Costa Rica Wildlife Adventure (Session 2) 2024
July 20, 2024
We woke up on our first full day at Costa Rica at 8:30, we appreciated the schedule to recover after a chaotic day of travel. Our breakfast was already waiting on the table. After a hearty meal of rice, beans, eggs and local fruit, we got to explore the villa we are staying in for the day.
There is a pool with a beautiful view of the city, it was cold and refreshing, and diving in was so much fun. Jumping in from every angle, we couldn’t get enough. Franchy, a fellow camper, showcased his wonderful soccer skills by demonstrating how to most effectively clear the ball from any players, and making it impossible for them to ever see it again (we lost it). Still thinking hard about this wonderful game, we decided to play chess. Ian, a very talented and amazing camper had very intense chess matches with Carlos, an equally talented and most admirable camper.
We headed to Alajuela, a very pretty town, for another traditional meal. Once again, the rice and beans were there. This time however, they were accompanied by chicken, steak, or a vegetarian option. We then took a very artistic picture in front of the Alajuela sign, which we all are very excited for you all to see.
We then came back to the villa to play board games and wind down. Between all kinds of card games, Jenga, and never disappointing views there was never a dull moment. Dinner was served straight from the grill, it was very tasty and nutritious.
As we write this and get ready for bed, we can’t help but be excited about the coming activities and the white water rafting tomorrow.
By Carlos & Ian
July 21, 2024
Today we had a pretty early morning and woke up at five am. Our bus ride was pretty long but we all found different ways to make it fun. Funny conversations, bracelet making, singing songs, and of course more sleep. We were all ready for our breakfast. As we pull into the breakfast buffet, our stomachs growled louder than a lions roar— preparing for a feast to sustain ourselves for the wild day ahead of us. After the breakfast, our stomachs were filled with nutritious foods. Back on the road again!
We break up into three groups and head on the rafts. Our guides were all funny and lively. They taught us all the rules of the raft and guided us through the rapids with ease. Eventually we took a pause from the rafts and climbed up a rocky stream. The slick rocks didn’t mix well with our wet shoes, but the end result was worth the trek. We enjoyed our swim, but quickly got back to the rafts to have the most delicious pineapple and for our last hour of rapids! These last few drops and rapids and rocks were the best of all, preparing and exciting the group for the next day in which we will be experiencing even higher level rapids.
After lunch, we started our treacherous journey to a sweet waterfall. None of us wanted to leave but we were worried about it getting dark. So we made our way back. We were all very wet and tired. Then we all cleaned ourselves up and showered. We only had a couple so we all took turns. They were very unique showers and looked so cool. After that we have time for break then dinner! Dinner was amazing and we all fed ourselves very well. Then we played some group games and a fun (but stressful) round of mafia where Olive was god.
Overall, we had a successful day and can’t wait to continue rafting tomorrow! Nos vemos mañana!
By Lark and Olive
…and a special edition blog entry by our new arrivals, Lilly and Caroline!
July 21, 2024
When Lilly and I (Caroline) landed in Costa Rica, even though getting out of the airport was a bit challenging, once we saw the beautiful landscape it was all worth it. We were greeted by Randall at the airport and we all drove down to the City Mall for lunch! We had amazing ice cream at Pops while we walked around the mall looking into shops and watching a parade go by. It had wonderful music and costumes! They were dressed as many different characters including Minions, the KFC mascot, and Mario! Afterwards we drove to the hotel, and we got checked and settled in! The weather was warm and cloudy with small sprinkles here and there throughout the day. We then played an intense game of darts in a garden filled with beautiful flowers and the cutest turtle figurines. After I crushed Lilly, we drove down to the super market with Randall to get some snacks and dinner. When we left the store the sky had changed from a beautiful blue to a dark night filled with sparkling stars and a dazzling moon. I’m so excited for the rest of the trip filled with swimming, helping sea turtles, seeing all sorts of animals like toucans and sloths because this was just the beginning!
