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Tuesday July 17, 2018
Hey families!
Everyone got in safely today throughout the morning and afternoon. The first group that landed went on a walk around town and got some delicious smoothies. We hung out in the park and got to see some different types of stores here in Alajuela. When the next group arrived, we had lunch at a nearby restaurant called Taco a Taco. We had casados which are a typical Costa Rican dish that includes rice, beans, salad, corn tortillas, and meat or vegetables.
After lunch we played a name game and then had an orientation to the trip. We then had some time to settle in and get know each other a bit. Before dinner we did a bit more exploring around Alajuela and then ended up at a pizza restaurant. We had vegetarian, cheese, and pepperoni pizza. It was an extra special day today because it was Max’s 17th birthday! We sang happy birthday to him as a piece of cake with a candle was brought out. After dinner we had an activity where we shared our fears, hopes, and dreams.
We are very excited to head out early tomorrow morning for Bahía Ballena. Our leaders of the day will be Gisselle and Joe and they will be writing the blog post for tomorrow.
We’re excited to start this adventure with this group and hope they come back transformed!
Patrick and Jen – Program Staff
Wednesday July 18, 2018
Hola Parents, guardians,and friends
Quote of the Day:
“If it excites you and scares you at the same time you should probably do it”
We started off our day at 6:30am. We gave the students some time to prepare for breakfast which started at 7:00am. Breakfast consisted of scrambled eggs, toast, yogurt, and marmalade. Shortly after we boarded the bus to get to where we are staying now which is Bodhi Surf and Yoga which is Bahia Ballena, Uvita. On our way we made stops to a crocodile bridge, the town of Jaco where we had a very beautiful view of the beach; we also stopped to see sloths! We arrived to Bodhi at 1:00pm and we unloaded and had lunch. For lunch spaghetti, rice, beans, and chicken.
After lunch we went on a community walk to see what the daily life was for a local. We were introduced to different types of plants, went into the beach, and at the end of the walk we stopped at a tour guide’s home and had a coconut. Dinner was at 6:00pm and we had what is known as “casados” which means married. It is called “casados” because it is what the wife would typically serve the husband. Casados consisted of black beans, rice, fajita chicken, spaghetti, palmitos (hearts of palm trees) and salad. After dinner we played an ice breaker game called “string story.” Each student will pull the string out of the bag and wrap it around the finger while telling a story, once the string is completely wrapped the story must be up. Lastly we finished the day with a surfing intro with our surf instructor Gibran. We have enjoyed Day 2 so much and are super excited for what is to come.
¡Pura Vida Mae!
-Gisselle Rodriguez and Joe Keller
Thursday July 19, 2018
Today we all woke up to a breakfast of fresh fruits, oatmeal, eggs, and toast. After breakfast we hiked down to the national park and got our first lesson on surfing. We all instantly fell in love. Not a single person left the ocean without catching a wave. We fell in love with surfing at the first paddle. Riding a wave is unexplainable serenity. We walked back, sunburned and sea salted to a lunch of soup, ham and cheese sandwiches, and a yummy punch. We saw monkeys, parrots, a macaw, and some massive centipedes.
We then took a quick Costa Rican bus ride to an after school program for the youth. There, we drew whales and played with the children, learning more about them in Spanish and in English. At the end of meeting with the children, we engaged in a circle of recognition, thanking people for bringing light into our lives in ways they may have overlooked. This day has posed us with many challenges, yet we learned a lot about our GLA peers and ourselves. Today has introduced a new outlook on life for many of us on the trip, and we can’t wait to see what’s in store for us next.
Brushing our teeth nightly!
-Dallas and Mallory
Friday July 20, 2018
Today, as leaders, we woke everyone up by hitting a metal cup with a metal spoon, bright and early at 6 am. At 630 we had breakfast in alegria. Afterward we had service at the park.
At service we picked up organic and inorganic trash. We helped paint benchs, tables, and moved tables to better places. After service we played a game of soccer with Kelvin, a local and ex-professional soccer player. Ben liked the service but didn’t like soccer. Maddy liked and soccer, even though it was very hot. We liked how everyone was helping and invoked at service in helping the community.
