COSTA RICA – Spanish Service Adventure – July 25

Sorry for the delay on our first post! There were a lot of delays and flight changes. Nonetheless, we are here and ready to work.

Stay tuned-we will writing posts on a daily basis. Know that GLA will try their best to have those post uploaded as soon as possible.

¡Pura Vida!

7/27/2015

Welcome to our first day in Costa Rica! After our first night’s sleep in the Tami lodge, we were fresh and rested for the day. In the morning, we first took a short hike to a beautiful nearby waterfall to share our goals and expectations for the trip. Next, we met with Jonathan, our local director and the head of Green Communities. Jonathan talked to us about the differences between conventional and organic farming, and about how we need to be the difference in this world that is going to be destroyed by pesticides and pollution. He explained how the entire process of organic farming worked, from spreading a special Japanese fertilizer on the plant to selling organic Costa Rican coffee in stores. We also met one of the 18 farmers who was able to tell us even more about the natural agriculture in Costa Rica. We then saw for ourselves the stark contrast between the conventional coffee plantation, brown, dead looking plants, and an organic coffee plantation, with luscious green vibrant plants and soft dirt. We are all excited to begin working with the organic coffee plantation.After a delicious lunch in the Provedencia, we took our Spanish placement exams and began our Spanish classes. We split into three groups: beginners, intermediate and advanced. Everyone enjoyed their time and I look forward to learning Spanish but more importantly having fun while doing it.We walked back to home base after our Spanish classes and after a rest and time to take showers we were split up into three mentor groups. We were in a smaller and intimate setting and shared “Stories of Self”- where we explained major events in our lives or just the general timelines in our lives and how we ended up at GLA. I think everyone can agree that it was more powerful experience than anyone expected. We then came back together as a group and watches a Ted Talk called “The Danger of a Single Story,” which illustrated the fact that many of us only have a single story, and therefore a stereotype of countries like Nigeria and Mexico or certain races. We then talked about how that “single story” affects our lives and how we can break away from it. After dinner we headed back to Tami to get ready for bed and our first day of work tomorrow!Written by Julia and Matt

7/28/2015

¡Hola a todos! We had another very exciting day here in Provedencia. The day started at 7:00 AM with breakfast and then split up into 2 groups for service. There is a harmful fungi that is attacking the coffee plants here, so one group helped Costa Rican farmers spread a combating fungi over two organic farms. They were happy to find out that they were the most efficient group yet at spreading this fungus, and did what usually takes a farmer 2 weeks in a short morning! The other group hiked up a GIANT hill to help another farmer spread brosa, a fertilizer made of coffee skins, over 350 baby coffee plants! We were tired and smelly after and were very happy to eat another delicious lunch in town. After lunch, we all separated into our Spanish classes, which all made mascaradas, masks that cover your entire head, out of paper mâché. The next activity on the agenda was a dance class led by our Spanish teachers. We learned how to dance the salsa, merengue, barchata, and swing, which we practiced with partners. The dance party ended with a giant Congo line and some American dances like the Cupid shuffle and electric slide. Overall, it was a really fun day and we can’t wait for tomorrow!

Written by Sophia and Robert S

7/31/2015

After the campers began the morning with a nutritious omelet, they learned how to be a respectable tourist for the weekend outing. First came quetzal sighting which was slightly disappointing being that there were none spotted, however the short hike and view made up for it. Following came the busy hummingbird garden and a delicious lunch at the local restaurant. The next planned viewing was the Catholic Church, the biggest in Central America and the water that is said to be sacred and holy. As the campers and mentors arrived at the lodge for the evening, dinner was served and the relaxation set it. Ending the evening with a few interactive activities and laughs was the perfect ending of a great “respectful tourism” day!

7/31/2015Today was yet another eventful day here in Costa Rica! We began our day with community service. The group split in two and each spent the morning fertilizing farms with coffee skins, also known as brosa. Despite the heat, both groups managed to work efficiently and make the farmers proud. We then headed to lunch before Spanish class. During Spanish, each class experimented with Costa Rican cuisine, preparing and sampling the country’s unique fruit and vegetables-a true culinary success shared with the niños of Providencia. After a long trek back to home base, we enjoyed some personal time before heading to our mentor groups where we learned how to live in the present. We spent the evening doing a leadership activity where we learned how to become better leaders by acknowledging people’s differences. We had a great day together and are looking forward to four more days of service here in Providencia.Written by Easton and Victoria