Waking up to our first morning in Costa Rica was spectacular. The breakfast at the hotel was very good! Soon Randall, Caroline, and I (Lilly) headed out to our first activity: seeing Volcano Poás! As we headed up towards the volcano, we drove past coffee plantations, cows, and cheese shops. Randall told us fun facts about the history and culture of Costa Rica. The drive passed by quickly as we played cards, listened to Latin Music, and learned more about the place that is going to be our home for the next few weeks. Once we arrived we got our helmets (just in case of flying rocks) and walked up the mountain. At the peak there was a dropped off view of… clouds. It was foggy in the mountains, but a small breeze broke the fog. Peering through the clouds, we saw the volcano: a huge hole in the mountain, smoking like a chimney. The fog covered it back up like a blanket, hiding it from view. We strolled back towards the car, stopping to drop the borrowed safety helmets. We hopped in the car and started driving to downtown Alajuela. On the way, we stopped for chocolate covered strawberries and some of the best cheese I’ve ever had. Once we arrived at Alajuela, we walked through Juan Santamaría Park and Central Park Alajuela. The story that Randall told us of Juan Santamaría, the hero of Costa Rica, was very interesting. His statue and mural were in the center of Juan Santamaría Park. We stopped for lunch at a traditional Costa Rica restaurant next to the park. The food was delicious! Afterwards, we headed back to the hotel, exited to finally meet the group!
-Caroline and Lilly
July 22, 2024
Today we woke up on this beautiful morning day in our glamping, glamorous, glorious tents after a mysterious morning rain . The birds were chirping and the smell of fresh pancakes wafted towards the tents . For the non bean lovers, this was a delightful surprise, increasing their aura by 10,000 . With our tummies filled, we hopped into our burning, boiling, blazing hot boats, eagerly awaiting the adventure ahead.
As we slithered like snakes down the sparkling (NOT brown ) river, some unfortunate souls slipped off the side of their boats!! OH NO!!! It’s okay tho because our guides carried (literally) them back.
As we meandered mindfully through the mountainous rapids, we stumbled upon a beautiful waterfall!! Slipping and sliding we carefully made our way up with only one gluteus maximus whoopsy daisy . We swam, laughed, and took a million pictures of the amaaaazing view.
With sorrow in our hearts and sunburns on our legs, we graduated graduation rapid and ate a scrumdilliumptious lunch . Two hours flew by on the bus, with minimal questionable drawings, and maximal napping time . We pulled up at our hotel and met our newest additions: Caroline and Lily‼️‼️‼️‼️❤️. The non bean lovers thrived yet again with pizza for dinner and Oreos and jokes for dessert!
Grateful for our warm showers and hair dryers, we’ll see you tomorrow
By Eden & Anaya
July 23, 2024
We woke up not sweating but being blasted by AC in a beautiful hotel. We made our way down to breakfast and enjoyed pancakes fruit and mini golf. After hours of stressful packing we grabbed our bags and headed to the bus. We were lucky that we had Bluetooth to listen to bangers and bond over music, helping to distract us from the painful, bumpy 3 hour drive.
We were relieved to finally get off the bus and be welcomed with delicious pasta with alfredo sauce and refreshing pineapple juice. After lunch we had to take a short ride to Santa Elena for our short but very humid hike down a slippery, rocky road. At least we had our backpacks to soak our sweat up. We were shocked to see the beautiful but foggy volcano and forests that we have the pleasure of waking up to for the next couple days. Costa Rica has been so beautiful!
While our delicious dinner was being made we got to learn about the service we would be doing and all about Children’s Eternal Rainforest, they taught us about the species we can find here and everything about the ecosystem and the importance of it. After the presentation, we ate spaghetti we all hung out, played games, sang to the guitar, and shared lots of laughs. We’re so happy to have this experience with such amazing people, we can already feel life long friends forming.
We miss you x100000!!
