Today was working like a local, so we had to wake up at 5am to get to our destination on time. We took a private bus to La Bastilla and from there we switched transportation. We rode on the back of a truck to the school and it was definitely a great experience. We drove through a tropical forest that reminded us a lot of Jurassic Park. Once we got to our destination we split into groups of four and worked with chickens, pigs, and a garden. Most of us also learned how to create cheese. We took a long hike to the Hotel La Bastilla which was a challenge for others, but we encouraged each other to keep going. The amazing buffet on the top of the hill was our reward. The food we had for lunch was rice, potato, veggies, french fries, fajitas “chinas”, and empanadas and coconut shavings with cajeta for dessert. After the long day, we finally got back to the hostel and presented our Community Action Project to the professors of Villa La Cruz. We decided to build a classroom for the school and the professors were extremely satisfied.

My peers, Samantha, and I learned that we have to be compassionate toward others, whether it’s waiting  for your struggling teammate or encouraging your group to not be scared of touching chickens or pigs.

What surprised us the most was seeing all the chickens in the coop; there were so many chickens it was both incredible and scary because they would peck us constantly while we were in the coop. It didn’t hurt, though, so that was a relief.

Our group made us proud because the hike up the hill was exhausting, but many waited for one another so that was really nice of them. We all pushed ourselves to work our hardest.

The students of Bastilla inspired us because they worked for their school and helped maintain it. They had to do the work we did today every single day. Several of the Bastilla students had to travel an hour and a half just to get their education.This is very inspiring because, for the most part, our schools aren’t that far from where we live and we don’t have to do physically demanding work every day as part of our educations.

Being El Lider Del Dia and sharing the work with a partner was definitely challenging. It took a lot of hard work and responsibility to make sure we were on time and that everyone was safe. However, in the end Samantha and I enjoyed our day and so did our peers!

We learned that we have the capability to lead a group and lead them successfully. We also learned great team work skills and found out different ways to improve our leadership skills.

A group shot right before our truck ride began! It was so much fun.

A group shot right before our truck ride began! It was so much fun.

 

One of our groups posing with Bastilla students who work at the chicken coop

One of our groups posing with Bastilla students who work at the chicken coop.

 

Bernice gets up close and personal with some of Bastilla's pigs!

Bernice gets up close and personal with some of the pigs!

 

Eugene learned to enjoy being surrounded by a hundred chickens as we collected eggs this morning

Eugene learned to enjoy being surrounded by a hundred chickens as we collected eggs this morning 🙂