Final Reflection

We've officially been back in the states for about three weeks now. Looking back at when we were in Costa Rica, there's a lot that has changed about me. The whole trip overall was amazing, it's something I'd definitely do again without a second thought. Even though we did a LOT of work (we worked really hard almost every day we were there, the worst part of the trip were the ants in the rainforest), I really enjoyed going on the trip. Before we left, I expected to miss being in another country, but I didn't expect it to really have this much of an effect on me.

The work we did was extremely hard and tiring but in the end we all pulled through. I think it was a little harder on me because of my leg, but everyone helped me get through it, having me do less difficult work even though I didn't want to. Because of the close living conditions and everything, I thik it was impossible for everyone not to get to know each other better and become great friends in the end. I didn't really know many people that went on the trip other than the peope that were in my class, but in the end I got to know everyone a lot better, even the teachers that went (I would have never expected the teachers to be much different than they are during school, but they are!)

Experiencing a different culture, meeting and working with the people we met there really made an impact on me. While we were in the rainforest working near the school, it really made me rethink the things I take for granted every day. The place they had class was just an old pavillion-type thing. They didn't have much, but they were extremely happy and appreciated the things they did have. It was the same way while we were in La Carpio. The houses were made of corrugated metal, they barely had running water and a clean environment, but they were all still happy.

These are things you more than likely would never see in the US. People just don't appreciate the things they have, always wanting the latest technology and clothes. I do admit that I always want more things, but after going and staying in a different country for 12 days and seeing how they live with much less than what I have, I appreciate what I have a lot more than I did before. Looking around Pittsburgh, seeing the way people act as compared to the people we met in Costa Rica, I kind of feel ashamed. Other countries look at Americans and whether we like it or not, we tend to fall under the typical stereotypes that are set for the US. Americans are so different than people in other countries and we tend to think that we're more superior than them because of our technology and government and whatnot, but in reality, we really aren't superior to anyone. This trip changed my perspective about the US (even though I have a more negative outlook.) I think that everyone should try to go on this trip from our school.

We were hoping for an uneventful return...but didn't get it ;-)

Our flight home was delayed from San Jose by 45 minutes -- just long enough to have USAirways delay our connection to Pittsburgh by 30 minutes so we'd make it. We were grateful and had well communicated to our students what we all needed to do to catch our final plane. USAirways told us they would have their USAirways staff meet us right outside of customs, we would hand off our suitcases, and run to the flight. Our team of 24 was ready for the challenge.

Unfortunately, the bags were delayed in reaching the baggage claim, making us THREE MINUTES too late to pass through TSA security after customs. So we were grounded in Charlotte for the night. I couldn't believe my ears when the attendant told me. This was probably among the top ten worst case scenarios for a bunch of tired chaperones like ours. The process of contacting all parents and breaking the news began quickly, and plans for our extra evening together were arranged.

It took about an hour (until 11:30pm or so) for them to book us a new flight and hotel rooms, and then they said all we had to do head up to passenger pickup and the hotel's van would take us to the hotel, which was just 5 minutes away.

Unfortunately, when we got up to the passenger pick up most food vending was closed and the van for the hotel (which was 20 min away, not 5) only fit 6 students in the first trip as the van only fit 12 and there were other guests going there for the night. So the van had to make 3 trips and it took about 40 min round trip each time -- so the last group didn't get to the hotel until almost 1:30am. USAirways wanted us back at the airport at 5:45am at the latest so we did wake up calls for the kids at 4:15am....and we began re-shuttling the the airport by 5am.

I was amazed at how well our group of students coped with this unexpected delay. There were a few tears, but overall they saw there was nothing we could do and did what needed to be done without complaint. Our family had really formed over the past two weeks together, and it showed in the way they handled themselves in this final night.

We finally arrived about 9:30am yesterday morning....a bit weary from the last leg of travel, and happy to be home :-)

Pura Vida!

Last Full Day in Costa Rica (Day 11)

By Jared Sams
Edited by Mr. Moreland

It's the last day and we leave tomorrow after a long two weeks here in Costa Rica. The trip has been great and I've learned a lot about myself by visiting another country. We've helped and met many different people with big projects for both families and students. It gave an insight on how people live, what they go through, and for the most part, what it means to them.

