entertained by throwing a fly into a spider web and watching it wrap it up and eat it.  After all the excitement we finally called it a night and slept to the sounds of the birds chirping, roosters rooster-ing, and dogs barking.

Today we awoke to beautiful sunshine and spent the morning getting to know each other, going over trip logistics, and learning about the Ticos (Costa Ricans).  We then ventured into the city to an authentic casado lunch of rice, beans, meat, and picadillo.  After hitting the banco we went to the park to do a scavenger hunt and spent all afternoon practicing our Spanish with locals.  Well…before we got stuck in a massive rain storm and had to race back to the van for cover!  After drying off back at the bed and breakfast, the group and language contracts were finalized.  Pizza for dinner followed by dance lessons where we learned some sweet latino moves.  It was an early night in preparation  for our 5am wake up call to the rapids of El Río Pacuare!

Thursday, July 1, 2010
You think we woke up early the day before?  Well yesterday we had to wake up at 5am to leave for our rafting trip!  After a two hour bus ride we were welcomed by the tico rafters at a big breakfast of gallo pinto (rice and beans), pineapple, papaya, eggs and lots of other yummy energizing foods.  Eventually we got dropped off and hiked down to our rafting destination where we met our extremely funny and friendly raft tour guides.  After going over lots of safety precautions, we took off on the River, the 5^th most beautiful river to raft in according to National Geographic.  After five minutes, we could see why!  The river’s water was cool and refreshing and it was all in the middle of the gorgeous jungle with cool trees and lots of wildlife.  For a small break we rafted over to a natural swimming hole with a little waterfall.  The guides made delicious fruit snacks for us and we were off again.  After about three hours on the river we finally made it to our amazing camp sight, again, right in the middle of the jungle!  We played a ton of games, took in the beautiful surroundings while laying in hammocks, ate an amazing dinner cooked by the ever so talented raft guides, interviewed all of the guides (all in Spanish!­), and finally called it a night.

Today we arose to yet another delicious tico meal and soon after began our day of class four rapids!  Wow, soooo much fun!  We all had an adrenaline filled morning paddling, screaming, and laughing and even stopped at a large waterfall where we got to swim under the waterfall which was amazing.  We finished off our 25 mile tour of the Pacuare River tired yet feeling very accomplished.  After finally getting back to San Jose we hung out for a bit, made some phone calls home, ordered pizza, and played some more games.  We get to sleep in tomorrow – until 7am!  We are all packed and ready to hop back on the bus tomorrow to head to the rainforest.

 

[googleMap name="Paquare River, Costa Rica" description="Global Works Rafting Trip" width="350" height="350" directions_to="false"]Turrialba, Cartago, Costa Rica[/googleMap]

Update # 2:
July 2 – By Elliott Eglash
The mist surrounded us, cool, damp and enveloping us, washing over us. We trudged through the forest, our shoes covered in mud, our backpacks in rain, bodies in sweat. This was our welcome to the cloud forest.

In the morning, we left our hostel, and departed on a long bus ride. After many hours on the bus and a quick stop at a quick supermarket where we got to utilize our Spanish speaking skills, we arrived at the trail into the forest.

From here, the bus could not continue on, and so we began our hike to the biological research station in the cloud forest, San Gerardo.  The trail to the station was beautiful, surrounded by trees, plants, and of course, clouds.

We made it to the research station, Bosque Eterno de los Ninos, or Children’s Eternal Rainforest. There we had breathtaking views of Lake Arenal and the Arenal Volcano. We spent a relaxing evening playing cards and laughing in hammocks. We will be here for the next three days doing work to help the station.

July 3 – By Emily Sacher
Today was our first full day at El Bosque Eterno de los Ninos. Though our night was filled with massive moths, we woke up to a gorgeous lake, blue skies, and a smoking volcano. After lounging in our hammocks, the shovels were pulled out and the hard work began. We had two projects to work on. One group worked on an extension of the lodge, which will become a place for drying clothes. This was done by moving wood and leveling the ground with the dirt dug by the other group. Group 2 dug up the road and shoveled the dirt into a truck for group 1. Though we struggled with our jobs, the Tico guides helped to keep us entertained with their jokes, and Andres, a 4 yr old from the lodge, made sure we weren’t slacking!

