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
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BLOG POST FOR JULY 13
Hola!
Animal Rescue & Veterinary Project crew here! We are officially in Session 3 of ARVP in amazing Costa Rica and excited to start a new beginning with new faces! Yesterday was arrival day (7/13/24) and let’s just say it was a long adventure for our students! But, with lots of anticipation to meet and greet, they have officially arrived (some early in the morning, midday, and night as well), we all got to meet one another and ready to start our 14 day excursion!
From arrivals, we talked to our students about what to look forward to when being here in Costa Rica, and that is helping animals in need. They got to taste some delicious vegan food at the local homebase called Lands in Love that is located in the rainforest (2 hours away from San Jose the main city), and walked around to see the natural beauty Costa Rica has to offer!
From traveling all day, students are very excited for service days and adventure days but also making a difference in animals’ lives.
Therefore, let session 3 begin! Pura Vida!
Yours truly Costa Rica ARVP team,
Anna (International Director)
Katie (Mentor)
Jorge (Mentor Assistant)
Juanca (Local Director)
BLOG POST FOR JULY 14
Hola!
On our first full day at Lands In Love we started out the morning at 8:00 AM with a full variety of vegan breakfast options, including pancakes, rice and beans, fresh fruits and juices.
Afterwards we began orientation where we went over the expectations and policies of the ARVP program with fun ice breakers in between!
After lunch we heard from a guest speaker who works at Lands In Love where we learned about the origins of the hotel and animals, including their vegan roots.
We also did swim tests and health checks before going to dinner where we celebrated Anna’s (ID) birthday with a gluten free, vegan chocolate cake!
Afterwards we had another guest speaker who taught us about Costa Rican geography, food and culture, and also gave us delicious mamon chino fruits!
Finally we said our good nights and prepared for our first day of service.……
Until the power went out.
Due to the tropical rainstorm the hotel temporarily lost power but we were still able to get a good nights rest, no worries!
Chao for now!
Drew and Brooke
BLOG POST FOR JULY 15
Hola,
Today is day 2 of the ARVP! We started off with a big breakfast including vegan french toast, fresh fruits, rice and beans, juices and Costa Rican coffee.
Soon after we headed out to our services and got to work! Depending on the group we were in, some of us worked with dogs and chickens, the horses, or the cats. We helped do some of the daily cleaning tasks and spent some quality time with the animals.
Afterwards, we headed back and had a delicious lunch consisting of fried rice, empanadas, cole slaw, pasta and juices. Unfortunately due to some heavy rain the waterfall hike got cancelled so instead we got to socialize and have some down time. We followed up free time with a dance lesson on some local dances including bachata and a dance battle!
Then we got our phones to check up on our family and headed in for a good night’s sleep.
Adios,
Drew and Brooke!
BLOG POST FOR JULY 17
hi!! Today was a fantabulous day!! This morning a group of us got together at 6:45am (toooo early) for the first service of the day; walking dogs. The rest of the group met at 8:00 for breakfast and dog walkers joined us at 8:30. We had a scrumptious meal of chocolate chip pancakes, plantains, hash brown potatoes, and tropical fruits. We then split into our service groups until noon when we all met again for lunch.
Afterwards, we had about half an hour to get ready for our outing at 1:30. We all gathered into two busses for our trip to San Ramon. Our first stop was an ice cream shop where many of us got ice cream and shakes. There was even a neon blue shake that everyone in the group was offered to try! Afterwards we walked around and peroused at one of the local clothing stores. We got delish bread from the local panadería and some very vibrant meringues. Then we headed to a Costa Rican superstore called Maxi Pali as well as a Walmart. After our shopping hauls, we returned to our home base for a dinner of veggie pasta, Teriyaki soy and rice, and fries. Some of us were health gods and goddesses who ate salads. Later, we had our first mentor groups with Anna and Katie, and wrote to letters to our future selves with goals and expectations for our two week adventure here to end this day on a good note.
Buenas noches,
Quinby and Margot
BLOG POST FOR JULY 17
Hey Girl Scout!
