COSTA RICA – Protecting the Pacific – July 24

July 24, 2017

What an exciting day! even with a few flight delays, everyone arrived safely and smoothly. We spent the day eating Costa Rican typical foods (and pizza…), welcoming everyone to Costa Rica, and walking around the parks and markets of Alajuela, Costa Rica. We are all so excited to get to our homebase in Bahia Ballena tomorrow afternoon! More soon!

-Hannah Calloway, International Director

7/26/17

A:Hey! It’s Andrea and Sarah,

and from today until August 5th you will be hearing plenty from us. From our crazy adventures, life changing experiences, and service to the thoughts of every GLA student here.

S: So now with all the introductions out of the way…

Have you ever fantasized about falling off a moving surfboard and feeling saltwater burn your nasal passages?

Me neither.

But thanks to our wonderful and caring surf instructors, that didn’t happen. Today was our first real day at home base and our first day of service.

We all met to eat breakfast at 7 and were on a taxi/bus (they called it a taxi but I assure you it was a bus) by 7:45am. With all our essentials (water, sunscreen, bug spray, and towels) we were prepped to the max and slightly unsure of what to expect.

A: We get there and split up into groups. Some went off to do service first and others learned to surf. Nevertheless it was exciting.

A: I started with the surfing. Looking out into the ocean with the sun shinning down on my shoulders. I knew I was ready for whatever was coming my way. Which would end up being tons of waves. After being instructed on the basics and testing out our skills, after two hours most of us got it down. Yelling I

“I did it” while surfing the wave. Afterwards we went on our service trip leading about how plastic is truly a burden. Not only because we spent a ton of time trying to pick up micro pieces of plastic but also by seeing the excessiveness of littering that shows up on these shores. Today I had the opportunity to interview Campbell, a GLA student. She expressed nothing but positivity and glee for this program. She stated that she loves the adventure and service. Also she was happy to get into the water and surf again.

S: To be 100℅ honest, my surfing experience wasn’t nearly as exciting or fantastical as Andrea’s, but water sports have never exactly been my forte. After seeing my life flash before my eyes multiple times (falling off a surfboard is much much easier than I originally thought), I was assured that trying to stand up would lead to certain death.

Well, clearly I slightly overreacted as I’m writing this right now. In fact, I ended up being able to surf despite being pretty awful at it.

We also saw wildlife such as macaws while picking up trash on the beach.

Last night, the GLA mentors had us write down long term and short term goals we had for our trip/life after. My long term goal was to not only become inspired to find a way to help out in my own community to cut down on pollution in the ocean, but also to inspire others.

My short term goal was to not get sunburnt/get very weird looking tanlines. I am pleased to report that I am one step closer to my long term goal and I have achieved my short term goal (for now at least).

Anyways, that’s a glimpse of what our day has been like. We’re playing UNO right now, and I’ve got to get back to that, so adios.

Xoxo Sarah and Andrea

July 27, 2017

S: Hey, it’s us again. Sorry we didn’t update yesterday, we had to live our lives and had no time. But we’re going to try our hardest to remember or potentially exaggerate certain instances to fill in the gaps.

A: With the sun blazing and our water bottles in hand, we set out for our service of the day. We went to semilla De Ballena with the goal of reforestation in mind. We split up into groups and received our tasks. Sarah and I got to saw wood to create tree protectors. Let’s just say that it took some time to create each one, but eventually I got the hang of it. Sarah on the other hand…. well you’ll hear her side soon enough. After hours of hard work we came back to home base and ate. Even after hours of service and sun we headed to dance class. Merenge, bachata, and salsa were just a few of the dances that we learned. I had an amazing time dancing and I even got to learn how to dance the traditional Costa Rican dance with a beautiful long skirt. After a long day we all walked back to home base with Sarah and I singing All American Rejects. We continued singing as we all gathered in the clubhouse singing songs while J.P (a mentor) played his guitar. A perfect way to end the perfect day.

