Costa Rica – (CRL2b) – July 3rd – July 30th

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 news from the field.

Update #1: July 4, 2010 – Feliz Dia de la Independencia!
Highlights by Torey and Carly:
Team Relampagos (lightning) arrived late last night in tropical Costa Rica. All were tired from our long day of travel and after some late night snacks and we headed off to bed.

After the first day in Costa Rica we had many highlights, including our orientation activities. Our group is outgoing and willing to try anything. In the morning after breakfast, we played a game in Spanish that helped everyone to get to know each other better and learn everybody’s names. We ate lunch and tried a new native beverage called a Batido de Guanabana, most of us enjoyed it.

The language barrier is difficult and some amusing mix ups have happened. We learned that in Costa Rica toalla means tampon, and not towel, like it does in other Spanish speaking countries. We also learned that “excuse me” is disculpe and not escupe, which instead means, spit! We are still adjusting to the more rustic style of living with bugs, poor plumbing (compared to the US) and creeky beds. But on another note, the weather has been amazing and when it rains it is still warm. Everyone is having a blast and can’t wait for what’s to come!

Memorable Moments and Insights by Taylor and Nicholas:
From arriving at the airport to our first trip into the new culture, our group has really come together. Even though we have only been together for one day we have shared some memorable and funny moments. Many of us teens were worried about feeling embarrassed about speaking the foreign language, but we realized that we are all in this together and theres nothing to be nervous about. At lunch, we practiced speaking only in Spanish and did it successfully, learning some new words along the way.

After lunch we enjoyed a Costa Rica fun fact scavenger hunt in the plaza. We met a cute puppy who warmed us with his presence. We had fun talking to locals and we were able to share some laughs and stories with them. The Ticos were very friendly and willing to help us learn about their country. It was 4th of July today so we talked to them aout their own Annexation Day which the Costa Rican Independence Day on July 25. Although it’s only been a day, it feels like a lot longer as the group has shared some great moments. We are all looking forward to our next adventures rafting on Rio Pacuare!!

 

Update #2:
Rafting today and yesterday was a blast! One of the many highlights was swimming in the river under the waterfalls and getting to jump out of the boat and float in the swim-able currents, or hike through terrain to explore the jungle. The rain during the last part of the rafting was so cool, even though it was a little challenging. The scenery was epic- like some landscape out of Lord of the Rings! One of our favorite parts were chilling with the guides later at our gorgeous bungalow on the first night. They were really friendly and happy and their enthusiasm for the water sport was contagious!

Many of us found the various spiders and centipedes unpleasant, especially the firey ants whose bites really stung, but some of us marveled at the diversity of creatures, including a bug whose wings looked exactly like leaves! The “chicharras”, cricket-like insects, made a very loud sound all through the forest. We also loved the birds, vultures, hawks, and different species with painted wings. We learned it really was a small world when Carly ran into her elementary school Spanish teacher at the rafting site. In the morning we were all thrilled with the pancakes, toast, eggs, SYRYP! and general feast prepared by our guides, who were great cooks and have been cooking since age 14 or 15! One is even in school to be a chef. The guides are awesome and told us when to duck and “get down” during the hardest rapids, and let us dangle our legs off the boat to enjoy the water. One of us was thrilled to fall out and be aptly rescued by her boat-mates, enjoying being in the river and caught up in the moment. We definitely all learned to “go with the flow”!

Earlier this week, we all learned some new moves with an awesome salsa lesson from a local dancer. He taught us cumbia, bachata, salsa, cha-cha-cha and some local Tico dancing. We danced as a group and in pairs, grooving to the beat. It was a new experience for most, but we “warmed” up to it fast! We have been still adapting to the new timing so it’s been hard getting to sleep because of the fact that we are so excited!, but we try to nap on the bus rides and rest during down time. All in all, though it’s a new culture and new environment, we will be challenged to stretch our comfort zone and keep growing. Hasta soon!

