2024 Teton Science Schools Costa Rica Conservation Expedition

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Time to say goodbye Costa Rica

The Costa Rica airport strongly recommends that you arrive there 3 hours before your flight which meant waking up at 3am. Ronny drove us to the airport for the final time and we said goodbye. Fabi was able to join us all the way to security. After we all gave him a hug and took a selfie, he waited till we all got to the other side (he’s just really great like that). The security guard complemented my toe shoes! Our flight to New York was clocked at 4:38:40.28 from the time we left the ground to the time the wheels touched down once more. We all had the best airport lunches while waiting for our connecting flight. We also had a closing circle right before we boarded the plane. Our final flight lasted 4:27:57.03. Good job hanging in there crew, ya’ll have made this trip more than I could’ve ever asked for! –

Written by Dolyn K.

Time to enjoy a beautiful river

Today we left the hotel that was by Playa Ballena, and made our way to the river(Savegre ) for rafting. We rafted levels 1, 2, and 3, which were a lot of fun. Half way we stopped for a 2 minute walk to a small waterfall where we were able to go do a swim. We got back on the river and continued floating until we made it to our lunch spot. A family had prepared rice with chicken, cabbage salad, beans, and a juice, which was all delicious! We got back in the river and continued for another 20 minutes before making to our final destination. We said our goodbyes to our guides and got back on the bus to head to San José. On our way there we stopped at a store to buy souvenirs before getting back on the road. Lastly we had our final dinner in Costa Rica.
Written by Alondra R.

From the Mountain to the Beach 

Pérez Zeledon, on the 26 of May, our group traveled away from the familiar walks on the hills and the regular beans and rice meals made from our home stays to the new and unfamiliar arena near the beach. Our home stays left us swelling with tears, but the special bonds made from our families created encouragement as we were thrusted into uncharted territory once again. When we arrived at San Jerónimo we were greeted by an activity involving the ocean and a surf board. As we splashed in the water it tested our balance and lead us to the hot sand in the beach. Some of us fell while others became quite the master of the activity. The sun beamed our skin as the reminder of rest became obvious, so we ate some pineapple, watermelon, and drank some cool water. We surfed again then finally took our leave back to Hotel El Tecal. Conversations rang at the dinner table yet subsided because of our tiredness. Soon enough we all found ourselves upon a bed reliving the moments we shared together and the more that were yet to come.

Written by Biz C.

Helping our host community

Hello families! We are all missing you. Today we continued our service work by painting a ramp on the community building. After we finished our work, some of us participated in Alba’s (one of the host family mothers) 50th birthday party. We danced and had fun before going to a group meeting and dinner to say goodbye to our host families. This included a cake as well as a piñata. After, all of us returned Alba’s birthday and had fun before calling it a night.
Written by Jacob C.

Service Project at San Jeronimo 

Today we started our service project in San Jeronimo. Our project is refurbishing a local meeting spot. We started our days with having breakfast with our host families and left to work on the project. Our project consisted of painting fence rails and washing the deck to get it ready for painting the next day. At 12 pm each of the host families brought us lunch. It rained for most of the day which allowed us to spend more time with our host families.
Yours truly,
Augustine

Service project is in the way

Today we left the Reserva Playa Tortuga and ventured northeast to the Nauyaca waterfall where we went swimming and watched cliff divers! The waterfall was so beautiful and the cold water felt so good in the hot weather. We ate lunch and hung out in hammocks before getting back on the bus and driving to San jeronimo de Perez Zeledon. When we arrived, we were paired with our host families and enjoyed a wonderful dinner. The area is located in the mountains and the weather is much cooler than the jungle area surrounding Reserva Playa Tortuga. We are all very excited to begin the service project and to get to know our families better!
Yours truly,
E(liz)beth E

Looking for a sea turtle nest!

Day 4: We began our morning by six of us taking an early morning hike (5:30 AM). We searched for turtle nests along the beach and learned about how to locate a nest and how to properly transfer them to the hatchery. Next, everyone went to a local elementary school to engage the kids with art projects. We also painted a mural outside of the school. this was an incredible way to practice our Spanish and connect with the local kids and culture. After, we split into two groups, half of us going on a bat monitoring walk, and the other half going on a monkey monitoring walk. To end our day we went on a night walk where we got to learn about the alligator and caiman species and caught a collected data from them. It was such a good day filled with so many fun and interesting things!

Written by: Avery T

Day of full Adventure in Costa Rica

Day 3: This was an eventful day for all of us! First thing in the morning half of the group went on a morning walk to monitor for turtle nest (we mainly just saw crabs). We had breakfast all together then went off to our respected activities. My group went to the butterfly gardens! The reserve researches and protects different butterfly species using the gardens. We were able to help collect eggs, move caterpillars to new leaves, and release butterfly’s into the gardens. While we were doing that the other group monitored for monkeys. After that we all had a dance class where the instructor taught us some moves from three types of dance including combia, a dance local to Costa Rica! Then my group went to monitor for bats. We went to about six locations where bats have made ‘tents’ where they sleep and recoded if bats were present and the weather conditions. One tent even had two adult female bats we caught and identified! Coming back to the reserve we had an interactive presentation telling us more about what the reserve does and testing us on what they have already taught us. To end out our day we had a fun evening full of conversation and playing card games as a class with the new instructors.
Written by Sophie N

The Adventure has Started 

Day 2:  Today we left Alajuela for Reserva Playa Tortuga. After a semi-traditional breakfast we hit the road around 9:30am. On the way, we stopped at a bridge famous for crocodile viewing and a seaside restaurant. The day was a fun chance to be immersed in Costa Rican culture and landscapes, as well as learn facts about the area we are visiting. The diverse countryside and fun experiences on the drive raised spirits and got everyone psyched for the coming week.
Written by: Frank D

Llegamos!

Day 1:  The group woke up around 8 and went down stairs to the hotel lobby, where we each received a breakfast slip. After we ate breakfast, we finished packing our bags. We took an uber to the Dallas airport. Our first flight was from Dallas, Texas to Miami, Florida and second flight was from Miami, to San Jose, Costa Rica. Once we arrived in San Jose, our guide, Fabian greeted us. The group rode a bus to the villa, where we stayed the night. Lastly, we all ate pizza and went to sleep!

Written by Jade B
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