Hola Families and Friends!

We know you miss us, and we miss you guys, too…but honestly….we are VERY busy, VERY happy, VERY well-fed, and do not have time to be homesick!

Last night we fell asleep to the sound of hard rain, and when that ended, the sounds of bugs took over.

Many of us woke up to the sounds of birds. Some of us started the day with a short meditation and some yoga with Michelle, one of our GGLs and Leader of the Day. Casa Azul overlooks a valley and mountains. This morning we literally woke up in the clouds.

We then had an amazing breakfast of gallo pinto, scrambled eggs, fresh bread, delicious coffee, and fresh fruit juice.

Socrates, our other GGL and Leader of the Day led the group through some mind-blowing energizers that had us excited, energized, and laughing really hard.

For History Day, we visited the town of Cartago. Cartago was the capital of Costa Rica until 1823. Our tour guide, Alvaro, was amazing. He told us about the city’s history and walked us to the most important sites. Interestingly enough, the first site was the original church which is now in ruins but has a gorgeous garden (las ruinas de Santiago Apostol), and the last sight was another church that was built to replace the original (Basilica de Nuestra Senora de los Angeles). We learned about the indigenous people of the area (there are 8 different indigenous groups in Costa Rica today). We also toured a typical market and saw lots of produce and dried goods that locals purchase.

Lunch was incredible, and we ate platos tipicos alongside locals who were in Cartago enjoying the rain-free day. Ayanna indulged in Tres Leches, her favorite dessert, Blair had the chocolate cake, and Socrates tried a caramel cake that was to die for. We leave each meal saying how stuffed we are, and then eat everything in sight at the next meal! Go figure! LOL

After lunch we went to the ONLY souvenir store we would find on this trip. We had a lot of trouble choosing among the many items covered in “Pura Vida” (the country’s slogan), and animals such as sloths, frogs, and monkeys. We plan on giving you the gifts we purchased today after we see how often you comment on our blog posts! 🙂

We then came back to Casa Azul to relax before our afternoon seminar which focused on what it meant to be a leader and prepare our delegation for the students to begin their roles as Leaders of the Day.

Dinner was incredible, with fresh juice, and another plato tipico. We had a soup of vegetables and beef over rice. It was scrumptious.

Students are constantly mixed up so they can all get to know each other. We sat on the bus today according to height (a tall matched with a short), ate lunch with students whose shirts had varying amounts of writing on them, and had dinner with people whose names had the same number of letters as ours. Everyone is finding ways to connect with each other, and we are already feeling like family. Even though we have been away from home for just two nights, it already feels like we have been in Costa Rica forever.

After dinner, we had our nightly meeting and Michelle and Socrates helped the group reflect on the day. Students took time to create their agreement for the group-characteristics that we will value and protect to ensure that everyone is SAFE and has FUN. We then passed the sloth (torch) to Dylan and Messiah, our next Leaders of the Day.

To “pass” the leadership role, the next day’s leaders must perform a talent for the group. Last night, Socrates earned his role today by making the group think, and Michelle stood on her head. Tonight, Dylan impressed the group with her singing, and Messiah shared a poem he wrote that included every single member of the group.

As we finish this post, the kids are talking and laughing. Jasmine is working on her Posse application, and we are getting ready to head into our rooms. Some of the crazy kids want to get up at 5am to try to watch the sunrise. Let’s see if that actually happens!

BIG LOVE,
Michelle and Socrates