By Piper & Franchy
July 24, 2024
Following a smooth sleepful night after listening to the pitter patter of raindrops on the roofs of our rooms, we awoke to the smell of breakfast coming from downstairs and as we ate our eggs and gallo pinto, or rice and beans, we kept in mind the journey that it took for the food to make it all the way here and all the people involved in that process. After breakfast we continued to get ready and prepare for our first day of service. We dressed in our most classy and expensive outfits of the trip, raincoats, gloves, and muddy boots. After everyone was suited up we split into groups and began our journey.
The path was beautiful but we had to be careful while walking along the mud and rocks due to risk of slipping and falling on our butts. In our boots we trudged through a flowing and fairly deep creek to continue on to our service work. We knew our hike had reached its end when we encountered the bridge that would become our project for the rest of the day. We began using some scraping tools to remove the moss and leaves from the bridge. After our first coat of red paint, many hands left looking like the aftermath of a crime scene. We finished our work for the morning and headed back through the trenches to fill our hungry bellies with the lunch of the day. We met the other group back at the lodge and ate rice with mixed vegetables, beans (the musical fruit), alongside delicious homemade potato chips.
Back through the trenches we trudged along. Our bellies now full we prepared ourselves for two more hours of work in the relentless rain. As we swiftly finished our second coat, giving each other riddles and playing mind games the whole way through, we finally finished our work for the day and made our final hike back through the muddy trail. The rain was pouring down on us like a cold shower to reward us for our work, but at the same time made the trail all the more slippery. After our muddy and wet hike it was finally time to chill out in the hammocks and play games for the rest of the day.
Dinner soon followed after we finished our siesta time and talking with our friends. We made our way downstairs and filled our plates with rice, pork chops, salad and plantain chips. After a long fight, we’ve finally won the war… of ping pong. Following dinner, activities consisted of steamy cups of hot chocolate, cookies, and intense ping pong and hammock time. One broken glass later, it was finally bedtime and we finally finished this grueling blog.
Love you all, Angelica and Mei
July 25, 2024
Goooood Morning to another beautiful day in the cloud forest ! ☁️ We were awoken at a not-so-reasonable time of 6:45 in the morning. We sleepwalked down the stairs to a delicious breakfast of freshly made pancakes, omelets, and mangos . We had some time to get in our “stylish” work gear before heading out for a day of service. We split back up into our work groups and parted ways half way down the path. While one group prepared (scraped off rust and painted) the parts of a bridge-to-be, the other painted a fresh coat of green paint over the red oxidization preventing coat we applied yesterday. We also can’t forget the task of shoveling beautiful poop brown dirt in the hot sun.
After everyone was finished working they met up downstairs for a hearty lunch of rice , beans , and chicken . After an hour of much desired hammock time, the whole squad (groups 1 and 2) headed out to shovel more dirt! Everyone worked together to dig a path for rain (foreshadow: there will be some) to avoid flooding the trail. After the blood, sweat and tears (just a metaphor) of the tired peeps, we trudged back to the station to have a fun afternoon, filled with cards, laughter, reading while sleeping and tres leches cake ! The hours passed fast and soon dinner was upon us. The sound of the pounding rain and thunder echoed through the dining hall as we munched. After dinner, while the rain was still pouring (putting our newly dug ditches to good use), we started to rethink the original planned night hike.
Even with Luke and Rebecca still firmly deciding to continue with the plan (bluffing), the rest of us protested strongly. Sitting upstairs on our hammocks watching nature’s beautiful light show, Luke declared a challenge. He made a deal: if one of us got a ping pong ball in a cup from a few feet away, we could stay in our cosy shelter. Eden was able to make it in, definitely without the help of Angelica secretly slipping a ball into the cup! Even though we were sad not to see the animals in nature during the night, we were able to avoid the snakes, grab our warm mugs of hot cocoa and settle down in our hammocks surrounded by friends staring at the moon breaking through the clouds.
Love, Lilly and Caroline ❤️❤️
July 26, 2024
We started off the day with a beautiful breakfast, with pancakes, empanadas with cheese, and a nice cup of oj. Then we packed our chuiches and headed onto a 4 kilometer hike. The hike had music, dramatic moments, complaining, and uphill. After that we had a 4 hour bus ride with a nice nap, and some nice music.
