Back to Atlanta

It's been a great week in Costa Rica! We've visited an active volcano, visited local schools, gone to the beach, and explored a botanical gardens and zoo. But now, the week is over, and we are heading back to Atlanta. I'm adding a picture of all the staff at the Rancho that have been so great to us on this post. Enjoy! Viva El Rancho de Espanol

InBIO Park, the International Mall, and a Dance Party!

This morning, we visited InBIO Park, a zoo and botanical gardens in Heredia, Costa Rica. We got to get up close with some animals native to Costa Rica. At one point, I was really no more than a metre away from an iguana (see picture!). It was amazing! We had lunch there, and then we headed over to the International Mall. Students were able to break up into small groups and explore the mall. It consisted of many different stores. Some of these stores were recognizable to us, and others were unique to the area. It was a great experience. We rode back to the Rancho after that for dinner, a pinata, and a dance party for our last night here! Back to ATL tomorrow...

Tortuga Island trip

Today, we visited Tortuga Island. It was a really fun experience. We took a bus to a port harbour in Puntarenas, Costa Rica, where we went in a boat all the way to the island. There students had the oppurtunity to snorkle, play volleyball, and kayak. We had lunch there, and then students had free time to hang out. A party complete with Carribean music broke out on the way back from Tortuga Island! Then, on the bus ride, we stopped on a street corner to buy soccer jerseys! It was an all day trip, and we got back to the Rancho at 8:00 at night. It was a great trip - we all enjoyed it!

Schools in Alajuela... ...and Dancing!

This morning we visited a local kindergarten class, while some of the adults went ziplining. We taught them a song in English, and they taught us a song in Spanish - it was great fun! We came back to the Rancho for lunch, and then we went to a local elementary school in the afternoon. There, we sat in on classes (see picture) and played soccer with the kids. We stopped at a bakery on the way back from the school. Not only was it an opportunity for us to buy Costa Rican baked goods, but also to buy refreshments for those of us hot and thirsty from the soccer game. When we got back to the Rancho, we had Latino dancing class. We learned Merengue and Salsa dancing. Then, we had dinner, followed by a suggestion from Michael to go to bed early, awaiting a trip to Tortuga Island at 6:30 tomorrow morning.

Downtown Alajuela

After breakfast today, we took a tour of Downtown Alajuela. We visited a market, a cathedral, and a park. It was a really interesting activity. We came back to the Rancho for lunch, and then had some free time to hang out at the pool, or take a nap in the apartments. Later that afternoon, both the kids and the adults played Spanish games to help practise their vocabulary. After dinner, as usual, we had the option to call it a night, or hang out for a while before bed. Another great end to another great day.

NOTE: You may notice me now spelling Alahuela "Alajuela" instead of "Alahuela". Before my arrival in Costa Rica, I knew it spelled as "Alahuela". However after a few days here, I have noticed it spelled "Alajuela", so this is how I will spell it from now on, unless told otherwise in the future.

Today we visited the Poas Volcano National Park. Poas is a volcano and major tourist attraction in Costa Rica. It has two large craters, Laguna Caliente and Lake Botos. We visited them both today - great photo oppurtunity. The crater pictured is Laguna Caliente. If you look closely, you may notice that the water is mint green. The picture doesn't show it as well as if you went to see it in person, but if you have good eyes, you will probably be able to see from the picture. To me the picture looks more light blue than anything else. Apart from the volcano, both the kids and the parents had cooking classes today, which was a great experience for both age groups. Also, we got a tour of the city surrounding the Rancho (Alahuela), which was pretty cool. Today's tour was just a bus tour, however a second tour is scheduled for tomorrow, in which we will walk through the city. Well, that's a wrap! Keep reading...

Arrival at Rancho

After a brief orientation upon our arrival, students have been given the oppurtunity for an afternoon of free time in the pool (see picture). Lunch was prepared at the restaurant located on the Rancho's campus: a buffet with chicken, rice, beans, and more! Dinner at 6, and then to the pool until 8, or to the rooms to get a head start on sleeping, in preparation for our visit to the volcano Poas tomorrow.

Enroute to Costa Rica...

The official Costa Rica flight has taken off! Students are enjoying time on the three and a half hour plane ride, while chaperones are getting some well needed rest time. More info to come in the next blog post!

Preparation

My name is Jordan Valdés, and I am a student in Cliff Valley's fifth grade class. Throughout our stay in Costa Rica, I will be blogging about our activities and posting pictures on this blog. Stay tuned!

The class has been preparing for our trip all year. Spanish teacher Estela Flores has been working with the class on important vocabulary that will be useful in Costa Rica. Outdoor Education teacher Kate Sidorski has organized reports on Costa Rica's wildlife and nature, as well as places we will be visiting.