I used to question whether or not this trip would be life changing or if I would get anything out of it. The truth is that this trip changed my life and the way I view many things. I also learned that I can do a lot more than I think I can if I just take the time to try.

The two things I realized from this trip. First, we as Americans have a lot more than we think we do and that we have it a lot easier than other people in other countries. The second thing is that technology isn't as important as we make it seem. It can tear people apart much faster than it can bring people together. We should take time to be with the people who mean the most to us instead of being connected to a computer or cell phone.

Goodbye Rainforest!

Written by Dany Washington
Edited by: Mr. Moreland

So we left the rainforest yesterday. I can truthfully say I am going to miss it. The people were so simple and appreciative. While we got a lot of work done toward building a new home for Quebrada Arroyo's teacher, it seems like there is much work that still needs to be done to improve their community. I felt as if we got a small amount of work done on the project; however, the community members felt so appreciative and happy for the work that we completed. I definitely am not ready to go back to selfish, unappreciative United States. If only there was a way to bring my family down here to Costa Rica!

What I learned from the Costa Ricans

By Nikki Landosky, student
Edited by Mr. Moreland

The time we spent working in the rain forest had its effect on all of us both mentally and physically. In my opinion, it gave me more of an outlook on how people handle things and appreciate what they have. In America, people really have it easy. We have multiple ways of transportation, construction and education while in the rain forest and even parts of the city they don't have any of that. Every day I hear people complaining that they don't have the latest technology or don't get their way with something but after spending a few days with people that have barely anything and helping them build things by hand, I've learned to appreciate things lot more myself.

Another thing I've seen while I was here was the friendliness and hospitality of everyone we've met. Everyone we've worked with and have been around have just been extremely polite and friendly. In the US, it seems that all workers want to do is compete while they work. It doesn't really matter how much work actually gets done in the end, it just matters who looks the best. Meanwhile, while we worked over here, everyone worked together. Sure, we all were completely exhausted and tired out in the end, but it was ll worth it. We cleared out and leveled the place for the teacher's house near the school in Quebrada Arroyo, removed the sewage pipe in La Carpio and so much more.

Overall, I think this trip helped me learn a lot about different things.

Comparing Latin America and North American Cultures, Day 3

By Bethany Daffern
Edited by Mr. Moreland

It's day three here in Costa Rica and I've finally seen things that normally you wouldn't see back in the United States. One difference I have seen between Costa Rica and the US is Costa Rican's collectivism vs. American's sense of individualism.

For example today we had our first service trip to the Costa Rican community of La Carpio. During the interview we had before we started work the community leaders made sure that they gave everyone in La Carpio some kind of recognition for helping make the community a better place for not only their own family, but for the other people that live in the community as well.

Another thing that I noticed was the time orientation. The people of La Carpio were not in a rush to get the job done, they took their time, made sure that we were all doing everything correctly.

I felt that our service project at La Carpio will be remembered for a long time by both the people of La Carpio and by the students of City High. I really hope that by building roads in their community, we will help them gain title to their own land.

A third cultural pattern which I have noticed is the high contact of Costa Ricans vs. low contact of people from the US. In the States you wouldn't expect someone to run up to you and hug you, unless you REALLY know the person well. But here in Costa Rica it's different. When we visited the high school on Tuesday Ms. Melissa, a Costa Rican English teacher, was very happy to have received the shirt which was being presented to her. All I had expected when giving her the shirt was a simple hand shake and thank you. But instead she hugged me, and at first I thought what's going on? Then I realized that this small token of thanks meant a great deal to her.

This trip and the meaning is finally starting to kick in, and back home we have it good. Many people of Costa Rica has so much less than we do. But yet we as Americans still think we need, need, need. We don't need more things, we need to those who need our help. It doesn't matter who they are, or where they live, we're all in this together. We are a family. We live in a world that we care about, and this experience is helping me and the whole group understand these things, maybe not on day one, but after day three, I'm starting to see the meaning in this.

Adios.

