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 JUNE 28
Hola hola GLA families and friends,
Today our students finally arrive in the Dominican Republic, and we couldn’t be more excited to meet them. Bienvenidos chic@s!
The first one to arrive was Alison. Later we welcomed Davin, Jackson, Mary, May, Lucy, Audrey, Nate, Ffion, and Ralyn. Students had the chance to go for a short walk around the Colonial Zone of Santo Domingo, where they had dinner.
Lastly Aileen, Charlotte, Daniel and Kyle arrived. We called it an early night to allow everyone to charge their batteries, as tomorrow we leave Santo Domingo to our beautiful homebase in Las Galeras. We are looking forward to showing them the area we are going to call home for the next days.
In this program students will experience the culture of the Dominican Republic and connect with the local communities in a very unique way, so keep on following this blog to learn about our leaders’ amazing adventures!
Your GLA Team,
George, Maggie and Erin
BLOG POST FOR JUNE 29
Hello parents, friends, and family!
This is Lucy West and Audrey reporting live from the Dominican Republic! Today we woke up to a beautiful morning in Santo Domingo and headed down to an awesome hotel breakfast.
After that, we hopped on a bus and took a very short four hour trip down to Samaná, our homebase. It is gorgeous here and the water is crystal clear. Lunch and dinner were delicious and our chefs were wonderful. Besides eating, we just caught up on orientation, which I am sure you guys want to hear all about, but we will spare you the details.
Tomorrow we embark on our services activities. We are well cared for by our leaders, and the group is getting to know each other and create our new lifelong friendships.
See you soon!
xoxo LWDC and ALB
BLOG POST FOR JUNE 30
Hola Parents!
Today was a busy day packed with service and fun. We started our day at 7:30 with a delicious breakfast of porridge and fruit. Afterwards, we headed over to the CEBSE Museo de Ballenas, which is Spanish for Whale Museum. There we practiced whale identification and learnt about the importance of mangroves and the dangers of coral bleaching. For lunch, we went to a lovely restaurant in Samana.
Following that, we participated in a beach cleanup. We then took a quick trip to home base before setting off for the beach. During our walk to the beach, we were caught in an unexpected and intense downpour. It quickly cleared up to allow us to enjoy beautiful weather at the stunning beach.
After our beach trip, we made our way back to home base to enjoy a delicious dinner. We then had an insightful talk about Dominican culture and history, before sharing our hopes and expectations for the trip. At the end of the day we reflected in our mentor groups, before heading back to our rooms.
Adios Amigos,
Jackson and Ffion
BLOG POST FOR JULY 1
Hello families,
Today we visited the mangrove forests and helped around. We weeded around the garden area and collected seeds from the mangroves. These seeds will be used in many different locations in order for mangrove restoration. We ate a wonderful lunch and then made our way back to the forest. We planted red mangroves in the forest and afterward went for a walk through the forest. We learned a lot about mangroves and their importance, as well as helping grow the forest.
Everyone enjoyed planting the mangroves but it was very tiring. Nonetheless, we planted many mangroves and had good times. We then visited a convenience store where we bought a lot of snacks. On the bus we created many games and everyone was participating. Once we returned to the Homebase, we continued these games in the pool. Our dinner were the long awaited tacos and everybody enjoyed them. Later in the evening we participated in an activity called a social sync, where we reflected on social media and set plans to limit screen time. Overall we had a very productive and fun day.
See you soon!
Danny and Kyle
BLOG POST FOR JULY 2
Hola familias, chicas, y chicos,
After starting our day off with one of the best breakfasts so far, empanadas and fresh fruit, we set out on our splendid journey to very kind Orquidea’s beautiful farm. In the morning here we started with a walk around the farm and found fresh and newly sprouting foods such as cacao, pineapples, star fruit, oregano, passion fruit, vanilla bean and more! After she showed us around the farm and we even met some cows, Orquidea taught us a ton about permaculture and the good it can bring to the world and our connection with the earth, but also how we harm the environment with our consuming lifestyles.
Following a delicious lunch and momentary rainfall, we immersed ourselves in permaculture by helping Orquidea build a sustainable washroom. We helped to build sturdy walls using clay we made by sifting soil and sand, learning to cut hay with machetes, mixing it together and plastering it to the walls. We got a little messy but had an amazing immersive experience. After some much needed naps we enjoyed a pasta and salad dinner then finished off the night with the newlywed game with our mentor groups. It got heated but it was a good friendly competition that we will use to strengthen our upcoming debate.
