Hey Session 2 Spanish Service Adventure 2018! I hope that you all had a wonderful August and have kept in mind those take-aways that we talked about during the final reflection of the program! Looking back I hope you remember both the fun and challenging times, from the stress free beach day to exhilarating extreme forest park, the physically demanding waterfall hike to the mentally-demanding rafting adventure.

I hope that each of these moments brought learning to you as well as the laughter and friendships made. Maybe it doesn´t feel so long either since those technical and teamwork skills learned during the bio-garden service project (anyone miss hauling those rocks around?), mastering the art of cement volcanoes while expanding the floor of the basketball court / amphitheatre and making and spreading the bokashi fertilizer onto the coffee plants that will produce that same great organic coffee that some of you may still be drinking!

I also hope that some of you have kept practicing your Spanish! Our time shared with the Young Dreamers and the families that ´´adopted´´ us gringos were definitely highlights for me. Juan´s amazing panqueques, gallo pinto, frijoles y arroz and the traditional meals including platano and guacamole at the trapiche kept us going through those afternoon discussions, not to mention the cafecito in between them! Finishing off those evenings with Mentor Groups to keep us reflecting on the experience and increasingly animated card games was also good to see. Que chiva!

Please keep learning, thinking critically and exploring different cultures! I hope that the experience in Providencia stays with you, but also that there may be many more to come :). Pura vida amigos!

Some special moments from our trip:
– Learning to dance like latinos in both classes with each other and the Young Dreamers
– Those thrilling rides in the back of Jonathan´s SUPER DUTY
– Swimming and jumping into the freezing water at El Poceron
– Being followed by monkeys during our walk in Manuel Antonio
– Playing cards and other interesting games with Jonny and Gustavo
– learning to cook traditional meals for over 20 people with Chef Juan
– Playing games and soccer / slip n´ slide on that rainy day at the plaza

-Nicolas Couto, International Director

 

Feeling nostalgic? You can experience that same sense of friendship and adventure abroad again! Check out all our 2019 programs, or enroll now.

Looking back to our 21-day Spanish Service Adventure high in the cloud forest in Costa Rica, we are filled with fond memories of all the good times our group shared, and of all the challenges that we overcame and learned from. From our first exhausting week of service mastering the art of cement volcanoes as we mixed and poured concrete by hand for the new basketball court for the village of Providencia, to the breath-taking and exhilarating rafting trip down the Pacuare river (where we ate “iguana tails” that tasted like chicken for lunch). From our second week of service fertilizing organic coffee plants on Don Geraldo´s coffee farm, to surfing it up in playa Dominical and spotting sloths (shout-out to Aiden) and rainbow grasshoppers in Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio.

From our final week of service when we stuffed eco-bricks and worked tirelessly to complete the first Bio-garden in Providencia at Juan and Joana’s restaurant, to our final adventures in the EXTREME Forest Park and the beautiful (and steep) waterfall hike. We really did it all, working hard at service and playing hard on our excursions, and yet somehow found the energy for afternoons of Spanish classes, with the beloved families of Providencia, soccer in the plaza, dancing and hanging out with Natalia and the rest of the Young Dreamers, and of course, too many heated and uproarious games of cards (all somehow won by Wyatt). Juan’s famous panqueques, gallo pinto, arroz con pollo, pasta con pesto, and other specialties kept us fueled up throughout all of our activities, as well as the unforgettable cafecito we were treated to every afternoon. Mentor Group meetings with Rachel, Nico, and Luis Diego rounded off the evenings, and Jonathan challenged us and inspired us with his group discussions.

All in all, it was an incredible 3-week experience, and we hope the memories and friendships made will last a lifetime. Pura Vida!

Some special moments from our trip:
– Learning traditional dances during our first encounter with the Young Dreamers
– Celebrating the three special birthdays
– The never-ending search for waffles
– Fending off the pelican at the beach in Manuel Antonio
– Those thrilling rides in the back of Jonathan´s SUPER DUTY
– All those interesting games in the hotel pool at Dominical
– Swimming and jumping into that freezing water at the Poceron
– Solving a lot of never-can-tells and riddles throughout many days
– Stargazing on those last beautiful nights!

