Exploration & Conservation – Free day

Hey Yall !!! ?

Today we were Líderes Del Dia. We had some challenges today and though our day plan didn’t go how we hoped it would ‍♂️, we worked through it and made it fun for everyone. We started off the day with a nice warmup where we did some stretches and then we played a game. The game was similar to rock paper scissors but with a fun twist. The entire group split into two teams and got into two straight lines and collectively decided if they were going to be a fish , mosquito , or bear . In the game, the bear eats the fish, the fish eats the mosquito, and the mosquito eats the bear. Once they decided which animal they would be, both teams would turn around at the same time and act out their animal quickly. The team who picked the bear rushed and terrorized the helpless fish people (uhh ohhh awkward).

After that, we began to march to the bus stop where we were going to take public transportation to the Turrialba Cheese Festival. We expected the bus to come in like 5 minutes but (uhh ohh again) it didn’t come for almost an entire hour. We waited and waited and in the heat, temporarily getting our hopes up whenever large trucks drove by. It was definitely unfortunate because at that point we didn’t have time to make it. To make up for it, we decided to walk to a nearby store and get some snacks. The Program Coordinators felt bad that we couldn’t make it to the cheese fair so they decided to buy everyone some ice cream! A good amount of us bought some snacks to take home and try with each other. When we finished our ice cream, we headed back to base. (Lukas)

After lunch we prepared for the guest speaker. Karla (tourist guide and artisan cheese producer, has been working as a volunteer in COVIRENA of the Turrialba Volcana National Park since 2007 in environmental education programs and processes in educational centers in nearby communities) , who we had already met on the Global and Local Businesses day, came to our base house and explained the basis of what environmental justice is. She gave us facts about Costa Rica’s landscape and anthropology while giving out local candies to people who shared their voices. We played an exciting game where you would have to help the people directly next to you act out different animals. If you made a mistake while acting out the animals or there was any hesitation you would have to step out of the circle. the last three people left in the circle got some fun souvenirs to bring home.

Post presentation, we were supposed to go on a fun little sunset hike. Although, many people were very tired so we voted to catch up on some much needed rest. To make up for the hike, we decided to make tonight another MOVIE NIGHT !!! (WooHoo) After passing the torch the Angel and Sebastian, we watched BeetleJuice and went to bed.