The quote of the day (day 10) was from an anonymous source and said “time flies whether you are having fun or not. The choice is yours.” I think it is safe to say that we definitely choose to make time fly in the most fun way possible.  In case you were wondering about the title… we spent our second “fun day” going to the waterfall of Pailon Del Diablo, which soaked every inch of us.  But that did not stop the fun of the day.

The highlights of the day included the walk to the waterfall through a very jungle-like terrain. Which then lead us to our big event of the day, Pailon Del Diablo (by the way that happens to mean the Devil’s Cauldron in Spanish)! In order to reach the very top of the waterfall, we had to go through a series of claustrophobic rock formations. But the pay-off at the top was ginormous, as we got to soak up the wonders of nature (literally and metaphorically). The force of the water was as if there was a person next to us at all times slapping us in the face. Most of the water force came from the very bottom of the waterfall where the water ricochet on the rocks and splashed all over us. Watching the water in action from the top of the waterfall was definitely amazing yet scary. The roaring of the water was deafening, however there was a lot to appreciate. As city people we will not have many other opportunities to enjoy the full form of nature. To cap off our trip to the town of Banos, we all ended up getting cute souvenirs for ourselves and our families.

As Leader of the Day, I was not nervous but more curious to see how I could facilitate the group. There was a lot to consider because I didn’t want to be too strict or too soft to the point where my voice had no power. There was also the fact of always being aware and making sure everyone felt comfortable when it came to food and people’s health. I think I hit all of the notes that a leader should hit but maybe not hard enough. I was surprised of how well I checked up on the group but at times I was too risky and energetic. We have such a diverse group of characters on this trip which made leading feel very easy and makes things very interesting. When I conducted the nightly meeting I found it very exciting to pass the torch to Will who is a super-confident and funny leader.

The theme of the day was trying to keep nature safe while at the same time making use of it. If our trip to the waterfall does not prove that we did exactly that, then I don’t know what does. I feel that everyone learned as whole that we can respect the gifts of Mother Nature and still admire them.

Later on in the day we all prepped for the next couple of days that are yet to come with a “Living Like a Local” seminar. We discussed several baffling facts about the non-United States and the poor population.  We are getting ready to take off our huggies diapers and put on our H&M jeans in order to take on the world of non-electricity for 24 hours in order to live like a local.

Mom and Dad, I hope I was a leader that you were satisfied with since I got all of my skills of taking charge from you guys. Brien, I haven’t forgotten you because you gave me a tremendous amount of confidence and made my voice mean something.

This is your DAY 10 Leader, Brandon Barker, saying adios and passing the torch to Mr. Will.