8/1/2015As the second week begins everyone starts to realize that the connections we have formed between us are stronger then they would be if they were made over social media. The fact that we have been having face to face conversations seems to been strengthening the bonds that we have been making. Today was considered one of the hardest community service days and it truly showed the true work ethic of us all. Everyone worked hard and did their parts well whether they were in Jonathan, Arturo or Emma’s work group. Today was our third day of community service and we were separated into groups based off the task that each person could handle. Jonthan’s group was the one that would be doing the most intense labor, this group had the chance to go to a Tiko’s farm/goat field to collect the goats poop. The poop would be later mixed into a very important fertilizer called bukashi. Arturo’s group finished up fertilizing Juan’s farm using the brosa the skin of a coffee bean. They would dump half a bucket of the brosa on each coffee plant. The last group was led by Emma and they would shovel brosa into wheelbarrows and dump it into a large pile where we would mix the bukashi. Once every group finished their task we started to mix the bukashi and start making Eco bricks for the wall coming down the new cemented road. Today we all did a lot of hard work and finished around 12:30 and headed up to the town for lunch. The women that work for the church make us lunch everyday and it’s always Muy sabroso! The best part of going to town is that we get to ride in the back of Jonthan’s truck it is always a lot of fun. Today was also our fourth Spanish class because each group had a different level of Spanish experience we take turns doing activities . For example the beginners started today at a woman’s house near Tami lodge to learn how to make piselas (bracelets). Sadly we ran out of time so the advanced group didn’t have the chance to make any. Spanish class is always really fun because we get to learn so many new things and do a lot of fun things. Since tonight was Saturday night we have movie night yay! An end to a great day I say!Sadly today was Arturo’s last day working with us and we’re all sad to see him go. He worked really hard a and made things really fun. Hope you have a great time where’ve we you end up working next!Written by Joey, Jasmine and Ade

8/2/2015On August 2nd, the group split up into two teams. One team continued the concrete road and the other team worked with buakasi and made ecobricks. On our way to collect soil from a forest of ecological study, we were able to learn about the sporadic movement of the monkeys and were able to see the pacific coast line from our viewpoint. Later, we put the broken up soil in our buakasi mix and began to make ecobricks. Most of the fun came from the group’s soccer game with the Ticos. Due to most of the people of Providenca celebrating the founding of the Basilica de la Virgen de Los Angeles, both teams had Ticos on there side. After the penalties kick, the group split up into Spanish groups and participated in the ‘adopt a gringo’. It was a lot of fun to see how Ticos lived day to day and to explore their personal culture. At the end of the day we ate dinner and two individual groups had a leadership activity.- Written by: Jesse and Finn

8/4/2015

Wake up was at 6:45 with a 7 o’clock breakfast. Breakfast was bacon, eggs, and toast. After that we broke up into two groups. The first group went to cement the road, and with their hard work they broke a service record for most road paved in one day. The second group went to mix a fertilizer known as bukashi. They were able to finish mixing it so quickly that had to move to a new job that consisted of making Eco-bricks. After both groups had finished they met for lunch in town. Lunch today was pasta with with an assortment of veggies and this really awesome strawberry jello. After that we returned to our tents for 2 hours of free time. We then broke off in to too groups for leadership and team building activities. Jonathan then engaged us in a very interesting discussion regarding Eco/local tourism and how it benefits the community. After that we ate dinner and returned to our tents ending another fantastic day in Costa Rica.

– Written by Ben and Jasmin

8/5/2015

Today in Providencia we headed out on our overnight beach excursion. After an early wake up call, we were ready for our 5 hour journey to Dominical, a cozy beach town located on the pacific coast. On the way, we stopped at a local restaurant where we were able to swim while we dined. After arriving in Dominical, we spent the afternoon shopping, going to the beach, and swimming at the pool. Our eventful day was brought to an end by dinner at a beachfront restaurant accompanied by rounds of pool as a thunderstorm brewed During our free time after dinner we enjoyed each other’s company and took advantage of a chance to strengthen our friendships.

Written by Zayn and Rebecca

8/6/2015

It was one of the funnest days of the trip so far. We started with breakfast at the hotel, complete with birthday cake in celebration of Anna’s 18th birthday. Then we had a little bit of free time for last minute shopping before we headed to the beach for surfing lessons. After practicing on land to get the hang of it, everyone went surfing in the water and had a great time trying to catch some waves with the instructors. We ate lunch on the bus and headed to Manuel Antonio National Park to see many of Costa Rica’s native wildlife. The tour was amazing because we had guides that pointed out all the animals and we were able to see them through a telescope. After the tour was over, we got in the water in the private beach of the national park. Then we began our five hour journey back to Providencia on the bus and we got back at 10 o clock to eat a late dinner of chicken soup. Everyone was so tired but we all had a great time and loved seeing the rest of Costa Rica!

Written by Anna and Eliza

8/8/2015

Today was a day full of activities. We started off with a filling breakfast of grilled cheese sandwiches. Next, we walked up a small hill to Flora and Francisco’s farm and watched oxen turn sugar cane into liquid sugar which Francisco then turned into sugar cane water. Then, the thirty of us split into two groups, one continuing the work on cementing the road, and the other going into the reserve to clear trails. This is an important job because the path will allow scientists to come and observe the wildlife.

After lunch, we had a fun and competitive soccer game with the Ticos. Then we met up in our Spanish classes and practiced our final presentations for the graduation. And to wrap up the fantastic day, we had a fun barbecue with the community at Juan’s restaurant. We had a great time eating delicious food and dancing to amazing music. We went to bed tired but excited for a new day.

