Can’t believe day 3 has passed and what a day it was! We started our day bright and early (6:30 am wake-up call) with the sounds of birds chirping and Vince’s knocks on everyone’s doors (some people may have been slightly startled haha). Breakfast was served and we left promptly at 7:30 am to Cartago. The drive was about 1 hour and 30 minutes, so we had a quick pit stop at a gas station. Everyone was so excited and curious about all the snacks and food!

After a while, we made it to Cartago where we were met by a cool breeze, the largest Costa Rican flag in the country, and our tour guide: Glori. Glori directed us to sit in the town square (Plaza Mayor de Cartago) and told us about the history of Cartago and the town square. In the town square, you could also see the ruins of Cartago, an unfinished Romanesque church. Since Costa Rica is located on the Ring of Fire, many natural disasters (particularly earthquakes) destroyed the church. Each time the people of Costa Rica tried to complete the structure, it would crumble and they would have to start all over again. We had some time to go inside the ruins and explore the structure. It truly was such a magnificent sight to see as they have turned the interior into a relaxing garden!

Before heading out to the next location, Glori split the group between Spanish speakers and non-Spanish speakers and then put equal numbers of Spanish/non-Spanish speakers into two groups. She then tasked both groups to purchase bananas (the goal though was to find the cheapest bananas) at the local market that she was going to take us to. Then she tasked one group to discover the meaning of “Jocote” and the other to find the meaning of “Mamon Chino.” Here was the twist: the Spanish speakers in each group could NOT be the ones asking questions/speaking to the locals/vendors, it had to be our non-Spanish speakers!

Once Glori explained the activities we were going to do at the market, the group took a picture at the town square. While we were taking a picture in front of the ruins, a person approached Glori and invited the group to explore a fair that was set up in the town square, with vendors who were deaf and selling various arts, crafts, foods, and goods they created.

We were able to purchase items and food from the vendors using different modes of communication: ASL, Spanish, and English. After the fair, Glori led the group to the Cartago Municipal Market. Once there we were off to complete our two activities: find the cheapest bananas and purchase them; discover the meaning of our words. Going through the market was pretty amazing, we were able to see all types of fruits and vegetables and realized how the prices really did vary between vendors. Once both groups had completed the activity we came back together to compare prices and share our words. Group “Mamon Chinos” was able to purchase their bananas for 1500 colones (roughly $2.85) while Group “Jocotes” bought their bananas for 700 colones (roughly $1.34). So Group “Jocotes” for the win!!! After that, both groups shared that Mamon Chinos and Jocotes are fruits. Fun discovery: Mamon Chinos are called Rambutan in the US and look similar to Lychees.

After the market, Glori led us to our next destination: Basílica de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles (Basílica of Our Lady of the Angels). This structure is a very large Byzantine-style basilica known for its Virgin Mary statue and holy drinking water. The church itself was grand, with its large arches and domes, dark wood furniture, and multi-colored patterns.

Once we finished with our tour of Cartago, we had lunch. It was a buffet-style lunch and it was delicious! Most of us had rice with chicken, a side of baked potatoes, beans, plantains, and salad. A couple of us also purchased some “pipas” or coconuts for 500 colones (roughly .95 cents!). Great way to stay hydrated!

And just like that, our day in Cartago was completed! It was truly an insightful day for us as we got a glimpse of Costa Rica’s history and culture and how that aspect of Costa Rica shapes the identities of the people here.

When we got back to the base, we had some downtime, ate dinner, and had our second nightly meeting. At our meeting, we passed the torch to our next Leaders of the Day, Theo and Sophia! Stay tuned for their blog!!!