A School Visit

We were lucky enough to visit a local school--even though it was a Saturday.  It is an elementary school:  Escuela La Cruz in Santa Elena.   They prepared a special presentation just for us.

We learned a bit about their school system and what school life is like in this small, rural town. 

Students go to school from 7:00-12:00 and then from 12:30-5:00 pm so that the building can be maximized and the class sizes minimized since one teacher instructs all of the students in one class.  There were sixteen students in one class and the grades included first through six grades. 

The school is responsible for feeding students both breakfast and lunch for only $1 a day per child.

They have a computer lab with computers donated by a Costa Rican company.  It is their hope to one day have iPads and be able to access curriculum on the internet for each student at various academic levels.

We were also treated to a special dance presentation by some of the children. 

 At the end, some of us joined in and danced as well!

As a fundrasier, the school sells homemade marmalade and jam.  We all sampled the sweetcake and marmalade/jam after our presentation.  

And then bought many of the jams....friends and family back home--look forward to sampling this yummy treat!

Some also went out to the soccer field and kicked the soccer ball around or just enjoyed the sunshine.

What a beautiful visit and opportunity!

Day 3: Part 1: Arenal to Monte Verde

This morning we were greeted with SUNSHINE when we woke up!  The warmth and light was amazing!!

We loaded the bus with our packed bags, ate breakfast, and prepared for our journey!  We left the Arenal Region today and headed toward Monte Verde.  But, boy was there a lot that we experienced between our morning bus boarding and our afternoon checkin at Monte Verde.

As we drove along the road, the bus slowed for us to see a man feeding the white nosed coati.  These are like raccoons.  Our guide knew these were all females and juveniles because they were in a group.  The males are almost always by themselves.  Yesterday, we saw a male.  It should also be noted that one should NOT feed the coatis because they can bite.  This was a lesson for all of us in what NOT to do as a tourist.

We then drove on a bit more--through winding roads, with beautiful vistas.


We had a mid morning stop at a German Bakery--yes, I typed that correctly...a German Bakery.

Our guides shared with us that the country is 93% of Spanish descent, 1% native, 3% Asian, 3% German or Quaker.

We will all tell you, it was a DELICIOUS stop!!!  Students had croissants, nutrolls, fresh pretzels, and bread--the smells alone were worth the stop!

The view, was also quite dynamic!

We were back on the bus, saying our final goodbyes to Lake Arenal.  Lake Arenal is the same lake that we kayaked on yesterday.  The lake is 33 square miles--it is man made--and up to 100 feet deep in some places!

We bid one final farewell and then we were in our next region:  Monte Verde!

The scenery quickly changed from volcanoes and the lake, to rolling hills.  It has been recognized by National Geographic as one of the best cloud forests and one of the nicest places to visit.

We pulled up to our next hotel and checked in.

We also had a delicious lunch of chicken, beans, eggplant spread, homemade chips, salad with cucumbers, and fresh pineapple.

There's a lot more to tell...stay tuned for parts 2 and 3 to follow!

A Wet and Wild Afternoon

This afternoon brought a lot of water...and a volcano.  

First, we were off to a waterfall and hiked to the bottom--more than 500 stairs!--where we took in the beauty, snapped TONS of photos, and some went swimming. 

Then, it was back to the top....

 and of course, a mid-afternoon snack of Gatorade, Soda, ice cream or Pringles.

 We hopped on the bus and went to Baldi Hot Spring and Spa.

We enjoyed the hot springs, created by the nearby volcanoes.   Two hours of warm baths and a luxurious setting made everyone sleepy and ready for dinner!

 It should also be mentioned that the scenery was stunning (that's the Arenal Volcano in the background!), and lent itself to more photos of course...even of some of the chaperones!!

La Fortuna

This morning, on our way to our kayaking adventure we had 40 minutes to explore La Fortuna, a small town about 15 minutes from where we're staying.

Students shopped, played in the park, visited the local church, and enjoyed the free time.

From there we were off to kayak in Lake Arenal. 

We kayaked, swam, and ALL got wet (regardless of whether or not we tipped over, thanks to the downpour we experienced on our way back in!)  Stay tuned for more updates! 

Our Hotel Last Night and Tonight

Here is where we are staying!!!  An early morning view of our cabanas--as you can see, it's been raining quite a bit!

A Volcano, Howler Monkeys and an Environmental Park

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This morning we had an early start to our day.  Wake up calls at 5:45, followed by room checks at 6:15 am.  Breakfast was at 7 am and consisted of rice and beans with fresh peppers and cilantro, eggs, toast and café (con leche if one chose).  

Everyone was on the bus and ready to go by 8 am.  We were off with our first stop at the INBIO Park.  This is a national conservation teaching park that didn’t’ even exist thirteen years ago! 

We were split into small groups of 17 and tour the park.  We toured different ecosystems found in Costa Rica and learned about the rich biodiversity of the country!  We saw tarantulas, frogs, iguanas, butterflies, sloths and more!  It was a wonderful introduction to the country!

After our tour, we drove through the lush countryside to our lunch destination.  We had a terrific homestyle meal of rice and beans, fried plantains, cassava balls, and our choice of chicken, beef or vegetarian.  We also had a choice of fresh strawberry shakes, soda (including Fanta!), or water for lunch.  What a treat!  The area grows a lot of strawberries, so those in the shakes were fresh and delicious!

Then, off to the Cloud Forest to see the Volcano!  While there was no wait to get tickets or to walk up to see the volcano, there was a lot of rain  (maybe why there wasn’t any line???).  We had a beautiful 2 mile+ hike round trip.  We stopped to pose for pictures at the top.  We were quite soaked from our trip, but had a great time being in the cloud forest and just taking in the beautiful landscape.

Our guides have the best!  All along the way, they have been educating us about Costa Rica.  For instance did you know that Costa Rica is roughly the size of West Virginia and that 35% of it is protected land?

We stopped at a road side shop for snacks for the evening.   A lot of us bought warm sweatshirts and local treats.  One of the specialties was a cup of fresh cut strawberries with a topping choice of chocolate or fresh cream.  

We got on the bus and drove through gorgeous scenery and even saw a waterfall!

After nearly an hour and a half on the road, we stopped for a little leg stretch and refresher at Restaurante Las Iguanas.  Here we walked around, some bought an ice cream cone, and others snapped pictures of the LARGE iguanas in the trees nearby. 

We had one more stop on our way to the hotel….Howler Monkeys!  We pulled the buses over to the side of the road and had an opportunity to get out and see several howler monkeys in the trees above!

We arrived to our hotel and checked in.  We are in cute cabanas tonight and tomorrow night.  After dinner there was free time, which included swimming for some. 

We’re ready for another excellent day of adventure tomorrow!

We have arrived safely!

Deal students and chaperones have arrived in Costa Rica safely! 

 

All of our connections were made!  Students were fantastic as they hustled from plane to plane and from plane to bus.  Some enjoyed the in flight movie, "Life of Pi" on the way over.

Once we landed we met our EF Tour Guides and headed to the hotel to settle in. We had a joyful reunion with the group on the early morning flight who were already acclimated to the weather.  They enjoyed their afternoon of waiting for the 2nd flight by swimming in the pool, as well shopping for groceries at the local supermarket.

Dinner tonight was at our hotel:  delicious chicken and rice, black beans and salad. 

Tomorrow we are looking forward to visiting a volcano!