PROGRAM PHOTO ALBUM
Thanks for the checking out the blog for this Global Leadership Adventures program!
Here are a few things to know and expect:
- Blog posts are written by onsite program staff and/or students and sent to our Headquarters team who will post the blog on this page.
- We typically receive 2-3 blog posts per week from each program, so please don’t be alarmed if you don’t see a blog post every day – that’s totally normal.
- Blog updates received on weekends may not be posted until Monday.
- Due to many factors such as internet accessibility, program staff aren’t always able to send photos, so some blog posts may contain text only.
Thank you for your patience and understanding, and we hope you enjoy following along on these unforgettable adventures.
For frequently asked questions about the blogs, please visit our Program Blog FAQ page.
-The Global Leadership Adventures HQ Team
Click here to jump down to the most recent post!
BLOG POST FOR JULY 14
Hello from Belize!
We had beautiful blue skies for our arrival day! Our students met up with staff at the airport outside Belize City and had lunch and juice before making their way to Sarteneja in 2 separate groups. The first group saw some amazing wildlife on the way, catching a glipse of the wonderful biodiversity Belize has to offer. After arrival, they had a delicious nacho dinner with a special Belize cheese sauce and chocolate cupcakes. The students then circled up for a name game before retreating inside from the bugs. A few teammates played cards and uno until it was time to go back to the rooms.
The second group arrived a few hours after the first and topped off their nights with some nachos and chocolate. They then met their new roommates and got settled in for the night. Twenty-two of our twenty-four students are here, and the rest of our group will be meeting Ben and Claudia at the airport tomorrow.
We start off our day tomorrow with a late 8 am breakfast, followed by orientation and ice breakers!
Cheers to a great Session 2!
– GLA Staff
BLOG POST FOR JULY 15
Hello!
We had a late start to our morning and woke up to a breakfast of pancakes and eggs. The students then played a quick speed friending game, getting to know their teammates better. We dove straight into the Student Code of Conduct, acting out some of the guidelines and asking clarifying questions about the standards set for the upcoming weeks.
Lunch consisted of rice, beef stew, and bread fruit. After eating our fill, we changed and set out for the boats. From the Sarteneja docks, we boarded 2 boats and made our way to New River. Once we arrived, our Local Director, Jema, and Marcy from Sarteneja Alliance for Conservation and Development (SACD) began speaking about mangroves and manatees. The boats chugged slowly down the river as we learned more about the importance of the trees for all the wildlife and humans. After reaching the hand-crank ferry, we all crammed into one boat while the other received a spare part. Smushed together, the students played a group game and to pass the time while they watched out for cool birds and manatees in the river.
As soon as we made it to the entrance of the river, we headed back inland to see some Mayan Ruins called Cerros. We learned more about the Mayan culture and customs as well as the connection of the people to the land.
Once we made it back to homebase, we took some time to get ready for the afternoon. The group gathered for our Social Sync activity, discussing the usage of social media and cell phones before relating it all back to ocean conservation.
After a wonderful dinner, the group did our sunset shot out circle, then proceeded to go to bed or play games in the common areas. We also welcomed our last 2 students that are joining our adventure!
Tomorrow we have an early morning, so we can go visit fishing sites all around the Corozal Bay!
-GLA Staff
BLOG POST FOR JULY 16
Hello,
Today at 6:30, we ate cereal and authentic toast for breakfast followed by some refreshing homemade juice. At 7 we left the hotel to go on the boat. We went to observe some traditional and sustainable fishing methods that have been passed down for generations in Belize. After that, we went to do the swim test and everyone passed!
We then participated in aquatic activities such as sharks and minnows, capture the flag, and racing. To get to lunch, we swam next to the shore for a while before being picked up and taken to a mangrove research and rehabilitation area. Inside, we ate fish and rice and vegetables for lunch. After that we went back on the boat to go back to the hotel but one of the big boat’s engines broke and the small boat dropped off the people on the Azul and went to go rescue the Chelonia and the people on it.
In conclusion, we managed to have a pretty good day! We became closer as a group and had a lot of fun spending time and hanging out with our new friends! We learned how make tamales, which was a lot of fun. Overall we had an absolutely immaculate day!
– Toby
BLOG POST FOR JULY 17
After a 6:00 wake up call playing “La Chona” at max volume, we had a breakfast of scrambled eggs with waffles, watermelon, and mixed fruit juice until 7:00, when we waited a further 25 minutes for the cooks to be ready to leave for Bacalar Chico Marine Reserve.
Splitting into three boats, we rode for roughly three hours until we reached the snorkeling sight. While snorkeling, we saw many groups of colorful fish and some people even saw a stingray. After a one hour trip at the snorkeling sight, we rode again for about 10 minutes to a different sight which we could not swim in. That is because the water was filled with peaceful yet “scary” nurse sharks. The boat I was in was right above a group of 5 nurse sharks, two big, two medium, and one baby, which was yellow compared to the brown color of the adult sharks. After a while looking at the sharks, all three boats headed to Bacalar Chico Island.
