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 updates 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 late in the evening or overnight will be posted the following day.
- 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 5
🐢 Welcome to Costa Rica! A New Adventure Begins
There’s something unforgettable about landing in a new country — palms waving in the breeze, unfamiliar accents in the air, and 19 excited faces stepping out of the airport in San José, Costa Rica. Some students arrived early in the morning, others later in the evening — and we’re still joyfully awaiting our final student, who will be arriving around noon.
For now, we’re nearly complete, gathered at our welcome hotel in San José, ready to begin this incredible journey together.
As each student arrived, they were welcomed with open arms and warm smiles by our dedicated staff team:
• Maribel, our International Director, and Jason, our Local Director; will be guiding the group through every step of this experience.
• Esther and Anna, our energetic and caring mentors, are already helping students feel right at home and have a lot of fun.
“It was a long journey for all of us to Costa Rica, but it was instantly worth it when we saw the natural beauty of the country. We all arrived at different times, but as we met each other we all started becoming friends. We played fun games and had many conversations. Even just at the hotel we saw so much diverse wildlife, such as iguanas, monkeys, and frogs. The first day gave us a small taste of Costa Rica, and made all of us very excited for what’s to come”
From your Leader of the Day Aidan Joseph Kehoe
✅ Stay tuned to our blog for updates on our conservation work, cultural experiences, and unforgettable pura vida moments.
💡Parents: Please know your students are safe, supported, and already beginning to shine. Just a small note — signal coverage is limited and Wi-Fi will not be available during our time in Parismina, but that’s also part of the beauty of this immersive experience.
BLOG POST FOR JULY 6
🦥 Zipline adventures
Before we arrived in Parismina, our journey took flight — quite literally — through the zipline tour at the Costa Rican rainforest.
Our second day in Costa Rica was filled with anticipation and excitement for what´s to come in our adventure. Everyone arrived yesterday but we were all in good spirits and happy to explore this beautiful country. Our group left early in the morning to start our journey to homebase. The bus ride was beautiful through the jungle. We saw sights we have never seen before.
Our first activity for the day was ziplining. A lot of us had never ziplined before but we all faced our fears. It ended up being worth it and one of the most thrilling experiences in our lives. We even rode a 700-meter zipline. We all came here for the animals and were not disappointed. We saw many different birds, bugs, and coati´s. We also saw an exhibit of sloths and butterflies. One of the favorite exhibits though was the reptiles and poison dart frogs. We then continued our great journey to home base, at Parismina.
We went through bumpy roads and banana farms, making a pit-stop at the supermarket to pick up snacks. Afterwards we arrived at the river where we boarded a boat and sailed through the marshland, full of crocodiles. It looked like a different planet when we arrived. There is so much color here and beautiful flowers, exotic animals as well. For the rest of the night, we got to know each other and settle into our new paradise. To end the day, we all played games and went to sleep.
From your Leaders of the Day Stella Neumann and Aidan J. Kahoe
💡To our families back home — thank you for encouraging these bold young leaders to dive into something real. They’re thriving.
BLOG POST FOR JULY 8
🌿 Eco Living 101: Lessons from the Lodge
At our home base, the Green Gold Eco Lodge, we’re learning to live with intention. Turning lights off not because we must, but because we understand energy’s value. Taking short showers not as a rule, but as a practice of gratitude of the limit fresh water we have, learning to reconnect with nature, and creating strong bonding with their new friendships.
At the start of day 3 we ran out of water. For this reason, we could not shower or use water until they obtained more. Breakfast was rice, beans and toast. After breakfast we had a leadership activity where we wrote letters about our values, goals and expectations. Then we did an activity where we blindfolded someone and had them find an object by following the directs of our fellow group members. For lunch we had chicken and veggies.
To start the afternoon, we had an orientation class where we learned more about the rules that govern us as well as the boundaries in this location. During this tour we saw cows as well as capuchin monkeys (white faced monkeys). After this tour we had free time and decided to play some volleyball. We had a blast! Then we had a turtle talk where a speaker came in to talk about the turtles and what they need to be preserved from. Finally, we went beach to swim around and played in the sand. The waves were pretty small, but still fun. We had dinner which was rice beans and chips. After the delicious meal we went on our first Night Patrol. We didn´t see any turtles, but we did see tracks leading to and from ocean. We also saw local group during this patrol but didn´t stay to chat for long. After walking for about 2 hours we came back for a well deserved sleep, concluding our third day.
From your Leaders of the day, Kylie Cashwell and Henry Patterson
Parents: Your students are doing more than adapting — they’re thriving, they’re leading, and they’re making a difference.
BLOG POST FOR JULY 9
*Note to families – Due to limited WiFi, we have not been able to send as many blog photos as we’d hoped. We will include more pics as soon as we can!
🌎 Helping the Coast
During this week, our students have come face to face with the real meaning of environmental leadership — and the profound connection between what we consume, how we live, and what we leave behind.