Written by Kelly and Anna

8/9/2015

This morning we woke up to an amazing breakfast of fruit loops and later split into our work groups. The people that worked in the reserve yesterday worked on bagging and transporting the bocachi to a storage facility as well as trying to sweep most of the dirt out of the space. The people that worked on cementing the road yesterday went into the reserve to continue clearing the path for the scientists to use next year while studying the local monkeys. Lunch was made by the wonderful women from town and was soon followed by a great dance performance by some of the local children. We got to see some of the traditional dresses and outfits, which really made the show. After that we all got an hour to go back to Tamí and get ready for Spanish class presentations and graduation. The advanced Spanish class showed us their newscast which included all of their interviews and topics which they had been conducting and recording all week as well as a song that they had learned. The intermediate class performed a couple of dances that they had been choreographing and practicing all week. The beginner’s class demonstrated some of the most popular dances from Costa Rica and gave us some background as to what each dance was about. Each student was given a diploma and a complementary bucket hat (which was pretty sweet) and we all celebrated with some cheese cake. At 4:15 we were back to the restaurant to watch Food Inc. and talk a little about being mindful as to where your food comes from and what’s really in it. Dinner was superb as per usual and then we had around 2 hours of free time before lights out ¡Hasta mañana, amigos!

Pura vida,

Written by Maggie and Matt

8/10/2015

Today was our final day of service in Costa Rica. Our last 6:45 wake up call was more happily received than ever as the group slowly made its way down to a delicious breakfast of homemade French toast at Juan’s restaurant. The group was divided into four sections that would pour concrete, bring in dirt, sift sand, and clean the area where the Bocachi had been. After a few hours working separately, the four groups would join to construct and paint the retaining wall using Eco bricks. Today was one of the longest work days on the trip but definitely one of the most rewarding. Next, we enjoyed our final lunch with the ladies in the community center in Providencia. They surprised us with a delicious homemade chocolate cake and a beautiful dance performance by children from the community. Later, we participated in the Adopt a Gringo program for the second time and were given the choice to either visit old friends or make new ones. Next, we returned to Tami, had dinner, watched Food Inc. and had a thoughtful discussion about industrialized agriculture. Overall, it was a fitting end to many (many) hours of meaningful community service

Written by Cara and Finn

8/12/2015

Hola todos!! This morning all of us woke up bright eyed and ready for the fun day of exploring Jonathan’s Extreme Adventure Park! Soon after breakfast we were split into 3 groups and began. The 5 courses of the adventure park included the tarzan swing, the money bridge, jungle fly, zip-line, and the ficcus tree. The ficcus tree was 90 feet tall that had been overtaken by strangling vines and 500 years later formed a hollowed out tree that is perfect for climbing through. The fastest time by any volunteer was made today. The time was 1:12 and goes to the one and only Mrs. Eliza! When everyone had been through all 5 courses we were all brought back to Tami and ate lunch which was followed by a little bit of free time. To follow was our last discussion/debrief with Jonathan explaining the ways we are all going to help out our own communities. After enjoying a delicious cup of the organic coffee from Green Communities we were all sent off to Tami to improve the way we looked for our Farwell BBQ that night. The BBQ included all GLA students, mentors and Providencia locals to be dressed to the 9’s and ready for a night of good food, great company, and some awesome entertainment! After dinner we had the performances titled “Australian Doctors” and “The Bucatchi Band.” Can we say that they were hands down the best in the entire country of Costa Rica?! A slide-show made by the directors and students was a great success, with a few tears shed. This was followed by many shout-outs to everyone who helped make this trip amazing, ending the night with a taste of satisfaction and completion.

Leaders of the day: Raychel, Teddy, and Robert L.

8/13 & 8/14

As the picture may suggest, mission accomplished!

Yesterday was about goodbyes. Leaving Providencia proved difficult for the community and volunteers alike. Albeit three weeks, volunteers formed such strong bonds that they will carry with themselves throughout their life-long journey.

In three weeks, GLA volunteers have managed to fertilize organic farms, cement roads, clear paths for scientific research in a forest reserve, visit homes in the community, play two soccer games, go rafting down one of the most beautiful rivers, learn to surf, go zip lining, hike, swim in two different oceans and a river, learn about sustainable development, and grow as leaders.

To the volunteers:

While saying goodbye always comes with feelings of sadness, you guys are going home with a heightened level of awareness as to how your decisions-both personal and collective-affect yourselves, others, and your planet.Use everything you learned about yourselves as leaders to start to spread the message that the status-quo isn’t cutting it. Be excited about the opportunity you now have to be agents of change. And don’t start tomorrow, next week, or next month: START NOW!

Remember to keep in touch with each other. Soon you will be receiving an invitation to join the GLA SSA 3 2015 Group. Let’s use some positive peer pressure to our benefit. And keep in touch!

A final shout out to Kelly, Maggie, Sophia, Teddy for being nominated as GLA Student Ambassadors.

¡Pura Vida!

Your International Director, Chris

COSTA RICA – Spanish Service Adventure – July 25 – August 14, 2015

Comments

About Brett Scuiletti