-Rachel Pacione

 

Feeling nostalgic? You can experience that same sense of friendship and adventure abroad again! Check out all our 2019 programs, or enroll now.

Our trip to Costa Rica was absolutely incredible and I can’t believe how time has just flown by!
In just two short weeks we did a TON of activities, made new friends, learned more about
ourselves and our host country. Now that you are back home and back to your normal routines,
I hope that you still think about your time in San Pedro and are using all that you learned here to
do something you are passionate about!

As GLA and Green Communities have taught us, it is our job to consider how our communities
can become more sustainable, looking at the pros and cons of everything before making a
decision. It is also our job as global citizens to promote awareness on the changes our Earth is
going through simply because of the materialist nature of our economy. What we hope is that
your time here helped develop you to be true global leaders and that you continue to look for
ways to incorporate sustainable development at home.

But besides the academic portions of the trip, we also have learned a lot about ourselves
through our excursions and service! Some of us learned to embrace the unexpected and try to
look at life through a new lens-whether that was learning how to trust and be brave while getting
flung across the forest at the Adventure Park, putting our differences aside while working with
the locals at service, meeting the mothers that work and live in San Pedro, or being valiant
enough to express our own opinions and ideas during our mentor groups! I’m sure that each of
us gained a bit of confidence somehow, someway, during our time here and sometimes that’s
the most valuable thing you can achieve from a trip like this! So, next time you are in a difficult
or similar situation, I hope you think about how you handled differences, insecurities, debate,
and friendship while in Costa Rica.

We hope that you all think of Costa Rica and the people here often. The sidewalk is getting
longer each and every day. In fact, the town of San Pedro has said they want to contribute
some of their own money to the project to help get it completed faster! We have also fertilized
over 20 coffee farms in San Pedro! The organic coffee will grow to be an amazing product that
not only provides income for the families, but also will be bought from next year’s GLA students
and their families! We are still recruiting more families into switching to organic farming and
thanks to your help, more and more people are willing to give it a go!

Although it may have been a while ago that we were all together at the ecolodge in Copey, your
memories and the friendships made here will remain forever! Here at GLA Costa Rica, we hope
that you are all doing well and going the extra mile in whatever you are passionate about. Keep
up the good work!

Some highlights of our trip:
-Surfing the waves in Dominical
-Seeing the natural wildlife and the National Park and swimming in the crystal clear waters!!!
-Working alongside Alvaro and his constant teasing!
-Our time spent at the Adopt-a-gringo activity
-The last night’s bonfire
-The amazzzzing smell of compost
-Tona’s “Dropping the soap” improve song

-Nicole, Tona, Esteban + Green Communities Staff

 

Feeling nostalgic? You can experience that same sense of friendship and adventure abroad again! Check out all our 2019 programs, or enroll now.

Our trip to Costa Rica was surely incredible and I can’t believe how time has just flown by! In just two short weeks we did a TON of activities, made new friends, learned more about ourselves and our host country. Now that you are back home and back to your normal routines, I hope that you still think about your time in San Pedro and are using all that you learned here to do something you are passionate about!

As GLA and Green Communities have taught us, it is our job to consider how our communities can become more sustainable, looking at the pros and cons of everything before making a decision. It is also our job as global citizens to promote awareness on the changes our Earth is going through simply because of the materialist nature of our economy. What we hope is that your time here helped develop you to be true global leaders and that you continue to look for ways to incorporate sustainable development at home.

But besides the academic portions of the trip, we also have learned a lot about ourselves through our excursions and service! Some of us learned to embrace the unexpected and try to look at life through a new lens-whether that was learning how to trust and be brave while getting flung across the forest at the Adventure Park, putting our differences aside while working with the locals at service, meeting the mothers that work and live in San Pedro, or being valiant to express our own opinions and ideas during our mentor groups! I’m sure that each of us gained a bit of confidence somehow, someway, during our time here and sometimes that’s the most valuable thing you can achieve from a trip like this! So, next time you are in a difficult or similar situation, I hope you think about how you handled differences, insecurities, debate, and friendship while in Costa Rica.