S: So here’s how it went from my perspective: we arrived at the service site and got into groups. Andrea and I were together and immediately partnered up. She began sawing the wood planks and I sat on them to keep them still and provided moral support.

Next, we transitioned to nailing the tree protectors together. Andrea and I were a dream team; she hammered the nails in, I held the wood pieces and handed her the nails while also making small talk.

Once we had left and eaten at the home base, we had some free time before having to go off to dance lessons. In that time, I not only managed to swim but also to lock myself out of my own room/kind of break my own door.

Needless to say, I borrowed Andrea’s shirt for dancing lessons.

We showed up at about 4:30 with a burning desire to trip over our own feet while holding sweaty hands with our partners, and I was not let down in the slightest.

Thankfully the dance instructor had a sense of humor for my dancing abilities (or lack thereof). Although Andrea didn’t mention it at all, she is a great dancer and I just watched her whenever I got confused (which was a lot).

Our walk back was mostly uneventful, except for maybe these weird crab/spider things we saw and I almost stepped on.

Until tomorrow (or whenever)

-Sarah and Andrea (the student blog team)

7/28/17
S: I would apologize for not updating for two days in a row, but I’m not sorry as we were too busy having fun and making life experiences to write to parents about it.
Anyways, we’ll try our hardest to remember what we did two days ago, so just hang in there.
A: So I clearly remember all the sweet and tears from this day. We went back to Semilla De Ballena to continue the previous project of creating tree protectors. This time I got it down to a science. Hammering and sawing came easily to me now. But the heat and humidity did not help at all. Let’s just say I lost all the water that I drank. Afterwards Travis (surf instructor, part of the semilla De Ballena project and super intelligent) taught us about about the three R’s. Refuse, reduce, and reuse. We came up with ways to follow these methods to better our process in protecting the pacific. It was a very informative day that ended with everyone giving up single wrapped cookies. Thankfully not cookies in all. Sorry for the delay but everyday has been busy and a great adventure.
S: Before I go into details, Gabby wishes her mother a very happy birthday. Anyways, we went to service that morning and I continued to offer verbal encouragement to Andrea as she sawed wood. I got a blister on my thumb from doing almost nothing and was quickly reminded that though you can run away from all the work in the world, pain is always a constant.
I might as well admit now that I don’t remember anything else from two days ago, so deuces.
-Sarah and Andrea, student blog team

July 29, 2017

Staring out on the slippery edge of a waterfall. Looking at the cold water not knowing what’s down there or where you will land. If I said jump. Would you do it. Seems that we are catching up again with our blogs hopefully we will have them posted on time. So heres Sarah and I telling our adventures. Two people who just meet facing the world together. One day at a time.

A: So far I have had such a great time. This day was by favorite by far. Honestly when they told me we had to hike I thought I was going to faint. Do you know how many leg days I have missed. I was in no condition to hike in the heat and humidity. But the thought of jumping into the cold water made it all worth while. All I could think about since I got there was I wanna jump in. Moments like these are the ones I live for. The feeling of pure freedom. As I jumped and the cold water hugged me I immediately smiled. What more is there to want in life than just living and enjoying the moment. After more splashing and jumping. Sarah and I decided to jump together. We had to jump over someone because he stood where the rocks were to warn us. I kept repeating, ‘I’m not going to make it.” We started counting down and when we got to 3 all I could think is have no fear. In that moment all my wishes came true to stop thinking and just live. This day was a blessing in so many more ways than one.

S: First of all, I need to clarify that I am loving Costa Rica and this initiative. However, I am not digging this humidity. So when I heard that we had an hour hike waiting for us this morning, I was thrilled.

After a distastfully sweaty walk where we tried termites (they taste like pepper for all you curious bug enthusiasts out there, wherever you are), we arrived at a beautiful waterfall.

I jumped in a few times and narrowly avoided my end while jumping with Andrea a little too close to a rock, but nevertheless the water felt nice and I decided the walk was worth it.

My least favorite part of this trip so far has been putting on clothes while dripping wet, and I had to do just that when I got onto dry land, so that kinda blew but I lived.