After arriving, we were greeted with a lunch made of yellow rice, a cole slaw, and two skewers made of chicken, tomatoes, onions, pineapples, and green bell peppers. After eating their share of food, most of the boys went hunting for iguanas with permission from Leah, but I couldn’t do the same because she was “afraid I might actually catch one”. With the ending of the futile efforts to catch an iguana, began a tour of the Bacalar Chico
Museum, which had a 3D and 2D map of the region, as well as descriptions of the unique creatures found in the area. After which almost every one of us went for a swim off the beach of the island, where the water was hot and the sand was hotter, we had lots of fun floating around and talking the whole time until I opted to step out and write this blog.
Tomorrow we head back to home base, but for now we plan on having a campfire before going to sleep. We all have the succulence to succeed, but we will have to wait for tomorrow, goodbye for the day
Evan Tran & Kaler Schultz
BLOG POST FOR JULY 18
The oncoming day necessitated plentiful rest and the Bacalachico National Reserve and Park served our cause. The sea side breeze and the rustling of the tropical shrubbery catered ideally to our sleep and we all rested in a contented stupor. Accompanying the greeting of the sun came the calling of the island’s roosters waking us for our traditional Belizean breakfast. After our meal we rode vessels of the sea to clean the islands unrecognizable beaches. A once plentiful and bustling diving center was forgotten, leaving behind a desolate and uninhabitable wasteland littered with plastic and glass. Following our successful cleaning excursion we rode to snorkel at Barracuda Patch exploring the wonders of the sea. Unfortunately, we eventually had to depart from the reef and all its offerings and rode back to the our place of stay for an afternoon meal. Soon after finishing we thanked the kind staff and overseers of the island and took on the journey back home. Even a seemingly dull moment of the day (a 2 hour long boat ride) was filled with activity and joy. We participated in games and bonded as a group all the while having the wind grace our warmed hair and welcoming the splashes of the tropical blue that kissed our faces. Once at our home base in Sarteneja, we enjoyed much needed showers and passed the time with card games a more notable one being called Mind Game that was introduced by a fellow student named Evan. Soon we ate a delicious dinner and retired to afternoons activities and much needed rest.
In the grand scheme of time this day will not only be fondly recollected but rather will be cherished and fall into a special place within each and every one of our personal history books.
– Matthew Pilat & Leo Weiss
BLOG POST FOR JULY 19
Hola!
Today we got to sleep in a bit and woke up at 7:30 for an 8 am breakfast comprised of biscuits, toast, and fruit. Shortly after, we went down to the local beach for a beach clean-up. It wasn’t nearly as covered in trash as the previous beach, but it still needed some work, and I think we cleaned up nicely. Right as we were heading back to base, it started to rain. Luckily it didn’t rain too hard until we were already back at base. After a bit of a delay, we had a presentation with an SACD representative named Claudia. She was very nice and showed all of us how SACD worked and how they contributed to the local environment.
As the rain slowed we ate barracuda, beans, and rice for lunch before the leader of the conservation camp came to prepare us for tomorrow with the local school activities. The activities included a choreographed song and posters of the main protected fish in Belize and various information of them. We also prepared a game were the kids were given fish names and jumped in and out of a imaginary fish trap for positive or negative points depending on the fish. The last activity is a scavenger hunt that will take the kids on a hunt for clues to learn about where the fish live and how to find them.
After preparation for tomorrow was complete, we all sat down and watched the majority of a documentary about the debate over whether or not we should continue with deep sea mining to further humanity towards green energy. To end the day, we ate chicken for dinner and finished our individual fish projects until 8:30.
In the end it was an okay day. Mostly because we stayed inside most of the time but the projects were fun and the documentary was interesting. We are anxious and excited for the Student Conservation Camp tomorrow!
-Owen (Jimmy)
-Sam
BLOG POST FOR JULY 20
Hello from Paradise!!
While in paradise, unfortunately the weather today stayed consistently on and off raining. However, this did not stop us from having a fantastic day here in Sarteneja.
We started our day off with sausage, fruit, eggs, beans, and tortillas. After breakfast we headed off too the local school for the conservation camp! At the school we broke off into groups.
There were 4 different stations each run by GLA students; they included informational sessions, fun dances, and different games! Sadly due to the rain we had to relocate back to the home base. We passed time by teaching the local kids many playground games.
We continued the stations, followed by a delicious lunch consisting of chicken and rice. After that, we finished with an arts and craft activity teaching the local students about different species of fish.
Following our sad goodbyes, we had a debate arguing the pros and cons of deep sea mining, and it’s environmental effects. We were divided into countries and cooperations, simulating a real debate.
Overall, we had a great day teaching students about the protected fish and learning more about ourselves through the debate!
Sincerely,
Hannah B and Sofia S 😎
P.S. We had a yummy chicken soup with rice and tortilla chips for dinner (some may argue it is the best meal yet, aka Lucy)
BLOG POST FOR JULY 21
Hello!
