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Return Flight Information

The SStS 2019 Panama Crew will be returning home tomorrow, Monday, July 8. Their flight information can be found below: American Airlines Flight 1347 (Monday, July 8) Departs Panama City at 6:15 a.m. Arrives in Miami at 10:22 a.m.

Arrived to Panama City

Our course instructors have reported that the group has landed in Panama City and will enjoy a nice last meal together before finishing their course and heading home tomorrow morning.

A Sweet Start to a Bittersweet Day

I started my day off today with a walk to the ocean and eating coconuts cut down by a friendly local, Raymond. The fresh coconut was a sweet start to a very bittersweet ending to our time in San Cristóbal. When we arrived at “el internet”, the San Cristóbal community center, the kids were already…

Pure Joy

Today was our last day at San Cristóbal. Two of our leaders let us have a last hurrah with the kids. They provided us with a piñata. The second we got off the boat with the piñata all of the kids started rushing to the community center. It was a really special moment being able…

How Do You Say, “I Have A Gift For You?”

Everyday that we have been in Bocas Del Toro, two of my group members and I have spent an hour at a local restaurant in Cristobol teaching the moms who own the restaurant English. We spent our time teaching them common restaurant phrases such as what would you like to eat, my name is, and…

A Different Perspective

Working in the community center for the past couple of days has definitely been a change from the active soccer games, piggy back rides and tag that were ever present in the first week of working with the kids. It has taken some getting used to, but having my leg contained in a cast has…

Painting in San Cristobal

Today the group was in San Cristobal working hard to help finish painting teacher housing. The housing is important as teachers are often placed by the government and if they do not have a home to stay in locally, weather and other conditions impact their attendance. By providing comfortable housing for teachers, Give and Surf…

Polo Beach

The past few days we’ve had the chance to explore the local sites on Bocas. In the midst of our journey we came upon a man by the name of Polo. An eccentric man, Polo has lived on “Polo beach” for 55 years, aptly named after him. Once a millionaire, he blew all his money…

A National Holiday

Today in Panama is a national holiday. Today the new government was sworn into office. In Panama, a presidential election happens every 5 years. Citizens of Panama must be 18 years old to vote. Citizens go to vote at schools. In this recent election, four parties had good turnout at the polls. The parties were…

Island Geography

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text letter_spacing=””]When they said we were going into a bat cave I can’t say that was what we all were expecting. The muddy path that led to the cave was even a journey itself. Some of us, including me, had chosen to wear flip flops and that was our first mistake. We were all slinging…

Immersed In Bastimentos

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text letter_spacing=””]Today, we had a big morning storm and all ended up teaching and playing at the community center in Bastimentos. There were so many fun activities happening today, but the highlight of my day would definitely be skateboarding with a group of local kids and fellow group members. In the back of the community…

Meeting Neil

Students had the chance to meet with and work alongside the Executive Director of Give and Surf, Neil Christiansen. Look out for more student posts coming this week and follow along with our pictures and video each day on Instagram @studentsshouldertoshoulder

Building our comfort levels

In our second day working with the kids, those of us working in Cristobal ended our time there with a walk through the jungle. Oscar, a fourteen-year-old member of the Ngobe indigenous group led us through the jungle, instructing us in Ngabere as we walked. The kids found it hilarious as we struggled to pronounce…

Our first day in Cristobal and Bastimentos

Today was our first day of working in community centers in Cristobal and Bastimentos. We split into two groups of seven and started work around two. My groups made our way over to Cristobal, where most kids did not speak very much English. Our first activity was a game of soccer. It started out as…

Our Journey to Bocas Del Toro

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text letter_spacing=””]After getting off the shaky, 13-row plane we adventured through the streets to get to our water taxi. It had rained this morning so the streets were flooded with water. We held our bags up as high as we could and tried to avoid splashing each other at 7:30 in the morning. The somewhat…

Our List of Questions Grows

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text letter_spacing=””]Just as the Panama Canal’s connectivity we would see in 24 hours, the Au Bon Pain of Miami International served as a joining together spot. All 17 of us met up and successfully began our journey together in front of this airport bakery. After making it through security and checking into our flight, we…

Arrived safely

We just received a message from the course instructors. The group arrived early in Panama City, quickly made their way through customs, and will soon be heading to their hostel for the night after a long day of travel.

SStS Panama Prepares for Takeoff

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text letter_spacing=””]Despite some unexpected flight changes this morning, all 14 of the students along with Allison, Laura, and McNair arrived in Miami with plenty of time to check in and begin their group orientation activities before their flight departs. For example, this enthusiastic group spent some time journaling about their expectations regarding what lies ahead…

Welcome to the Panama Travel Journal

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text letter_spacing=””]The travel journal will be the place for students to share their experience 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…

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