 

Update #3:
The last few days at San Gerardo biological research station were full of fun!  On the way in,we saw monkeys and enjoyed the rainforest.  At night, we saw lava coming out of the Arenal volcano!  We were challenged by difficult hikes, but proud to have finished in record time.

Each day, we worked for hours fixing up the trails and were really pleased to see the fruits of our labor in the improved state of each walkway and path. We learned in yoga to “just breath” and approach it peacefully. The long work days were challenging but the struggle and all our effort brought us closer together. We shared lots of bonding time each night when the generator went off and we enjoyed sing a longs and ghost stories in the dark! We rested in the hammocks on the porch after work and played cards which gave us a chance to get to know each other even more. At night we were soothed by the sound of the rain on the roof. After some homestay skits and Spanish lessons we are anxious and ready to meet our homestay families!

Update #4:
Yesterday we arrived to our Homestays in the tiny town of Las Palmas. We were greeted enthusiastically by all host families in the community and took a group tour of the street and all the houses which will be our homes for the next 10 days. The many Tico kids spoke to us rapidly in Spanish, held our hands, and gave us candy to welcome us. Being immediately immersed in the culture, we really felt like we were getting to see the authentic Costan Rican lifestyle. We walked by the beautiful river rapids and admired each families´farm animals, cows, chickens, dogs, and horses. Then, we settled in and ate dinner with our new familias, practicing our well rehearsed Spanish and watching local telenovelas.

The next morning we rose early to the Caw of the Roosters, signaling us to go to the school to start our work day. Many of the local children accompanied us in re-painting the inside of one of the schoolhouse rooms. Some cultural differences we already noticed are: restricted resources in construction, the habit of taking it easy throughout the day and having long lengthy conversations, eating the chicken from the backyard instead of the grocery store, the emphasis on the close-knit community as evidenced in their warm-hearted hospitality, and finally the tendency to slip rice and beans into every meal. We´ve already exchanged some of our favorite games and we look forward tonight to get to know the community better through a “noche de juegos y actividades”. As the days go on, we look forward to bonding more closely with our families and with each other.

 

Photos in San Gerardo:

 

Update #5:
Hello from Las Palmas! We´ve been here for over a week already spending quality with our host families and working hard at the escuela. We are still loving the food especially the Picadillo at tortilla night and the fried platanos our homestay moms make for us each morning. Some of us decided to cook some traditional U.S. specialties for our homestay families in return for their delicious cooking and they were thrilled! We also discovered a little casa in town that sells homemade french fries and we can´t get enough! We still find it amazing how close knit the communities around here are. Most everyone knows each other and even when they don’t they still greet each other on the streets as if they are old friends.

One highlight of the week was getting out of town for the day to take an excursion to La Fortuna, home of the Arenal Volcano. We hiked down to the bottom of one of the most impressive waterfalls we have ever seen…it cascaded from 80 meters above our heads into a breathtaking pool where some of us enjoyed a swim.  We hiked the incredibly steep staircase back to the top of the waterfall, huffing and puffing the whole way, and then headed into the center of La Fortuna. It was especially nice to have some free time in a city to do a little souvenir shopping and eat out at a restaurant.

Some other highlights were a fútbol match between the Ticos and Global Workers on Sunday morning. The Ticos won, but we scored some good goals before the rain came. Many of us walked to the nearby town of La Tigra to enjoy the local festival and watch our homestay siblings jump on the slippery trampoline and try on silly costumes while making sillier faces. Some of us prepared for our talent show coming up by making up dances to ¨Ven con migo baby¨.

Tonight we are looking forward to some traditional dances that the school children have been preparing. Stay posted for more updates from our homestays soon!