After breakfast we took a tour around the property looking at the various plants and animals which resided on the property. We were able to try eating many of the plants such as coconut, sugar cane, water apples, cacao seeds, and more. It was very fun and exciting to see how easy it was to plant everything here and was fun to eat all the different foods. During this walk we managed to see lizards, sloths, monkeys, ants, and termites. Our Local Director, Jason, even called over a caiman and fed it chicken strips.
After the tour we ate lunch. Following this we did an activity where we drew a timeline road of our life, review the importance of values, GLA pillars, and what we expect in our future. After this we went out to the beach for a beach cleanup, where we walked for several hundred meters picking up all the trash on the beach. Following this we had some time to either go to the beach for fun or play volleyball. Sadly, the currents here are very strong and there is the concern of riptide so people could not go deep in the water. After this we had mentor groups, dinner, some free time, and a GLA game of modified charades. Then we went to sleep.
From your Leaders of the Day Tristan Ball, John Patterson, and Athan Colon.
Parents: Your students are engaging with the world not as tourists. They’re learning that leadership is a verb — something you do, build, and give.
BLOG POST FOR JULY 10
🌸 Vanilla vibes
Yesterday we began the day with a jungle boat tour. We went on a boat through the lagoon and saw many different animals. We saw caymans, several species of birds, lizards, iguanas, red dart frogs, and an otter. Jason taught us about all the animals´ habits, diets, and other cool facts. We learned about wildlife, and how the lagoon has changed since Jason was a kid.
Afterword the braiders came, and all the girls ran out to get their hair braided. There were so many different styles done, and some girls added colored string and shells. Despite the language barrier you could feel the welcoming atmosphere. We talked to one of the braiders named Keisha and we were surprised to hear all about the news from the outside world. Lastly all of our hairs were finished, and a lot of squealing and excitement was shared.
After lunch we had a leadership activity and then went on a tour of Jasons vanilla farm. He taught us about how it has overgrown. He showed us how to pollinate the vanilla flowers, how to harvest the beans, and how to replant the vines. We got to smell some of the beans that he has already developed and a bottle of homemade vanilla extract. As our last activity of the day, we had our second night patrol. We split into two groups, and each went in opposite directions on the beach. Although nobody saw a turtle, there were several tracks.
From your Leaders of the Day, Matthew Devine and Liana Parkan
BLOG POST FOR JULY 11
🇨🇷 Tico Life
If our night patrols are teaching us patience and purpose, then the daylight hours here in Parismina are giving us rhythm, flavor, and a deeper understanding of what “pura vida” truly means.
We started our day with a delicious breakfast. After breakfast, we prepared to head into the town of Parismina. We rode in the back of two trucks. Once we got into the town, we got to tour the Sea Turtle Hatchery and saw how the ASTOP helped protect and conserve sea turtles. We walked around the town and got to see houses and shops. Then, we cooked delicious empanadas. We learned how to make the dough and fill them. After that, we stopped at a smoothie place for lunch. We also had burgers from home base that were brought to us. Right across from the smoothie shop was two convenience stores that we stopped at.
We also had the chance to support the local economy at the ArtCraft Feria, that sold bracelets, necklaces, paintings and other crafts. After that, we had our dance class where we learned salsa, Bachata, and some other local dances. Then we played soccer and volleyball with some of the local Parismina kids. We then returned to home base in the same two trucks we came in on. We ate dinner, played some games, and did some guided savasana which prepared us for a long night’s rest.
From your Leaders of the Day, Olivia Nau and Ruari Montague.
💡Parents: Your students are not only conserving wildlife; they’re immersing themselves in Tico life or Costa Rican life — with open hearts, eager minds, and growing leadership skills. They’re learning, laughing, and leading every step of the way ¡Pura vida!
BLOG POST FOR JULY 12
🦥 Jungle Adventures
We started the day waking up to pouring rain, which because of the rain, the schedule was manipulated to fit the difficult weather. So, we did not start our activities until noon. Our first activity was the reforestation of the jungle, in which we put dirt in bags to prepare for planting and planted more of the sea grapes by the ocean. Then we wrapped up with finding an – unfortunately – already poached sea turtle nest. Jason taught us how to locate the nests with sticks. Then we came back to base for lunch, and to prepare for the beach cleanup and our sea turtle debate. The simulated government proposed a bill to try and stop the poaching and hurting of sea turtles by those who are not professionals. We were able to negotiate the bill through the different parts of the Parismina community and make it have favorable terms (as a treat for being the best ever, we got banana bread).
The beach cleanup was the next activity, when it was still raining, but we managed to pick up a lot of trash collectively. We also saw some more turtle nests which had already been collected by ASTOP (the turtle conservation organization based in Parismina), to give them a safe life under the sand. We came home for dinner, got dressed for night patrol. In mentor groups before leaving, we got to play games and talk about the best parts of the day, ending with origami and playing telephone. Night patrol was the finale of our day, where we unfortunately did not get to see any turtles. One of the groups was able to see a very cool phenomenon, which only happens in extremely rare circumstances and humid conditions, where the moon has a large rainbow around it. We went home and went to bed to prepare for white water rafting the next day, albeit we were hindered in the night by a plethora of cockroaches in our beds.
From your leaders of the day Valen Baygents, Abella Small, and Elise Riley.