A delicious of meat, tortillas, and of course, rice and beans, refueled for us for the afternoon. Tonight, we all relaxed together. A few of us broke the hammocks, and we were all ready to go to bed early for another tiring day tomorrow.

July 4 – Haylee Rosenblatt
Waking up this morning, the beautiful Volcano Arenal was a welcome sight outside our windows. After a delicious breakfast of pancakes and fruit, we began our descent into the rainforest and a morning full of hard work. Whether it be carrying gigantic logs on our shoulders, painting them with oil to preserve the wood, or digging holes and canals, everyone was breaking a sweat. Once we had prepared all of the pieces and set the foundation, we began to construct un puente (a bridge), our project for the morning. Everyone gave their best shot hammering in the stubborn nails (some more successfully than others), while Bin (our guide whom we have come to know as a superhero of sorts) showed us all up by doing it in three swift strokes of the hammer.

With our bridge completed and water flowing daintily down our freshly dug canal, we headed back up for a well deserved lunch and rest time. In the afternoon, we revisited yesterday’s work of widening the path. Half of the group collected rocks from a nearby river, which were then transported via ATV to the other half, who put them in the newly cleared path and pounded them into the ground. This was done to create traction as well as a protective layer for the dirt to avoid erosion by water. After some exciting Spanish games, we enjoyed a delicious dinner of a chicken dish with rice and beans (of course). After dinner, a few of us brave souls went on a hike through the rainforest with Bin as our fearless leader to view the wildlife of Costa Rica. Among the favorites were many different species of frog, one of which you could see right through to its bones and heart. Ending with the possibilities tomorrow’s adventure to the waterfall could bring, we finished our first full week here in the beautiful Costa Rica. Pura Vida.

July 5 – By Katie Matthews
Today was our last full day in the cloud forest. Everyone woke up at 7 to a beautiful view of the rainforest and a volcano dripping lava.  We headed downstairs for a breakfast of fresh fruit, eggs, and rice and beans. Once done, we took a 20 minute hike to La Catarata (or waterfall). On the hike we got to see puma and wild pig tracks. Some of us even saw a snake! At the waterfall, we began our service project for the morning. The group plunged into the cold water to move rocks to make a dam. After the dam was done, we went back to the lodge for lunch and dry clothes. Because today is Emily’s birthday, the guides at the lodge baked a big chocolate cake for us. We all joined together to wish her a happy birthday. After lunch and cake, everyone headed out to rake the trail. After cold but refreshing showers, we hung out as a group and did some reflective activities, played cards, and told scary stories. Our time in the lodge was brief, however, everyone seemed to really enjoy talking to the guides in Spanish, exploring nature, and working on service projects.

 

Update #3:
Day 9-  July 6:  By Danielle Tuluca
Today we left the rainforest, which was a wonderful experience. We all hiked up Monteverde for about 1 hour and a half to then board the bus back to San Jose. Along the way, we stopped at a very delicious restaurant, and while we enjoyed our meal we watched Fifa. Everyone then bought an ice cream cone, and it was back on the road. We took one more stop at the Super Market to buy some snacks and then arrived at the Bed and Breakfast once more. After showering, unpacking, and hanging out, we enjoyed some excellent pizza and then went to bed! Another wonderful night in beautiful Costa Rica.

Day 10- July 7 – By Steven Hester
Today, we awoke around 7:30am to a buzz of excitement due to our upcoming stay in our homestays. After a breakfast of eggs, fruit, and, you guessed it, beans and rice, some rushed packing and we boarded the bus for a 4 hour bus ride. After our scenic bus ride, we reached our lunch of rice and beans, tortillas, fried chicken, and more. We watched the match between Spain and Germany and then headed out. Soon enough, we reached our homestay community, a small village where people all know each other (and are related) and congregate at the town store, or pulperia. As we unloaded, people began to come to meet us at the bus, and soon we were with our host families, trying to speak Spanish (some of us more awkwardly than others).