 

Update #6:
Hello from our last days in Las Palmas! Our days here are coming to an end as we finish our service projects at La Escuela. Last night was our night of dancing, where our host siblings showed off their moves to latin beats, while we grooved to the Cotton Eyed Joe, introducing a country flair.  Our last days of work have been rigorous in the sun, but we feel accomplished when we look at the painted fences and shoveled walkways. We find it interesting that the school children are not disturbed by our work as they have limited class time and seem to always be taking breaks!  Today as a break for ourselves, we enjoyed sipping coconut milk from the freshly fallen Cocos and eating the raw and scrumptious coconut meat from inside. It has been too hot to eat too much, but our host families keep serving us large quantities of rice and beans. We have lots of practice communicating in a foreign language and understanding each other, but with the help of Charades and unconjugated verbs, we get by.

Tomorrow evening we are looking forward to our ¨Despedida¨¨ or, Goodbye Dinner with the community. Some of the host mothers are making hand’crafted gifts for us. We will miss our families and the home cooked meals, wonderful and caring massages, and our pet dogs. We are so excited for our surfing lessons when we leave the town tomorrow. After the beach we will proceed to ziplining and hot springs. We may not have too much internet access then, so we send big Abrazos, or Hugs from here till next time!

 

Update #7:
Hello from Playa Grande! We are chillin’ at the beach enjoying the sun, sand, sea and surf with our new instructors. In two days we’ve gone from not knowing how to stand on a board to surfing some of the biggest baddest waves out there. We have admired the numerous species of crabs on the beach, from tiny ones peeking from holes on the beach, to large blue and bright orange crabs near our bungalows. The food here is delicious, we’ve been feasting on typical Costa Rican specialties, hearts of palm salads, hamburgers and fries, and creamy spaghettis. At sunset and even at 5am sunrise we’ve enjoyed yoga and runs on the beach with our leaders, and stretching out and relaxing in front of the ocean. Yesterday we enjoyed a talk about the Giant Leatherback Turtles which are endangered on these beaches. When years ago there were over 1000 nesting each year, now there are only 32 here on Playa Grande! We’re getting ready to shake it once more with a dance class of Cumbia and Merengue tonight before dinner. We have all loved the beach so far, it is so large and uninterrupted by the sights of lifeguard towers or beach umbrellas. We have collected some beautiful shells and witnessed some live sand dollars!

Tomorrow we will take a boat tour of the Estuary, where we might see a crocodile or two! It will be our last day surfing before we head to ziplines and canopy tours to complete our journey. Sending saludos from Costa Rica, Team Relampagos!

 

Photo Update:

 

Update #8:
Hello one last time from team Relampagos! Our last few days in Costa Rica were fantastic and filled with thrilling activities we had been anticipating throughout the month. We traveled from the beach to a place named “Rincon de la Vieja” where we settled in to our cabins and relaxed on the inviting hammocks. The next morning we woke up bright and early to take turns milking some cows before breakfast! A very cool, yet strange experience! After we ate, we took a hike to the forest to enjoy a canopy zip lining tour, soaring above the treetops on a wire cable- we all loved the feeling of slipping through the forest with ease and the rush of adrenaline that came with it.

Our 2nd full day at Rinconcito, a few of us chose to embark on a 6 hour hike to the famous hot springs. Along the way, we saw many fascinating creatures, like iguanas, wild turkeys, monkeys, and a Costa Rican cyote, a cute furry animal with a long bushy tail. The hot springs, warmed by a nearby volcano were clear and beautiful and felt wonderfully soothing after our hike through the rainforest! Our meals at Rinconcito were delicious, as all our food has been, and we all lined up for the buffets eagerly, filling our plates and bellies. Our last night in Rincon de la Vieja, we held an award ceremony where we all gave each other prizes and superlatives for great moments and memories during the trip; a very entertaining and comical way to wrap up the trip!

The next day we took a long 6 hour bus ride back to San Jose with a few detours due to a bridge being down, and dressed up to go to a great Italian restaurant to celebrate our last night with the group. Nobody slept very much in the few hours before we had to wake to go to the airport for our flights home. We were sad to say goodbye, but are happy to take with us countless fond memories we’ve made, experiences we have learned from, difficult challenges we’ve overcome and our many new friends. What a wonderful fun-filled month! Thanks for following, now it’s time for Casa Sweet Casa!