Don´t miss us too much,
Alison and Charlotte 😉 😘🥵
BLOG POST FOR JULY 3
Hola familia y amig@s,
We started off the day with a delicious breakfast of pancakes and fruit😋. We then split up into two groups😭 based on our birthdays🥳. The first group headed off to glass fusion classes to learn how, and to create unique glass projects. The other group stayed at home base to dive deeper into the tricks behind photography. This included a scavenger hunt and demonstrations led by our local director George🤗. After this we all came together to buy souvenirs from the glass shop to take home💸. Don’t be surprised if you receive a pair of earrings or charms. Anyways, we then all headed back to enjoy a scrumptious lunch consisting of chicken nugget, salad, avocado, and rice. Lets just say many went up for thirds.
After we munched, we headed over to the food market in town😃. We bought lots of yummy snacks to share before heading home to get ready for the beach. Once we arrived at the beach we cooled off in the refreshing ocean🏊. After swimming many enjoyed a game of volleyball or a nap. Around five thirty we headed home with hungry bellies for one of our favorite dinners. TACOS🌮!!! Another meal that prompted many more trips to the food counter. After dinner we had a conference, debating the issue surrounding the effects of building resorts in small Dominican Republic towns. Our hearts are happy, and our bellies as full as ever, we can’t wait for the fourth of July!
With love, the champion snackers,
May and Mary
BLOG POST FOR JULY 4
Hi Everyone!!
Today we had a BLAST. We started the day out with a delicious ham and cheese sandwich with fresh fruit on the side. Afterwards we boarded the bus and headed over to… zip lining! We spent the morning going on all 12 courses which were absolutely beautiful. After we were finished we went to a restaurant on the beach where we had chicken with rice and plantains.
For the afternoon we got changed into our swim suits and had an educational session with Orquidea where we were excited to learn about the amazing work mangroves, sea grass and coral do for our ecosystem. After that we packed up and headed to the beach where we spent our time picking up trash and snorkeling to see the different sea life there. Once we got back we showered and then ate a patriotic meal of burgers and fries for the fourth of July, afterwards we were surprised with cake as well. Overall we had a great day but we are sad to see that we are already at the half way mark!
– Nate and Davin
BLOG POST FOR JULY 5
Hello families,
Surprise! We’re back and quite literally better than ever. It’s LucyWest and Audrey reporting to you from Las Galeras. Today was filled with exhilarating activities! We started with a nutritious meal of eggs, bread, and fruit which prepared us for a four hour lecture about our three main conservation efforts! Guys this is crazy, did you know we actually should be spending way more time and effort protecting mangroves, coral, and seagrass? Me neither, but thanks to today’s mini lesson I sure do now!
Then we had a delicious new lunch – let’s just say we continue to be grateful for every meal cooked for us. In the afternoon we were blessed with a surprise Dominican Republic rainstorm so we had to shift a few things around…. but we got the experience of making homemade buoys! It was very educational and teaches us the art of appreciating random things we never knew how to make. Dinner was (insert drum roll here) pizza! We finished up the night with mentor groups, which just continues to solidify the life changing relationships we are making here. Missing y’all- but not too much 🤗
Xoxo, for the second time,
ALB and LWDC
BLOG POST FOR JULY 6
Hello families,
Today was a very fun and relaxed day and I’m almost sure everyone had fun. In the morning we had fruit and pancakes for breakfast and I think everyone was excited to eat a familiar food. After that we went on a 7 beach walk, part of the walk we went into a cave with beautiful and long liana vines. One of the beaches had rocks covered in snails and some of us found lots of beautiful shells. On one of the beaches we stopped and swam for about an hour which cooled everyone down.
Then we ate lunch which was a lot of different food and everyone got at least one thing they enjoyed. After that, we rode a boat to several diferent beaches. Some people jumped off the boats and enjoyed swimming with life jackets on. We also made a stop at a river close to a beach that had very clear cold water and we saw some mangroves there. Then, we rode the boat back to our normal beach and after swimming and chilling for around half an hour we rode the bus back to homebase. When we got back we had free time before having some delicious tacos for dinner. Before the evening activity many of us enjoyed a fun game of try not to laugh.
Then we had our evening activity where we talked about leaders in our lives and what makes us leaders ourselves. Finally, everyone played another game where I believe everyone had lots of fun and then went to their rooms to rest before another great day tomorrow.