Day 11 – July 8 – By Lily Quinn
After our fist night at our families´ homes, we became more comfortable with the experience of living in someone else´s house. We had a delicious home cooked breakfast with our families and then we were off to work at the salon at 8:30am. We did various activities such as painting furniture, taking out tacks from wooden tables, and planning evening activities to do with the community while we´re here. After lunch at our own homes, we returned to the salon and continued to work. Later in the afternoon, the kids in the community joined us in a pick up soccer game and hanging out at the pulperia. Dispersing the central part of town at around 5pm, everyone went to their own houses for an early dinner and a chance to get to know our host families a little bit more.

 

Update #4:
Day 12, July 9 – By Aaron Dardik
Here`s how this works.  This is a tutorial with walk-through steps.

• Wake up around 6:30 for breakfast before service work
• We break into 3 groups – One pick axes a giant pile of dirt, one unloads it at the church, and the third paints another coat of paint on the tables for the salon.
• Buy ice cream and play a little mejenga (pick up soccer game) with the local ticos during a work break.Go back to our families to eat. Food is delish and families are really nice.
• Go back to work in our three groups.
• Return to homes around 3pm to shower, talk to families and play some games, and eat another delicious meal.
• Go to town center (salon) to teach little ticos to learn to speak some English words while coloring, playing bingo, and playing basketball.
• English lessons turns into a big town party with kids running around everything, particularily entered by a small bag of balloons, and all of us hanging out and speaking Spanish with our new friends.  Everyone had a blast.
• Return to our families and play cards and Twister with the best family ever.

Day 13,  July 10 -  By Jason Rathman
We woke up this morning to another beautiful day in our homestay town.  After drinking a cup of the best coffee I have ever had, we all met at the salon.  The leaders split us into three groups again.  One group continued with the table painting and then cleaned the salon.  Group two dug up dirt to make way for the soon-to-be-kiosk to be used during soccer games.  The dirt they dug was given to group three to help the gardening at the town`s church.  During our lunch break it began to pour, so one group then went to clean the salon (since there`s a roof there!).  After a long day of work, we gathered again in the salon after dinner to celebrate Aaron’s birthday.  One of the homestay moms made him a delicious cake.  We all had a great time celebrating and playing games like “Big Booty”, “Wah” , and ¡Pura Vida!

Day 14, July 11 – By Dustin Vesey
Everyone woke up at 7am to meet at the salon to pack and prepare for Chirripo.  However, unfortunately we were knocked back a day and won`t be leaving until tomorrow.  So everyone took the day to relax  and chill work-free.  After packing some snacks for the hike, playing more intense futbol, and eating more delicious food for lunch, we joined half the world to watch the World Cup finale!  An exciting game led us to the local mall for people to unwind.  Then we ate and had fun at the karaoke bar.  Another exceptional day in Costa Rica.  Pura Vida!

Day 15, July 12 – By Ammar Raza
Everyone met at the salon at 7:30 so we can discuss our work for the morning.  We had to dig a trench for a drain pipe.  It had to be four feet deep and we could not finish it by lunch despite working hard.  We also had to dig the dirt from the side of the field to level it.  At 11:30 we went home to have our lunches, take showers, and be back out by 2pm with our back packs ready to go.  We rode in a bus for 30 minutes until we got to security where we had to check in for the hike.  After passing through security we traveled to our lodge, we ate dinner, and went to bed so that we could wake up to hike at 3:30am.

Day 16, July 13 – By Steven Hester
3:30am is a great time to wake up.  The birds are asleep and the sun is still down.  After an invigorating breakfast of fruit and toast, we were on our way, stumbling, panting, and everyone secretly thinking we are going to die.   It was a great start. Once the sun came up, our trip became easier, and we were assured we had just finished one of the 4 hard kilometers of the journey.  Eventually, we broke into a slow group, a fast group, and a (my personal favorite) the rag-tag-loners in the middle.  Lunch came and passed.   As a traveler of every group at a different time, I assure you that we all were having fun, despite burning legs and bums.  My personal favorite moment was when it started to rain.  The last hardest kilometer was when the freezing rain started.  Personally, I sat down and ate, then practically sprinted the rest of the way.  The moment I saw the top of the refuge was accompanied by singing, which made me glad for every kilometer hiked.  It`s 6pm right now, and since we ate lunch at 8am, and dinner at 3pm, its time for bed.  Maybe we will have a crazy party and stay up til 7!!!