We arrived to the zipline location in La Fortuna, and we ate a nice lunch and some smoothies. Then we shopped some souveniers and started the ziplining. The first one was relaxing and high up, the next couple were faster and more intense. We finished off in the rain and then we got onto the bus to the Heliconias hotel and ate a good dinner, with chicken, rice and salad. After dinner we got to the hot springs.
And good nice sleep awaits.
PURA VIDA!!
BUENAS NOCHES!!!
By: Allison & Anthony
July 27, 2024
Hihi blog!! We woke up early this morning to a yummy breakfast of eggs, toast, bacon, and a selection of different juices. Once we finished breakfast, we rushed to the van for an amazing cheese factory tour!! Some peope were cheese lovers, and others were just there for the friends they made along the way. We rolled the cheese out and packed them into actual balls to be sold!!
After the cheese farm, we packed ourselves back in the van and drove to Protecyo Asis, a rehab center for wild animals. Our guide took us on a tour through the protection center and we got to see animals in need of rehab, whether domesticated or hurt, in order to be able to live on their own!! The fan favs were the macaws, spider monkeys, white face monkeys, parrots, coaties, a beautiful raccoon and so much more!! After our tour, we got to put food together for the animals. We measured out the correct amounts and were told how the food was supposed to be given to the animals in equal portions. Watching the animals eat was so cute and we were sad to say goodbye.
When we got back to the hotel, we had a dance class led by Randall. We learned 3 different styles of dance; merengue, bachata, and salsa. After our dance lesson we were all sweaty and exhausted so we decided to chill for the rest of the evening. We swam in the pool, took a dip in the hot springs, had siesta time, and more. Finally we ended the day with pasta dinner and manicures with Rebecca. Tomorrow we prepare for some souvenier shopping and a loooong drive.
Love y’all,
By: Eden & Mei
July 28, 2024
We woke up at a reasonable time. 6:50 am. Breakfast consisted of some great pancakes with chocolate chips and a good assortment of fruit. We then went on a wonderful trip, we got to admire the beautiful Costa Rican views for hours on end. After about 3 hours of a beautiful bus ride we made a stop for lunch next to a massive reasonably priced souvenir shop. Definitely a tourist trap. But trapped as we were, we all got some gifts for those we miss back home.
We got back on the bus for another 3 hours of animal spotting and admiring the beautiful beach ️ . We made it to the hotel and wasted no time to get into the super deep pool. Franchie had pool activities under control. (Allegedly).
The rooms are spacious and comfortable, and after a great dinner we played some games which everyone enjoyed. After such a long traveling day, we look forward to the comfort of our beds and get some well needed sleep. Rebecca and Luke thankfully agreed to push back breakfast 30 minutes, and that’s priceless to us all.
By Ian & Carlos
July 29, 2024
Today the islanders traveled to a new villa in search of turtles. We fueled ourselves with eggs, pancakes, an assortment of fruits before hopping on motorcycles (just kidding mom). We stopped at the Maxi Pali, a local supermarket, where Piper searched desperately for Takis but to no avail. Lark got 2 Cokes, water, and left with a big smile on her face.
Islander Franchy/Francesco redeemed himself by finally replacing our soccer ball that he lost on the first day. We reboarded the bus and after a long ride of friendship bracelets, napping, and bonding, we arrived to the new villa.
A row of hand painted flower cabins became our home for the next 5 days. Oh, not to mention owl decor galore. We are grateful to have 2 bathrooms and AC that works. We then had a SOPPING wet walk to the pizza restaurant, but thankfully Lark had waterproof shoes…Piper got soaked, but was revived by reading a sweet letter from her Dad.
After lunch we returned to the cabinas for some relaxing free time before a presentation from the head biologist at LAST, Eduardo. We learned all about the turtles and mangrove trees we would be attending to for the rest of our stay. Dinner was delish, and many of us tried our first lychees ever! The islanders are excited for the upcoming service (and turtles ofc).
