2023 Kent Denver Costa Rica Program

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Final Blog

June 10

Written by Shayan
Dear parents,
Today was a very action packed day. In the morning we participated in a beautiful and nature full zipline course with a Tarzan swing toward the end of the course. After that we went to eat lunch in La Fortuna with a great view of the arenal volcano. After lunch we had a chocolate and coffee tour which we were able to try fresh chocolate,cacao beans and coffee. Once we had finished the tour we went to the souvenir shop where the students were able to purchase cacao tea, cacao nibs, chocolate bars, and coffee powder. After that we had some time to start packing and to relax along with some pool time before we went out for a delicious dinner. Overall we had a great, action packed day and are making the most of the last few days of the trip.

June 8

Written by Emmy H.
Today, we started out with a delicious breakfast at 7:30 at our new hotel, Aunty Arenal. We left around 9 to go to a waterfall/cascade to swim and relax. It was so pretty! we were surrounded by nature, the rainforest, and clear waters. Mr. Lopez made us a bet that whoever first caught a fish with their bare hands, he would give them $10. Nobody won, but valiant efforts all around. We left the cascade at noon, and headed back to the hotel for a quick turnaround for lunch at a costa rican fast food place. After lunch, we walked around town for 30 minutes, looking at souvenirs and the natural beauty around us. We then piled into the bus and drove to a hot springs about 15 minutes away, with a great view of Arenal. The hot springs had many water slides, warm and cold pools, and places to rest. It was great! We got out and dried off around 6, and went to dinner at the resort/hot springs/spa we spent the afternoon at. We then headed back to the hotel to turn in for the night!

Dear parents (or guardians)

Written by Maeve L.
Today we woke up to a wonderful breakfast of gallo pinto, yogurt, bread and butter, and some hot coco made by some of the other children. We got into the bus by 9ish and left for a long bus ride. We went souvenir shopping around 11 and bought some amazing stuff. We then got some lunch at 12 and got back on the road around 12:30 to 1. We stayed in the bus until 5:30, and on the way we saw the volcano we will hopefully be hiking tomorrow. After we got to the hotel we stayed and unpacked a bit in our rooms, and got some dinner around 7:20.

June 6

Written by Jessica and Khloe
Today, we went to the beach and got surfing/boogie board lessons. The waves were huge but most of us were able to stand within the first few tries. Afterwards we went to eat a delicious lunch in an old military airplane and we got to go into the cockpit and it was a very fun experience. When we returned from lunch, we went shopping for snacks and souvenirs and when we returned, we swam around in the pool and hung out in our rooms. A little while after, we went to dinner and ate very delicious food.

Blog 3

Written by Maeve and Emmy

Today we started our day with breakfast at 7:30 in the morning and we had pancakes. They were very very good. We then got into the bus and drove in Manuel Antonio, about 2 hours away from the farm. We had lunch at a cute little place overlooking the ocean and beach. It was so pretty! We then drove about 15 minutes to the national park/beach in Manuel Antonio. We hiked 20-25 minutes to the Manuel Antonio beach and spent lots of time on the water swimming, diving, watching wildlife! (We finally saw some monkeys). After we left there at about 4:00, we made our way to the hotel to have some pool time or relax and clean up. And finally we went to dinner at 7:30. We got pizza. THE END

Blog 2

Written by Jake and Imara

Today, we woke up to see our first sunrise at Bella Vida. With our daypacks packed, we headed to the dining hall from our cabins. We then enjoyed a delicious breakfast consisting of rice, beans, salad, and cereal. The lunches were prepared by the staff, and bagged for later. Hiking up the steep hill to the bus was much harder going up then down, rocks kept sliding under our feet. We sat on the bus with three new people, and their dog. We would later visit their farm. The ride was roughly half an hour to get to the hiking spot. We trudged through beautiful mud and jungle for ten minutes. Then we saw a gorgeous waterfall, and got to swim in the cold blue water. The feeling of the waterfall pounding on us was something I have never felt before. After hiking back up, we rode to the farm. They grew many fruits, but they sold primarily cacao and coffee. Unfortunately, it started raining extremely heavily. We were soaked, and had to leave our daypacks on the bus when we got to our cabins. To add to the misery, the power went out. And even without any power, the staff still made a delicious dinner. After enjoying that, and talking about our day in a circle, we heading back to our cabins and went to sleepy.

Blog 1: Pura vida!

Hi It’s Jackson and Imara and I will be telling y’all about what your kids our doing. I am not going to go into not every detail because I want your kids and my fellow peers to tell you about it. We landed in San Jose at 9:45 and arrived at our hotel at 11:15. We generally went to bed at 1:30 after having a delicious dinner. For us boys we woke up to chimpanzee noises around 6:30 and not sure what the girls woke up to. We ate breakfast at 7:15 sharp. We hopped on the bus at 8:00 to embark on a 5 hour ride. We did stop to see crocodiles, sloths, and some other awesome creatures. We also stoped at a grocery store to stock up on snacks. We also stopped at a restaurant called Los Churros. We had our meals and a variety of different natural (I think) juices. We followed a long road to our hotel (which was very modern). After we arrived we had to walk a little because the bus couldn’t drive down the hills. We met a spider, a cow, and some quick little ants on our short little walk. We arrived at the actual spot that our hotel was located. Me were assigned our rooms and settled in before heading to the pool to chill and swim. We then headed down back to our cabins to shower and get ready for dinner. I don’t what is for dinner as I am writing this before dinner, but I’m sure it going to be delicious. Thanks and have a wonderful night. And there is currently no electricity in the area, but we are in good spirits.

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