Day 17, July 14
The leaders woke up at 2:45am to check the weather.  Due to a tropical storm, dangerous wind gusts, and pouring rain, we decided it would not be safe to summit today.  Instead we all slept in (well until about 7am), ate a delicious breakfast made by the cocinero (cook) who hiked up the mountain flying past us with all of our food, and relaxed.  We were all feeling very accomplished yet tired from yesterday, and keeping our fingers crossed that the weather clears so we can summit tomorrow morning.  A couple of us went on an easy short hike around the lodge, and we able to see Cerro Chirripo and the flag at it`s top!!  After a delicious lunch of chicken, veggies, and mashed potatoes, we all sat at the picnic tables wrapped in four layers and our sleeping bags drinking hot chocolate and playing cards.

PHOTOS TO COME WITH THE NEXT UPDATE!

 

Update #5:
Thursday July 15:
Today we woke up at 2:45am to finally try to summit.  The weather was back to normal, so we set off with our head lamps and water.  After about two hours in the pitch black, the sky became a brilliant light blue color and we could finally turn off our lamps and look ahead of us and see the gigantic top of the mountain we had been trying to reach for two days!  It was really awesome!  The last .5 kilometer was straight uphill and we could hardly breathe because the air was so thin.  When we finally reached the top the clouds had returned but it was still an amazing accomplishment.  We all signed the book and some of us left a small blessing in the form of a rock or stick at the top.  We couldn’t see both oceans but just knowing that we were that high up, over 13,000 feet, and had hiked for a total of 12 hours (some of us more) to get there, was an incredible feeling.  After hiking down for another hour and a half, we got some warm breakfast and more water so prepare for the hike done the entire mountain.  At 8:30 am we took off again, and due to the previous stormy weather, we had to battle our way through huge piles of mud.  Most of us fell a few times and we wished we could just sit down and slide all the way down the mountain on our butts.  Most of us reached the bottom by noon, where we were treated to a great big warm meal and lots of candy!  When we finally made it back to our homestays we all ate dinner and crashed and slept for about 12 hours!!

Friday, July 16 – By Danielle Tuluca
Today we worked very few hours because it was pouring rain the entire day.  It was a welcome surprise because we were all still exhausted and sore from Chirripo.  Some people collected rocks to fill the tunnel we dug for the kiosk sink and bathroom, and others filled in holes in the soccer field, and scraped the old paint off of the soccer goals so that we could repaint them.  Everyone hung out with their families all day long and relaxed, and we all got even closer with the Ticos.  That evening we were invited to a special dance performance by local Tico kids and then we were all made to join them dancing!  Also, besides dancing, it was a carnival themed night, so after dancing we treated the kids to hair braiding, nail painting, and face painting.  It was yet another wonderful night in Costa Rica.

Saturday, July 17 – By Elliot Eglash
Our homestay visit is coming to an end.  In the morning we worked which included painting and moving dirt to widen a path.  After watching a soccer game in the afternoon (which Guadelupe tied 1-1), we took a trip to San Isidro, the nearby city.  There we took advantage of the Internet cafe and bought some food and snacks.  We then went to a Mexican restaurant, where we had some excellent tacos, burritos, and nachos.  Afterwards we went to the mall where we watched Eclipse from the Twilight series, which was in English, but with Spanish subtitles.  Unfortunately the filmed burned at the very last line, but there was still entertainment to be had.  So we stopped at the local dance in Guadalupe where we experienced the local culture.