The Open-Heartedness of Costa Rica

Written by Steven Tichenor, Student

Edited by Mr. Moreland

My experience here in Costa Rica taught me many lessons of its people and its culture. Ever since we got here, there has been a smile on each and every person's face and many strangers have smiled wider and said "Pura Vida" which means, "The good life". It's so shocking that everybody here is not only welcoming to us outsiders, but also caring that we are here to help. This can be seen all throughout the streets of San Jose, but it didn't really hit me until we got to Quebrada Arroyo.

In Quebrada Arroyo, the conditions aren't top notch, but we met some fabulous people who let us into their community as if we were family. We met Don Miguel, Corona, Victor, and Victor Hugo. Don Miguel was the leader of the group, Corona is the wife of Victor and the cook for our group, Victor is a farmer who lives nearby, and Victor Hugo is Victor's son who helps out.

Don Miguel and Corona fed us three meals a day of beans and rice and made sure we had everything we needed. This type of treatment normally would be expected, especially if we were staying at a hotel, but we weren't! We were staying in the middle of the Costa Rican rainforest and I wasn't expecting them to treat us as amazingly as they did. They did so, because they care and because they enjoy helping and teaching others about the rainforest and their community. This wasn't just seen by how they treated us, but how well they treated the animals and plants around them.

Quebrada Arroyo is a remote rainforest community that has to build most of their own roads, houses, and schools. For three days we helped move rocks, cinder blocks, and dirt in order to build a house for the local elementary school teacher. Moving these things wasn't easy and the work was in extremely hot and humid conditions . When we were completing these various tasks, however, everybody was pitching in. Whether it was Victor Hugo or teacher Jenny, everybody was willing to lend a helping hand. It was with that collective mentality that helped build their school, the houses that Victor and Miguel live in, the roads that allow people to get around, and help build the community as a whole. They work harder than anybody I've ever known; and they do so with the sweat of their brow and by putting their heart into their work. I have never truly met people who are so genuinely caring and happy to meet and learn from the outside population. It is incredible and I will never forget the open-hearted people of Quebrada Arroyo.

Day 3 & 4

By: Jared Sams, Student
Edited by: Mr. Moreland

Its been a good time here in Costa Rica. I learned alot about the different things they do, the way they eat, and also the ways they drive (which is very wild). We had an interview with Manuel Obregon, but we also had a cancellation of the meeting with Epsy Campbell. Today we interviewed the president of the legislative assembly. He was actually interesting, but we couldn´t finish the entire interview due to the fact that he had a meeting to attend(meeting only lasted about 20 minutes).

Also, on days 3 and 4, we did work in La Carpio. We dug out the ditch, mixed cement, and made a road. We completed our final parts of the project in La Carpio today. It was hot and very nasty because the ditch we dug was a ditch where people shower and toilet water would drain down to sewage. It was a very big mess, but on the other hand, it was a tough job removing the culvert from the ditch and also mixing the cement. Now that the hard work is over, we will meet again with the students from the high school tomorrow here at the hotel.

Out of the jungle and all is well - we will post more tonite in San Jose!

Photo: Students making sugar cane juice by crushing the stalk of the sugar cane plant. Quebrada Arroyo resident Victor helps out.

Mask making in Costa Rica

Written by Ericka Peele
Edited by Mr. Moreland

So, today we were able to how traditional masks are made in Costa Rica. I thought that the mask making was really interesting becuase the man who made the masks took pride in the work he does and that each of his creations brought him joy. Traditional masks are made from stories that is told throughout a town and the masks are worn at festitivals. The man is most proud that his masks bring excitiment to many people of Costa Rica and to people around the world. I also liked the way the mask maker and a group of community children performed and danced while wearing the masks and that many people in our group joined in wearing the masks and dancing with them as well.

During that visit, I learned that even though he was doing what he loved, it wasn't his main way of making money. He had a second job working up in the mountains to support his family. It made me think about in the United States, and how some people tend to be money driven and they put aside or forget about what they love to do or fail to spend time with their family. I think more people should be like him and do what they love and love what they do. 

Week , almost over...