Welcome, or welcome back, to the daily blog. Let’s get into it. We began the day with a nourishing breakfast of French toast, potatoes, and a variety of tropical fruits (all vegan). Yum! Then the group split up to achieve our service goals. After volunteering for two rigorous hours (maybe petting a few cats and dogs along the way) we hopped into the GLA vehicles and chatted our way to the Baldi hot springs where we slid down the numerous slides they had to offer and enjoyed the natural springs from the Arenal Volcano. Of course we ate a great buffet of delicious food selections like chicken, pork, beef, rice, potatoes, pasta, veggies, fresh fruit, and different dessert cakes. Then we stopped at the big souvenir store to collect some unique items for ourselves, friends, and family. Then we went back to the hotel and freshened up for dinner which consisted of rice, fried soy, mushroom potato lasagna, and spaghetti. After dinner we went to mentor groups and had a discussion on being courageous and using the differences and similarities we share to grow closer and get to know each other better. Then we were off for a good nights sleep.
Peace out Girl Scout,
Love Ellie and Pippa
BLOG POST FOR JULY 18
Hey squad!
Welcome to day 5 of the ARVP! We started our day with a breakfast of pancakes and hash-browns and then continued onto our final day of service at Lands in Love. After a delicious lunch, we took a bus ride to a local cooking class to learn how to make handmade tortillas and empanadas! After our cooking class, we played soccer with the local children, ending with an exciting scrimmage and popsicles! Lastly, we hopped back on our busses and had a blast singing the whole way home! Dinner revived us after a long game and we ended the end of day with a presentation from Joseph on local tourism and delicious cookies. We are ending the day looking forward to our next adventures in our new home base (we leave Saturday for Liberia!).
Goodnight squadron from
Ian and Rowan
BLOG POST FOR JULY 19
Bienvenido’s every one today we woke up to the cleverly crafted vegan breakfast of French toast, fresh fruits, and potatoes. Today we did not indulge in service but instead were enriched in the history and cultivation of the cacao fruit. When at the cacao farm we learned about the origination and influence of the fruit. There we also got a hands on demonstration where we even help make our own native cacao drink. After the tour we went back to base and had lunch. For lunch we had rice, nachos, salad, imitation pork, and pasta.
After lunch, we started packing our bags so we could quickly and easily get ready for tomorrow’s trip to our new hotel for the second half of our time in Costa Rica. After packing, we ate dinner which consisted of a small burger, which had a falafel as a vegan substitute for the beef. There was also mixed rice, mashed potatoes, and pasta. All in all, it was tasty and everyone was excited for the burger. That’ll be it for today, so we’ll see you tomorrow! Adios amigos!
Sophia & Jake
BLOG POST FOR JULY 20
Hello everyone!
This morning we got up at 7 a.m. so we could get our suitcases packed and then put them on the bus. After a good breakfast of pancakes, chocolate bread, rice and beans, plantains and fresh fruit, we drove 5 hours to Liberia. It was a long trip but it passed rather quickly with a few breaks. Finally we arrived at our home base where we immediately ate our lunch which was also very good. We had chicken, rice, beans, lentils, pasta, and salad. Then 5 people from Vida, the animal clinic we are working with this week, told us about how the service would be taking place over the next few days: Hard awakenings at 5:45 a.m. with 4 hours of service per day. One day of home visits, two days of surgeries with dogs and cats, and a final day of vaccinating the animals. After that we had a few hours of free time to settle quietly in our new rooms. Finally, we were entitled to a good dinner of chicken, pork, rice, beans, lentils, zucchini, and some salad.
Despite the long bus trip, it was a good day.
Can’t wait for it to be tomorrow to start the service!
Arthur and Louis
BLOG POST FOR JULY 21
Hola amigos!
Today we, the GLA team, got to help the local community and their from the home visits the day before. After breakfast, we loaded into the buses and headed to a community in Liberia and met up with our volunteer partners from VIDA. We were separated into groups, 5 students with each doctor, and helped each house with their dogs, cats, and other animals. Our job was to work with the doctors and explain to the families how they could better care and provide for their animals, and encourage them to come to our clinics over the new few days to opt into a surgery for spaying and neutering. We gave a few pets some medicine to help with tics and fleas and other easy-fix issues. It was an amazing experience to be able to help these families and their pets.
Later today we made a stop by a beautiful landmark in Liberia, Los llanos de Cortez! We were able to splash around while taking pictures of the exquisite waterfall. It was a wonderful site to see and everybody had an absolute blast. After the waterfall we made a pit stop at the local supermercado, to get some last-minute supplies and snacks. Then we drove home and had a delicious dinner that included beans rice and pasta that was the end of our amazing day. Can’t wait for our first day of clinic tomorrow!
