2023 Laurelhurst Costa Rica Service Adventure

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Blog 10

The day started bright and early, like many, with an alarm sounding.
..
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

It was 3:30am and Nico sleepily forced himself out of bed. It was time for him and Allie to go on a mission. As for me, I lay groggily in my bottom bunk, a chilly breeze of AC rushing into my face. Although today was to be a day of heavy traveling, I was exited to see what it would bring. At the moment, I was mostly exited to fall back asleep.

Light flooded into the room. At last, dawn had struck and it was time to awake from the depths of our hotel blankets and early morning thoughts. Everyone packed up, and as I should very importantly note…I finished first. Me! Una. The forever and always late one. When I reached the breakfast table, I was the fourth one there.

Breakfast consisted of a mini buffet including eggs, waffles, fruit, and everyones personal favorite: rice and beans. After eating rice and beans with every meal for a tenth day in a row, at least 4 people have stated that they will never again eat them. Of course, no ones counting…certainly not me.

With breakfast over with, we finished off our time at hotel El Tecal nice and slowly. Then we got into the bus and rode. Along our route to lunch, we stopped on the side of the highway and very safely crossed a bridge on foot to watch a chill bunch of crocodiles. Personally, my photography skills were on point. For lunch, we waited in a long line, walked through a rather tasty buffet, and sat down in our seats. I sat at a table with Owen, Lev, and Jami. I think one of the most valuable pieces of information I’ve learned today is that Lev is a walking history book. This includes a very long chapter of fun facts.

After I finished eating and drank my fizzy water, it was time to shop for souvenirs. Despite my mothers attempt to keep me from spending all my money on clothes, I bought an adorable dress and a VERY oversized sweater. Its making me overheat, but its comfy soo… I also bought a few gifts which are top secret and shall not be relayed in this blog.

We checked the hotel that we are currently sleeping in tonight at some point in time. Who knows when…time is always a mystery to me. Then, we went to a fancy dinner where I’d say 96% of people ordered burgers. I being vegetarian, did not. Then Victor showed me some cities and then Allie took away the computer from me.
BYE.

Blog 9

Today was beach themed in the town of Uvita where the group woke up to fruit and waffles before walking to the beach for surf lessons! Everyone received general instructions from our lead surf instructor before splitting up into small groups to head out into the water and try for themselves. Some took the sport with more enthusiasm than others, but everyone was equally brave for trying their best at something new. Eventually, most wound up swimming around the beach, splashing in waves, and having contests to see how high people could leap into the surf. The beach was so beautiful and the water so warm that the staff pushed lunch back by an hour so that everyone could spend more time in the sea.
Lunch overlooked the coast we just left behind and would soon return to and had the most incredible view on top of the hill. Exhausted by surfing and swimming, some slept under trees after lunchtime while the restaurant’s dog ran around. We then left for the national park where we had lessons and walked to the cola de ballena (whale’s tail), a natural phenomenon that only exists in 3 locations worldwide. In low tide, visitors can walk between two beaches on a narrow strip, which opens to a wide rocky patch in the middle of the ocean. After spending a few hours at the ocean, everyone left for the hotel and got ready for a dinner of woodfired pizza.
Tomorrow, we take off for the capital to prepare for our Saturday departure!

Blog 8

Hola! Today, the group woke up and packed to leave our host families. We got to the event space at 9:30 with our luggage and many of our host families followed to see us off. We loaded up the bus, found our seats, and then headed back outside to take a group photo and tell our host families goodbye. Then, we got in the bus and drove to the beach. When we got to the beach, we found our rooms at hotel El Tecal, and went to the restaurant for a delicious lunch. After lunch, we decided to swim due to the extremely hot and humid weather. We left to go souvenir shopping at 4, but it was raining when we got to the shops, and unfortunately we didn’t get an opportunity to shop. Instead, we went to a store and got some groceries, which included some drinks and sweet treats. We then went back to the hotel, where we were able to chill until dinner at 7:30.

Blog 7

Today was our last workday, and our last full day with our host families. Similar to previous days, we mixed concrete, painted walls, and generally had an amazing time putting the finishing touches on our project. After finishing for the day, we had a few hours to relax and enjoy the incredible views the Costa Rican mountians afforded us. Unfortunately, the stunning views did not last as an afternoon rainstorm soon rolled in, relegating us to the inside of our respective houses. At 5 pm, we gathered under the school’s covered structure (similar to the one we have at Laurelhurst) to play soccer and enjoy a wonderful dinner with our host families. After that, still under the covered structure, we formed a giant shape resembling a circle. People shared words of thanks and gratitude. Following this, we ate a giant (and delicious!) cake. Finally, we wrapped up and headed home for the last night with our host families. All in all, it was a day worth remembering.