By Tayler Clemm
Edited by Mr. Moreland

Well it is day four and we are approaching the end of the week. We have experienced all of the rice and beans that Ticos can offer, we have been in some of the strongest storms, and we have built roads in some of the highest temperatures. But we have yet to see so many other things that Costa Rica has to offer.

So far, one of the biggest impacts that will change me when I return to the U.S is the visit to La Carpio. The people in La Carpio were so deep with their words, and in a way with their actions that it inspired you to want to help any way that you could. The way one of the community's members, named Rosario, spoke about the importance of her family and community and what little work that we did complete helped them in so many ways made me feel really important. As I walked away from the work site I felt that we didn't complete as much work as we should have for how many people that was there. I underestimated our contribution since they appreciated our work so much.

One event that really touched me was one the little girls of La Carpio. She was less than 10 and she chose to help mix concrete with us both days. She didn't have to be there but she chose to get dirty and build these roads. It was on overall life changing experience and hopefully I could go back to America with a different outlook on life.

There is so much more to experience in these next couple of days and I hope that it only gets better and more inspiring.

Being a vegetarian in Costa Rica, service learning in La Carpio

By Seth Diggs

Edited by Mr. Moreland

I wanted to first talk about how well the city high group has accommodated to my vegetarian diet. I was worried about what I would eat in Costa Rica, and so far I have been very well fed.

I have done so many different activities and learned so much. For example, we volunteered in a very poor community of San Jose called La Carpio. I really like how everyone here seems to appreciate even the smallest gestures. An example of great appreciation is when the La Carpio community leader, Chicho, thanked our 2011 group many times for helping him build roads in his community. I also like the emphasis that La Carpio put on cooperation in the community.

One recurring distinct cultural process I keep encountering is how people in Costa Rica come off to me as not being polite. I say this because every time I run into someone or vice versa they never say a word. Also when squeezing through a tight space a word is never spoken on the Costa Rican side. I think that this is a definite difference between Latin America and North American cultures.

Day 4, First day of work at La Carpio

Written by Rob Matchett, student
Edited by Mr. Moreland

Today was our first service day in La Carpio which was a real eye opener for me.  When we first arrived on the tour bus I started looking at the places in which they live. La Carpio is basically this town of houses that are made of sheet metal, built very close together, with many of the roads unpaved. Garbage lines the street; it is community that at first glance seems to be dilapidated. However, the residents really trying to make improvements to gain title to the land. You are reminded of how lucky you really are to have the things that you do, because these people have very little.  However, they never let that get them down and they really value family.

When we got to La Carpio we met some really cool people that we interviewed. One of the things that I keep seeing down here is the value of family. Chicho (a community leader who is a legal immigrant from Nicaragua) said though that none of his family is here but he is close to his neighbors.

When we were done with the interview we paved a part of a street. This was so crazy to me because I don't do such strenuous work at home, but here I don't know what got into me (maybe it was the rice and beans). But I was hand mixing cement with shovels and transporting materials in wheel barrels. It was a demanding process and the people there helped us. It was super cool to just help these people because they really needed it, due to the fact that they are trying to get the rights to this land so they can permanently reside there.

The second cool thing we did was interviewed the Costa Rican Minister of Culture who was really cool. He was the first person that really shook all of our hands and initially instead of separating from our group he sat next to one of us. One of the things that I really liked was when he talked about environmental science and humanity's impact on the environment. He said that the problems with the environment are a result of a lot of people and that it would take more than just a day to address these problems because they are so extensive.

He is a very inspirational figure and his views were so interesting. I mean the guy even gave us free access to a guided tour in a Costa Rican art museum. I loved seeing the contemporary art. I liked the the exibit on death. The artist used a lot of symbolism in their artwork and it was amazing. For example in the one picture there was a person laying dead in the tub with a mirror and the woman giving the tour said it was symbolic of vanity and that the clock next to that symbolized time.

Its only been three days but I can already see changes in myself and the group.I was reading a book that talked about a eureka moment, but i cant help but thinking that maybe this whole trip is my eureka moment.

Day 5, Poas Volcano, Masks, and Salsa Party

Written by Julia Rippel
Edited by Mr. Moreland

I haven´t had much time to post, but I´ve been having a lot of fun so far. Today we went to the Poas volcano and talked with a geologist named Rodolfo Van der Laat.

