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Dear Sandro, thank you so much for all of the hospitality that you have offered us. You are truly a great person and have made our time in Rancho Quemado awesome. The tour of the cocoa farm and making the chocolate was an amazing experience to understand working with nature. The planting really helped with…
Summary by Kevin and Alondra based on group reflection… Today was all about food! This community lives and eats in ways that are closely tied to the local environment. Most of the foods that we have eaten have come from the area. We began the day with a visit to a small dairy very close…
One moment or experience that I am choosing to reflect on was earlier in the day at the gold mines. Specifically Dona Rosa and her cooking. Not only was the food delicious, but I really enjoyed her eagerness to share a little bit of her culture. She made a variety of traditional dishes using…
While we were at the trapiche Don Carmen, Victor shared with us a very personal story about his life and the struggles he faced, including not being able to go to school past third grade. This was very touching and really gave us a new perspective and new awareness for the privileged life we live….
Lily: While riding horses with Victor I was able to talk and reflect with him about his life and Rancho Quemado. He talked about his job and how he loves what he does, he owns multiple horses, many that are used for riding in festivals in Costa Rica. He also monitors a farm close to him…
When shoveling the irrigation systems at the center, we all had to work together and help each other out. There were no leaders or group members with higher authority, but we all were equals in the process, as Jessica taught us, allows organizations to thrive. It also helped us to understand that everyone working at…
Throughout this day we followed Sandro, one of the local tour guides through an organic farming tour where we learned about how the local people here in Rancho Verde use the environment to survive and consistently make food. Sandro is morally courageous because he took a risk by starting to become eco-friendly. He decided to…
Ashley shared her story about her daughter Esperanza. There is not enough work in Rancho Quemado, so she has to leave with her parents so that she can work in another town. It drove home the points from our pre-course curriculum about the economic challenges facing people in this region and the difficulty in balancing…
We are thrilled to have arrived in San Jose, Costa Rica and anxiously await our final companion joining us tomorrow. Travel days are difficult. Even when all goes well, they are long days filled with early mornings or late nights. As several of our group experienced, sometimes you get both. A red eye from the…
The group has arrived, enjoyed a meal together, and is tucking in for a well-earned rest.
The travel journal will be the place for students to share their experiences while traveling. Once the students are on-site, they are asked to post reflections, observations, pictures, stories, poems, and more. Our whole community appreciates the opportunity to be part of the group’s adventure, and as the course comes to an end, each group…