Thanks for the checking out the blog for this Global Leadership Adventures program!
Here are a few things you can expect:
- We typically receive 2-3 blog posts per week here at GLA Headquarters from our program staff and students, so please don’t be alarmed if you don’t see a blog post daily – that’s totally normal.
- Blog updates sent on weekends may not be posted until Monday.
- Due to many factors, including but not limited to internet accessibility, photos may not always be available to post onto the blog. Sometimes onsite program staff are only able to send text back to Headquarters, where our team updates the blog.
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 11
Hola!
We’re all finally in the land of Pura Vida and our program couldn’t have started a better way. All our students landed in San José today and their luggage is here with them.
We had various arrival times throughout the day; from 10am to 9pm. Students had the opportunity to enjoy the swimming pool at the hotel (after successfully passing the swim test, of course), interact with each other, play cards, sleep, and rest.
We had some late arrivals so we’re looking forward to eating our first meal as a whole team tomorrow morning – and of course we’ll take our first group photo then.
We couldn’t take photos of everyone given the difference in arrival times but we promise we’ll take more photos tomorrow 😉
We’re all excited for our early start tomorrow morning to travel to our Homebase in Parismina. We’ll stop somewhere along the way and go ziplining, so we’re also looking forward to that!
The team – Marco, Mag, Grae, Jason, and Luismi
BLOG POST FOR JULY 12
Hola!!
This morning we woke up pretty early to get breakfast and left the comfort of our hotel in Alajuela. After a couple of hours we arrived at our Zipline location.
We all got a great rush of adrenaline as we descended through 10 different cables – some of them were so long you couldn’t even see the end! The group faced their fears and supported each other to overcome this challenge.
A few more hours of driving and we arrived in Siquirres where we took a COVID test and bought some snacks. Then we kept going to Caño Blanco, where we took a boat through the beautiful Parismina river. We made it to our Homebase just after the sun set, settled into our new rooms, enjoyed a delicious dinner, showered, and played a game which allowed us to start bonding with our Mentor Groups.
At night we also celebrated Dani’s birthday with a cake!
Hasta mañana!
The GLA Team
BLOG POST FOR JULY 13
We started the day with yoga and a run with our mentors. Then had a delicious breakfast of eggs and toast. Orientation was well organized and we shared some great memories. After orientation we had lunch, which was also great. Then we had a siesta, which is a time of rest during the hottest point of the day. We were able to all get to know each other and do quiet activities such as journaling and card games. After the down time we got ready to go to the beach. The water was nice, we got to play volleyball, made sand castles, and went boogie boarding. After we got to drink water right out of a coconut. We took refreshing cool showers. We had a presentation for the turtle conservation. After we had dinner and now we are getting ready for our first patrol.
Caelan, Isabelle, Rae, and Dani
BLOG POST FOR JULY 14
Hola,
We started off our day with a two hour boat tour. Our guide showed us many different animals such as a cayman, iguanas, different types of monkeys and a pink spoonbill. Then we came back to Homebase and had a lunch of rice and vegetable and meat stew. After lunch we had siesta where a lot of us made friendship bracelets and hung out in hammocks.
Once siesta was over we headed to the beach for a clean up. We walked the beach for an hour or so picking up trash. Then we got to go in the water in our Mentor Groups. After that we had an intense volleyball tournament. We played a big volleyball game after the tournament and headed back for dinner. For dinner we had Mac and cheese and rice with veggies. We ended the day with night patrols on the beach and sadly we didn’t find any turtles.
Olivia, Zakaria, Grace, Giorgio, Lydie
BLOG POST FOR JULY 15
Day 5 (the day Jack kissed a crab)
Hola!
We started off our day with a farm tour around the home base. We saw banana trees, plantains, pineapple trees, and lots of monkeys. We ate termites and a lot of coconuts. This was the hottest day of the trip so far.
After the tour we had lunch and enjoyed an extra long siesta. We then went to the beach and frolicked through the mystical waves. We cracked open wild coconuts on a log and enjoyed the fruits of mother nature. We slothed our way down the beach picking up plastics. We filled 3 gigantic bags. When we got back we had dinner as well as some scrumptious carrot cake. Lastly, we finished off the night with a conservation debate that inspired everyone.
Louisa, Maddy, Drew, Jack
BLOG POST FOR JULY 16
Today we started our day taking a bumpy but scenic drive to the Parismina village. Right when we arrived we were ushered to the beach to witness baby leatherback turtles being released to the ocean after being raised at the local hatchery. After witnessing that incredible moment we started our tour through the quaint town with only 480 Ticos (Costa Ricans). After seeing a school, church, and homes, we made cheese and bean empanadas in our cooking class. We then got fruit smoothies which cooled us off after the first sip. We had a variety of smoothies, from mango to pineapple to soursop, a local favorite.
Then we had chicken and veg burgers for lunch and went to the craft fair. We bought handmade paintings, wood carvings, and jewelry. Afterwards we played soccer and volleyball with the local kids. The kids sadly beat us at soccer and we just passed around the volleyball. After a rough ride back home through a runway and back roads, we came back home for dinner and our third night patrol, in which we got to see our first turtle of the program, a green turtle!
Katie, Connor, Emily, Max, Henry, Mia
BLOG POST FOR JULY 17
Today we started off with us all taking a COVID test. It was pouring outside and we didn’t think we were going to leave Homebase. For breakfast we had arepas. Afterwards, we hung out at Homebase and read, wrote in our journals, and made friendship bracelets. Each group made three signs from recycled trash to hang in the community. We used the trash we collected from the beach clean up. Then we had rice, beans, chicken, and salad for lunch. After lunch we listened to music and hung out around Homebase. At around 3pm Maya came to give us dance lessons. We learned many dances including the salsa, the merengue, the cupid shuffle and others. By that point we were all tired and sweaty and we’re excited to go to the beach. Most people went swimming, others played volleyball, football, and made sand castles. We ate dinner when we came back and had empanadas and salad. We also had our last night patrol tonight and are excited to go rafting tomorrow!
Adi, Abbey, Cassie
BLOG POST FOR JULY 18
Today we started off with a long trip to the Pacuare river. After arriving we were given instructions from Gustavo, one of our guides. After, we were given a chance to swim. After gearing up we embarked on our 3 hour rafting journey through the jungle. The first half started off with a warm up, eventually leading to the intense level 3 and level 4 rapids. Luckily everyone made it safely to lunch. While guides prepared lunch we relaxed near the river bank. Despite the second half not including many rapids, the most beautiful views of the whole trip were included. We were able to swim in the beautiful canyon while rain drizzled, enhancing the moment. Eventually we sadly had to say goodbye to the guides, river, and scenery, as we departed back to home base.
Tyler, Amaya, JP, Alejandro
BLOG POST FOR JULY 19
Hi!
Today we had our last breakfast at the Homebase. Then we traveled and stopped for lunch at a place where we ate casado and bought some traditional sweets to bring as souvenirs. We then continued our trek to Alajuela where we had dinner.
At night we had a closing ceremony where we showed each other appreciation for all the experiences we shared together this week.
We wished everyone safe travels back home and got ready for the early departures tomorrow.
-the GLA team