Hasta Pronto!
Los Niños de Costa Rica

Blog 6

Today I, Lev woke up, at 7:00 AM, and felt like going back to bed, but decided against it. I sat up and began to get ready for the day. I changed, and brushed my teeth. Then, at 8:00 AM, it was time for breakfast. I walked into the kitchen, and sat down for breakfast. I was joined by my homestay partner, Nico, my host mom, and the group organizers. Breakfast was great as always, and before I knew it, it was time to leave for the service project. We had to walk up a large hill to get there, which was tiring, but we made it. We got there around 9, and set our stuff at the foot of the church. Then, we had to wait for Victor, one of the group organizers. In the mean time, we traded jobs, with everyone with one picked their successor. Next we had the day put out for us. We were to clean the area, while 5 of us continued to help make concrete. We continued like this until we were told that some of us were going to start painting the cleaned areas. We all continued to do our jobs until lunch, when our host families brought us lunch. It was incredible as always, and then we had 30 minutes of free time, which passed quicker than we would have liked, then we got back to work, which went by much faster, and before we knew it, it was time to go back to our host families. Which meant it was time for me and Nico to walk back down the hill, which was much easier getting down.

Then I had a cold shower, which was uncomfortable, but healthy. Then I had a quick snack of a sandwich, before we relaxed for a while, then, me and Nico went on a walk with our host mom, on which we had amazing conversations, where we learned a lot of Spanish. We explored a lot of the wildlife, just in our backyard, and saw some amazing views. Then we got back home, and relaxed for a while, before it was time for dinner. During dinner, me and Nico were joined by the group organizers, and Jami, the teacher accompanying us on the trip. It was delicious as always, with a delicious drink. But during our after-eating conversations, while Allie was talking to our host mom, a mosquito landed on her, and I did not inform her, or attack it, only did I tell her a mosquito landed on her until after she was done, long after it left. A devastating betrayal by me, Lev, which shall leave lasting damage for years to come. Next, we went to our room, and went to bed.

By,
Lev

Blog 5

Today was a day of rest for students and host families, where everyone was able to sleep in (though some woke up before 5 to see the sun rise!), eat well, and enjoy a nice walk before the afternoon rain. Some students played soccer with their host brothers. Others visited the fair in a nearby town, where they feasted on churros, cotton candy, and arroz con leche. The fair showcased traditional dances or “bailes típicos” and those who attended with their host families got to see a new side of Costa Rican culture before heading home for dinner. It has been raining steadily since the sun set and now everyone is being lulled to sleep by the gentle taps of the lluvia.

Blog 4

Today we woke up, to our discomfort, and had delicious breakfast. We followed this by getting our stuff ready, and heading out around 8:45-55. Then, we arrived at the church near the work site, where we gathered and applied sunscreen. Next, we got called down to the work site, and had our jobs shown to us, we were to start making cement. A couple of us began immediately, whereas the rest of us stood around, as more jobs were made for as, next, a few of us went to grab more tools. Making cement continued as normal, with us switching our jobs out as others took our places, the guides began a game, which most of us partook in, and then our host families brought us food, which everyone loved, we began to clean the area, and some of us started sorting recycling. Then we learned that we had to change how we were making the cement wasn’t working well, so we changed it. The new way was difficult, but we refined it, and made it easier. Then, we finished the day’s work, and began our dance class, where we learned all kinds of Costa Rican dances, then we went home to our host families, had dinner, and went to bed.

Blog 3

Hello from San Jeronimo! Yesterday we packed up and drove to a waterfall called Nauyaca. We stayed for a few hours at the lower waterfall before eating lunch and hiking to the upper waterfall. There we saw giant spiders which was our cue to leave and get back on the bus. We drove for about 2 hours before getting stopped. While we sat and waited for the road to clear up, Kelly, Lukas, and Miles climbed out of the bus and discovered fresh limes. We snacked on limes for a bit before continuing our drive for about 10 minutes. Then we finally made it to San Jeronimo we met our host families and our group was split up. We spent the night getting to know our families and figuring out Wifi. The families have been incredibly welcoming and we are excited for the next 4 days here!

Sincerely,
Los niños de Costa Rica

Blog 2

We started off our morning with a wonderful breakfast at Hotel Aeropuerto. At 8, we got in our bus and began the 4 and a half hour drive to our next stop, Pura Suerte.  After dropping off our stuff, we took a tour of the farm – Sueños de la Vida – tasting different fruits, learning about trees, and even milking a cow. We prepared coffee and hot chocolate and each of us made an empanada. After enjoying our snacks, we went back to our cabins for an hour, where we then discovered that the power was out. Luckily, everyone was able to occupy themselves with something fun. We had a delicious dinner of tacos before retiring back to our cabins for a good nights sleep. 

Blog 1

Hello everyone!
Our first day in Costa Rica was a busy one. After landing in San Jose we were whisked away to a local breakfast spot where we tried Costa Rican tortillas, plantains, and sipped on fresh limeade before visiting a local history museum to learn more about the war against Nicaragua in the 1860s. After filling our brains and feeling our energy wane after a night of travel, we went to our hotel and somehow found a second wind once we got in the pool! The rest of the day was filled with swimming, group meetings, and getting ready for the adventure ahead.
After lunch, we went to a chocolate making workshop where we learned about the high quality cacao native to Costa Rica and even got to make our very own chocolate bars! Chocolatiers walked us through the process of using molds and picking flavors for each bar.
As the night is now winding down, we are getting ready to head south in the morning and have plenty of rest tonight. Stay tuned for our next adventure!
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