It was a long drive up to the volcano, but I kept myself busy by taking pictures and filming the scenery. We drove through a ton of coffee plantations which later gave way to milk farms (many of which were associated with Dos Pinos).

When we finally arrived, we hiked uphill through the cloud forest. It was really amazing, because we saw so many plants and trees that were totally different from the ones in the forests of Pennsylvania. One example was the poor man´s umbrella (the layman´s term for the plant), which had enormous leaves.

We saw two craters, which had both filled with water and become lakes. There was steam coming off of the first one, and there wasn´t any greenery on the rocky slopes all around it. You could also smell the sulfur. The second one was larger, and there was a lot of greenery on the surrounding slopes.

Talking with Rodolfo Van der Laat was really interesting, because you could tell he really enjoyed his job. He showed us where the ground on the overlook physically bulges when there´s an eruption coming. Also, while we were sitting and interviewing him, several small, green and black birds came right up to our feet. (I guess they were really used to people).

Later we talked to a man who makes traditional masks. He showed us his workshop and told us the process behind making the masks. He talked about his life in general as well and how he began to make masks. Some of the masks had full bodies to go with them, and he explained how these are used in parades during local festivals. He showed us how they dance during the parades, and let some of the students and teachers try them on and dance too. He also let three students sculpt some clay into the base for the masks.

That night, we had a dance party with our pen pals at the high school here in Costa Rica. Although conversation was kind of halting, it did occur. We dragged some of the Costa Rican boys onto the dance floor, and some of them helped us with our salsa moves. I was happy to practice the salsa, and I kind of learned the meringue from Matt, our guide. All in all, I had a lot of fun today.

Day 4 Costa Rica: La Carpio and the Costa Rican Government

written by Robert Murphy, Student
edited by Mr. Moreland
photo: plaque from the Costa Rican legislature building

Looking back on Day 4

In the afternoon we interviewed the leader of the Costa Rican congress, Juan Carlos Mendoza, who is the youngest person in Costa Rica to hold this position. Through this interview I have learned that Costa Rica Congress is different than the U.S. congress because the Costa Rican congress consits of 57 members that repersent several different parties throughout the country. In the US there are only two major political parties; Costa Rica has many more.

Also the Costa Rican Congress has a viewing area for the public to listen to meetings and where they could put posters up to show what they support. Bullet proof glass separates the pubic viewing area from the congress meeting room and on the glass there are dents and scratches. It seems that some Ticos can become pretty angry during these meetings. The public viewing is open from 3 to 6 p.m. everday. Also in order for the congress to meet in a meeting they must have two-thirds of the representatives in the room (quorum) or they will call for another 5 minutes. After 5 minutes if two thirds of the representatives aren't in the room they will lock the door and dock the representatives pay if they are not in the room. I think that the U.S. goverment should representatives pay if they are not performing their duties. Hopefully this would make them actually get something done.

Day 5

By: Jared Sams
Edited by: Mr. Hernandez

This is day five and I had a good day today. We talked to the geologist by the name of Don Rudolfo Van Der Laat about the Poás volcano. As we visited, we saw inside a crater where a lake sits. The trail was kind of challenging with all the different hills, turns, and steps. It was worth the hike. We also traveled to see Don Gerardo Montoya who is known for making large and colorful masks. We got a chance to see his projects. A few students were able to create a mask using clay, and they were in a small competition to see who made the best one (even though they pretty much all won). After that, there was a raffle for a prize (a mask), which I had the honor to win. The most important thing about that trip was how inspiring he was. He was happy, content, and passionate making masks. Making masks made him very happy with his life. The trip to the mask maker was what made my day; it was great!