We miss you x1000000,
Lark and Piper
July 30, 2024
Today we woke up very early, at 6:15, because by 7:30 we needed to be working with the turtles. We were welcomed with an incredible breakfast that consisted of Frosted Flakes, Cocoa Pebbles with milk, a portion of watermelon, and Oreos. After eating, we headed to the beach to save turtles, play soccer, swim in the refreshing ocean, and catch fresh coconuts to open and enjoy.
The first thing we did was get on the boat to place the net in the designated spot. Then, we had an intriguing presentation about the purpose of catching sea turtles, given by a marine biologist and his research assistant. They taught us how to safely capture, monitor, measure, and release sea turtles.
After long hours waiting for turtles under the blazing sun, we unfortunately couldn’t catch any. Although we didn’t catch any turtles, we were lucky to see them swimming around the net!!! and we also saw sharks and whales. Some guys went snorkeling and saw the turtles underwater, saying it was massive. We had a great day, eating delicious snacks with guava jam, and had a good lunch with rice, vegetables, and plantains. Afterward, we spent a couple of hours on the beach before finishing our work, untangling the nets to use the next day, and returning to the hotels to relax and rest.
Later in the evening, we concluded our day with a good dinner of spaghetti with salad, iced tea, and fruit. We played hedbanz before bed, where the plan was to go to sleep once everyone guessed a card, and we did it! Now we’re getting ready for bed and tomorrow we’ll have a great day working in the mangrove.
Buenas noches!
By Anthony & Franchy
July 31, 2024
We woke up today to the sun bursting throughout our cabin and the native birds calls. Excited for our day of planting mangroves, we got ready for breakfast. Once our tummies were filled with delicious pancakes we listened to an informational presentation all about mangroves and how they’re vital for our ecosystems. We took a short walk to the beach with shovels and wheelbarrows in hand and began our work with the mangrove saplings. While some transferred saplings into the nursery using wheelbarrows, others helped reorganize the rows of saplings inside of the nursery. We began painting wooden signs labeling the different types of mangroves they were growing which were tea and red. As a reward for our efficient work and impeccable service, we took a refreshing dip in the tranquil and refreshing waters of the Osa peninsula.
For lunch we munched on rice, chorizo (or sausage), as well as a vinegary pasta salad, and some delicious fried plantains. After a nice break we returned to the beach to continue our service work, this time since the tide was low, we began to start the planting process. With our wheelbarrows full of tea mangrove saplings, we trekked and trudged through streams and muddy paths to the planting location. Two plots of 9 holes each were dug in the sandy, muddy, goopy mangrove plantation. After the digging was done by our handy dandy shovelers, we got to work planting 3 saplings in each hole using special techniques taught to us by the LAST professionals. 3 dead trees later, our planting was done! With the help of a few people measuring, Anaya scientifically filled out the complex data sheet, using all her environmental science skills. Meanwhile…
War was afoot. It began with a peaceful mud bath for the effects of it on our skin, but soon turned violent as we were turned against each other in an every man for themselves all out mud throwing battle. The more blood that was shed (not actually) the more people that joined in. Balling and chucking clumps of wet dirt and sand until only the measurers, data takers and cameraman were left untouched. Things got serious when a new weapon was introduced, the shovel. The game had changed, and now real fatalities were at risk with this new ingenious tactic. Now, mud piles were being launched every which way, people were hiding in the nursery as a safe space as friendships were torn apart and backs were stabbed. No one was left clean. As we returned back to the nursery and looked forward to our smoothies and snacks in the later afternoon, we attempted to clean ourselves off in the now low tide ocean, unsuccessfully.
With our tummies full with delicious and fresh smoothies we headed back to the cabins eagerly awaiting our showers. The day ended with a yummy dinner and even more bonding time with each other as the dread of the end of the trip nearing haunted us. But we cheered up after buying souvenir bracelets, keychains, and necklaces with our friends and family at home in our hearts and minds.
