The Green Turtle

The sun had long set, and the night was black. The sand was cool between my toes as my friends and I walked the dark beach. It was 11:00 PM. The only light we had was Alejandro's flashlight, a couple of meters up the beach from where we were walking. Our expectations were high. I know I for one had been excited about this night since the day I found out about it, weeks ago! Suddenly, I heard Alejandro's voice call out over the sound of the crashing waves. "Look! Come quickly!" We hustled over to him. Through the light of the flashlight, I could see tiny outlines of what looked like small turtles! I bent down and sure enough, I saw three baby turtles making their way, clumsily, towards the furious water's edge! At that moment I felt that my life was complete. We stood and continued to watch them for a half hour. They were so tiny and so perfect. I wished I could take them home with me. My friends and I named them, said a prayer that they would continue to be safe, and walked back to our hotel. It was just perfect! That's all I can say. A perfect ending to a perfect day!
Except that it hasn't happened yet. That's how I imagine it in my head.. I can only hope that that's how the night will play out! Unfortunately we still have a few hours to wait. Now we're Off to dinner! :)
Marissa

Staci's Experience in Costa Rica

While we traveled to Costa Rica, I still couldn't believe that we were actually going. It seemed so surreal. The plane rides were good, not much turbulance but there was some. Once we got to Manzanillo, the humidity was incredibly intense. I realized it was going to be hard to deal with because of my asthma, but I got used to it. We settled I our rooms and then went to the beach. The beaches here are amazing. The water is warm and the waves are huge. We would go swimming everyday after our hard days of work at the school. We worked at the school Tuesday through Friday. The kids were adorable and so much fun to be around. After working for about five or six hours, then did activities with the kids. It was also nice to be able to talk to the people we were staying with. Their names were Mommi, Dennis, China, Edline, Natalie, Yail, Aquil, and Blaze. On Friday after we worked with the school and said goodbye, we went on a hike in the jungle. I loved the hike because we got to see a lot of different parts of the beach, and also got to see several animals and plants. There was so much mud, and any hills, which was also a fun experience. I think my favorite part of the hike was when Roo lost his shoe in a mud hole. I jumped right in and dug through it to find it. O Saturday some people went snorkeling, others tanned, and others swam. Saturday was a very fun but sad day because the next morning we left to go to Tortuguero. Over all I have learned so much of this culture and how to live in a place like this. I hope we gave a good impression on the people we met while there. I know they have inspired me lot. I realized while staying with Mommi and Dennis that we don't laugh nearly as much as we should. Every time I saw them, they are laughing and smiling about something. It's amazing how satisfied they can be, when so many people in our group were complaining about something most of the time. I really hope that the kids in our group can get a good experience from this trip and understand that they should be greatful for what they have. This is such a wonderful opportunity and I'm glad I am able to be in the beautiful place!

Big turtle

Tortuguero means big male turtle. It was worth the travel to get here! We traveled several hours by van, over dirt roads to get to the boat launch. Then an hour boat ride. Kinda like trying to get to Orcas! This whole place is built for the tourists to experience the Wet Tropical Rain Forest. As opposed to the Moist Tropical Rain Forest like it was in Manzanillo. Moist means only 6 meters of rain a year. Wet means over 8 meters! It has poured rain every hour since we arrived. It is warm rain and inbetween it is really nice.

This is a photo of our lounge area.

Cheers,

Ron Claus

Nostalgia in Paradise

This is such a fun trip; the birds sing every morning, the wind blows and the rain pours, the sun peaks through the clouds once in a while. We all miss Manzanillo already but we are quickly acclamating to Tortuguero even though we will only be here for two nights. Our morning canoeing trip was refreshing and wet as the sky opened and closed every 30 minutes. Our night walk was scary and intriguing at the same time as we saw spiders, frogs, and a couple of snakes. So far, the trip has been a blast and we are looking forward to the next week!

-Sierra

Pura vida!!!

This is the slogan for the place we are in, which is Tortuguero. We just got here yesterday, and have had a wet blast so far. There are no roads to get here, only planes and river boats. We took a boat for forty five minutes, and arrived in a little town. The town has winding streets and is really confusing to me. The little hotel is nice, almost just like the one in Manzinillo. we are right on the beach, which is really nice. It is raining all the time, but at least it's warm. We took a night jungle hike last night, which was REALLY muddy and wet, but interesting to. We saw lots of spiders, frogs, and one snake. At six this morning we were moving out to go canoeing on the intricate web of rivers. We saw lots of cammons, which are in the alligator family, monkeys, lizards, birds, butterflys, etc. it was wet, but a lot of fun. Now it is raining once again. Pura Vida!!!! (pure life)

Canoeing!

At six this morning, we left to the river for a canoe trip with Alejandro and two other guides. It took three and a half hours, and it went through the local national park. We saw many lizards, iguanas, and monkeys! It was exciting, and we have a few hours to relax now before lunch and some schoolwork with Mr. Claus. Tonight is the night hike on the beach from 10 to 12, and I really hope we'll get to see some sea turtles!

--Brynna

SUCCESS

I experienced success!  I lost the password for this blog and for several days endeavored to prove I belong to this blog.  Google gave up first.  Finally I received a simple email with few instructions.  Now the Costa Rica travelers can blog to all of their fans and followers.  I can't wait to see what they write.  Stay tuned.

htbh