Sunday,  July 18 – By Katie Matthews
Today was el dia de los actividades.  We woke up after a late night at the biale and we headed down to the salon.  We were informed that today we could relax and enjoy the festivities.  There was tamale making, carne cooking, futbol games and even bull riding!  The small town of Guadalupe won the futbol game, 2-1 and it was very exciting!  The tamales and carne were cooked by the mothers of the town and were very delicious.  After the scene the salon filled with dancing, and there was even a live band.  No one from the group joined in on the dancing because the locals were too good.  After the music and watching the dancing we headed home to our homestays and enjoyed bonding experiences.

Monday, July 19 – By Megan Monteleone
Our last full day in Guadalupe was a great way to end our unforgettable experience there.  We woke up early for our final breakfast and headed out for our last day of work.  We split into groups, one cleaning the salon, very dirt from the many fiestas that took place there.  This group also cleaned the kitchen to prepare for the despedida and tortilla night.  Another group was painting the kiosk that we helped to construct.  Another group worked with pick-axes and shovels to make a better path to the bull fighting ring.  We worked until three then went home for some time with our families.  At 6pm we returned to the salon with our families dressed in our nice but not formal outfits.  Each family brought a picadillo to share and we all convened in the kitchen to learn how to make tortillas.  We had a music player to blast some gringo music and we all danced while we waited for dinner.  We ate our tortillas and for desert we had ice cream sundaes with oreos, chocolate syrup, and m and ms.  After that all of the families convened around the pinata.  For this activity we were blindfolded and spun around three times, this made everyone look so silly when they tried to search for the pinata.  The man holding it on the string would play tricks on the person pulling it higher and lower making it impossible to hit.  We had a ton of fun doing it.  After the despedida we all returned to our final night at the homestay before la playa.

Photos coming soon!

Update #6:
July 22 – By Steven Hester
Today, we all enjoyed breakfast at the hotel restaurant, still thankful for hot showers. After a nice meal and some time to talk, we drove to surf lessons. After a quick lesson where we learned to love our surf board like we were dating it, we separated into groups of 5 or 6, and largely learned to surf via trial and error. During a midway break of pineapple and lots of water, some people chose to tan and relax rather than surf. Surfing’s first day ended far too fast, and before we knew it, we were headed back to the hotel to go directly to lunch. After lunch, we swam for a while, but mostly we all talked in “El Hangout.” Most people enjoyed the cheap non-alcoholic daiquiris and piña coladas. In the restaurant, we found Wifi, and people with ipods contacted friends and family. Soon dinner came, and we dined on delicious dinner delicacies. Sometime later, we all had ice cream. Yummy Hershey’s syrup made them taste like home. On finishing the ice cream, we went back to talking and hanging out, enjoying our last few days together. Upon bedtime, we went to our rooms to calm down. Conversations petered out as we let our tiredness overtake us.

July 23 – By Jason Rathman
The group woke up at 6am today to get started on our activities early. After carefully applying three layers of sunscreen, we took our boards and went into the refreshingly warm water. Everyone was doing much better today than the day before at surfing. After a few hours of surfing like pros, we took an extra hour on the playa to relax and swim in the ocean. After 30 minutes on the bus, we arrived back at Hacienda Baru. Even though we were all exhausted from two days of surfing, we managed to make it through to a late, 7pm dinner. Having a 5 o’clock siesta with mango smoothies, banana splits, and french fries helped out a lot. After having our dinner, the group did the counselor evaluations, and then we waited for Tito, our surfing instructor, to give us photo CDs of the last two days of surfing. Everyone had a blast learning how to surf on the Pacific. We spent the rest of our night remembering our favorite parts of the last 26 days. Buenas noches!

July 24:
We slept in today, and had a lazy breakfast before packing our bags and saying adios to the beach. During our 5 hour drive back to San Jose, we stopped on a bridge to look at the cocodrilos, or crocodiles down below. Some were huge–between 3 and 4 meters long! We stopped for lunch and souvenir shopping before heading out to our goodbye dinner and a movie. We are so sad that our time in Costa Rica has come to an end, and we will never forget the friendships we made and the experiences we shared. Pura vida!