Goodnight, love you all.
Love Angelica & Anaya
(Shoutout to Avery & Gio, miss and love you from the girls )
August 1, 2024
After being graced with a later wake up (7:15), we managed to make it to breakfast 10 minutes late (which is pretty good for a room of 10 girls with one mirror). It was one of the best breakfasts we’ve had: pancakes and an open faced breakfast sandwich that left us full and ready for the day.
A lovely walk on the beach took us to our first service site of the day. Armed with gloves and trash bags, we searched the rocky beach, foraging for another persons trash (aka our treasure). Low and behold, we found many “gifts” for the wonderous recycling center we were soon to visit. Bottle caps, glass bottles, fishing lines, wrappers, metal shards, a suitcase, a flip flop, and a tea cup were a few of the highlights.
We came back at a reasonable hour for a nice cat nap before lunch. Rice/beans (of course), salad, chicken and potatoes filled us up. After lunch we headed to the recycling center, where one group sorted bottle caps and the other bottles by color and plastic type. With a JARRING lightning strike, we all scurried under the rafters to finish our duties. After a job well done, we were shown a collection of bracelets and other handmade trinkets made of recycled materials; showing how nasty trash can turn into beautiful creations.
We RAN back soaking wet to our rooms to shower, and had a chat sesh until dinner. As we write this, the two remaining opponents in the great game of spoon assassin sit facing eachother, plotting their demise….(Luke vs. Lilly). Who will win? Find out next blog…or not.
Love the turtle Purtill sisters (Lilly and Caroline).
By: Lilly and Caroline
August 2, 2024
Hihi!! Today we had the best day of the trip!! We woke up early this morning ready for the day of turtles. We had a delicious breakfast of cereal and bananas. Once we gathered all of our stuff, we headed to the boats to take us to the beach! But before we took off, a manifestation circle was neccessary to be had. Standing together, we repeated the mantra of “turtles!” with every inhale, and “no turtles!” with every exhale. We repeated this until we were sureee that the turtle gods had heard us.
In two boats, we set out three large nets, insuring the greatest chance of seeing turtles. Once the nets were set, we swam until the first turtle was spotted. Angelica, Allisson, and Lilly carefully brought the hawksbill turtle to shore. With Anaya and Caroline on the front flippers and Angelica and Lilly on the back, we successfully measured and tagged the turtle before releasing it back to the ocean. Can you believe it was the first time this turtle was caught? After our first success, it wasn’t long before a second hawksbill turtle was brought to shore by Eden, Carlos, and Ian. Those who hadn’t worked with the last turtle, got to work up close with this second one. We repeated the process from before, admiring the majestic animal in front of us. In between turtle captures, we spent hours swimming together, bonding, tanning, taking photos, and chicken fighting.
Just when we thought our day of turtles was over, a beautiful big green turtle was brought to shore. This one was unlike the hawksbills, it had longer flippers, a bigger body, and a gorgeous green shell. We even got to see its face! It had one extra scale on its face, which was unusual for these types of turtles. Since it was so big, the procedure was slightly different, but we successfully gathered all the data. It had a dramatic release back into the ocean as we all watched and waved goodbye. At 2:00, we drove back in the boats, smiling about the amazing day we had with the turtles. The day ended with a couple hours of relaxing before a delicious meal of pizza and smoothies at a nearby restaurant. Finally we walked back to the cabins and are currently packing our bags for our surfing trip in Uvita.
Tonight we dream of turtles and surfing!
Love,
By: Mei, Anaya, and Allisson
Auguts 3, 2024
Today we woke up in Playa Blanca for the last time. We got to sleep in, waking up at a very reasonable 7:30 am. After pancakes for breakfast, we hopped on the spectacular bus for 2:30 hours. The ride went by fast, as the bus was considerably nicer than any other we have seen so far.
After a pit stop in some bathrooms, we made it to the hotel. We had already stayed here, but it didn’t make it any worse. This time we are all in the second floor. The rooms are very spacious and nice. The warm shower is always a blessing.