We hope that you all think of Costa Rica and the people here often. The sidewalk is getting longer each and every day. In fact, the town of San Pedro has said they want to contribute some of their own money to the project to help get it completed faster! We have also fertilized over 20 coffee farms in San Pedro! The organic coffee will grow to be an amazing product that not only provides income for the families, but also will be bought from next year’s GLA students and their families! We are still recruiting more families into switching to organic farming and thanks to your help, more and more people are willing to give it a go!

Although it may have been a while ago that we were all together at the ecolodge in Copey, your memories and the friendships made here will remain forever! Here at GLA Costa Rica, we hope that you are all doing well and going the extra mile in whatever you are passionate about. Keep up the good work!

Some highlights of our trip:
-Surfing the waves in Dominical
-Seeing the natural wildlife and the National Park and swimming in the crystal-clear waters!!!
-Working alongside Alvaro and his constant teasing!
-Nicole and the “Code of Conduct”!!!!
-Esteban’s “dad jokes”
-The amazzzzing smell of compost
-laughing with one another all the time and creating special bonds with new friends!
-The Talent Show!!!!! (Shout out to Bella and Vince for winning!)

-Nicole, Tona, Esteban + Green Communities Staff

 

Feeling nostalgic? You can experience that same sense of friendship and adventure abroad again! Check out all our 2019 programs, or enroll now.

Our trip to Costa Rica was absolutely incredible and I can’t believe how time has just flown by! In just two short weeks we did a TON of activities, made new friends, learned more about ourselves and our host country. Now that you are back home and back to your normal routines, I hope that you still think about your time in San Pedro and are using all that you learned here to do something you are passionate about!

As GLA and Green Communities have taught us, it is our job to consider how our communities can become more sustainable, looking at the pros and cons of everything before making a decision. It is also our job as global citizens to promote awareness on the changes our Earth is going through simply because of the materialist nature of our economy. What we hope is that your time here helped develop you to be true global leaders and that you continue to look for ways to incorporate sustainable development at home.

But besides the academic portions of the trip, we also have learned a lot about ourselves through our excursions and service! Some of us learned to embrace the unexpected and try to look at life through a new lens-whether that was learning how to trust and be brave while getting flung across the forest at the Adventure Park, putting our differences aside while working with the locals at service, meeting the mothers that work and live in San Pedro, or being valiant to express our own opinions and ideas during our mentor groups! I’m sure that each of us gained a bit of confidence somehow, someway, during our time here and sometimes that’s the most valuable thing you can achieve from a trip like this! So, next time you are in a difficult or similar situation, I hope you think about how you handled differences, insecurities, debate, and friendship while in Costa Rica.

We hope that you all think of Costa Rica and the people here often. The sidewalk is getting longer each and every day. In fact, the town of San Pedro has said they want to contribute some of their own money to the project to help get it completed faster! We have also fertilized over 20 coffee farms in San Pedro! The organic coffee will grow to be an amazing product that not only provides income for the families, but also will be bought from next year’s GLA students and their families! We are still recruiting more families into switching to organic farming and thanks to your help, more and more people are willing to give it a go!

Although it may have been a while ago that we were all together at the ecolodge in Copey, your memories and the friendships made here will remain forever! Here at GLA Costa Rica, we hope that you are all doing well and going the extra mile in whatever you are passionate about. Keep up the good work!

Some highlights of our trip:
-Surfing the waves in Dominical
-Seeing the natural wildlife and the National Park and swimming in the crystal clear waters!!!
-Working alongside Alvaro and his constant teasing!
-ordering pizza to thank Memo and the kitchen staff for the wonderful food
-Esteban’s “dad jokes”
-The amazzzzing smell of compost
-laughing with one another all the time and creating special bonds with new friends!

-Nicole, Tona, Esteban + Green Communities Staff

 

Feeling nostalgic? You can experience that same sense of friendship and adventure abroad again! Check out all our 2019 programs, or enroll now.