When we got back to Bodhi we ate lunch and had a discussion about how sports affect us both positively and negatively. Then we swam in the pool. After resting we went back to the beach to surf and learn how to turn on our boards. Even though the water was choppy we all had fun surfing in the rain.
At night we ate dinner and began our World Cup activity where everyone split into groups who had different view points on FIFA World Cup. Although some people do don’t take it as seriously as others, other did a good job staying in character. We discussed the negative effects FiFA could have on the country that most of us were unaware of. At the end of the night we were all exhausted after a full day of activity’s.
Ben said he learned that being a leader took a lot energy, “right after the activity I went straight to bed and passed out”.
As a group we learned a lot things such as how to turn on the surfboards, that FIFA isn’t as much as a benefit as it seems to be. People lose there homes and property due to the space needed for stadiums.
Meeting Kelvin was very inspiring because even though he was a professional soccer player he was very humble when he met us and he talked to us about how the locals very much apréciate us helping out the community.We learned that to lead a group you have to be assertive but also patient so we can all work together.
Trying new things everyday,
Ben and Maddy
Saturday July 21, 2018
Hello!
Getting everyone up this morning was a struggle. But the breakfast we had this morning made it worth waking up so early. We had french toast and maple syrup, fresh fruits, eggs, and oatmeal. After we had breakfast we got right into our busy day. We walked to the beach at 7:30 and began our lesson with Gibron. Today we learned how to paddle out and get over different types of waves. We learned that if you can see over a wave, then you should go into plank position and allow the wave to pass under you.
To get over a big wave you have to do a turtle roll (which is sooo hard). It started to rain so the scenery was so green and pretty. We walked back to home base and had lunch. We ate quesadillas and veggies plus some chips and salsa. After we ate lunch we made the executive decision that everyone needed a nice nap. Some people took a walk to a little corner store and others stayed behind to rejuvenate after the extreme days we have been having. We had service on the yoga platform. We watched a TED talk and explained our feelings towards it and why we felt that way.
It was really interesting to see people’s opinions and how they changed because of the video. We also planned out our service for tomorrow and that was definitely a hardship. Eventually we agreed on a plan and we now have a wicked fun day planned for the children of Forjando Alas. After that we did yoga which was a must need stress reliever. For dinner we had lasagna, salad, and garlic bread. Our nightly activity was a very fun game called mango and everyone was so into it. Today we learned a lot about each other and how we can help out as much as we can towards one another.
I was surprised by how energized people were towards the games we played and i’m proud of all the hard work we have done so far while being in Costa Rica. The big inspiration guy of the day was Tupac because of the quote he said “The most expensive thing in the world is trust. It can take years to earn and just a matter of seconds to lose.” Today I learned that I am a pretty good blogger if I do say so myself.
See you in the next episode of GLA,
Krissy and Trent
We woke up at 6 to eat breakfast and get ready for rafting. we left at 7:30 and hit a few bumpy roads on the way. we got to the river and we’re all eager to get in and start rafting. all of us had a lot of fun and some of us even fell in. we had an amazing snack and used leaves as plates. after we got out of the river we went to lunch and had really yummy food. then we came back and had a movie night. we watched surfs up and almost all of us fell asleep. we were surprised how quickly people fell asleep during the movie. we are proud of everyone’s determination to get back in the raft when they fell out. we were impressed by the chefs at where we went for lunch. we learned that it’s hard to get everyone’s attention without sounding mean.
From,
Liza and Mia
Monday July 23, 2018
Today we learned about the different types of breaks in waves and where the safe zone is.
The most surprising thing that happened today was getting burgers and fries for dinner.
Most proud of the service we provided for the kids.
The most inspirational person today was the yoga teacher.
Today I learned that I like yoga and how it makes you think about the world around you.
From the bottoms of our hearts,
Max, Jack, and Kyle