So thats the highlight of yesterday, au revoir

-Sarah and Andrea, Student Blog Team

07/30/17

Half way through and it seems likes its been forever. Everyday so busy that I feel like I’ve been in Costa rica for months. Here’s our accounts of surf and service.

Andrea: It’s sad to think our time here is coming to an end. But I have had the most fun meeting new people, living with them and eating delicious food. Today we had surf and service. We had to paint the tree protectors. Let’s just say I ended up with a literal green thumb. Afterwards we began our surf lesson. The amount of times I slipped of enough to make a 5 minute montage. But in the end I finally got up and stood up. Which was the highlight of my day. Later we received a surprise. We got to call and message our parents. I got to talk to them for the first time in a long while. Although I miss them I feel like I never want to leave. I love the vibes and happiness that reside here. I love you mom, dad and anna. See you soon.

-Andrea

August 2, 2017

I know we keep saying this so you’ll have to forgive us (you don’t exactly have a choice), but we’ve been so busy these past three days that we just haven’t had time to document it. Since Andrea and I are tired and still have things to do, we’re gonna wrap all this up in one entry. So sit down and buckle up for the most mediocre literary adventure of your life!

A: So the last three days have been quite the rollercoaster. On Monday we spent the whole day awaiting the soccer game that awaited us. We versed a local team of kids that kicked our butts. Although we gave it our best with Darya and Borja leading the team. Despite our best efforts these talented kids showed us how good they are. The next day we sadly and excitedly headed to our last surf lesson. The waves were crazy that ended up with me wiping out multiple times and getting some cuts. But I got to stand up on the board which made all the wounds worth it. We also ended the day with our last beach service day. We finished painting and building tree protectors to place them in the National Park. We recieved news that we would be waking up earlier than usual. It was because we had a grand adventure in store. We went ziplining and let me tell you it was amazing. The wind in my hair, the magical view, and the thrill of adventure in my heart. It was truly an amazing adventure.

S: Since Andrea covered the gist of things, I decided to compile a list of things that each day has taught me.

Monday : Tripping a small child is surprisingly less avoidable than one may believe

Tuesday: Costa Rica has very large crickets. When I mean large, I mean the biggest cricket you can imagine multiplied by 3. That’s how big.

Wednesday: Suspension bridges aren’t as horrifying as I once thought.

Goodnight

Until next time

8/3/17

S: I’ll put my address somewhere in the end of this so you all can send us a trophy for actually updating this on time, if you’re interested.

Anyways, today was great. We had breakfast at 6 and left at 6:30 to walk to the beach, where we were on a boat for about an hour and a half. On the boat ride, we saw dolphins and two turtles.

Then we arrived at Corcovado national park and went on a 2 hour hike and spotted monkeys and banana spiders (the latter will haunt my nightmares). We ate there and then swam in a waterfall

A: Today I literally flew on water. The boat that took us to the park was going so fast. It was honestly so beautiful looking at the sea. I remember wishing to see dolphins and ten seconds later seeing dolphins jumping around. Amazing to see these animals in their natural habitat being free and friendly. When we arrived in the park it was a beautiful sight, the water was so clear and shining. We hiked around seeing the animals and the waterfall. The only disappointment was seeing all the trash that ended up at this park from other places. It is unfair that nature’s artwork is tainted by dirty waste. We spent some time picking up piles of washed up plastic. But in the end, it was a great day getting ready to go home and enjoy all the time I have left with all the amazing friends I’ve made.

-Sarah and Andrea

Sat, Aug 6th

We had a great lunch today and said our last goodbyes to the wonderful staff and hosts at our homebase as we made our way back to Alajuela. We spent the last night talking about our incredible experience and sharing our memories of the trip.

From the dance party, to surfing and serving the community, Bahia Ballena will always be in our hearts.

Everyone is now on their way back home and We will miss you all so much!

COSTA RICA – Protecting the Pacific – July 24 – August 6, 2017

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