After getting lunch, we went surfing. Except we didn’t surf at all. A very sneaky crocodile made it way to our waves, and deciding not to disturb its peace we decided to leave surfing for tomorrow. We still had an amazing beach day. We spent our now free time playing soccer and making people pyramids which we believe you’ll see on the blog pictures. We got back straight to the pool at the hotel.
We just had dinner and will soon have a very controversial dance battle, because as outrageous as it sounds, Rebecca and Luke have decided we should not choose our songs, we just choose a number and that number is associated to a song, let’s see what happens! We sign off with no doubt of our coming victory, and excitement for tomorrow’s surfing.
By Ian & Carlos
Aug 4, 2024
HELLO BLOG!!
After our incredible dance battle the night before, where we all clapped and cheered for each other, we had a super hyped party, and it was one of the most fun nights of the trip!! This morning, we woke up early with another delicious breakfast buffet, and then we did our usual manifestation circle where we said “surfing” with each inhalation and “crocodile” with each exhalation, and guess what? Of course it worked! (The crocodile from yesterday was no longer catching our waves). We took a short but pleasant walk of almost 10 minutes to Marino Ballena National Park. We put on our rash guards, lots of sunscreen, and split into groups to start working with our instructors. Since we couldn’t surf yesterday, today we had an extended class that was worth double! Throughout the day, we improved at our own pace and had our own victories and falls at times. Those who were afraid overcame it, and those with experience further improved their technique.
We returned to the hotel for another deliciously filling lunch, rested for a while, and in the afternoon, we enjoyed ice cream sundaes and more time together in our final days. The sadness of the end of the trip lingered in the air, unspoken but still present. We spent the rest of the afternoon by the pool, watching Dance Moms on the TV in our rooms, and we are about to end our night with a talent show that we’ve all prepared a lot for.
Love you all!!
“Everybody wants to know where I would be if I didn’t win. I guess we’ll never know” – Kanye
By Eden & Angelica
Aug 5 & 6, 2024
Apologies to everyone who didn’t see our blog yesterday! We started off with an amazing hike to a beautiful waterfall, and we took the opportunity to plant 10 endemic trees in the forest. Nature is something we will all miss. We came back for a delicious lunch and watched several episodes of Dance Moms during our afternoon rest. A group of us played in the pool, while the boys spent hours watching music videos. After resting, we went to an impressive place, surrounded by nature and with a nearby river that we could hear, to practice yoga. We all came back feeling renewed! We didn’t have much time to get ready for one of the final dinners. All of us girls wore our beautiful dresses and the boys put on nice button-up shirts.
After our last dinner of delicious food and taking pictures, we had the opportunity to write letters to our future selves, which will arrive in the coming months. When everyone was done, we gathered in a circle and spent a couple of beautiful and emotional hours showing our appreciation for each person in our Costa Rica family. We ended the night crying and finally packing.
This morning we woke up feeling sad because it’s our last full day, but happy thinking of all the memories we made. We finished packing and had one last breakfast at the hotel in Uvita. Then, we got on the bus and headed to go whale watching. Of course, we did our manifestation circle saying “whales” on each inhalation and “no whales” on each exhalation. We all got on the boat and went off into the Pacific Ocean. We saw beautiful big whales and their babies swimming and jumping out of the water. It was an awesome way to end our amazing trip to Costa Rica! Unfortunately, a few passengers suffered from seasickness (rest in peace Anaya, Piper, and Javier), but it was still worth it! When we got back to the hotel, we showered and had one final lunch. With great sadness, we said goodbye to the hotel and began our 7-hour bus ride back to the villa from the first night. On the way, we stopped for souvenir shopping and got some delicious smoothies. As we’re writing this from the bus on the way to the villa, we’re thinking about how grateful we are for all the friends and memories we made. We will never forget this trip ❤ Thank you to our amazing parents and guardians for making this possible, and of course to our counselors Rebecca, Luke, and Javier.
Signing off,
Anaya, Olive, Piper, and India Lark