Today we started the morning with a bit of a late start. At 7:40 we woke up to the glorious sounds of hype music along with knocking and screaming “wake up!” We met downstairs at 8:00 for breakfast, which consisted of eggs with ham, beans, fryjacks (a fan favorite), and mangos. Then following that scrumptious breakfast, we had an informative and entertaining presentation on mangroves and the role they play in protecting humans and wildlife and ended with mangrove identification. We learned the different types of mangroves (red, black, and white) and how to identify them by leaves and color. Following our presentation, we ventured past the walls of the Sarteneja Inn into the wilderness to put our skills to the test! We successfully identified all the mangroves as a team and it made for a joyous morning of learning!
We then had a delicious lunch, consisting of pork, rice, and salad. We took our newly found mangrove knowledge to the field! We travelled by boat, while playing lots of games, one being mafia (a fan favorite), to a mangrove restoration site (which was previously built by GLA students in 2023!). There, we split up into two groups: unicorns and mermaids. Group unicorn started by swimming out into the glorious water (that is filtered by mangroves) to collect red mangrove seeds. During this time, group mermaids made soil by combining sand and regular soil. We then came together to plant the mangrove seeds collected in the newly created soil. We wrapped up our expedition with a stop at a local ice cream shop where many students got ice cream and smoothies. We then dressed up to go out to a local restaurant. While there, we took numerous photos and played a traditional bingo game called chalupa! It was extremely intense but ultimately brought us closer as a group. Once back at Homebase we sat around and bonded while playing card games all while watching a storm come in!
It was a beautiful day filled with bonding with our wonderful friends which ended with such a bang!
– Anslee and Lila
BLOG POST FOR JULY 23
We started our day off at 8:00 am with a breakfast of hamburgers, cereal, juice, and mangoes. After breakfast, we grabbed our suitcases and headed out the door to our next location. We took a bus and was on it for around 3 hours, halfway through we stopped for snacks and a visit to the supermarket. Next, we arrived at our first destination, Mayan ruins. We stayed there for around an hour and a half. We ate a lunch of chicken and rice at a restaurant, and then explored the Mayan ruins with a guide. At the ruins, we took pictures, climbed ruins, and learned interesting facts about the Mayan people. We also stopped to buy souvenirs and gifts from vendors at the end of the guided tour. After, we hopped back in the bus and drove to our new location. Once we arrived, we unpacked. Once we were unpacked, many people went swimming while others played cards and socialized. Afterwards, we cleaned up and ate a dinner of mashed potatoes, chicken, salad, and buns. For desert we had carrot cake! Lastly, after a discussion of the plans tomorrow, we went to bed excited for a new day!
Lucy & Amelia
BLOG POST FOR JULY 24
Bien le bonjour from The Belize Zoo! Today, the wake up call was at 7:40am and breakfast was at 8:00. We had a Zoo Tour from 9:00 to 12:00, there, we saw jaguars, ocelots, parrots, crocodiles and lots of other mammals and birds! Then, we did some community service where we split up into 3 groups: some repainted the zoo fences, others cleaned and raked the jaguar area, finally the last group transported items from one end of the zoo to another. After that, we cooled off in the pool for 2 hours.
Everyone’s energy was rejuvenated with a rambunctious game of Monkey in the Middle. Overall, today was an amazing day! We had lots of fun and the animals were cool. We are very grateful for these experiences. Can’t wait for tomorrow’s adventure! P.S. Shout out to Sawyer for head-butting the ball during the pool game.
Emma Thrin & Emma Norwood
BLOG POST FOR JULY 25
Hello from Belize,
Today was a day full of activities and adventures that started from early in the morning to late at night. We first started with a wake up call at 7:40 and prepared for the days with our WITS and a delectable breakfast made by the chefs. After we were all ready to conquer the day, we boarded the buses and headed back to the zoo mentioned last blog. After we got off the bus, we all headed into a classroom where we listened to presentation about the conservation of Manatees presented by our amazing commentator and presentator, Jamal aka the Manatee Man.
After the informative presentation was finished, we all ate pre-selected lunches that came along with free drinks and conversated while some of us played a few card games here and there. After that, we ventured to the ‘community baboon sanctuary’ where we met the infamous Howling Monkey’s, which fun fact are the 2nd loudest mammals. Unfortunately our time was cut short due to thunderstorms, but we persevered through and made the best of it with a presentation regarding the backstory of both the monkeys and the sanctuary. After being informed, we drove back to our home base where we soon had a visit from a local ranger who spoke all about Belize and it’s ecosystem and all it’s being.
Continuing on, we enjoyed our delicious dinner consisting of pasta, garlic bread, and cake. We then hurried our way back to the zoo to explore the wonderful nocturnal animals of the zoo, as well as viewing them in their feeding state. This whole experience today has been a big reflection on just how much is going on in the world that we are so unaware of. But the time is now to act on our ideas and turn them into reality. The animals can’t speak for themselves, so we need to speak up for them.
So excited for tomorrow!!
Sincerely the best duo,
Malia and Sofia