Ariana and Ava
BLOG POST FOR JULY 22
Hola from Costa Rica,
In the morning, we woke up and ate breakfast at 6:45. The options for breakfast were eggs, sausages, rice, beans, watermelon, and mango. We then drove 20 minutes to a building where we began setting up a makeshift clinic. They split us into 3 groups and started to prep the animals for either a spay or neuter. During the prep we learned how to do a physical exam on an animal and administer anesthetic. The animals were then ready for surgery. The vets allowed the students to stand on one side of the table and watch as they performed the surgeries. They talked us through it and taught us all the steps of the procedure.
After the surgery, we took the animals to recovery and repeatedly checked their pulse and temperature while trimming their nails and pulling ticks as they were walking up. Finally, we packed up all the things and headed back to Hotel Wilson. When we arrived at Hotel Wilson, we all saw Juanca, one of the counselors, walk in with a lot of pizza boxes from Pizza hut. We all got super excited and ran to get pizza.
After we all finished the food, we got ready to go zip lining. The bus ride was 30 minutes and then we arrived at Hotel Hacienda Guachipelin. We began getting out harnesses and helmets while they explained all of the safety rules. The zip lining had 9 long cables, a tarzan swing, repelling, and rock climbing. The views were amazing and the zip lining was so much fun! We got some souvenirs and then began the drive back to the hotel. At the hotel we put our stuff away and then went to dinner at mcdonald’s! Everyone enjoyed their food very much! At 7:45 we arrived back at the hotel and began mentor groups. We then had free time until 9:00, which is when we all have to be back in our rooms.
Adios padres,
Elia and Emi
BLOG POST FOR JULY 23
Tuanis Mae!
Greetings from the newly-burnt GLA squad. Today we were all over the place, kicking off the day at a rough 6am wake up call. During our 2 hour bus ride, we enjoyed some biscuits and breakfast sandwiches. As soon as we dipped our toes into the brisk, Pacific Ocean, we loaded on to a speed boat that launched us all the way out to our catamaran. Once we arrived at the Lazy Lizard, we rushed to secure the PERFECT spot to catch some sun. Soon after our tanning session, we suited up and hopped off to begin snorkeling. While snorkeling, we greeted pufferfish, stingrays, sea urchins, and a special guest: a, spikey starfish. We then trekked over to a rocky shore with a tide pool full of exciting creatures.
After saying goodbye to our new crabby friends, we journeyed over to the boat once again. For lunch, we munched on some tasty Costa-Rican food, prepared by the captain himself. Our highlights were the burritos, a tangy salad, and a cookie for dessert. After we indulged, many of us fell into a slumber under the scorching, sun. Truly living the Pura Vida life, we might have gotten a little carried away. This either resulted in a new sun kissed complexion or a crispy sunburn. Heading home, we stopped at a souvenir shop, where we purchased our final tokens of the trip. Our sun blessed feet guided us to a much needed cold ice cream snack.
After our hectic day, we freshened up at Hotel Wilson and rested before dinner. Finishing up our pasta, chicken, and, of course, rice and beans, we prepared for an intense karaoke session. Gushing with energy, we sang our hearts out to artists like Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj, Journey, and Shakira. Finally, we retreated back to our rooms and settled down to rest and recharge for the next early morning full of surgeries and recoveries (spoiler!). As our lead surgeon says: “Cool Beans” and we’ll see you on the other side!!
– Lucia and Mariam
BLOG POST FOR JULY 24
Holaaa! Today we woke up at 6:00 in the morning and came down to an array of fruit, rice and beans, eggs and delicious cereal. Once we finished chowing down we went back for another round of volunteering in the clinic for surgery’s. Once we finished we all headed back to hotel wilson for a nice hot shower and a great meal before preparing for our debate! we debated for an hour on the subject matters of animal ethics and costa rican animal cruelty laws. We headed to our rooms to start our packing for departure the next day! Our last chow circle started at 6:15 consisted of amazing shoutouts and hilarious jokes. Dinner was served! For our last mentor groups we focused on our own communities back home and discussed problems and solutions for these issues. As our last activity of the day we were gifted a fruit tasting by the one and only Juanca. Our favorites were the mango, dragon fruit, pineapple and starfruit. Once phones were returned we called family back home and finished the evening with our newly made friends here. At 9:30 everyone headed back to the rooms to get rest for our final day of service. Mucho gusto! 🤙
written by
Sarah and Isabel!