Miss you guys,
Aileen and Ralyn
BLOG POST FOR JULY 7
Hola familias,
Today we woke up to a lovely breakfast of quesadillas and fruit. Then we set off for the local school where we read stories, painted with the kids, and created small plays about ocean superheroes. We got to experience their brand new library while we bonded with them. We had a delicious lunch with them and played some fun games, including hide and seek. We were each paired with a child and were able to connect with them, despite the small language barrier. We improved our Spanish while they improved their English.
After our school visit, we headed back to home base, grabbing snacks along the way, to enjoy some free time. Later we had a pasta dinner and began our evening activity of “Trash Your Values” where we discussed our values and discovered which are most important to each of us. Our evening ended in a flurry of packing and saying goodbye to home base, in preparation for our journey across the bay to Sabana de la Mar.
Los hecho de menos,
Jackson and Charlotte
BLOG POST FOR JULY 8
Hi y’all!!
Today was a really sad day for us all as we left our home in Las Galeras. As a leaving gift we all had delicious banana bread made from the very special Raquel. After breakfast we boarded our bus to head down to Samaná port. From there we got ourselves all onto a boat where we enjoyed a music filled ride with beautiful views. When we arrived in Sabana del la Mar we went to our new hotel where we will be spending the next two days.
At the hotel some of us took naps while others played in the pool. Later in the night we had mentor groups and dinner and all enjoyed more free time. Today was a bittersweet day since although we had lots of fun it put it into perspective that our trip is coming to an end.
Adios!! Hasta Luego (see you soon)!!!!
– Ffion and Davin
BLOG POST FOR JULY 9
Hola familias,
Today was exciting. We had a great breakfast which fuled us for our morning service at Parque Nacional Los Haitises. When we arrived at the park we boarded a boat which took us through a mangrove forest. Our tour guide, Nacho, led us through various caves with aincent drawings on the cave walls. After the caves we saw an island with a bunch of different birds on it. The last stop was a small island where we picked up five bags of trash.
We then returned to Don Rey Ranch and had a much needed lunch. The afternoon was very chill, some of us were in the pool and some took naps after our long week. We then had a nice dinner followed by a closing bonfire with a fun game of taps of appreciation before we had s’mores. Because the fire was so hot some of us jumped in the pool to cool off. It was a fun day.
Adios Amigos,
See you soon!
Danny and Alison
BLOG POST FOR JULY 10
Hello and goodbye! This is LucyWest and May writing to you from the floor of our very last hotel.
Today we had a delicious breakfast at Rancho Don Rey – that consisted of nutella pancakes, fresh fruit, and bacon – and then departed for our final destination as a group. After a short(ish) ride of 2 hours we got to our final quality hotel and quickly got ready. Then we headed to The Colonial Zone in Santo Domingo for a scrumptious meal of pizza! We spent the remaining afternoon shopping around the town and enjoying the sights of the capital city!
We then went to our final hurrah dinner at a cute restaurant farther up town. We each got to select our Dominican delicacy for the night and enjoyed laughing around the table for the last time. We even got flan and chocolate cake for dessert! To top off the night we got to watch two incredible waiter turned dancers show us the arts of the Dominican culture. Some of us joined in for some spinning, cha-cha lines, and limbo!
Everyone boarded the bus and headed back to our hotel for the final sleep. One more shut eye until we all return home to you guys. Very few words to express how sad we all are to begin our goodbyes, but for now it’s just see you later!
Thanks for everything Dominican Republic!
Signing off 😉,
LWDC and MCRS
BLOG POST FOR JULY 11
To our GLA family,
Today is a sad, sad day because today we had to say goodbye to our students! LucyWest and Charlotte arose at 2 AM to say goodbye and head to the airport. Then we said goodbye to Alison at 7 AM. The remaining students enjoyed breakfast at the hotel and then traveled to the airport together. There, we said a tearful goodbye to Davin, Kyle, Danny, Nate, Jackson, Audrey, May, and Mary. Maggie and Erin hung out at the airport with Aileen and Ffion until it was time for them to board their flights. After another round of goodbyes, George brought Ray to the airport for her journey home.
We are so sad to say goodbye to our students! We had the best time learning, living, and growing together. The Dominican Republic will not be the same without all of you! This is not goodbye, just a “see you later”.
We miss you already!
Erin, Maggie, and George
