2024 Fordham Preparatory Costa Rica Conservation Expedition

Program Blog

View Full Gallery

Latest Updates

Blog 6

Written by Will C.

Today our group went to swim near a waterfall. It was a lot of fun but very exhausting having to climb over all the rocks. We had lunch at a restaurant and walked around town for a while buying souvenirs and exploring. After that we had a 3 hour bus ride to our hotel, where we listened to music and rested after the exciting morning. After arriving at the hotel, we found our rooms and swam in the pool for a bit before ordering pizza for dinner and spending some time just talking outside before heading to bed. It was a great way to spend our last day on the trip. We are happy for this experience and I look forward to getting home and telling all about our adventures.

Pura Vida!

 

Blog 5

Written by Griffin B and Jayden S.
The day began with a breakfast at the La Quinta hotel which was delicious, after having all our suitcases ready, we began the adventure and headed to La Fortuna to do canopy, there were several cables, some of short distances and others quite long where we could Seeing the wonderful forest was great. After ziplinig we drove into the great Town of La Fortuna which sits in the shadow of the volcano. There we had lunch at a fun restaurant that served us choices of spaghetti bolognese, burgers, Costa Rican casado and caribbean style chicken. Upon finishing lunch we got to spend a few hours exploring the Town, immersing ourselves in the amazing Tico culture, and getting the chance to buy souvenirs to take Home.
Later, after dropping our stuff off in our beautiful hotel rooms at the Montecheari with an increíble view of the volcano, we headed to the spectacular Baldi Hot Springs ay the base of the volcano. There we spent the resto of the day relaxing in the many pools and saunas ando zooming down the exhilarating water slides. We finished our time there bonding over a delicious buffet meal in one of the restaurants high up un the trees. After another action-packed day, we drove homeand spent sole time at the hotel playing games all together. This was truly an incredible day
Adiós!

Blog 4

Written by Will M and Caí O 
Today we woke up and had a big breakfast of cereal, bacon, eggs and more, however, we discovered that the station had flooded and we would have to be evacuated by boat however we were in no danger but it was better to get out. Before we left, we learned how to measure the diameter of trees in the rainforest to determine their mass and carbon emissions which was wonderful. Then we had a quick lunch and left the station taking a boat across the flooded road to the bus which was a great and unique adventure. We then head to the La Quinta hotel where we will stay tonight. The hotel has a pool where we played and spent a nice quality time all together, now I can’t wait to enjoy a delicious dinner, because the food is very good in Costa Rica.

Blog 3

Written by Donato G and Tim E
We started the day with a bus ride to an ethnobotany tour. We tried many different plants and fruits. We smelled, tasted, and drew with many different kinds of plants. My favorite was the lemongrass it smelled just like lemon. We also got to drink out of coconuts and then ate the meat of the coconuts. When we arrived at La Selva we ate lunch: some fresh fruit, rice, and steak. With full stomachs we then traveled to the headquarters to begin to learn about our exploration for the day. We learned that we would be splitting up into groups and venturing into both the primary and secondary jungles. After we conceded our briefing, we split up into those groups and headed out into the wild. Within our groups we spotted some banana spiders, spider monkeys, eyelash palm pit viper, toucans, millipedes, and more. It was great to become one with the nature and detach from the loud, bustling city we are used to. After we finished our 7 km of hiking we arrived back at headquarters and unpacked our baggage into our rooms.Then, a little tired, we headed to dinner with rice, vegetables and chicken, it was delicious and at the end we sing birthday to our partner and share a delicious cake, we are excited for our next adventure.

Blog 2

Written by Lucas D. and Aidan B.

After a long day of running around and making new friends from costa rica, we woke up nice and early for some breakfast courtesy of the hotel where we had a variety of options(anything you can think of!) During breakfast they offered us cards so we can stay occupied and connect with each other. At about 9AM we were off to the Banana farm where we learned about the process of how banana trees grow. We had a cooking class where we all worked together chopping up fruits and vegetables in preparation for our lunch! We had the best plátanos and pollo where the lunch was out of sight!

We went over to the river after lunch for water rafting. White water rafting was a phenomenal experience as we were able to explore the Chilamate rainforest as we zoomed down the river. When we arrived to the spot and stepped off the bus, we were directed to the guides who fitted us for life jackets and helmets and also gave us paddles. Whenever everyone was ready, we gathered in a circle as the guides instructed us on how to hold the paddles and what the commands meant so that we knew what our guide meant when he directed us down the rapids. After that, we were on our way to the river. We had 5 boats with students and their guides as well as a boat with the chaperones and their guide. We were rafting for about an hour and a half when we stopped to have a break where we snacked on pineapples, oranges, and cookies. Then we went on for a bit and even stopped to jump off a ledge. To the groups surprise, when we next came to a stop we had arrived back at our hotel with the bus housing our backpacks safely parked on the side of the road. While rafting, there were many points where we got stuck and we had to push ourselves free. Other than that, however, white water rafting was an exhilarating experience that I would definitely recommended to others.

Blog 1

Written by Preston B. and Jack S.
After a full day of travel (including multiple delays) we arrived safely in Costa Rica. We’ve learned a few Costa Rican phrases but Pura Vida is a way of saying hello, goodbye, thank you and a bunch of other meanings.
Today has been a busy day for all of the traveling we’ve done today! When we woke up, we had breakfast and got on the bus to travel to Sarapiqi. We stopped at a gas station to get some snacks such as popcorn and some local sweet coconut crackers. We stopped and had lunch at Rusti Ticos. They served us some delicious rice with salad and a choice of strawberry or pineapple smoothies. It was awesome.
Then we drove to Tirimbina, a small chocolate reserve where we got a full on lesson and demonstration on how chocolate is farmed and made. It was very interesting, and we got to try some homemade chocolate after which was delightful! Then, we continued on and went to La Escuela de Futbol la Virgen. It was an incredible experience. We got to meet the local Costa Rican boys who were right around our age, and we played some soccer and football with them. We got to practice our Spanish by talking to them and we learned a lot about what it is like to live in Costa Rica. After about 3 hours of playing with them, we went to dinner at Soda Mariellos, and we had the option of 3 dishes, including 2 popular Costa Rican dishes. Finally, we drove about 10 minutes to our hotel, which is located directly in the middle of the jungle, which is so cool. We got with our roommates, settled in, and got some rest for the next day ahead! So far the experience has been extremely exciting and fun! We can’t wait to experience more! Once again Pura Vida
Top