Expedition Poas, Day 5

By Rob Matchett
Edited by Mr. Moreland

Today was our trip to the Poás volcano. Things started off pretty early in the morning again, and the only break in our routine was going to breakfast at a different place where we met a geologist (Don Rodolfo Van Der Laat) who spoke about volcanoes. We had a breakfast that included bread, rice and beans, and this delicious sour cream (called natilla) that you mix with salt. After that we piled up into our tour bus and set out on an hour and a half bus ride up the mountain to the volcano. On the way up your surrounded by coffee fields that extend for a long stretch of land. As you continue to go up in elevation the scene changes a little bit. The type of farm changes from coffee plantations to live stock, more specifically cattle farms. The streets are red dirt roads that are created as a result of the iron that is in the soil.

When you pull up to the park you find a parking lot and all of these trails with tons of plant life. One of the most dominant plants are these big leafed plants that are called poor mans umbrellas. We were being led to this building that reminded me of the movie Jurassic Park. I hiked more than I ever did in my whole life today. Most of the paths were uphill and there were a lot of steps, but when you got up to the top it was all worth it. There was this observation area that at first was full of fog or steam but it looked like you were standing in the clouds. It was so hot but when the fog blew away all you saw was this vast green lake that led down to this huge crater.

Another trail which took us even higher in elevation took us to our interview sight which was a formerly active volcano, which now contained a giant lake. Throughout the whole interview there were these brightly colored small animals like squirells and birds that kept getting our attention.

The hike up was really challenging for me but it was all worth it once I saw that scenery. The ride back was relaxing; I enjoyed all of the fresh air from the mountain hike. Then we stopped for ice cream and went to lunch.

Finally before heading back to the hotel, we drove to a man's house who showed us his collection of handmade paper mache masks. His grandfather used to make these masks, and he now makes them, so you can say the tradition lives on. He calls the masks his second family. You could tell by the look on his face that this was something that he really loved doing. After telling us about a couple of different masks he put on a show for us to show us a typical mask dance. Then he invited a few people to volunteer to put on a mask and dance. That was the highlight of my day (Aside from the sing along bus ride back to the hotel).

One of the things that I am noticing here is that material things don't matter as much as sentimental things. In America its all about the money, but here people follow their passions (the thing that they love doing) and people are so respectful. Here family is the first thing that people think about and value the most. Being poor isn't a weakness; the people still are happy and find joy in all of the small things in life. Ticos seem to feel that each day holds new experiences that you learn from. I mean so far I've learned everything from valuing hard work to appreciating nature.

Day 4 Costa Rica

Written by Austin Murphy
Edited by Julia Rippel

Today we went to La Carpio, where we finished working on the road we started on Day 3. We split into three groups. Each group had a different task. One group worked on mixing and pouring cement. The second group worked on leveling and smoothing out the ground. Finally the third group worked on digging out the draining ditch. With us, City Charter High School, working to create roads in La Carpio, we are helping the people to get titles for their land.

The community is made of squatters. The population ranges from poor Costa Ricans to immigrants from surrounding countries. The people are very friendly. While we were working they came up to us, talked to us and even helped us work. In our class we studied Latin American cultural patterns, such as expressiveness of emotions. After we completed the work we had been doing in La Carpio, the President of La Libertad, ChiCho, was very emotional and said that we are great workers and thanked us for helping the community. He said he was honored to have us doing this work and will continue to welcome City High Students in La Carpio for future trips.

In the afternoon we went to the Legislative Assembly building to meet with the President of the Legislative Assembly, Juan Carlos Mendoza. Mr. Mendoza is the youngest person ever to be made president of the Legislative Assembly. While meeting with Mr. Mendoza, we learned about some political issues in Costa Rica, such as the need for people who have different ideas to come together in order to change what Costa Rica is, low communication within communities, and racism. We toured the Legislative Assembly building and found that there was a session of congress being held. We went to the public viewing area and saw some people who were watching the session of congress. We learned that they were there to support free trade with the United States as this would create jobs for the people. Also the protesters said that the state department is giving jobs, drugs, and other things to people to get their votes.

After doing four interviews, we have learned a lot about Costa Rica's culture. Some things that we have learned so far are that the people value family more than material possessions. In one interview in La Carpio, they said that: When we work together like a community, we are family. I personally found this to be an amazing way of summing up our entire trip so far. We go to school with each other but that can only bring us so close to each other. Actually being in Costa Rica we are growing closer together. We are learning each other's strengths and weaknesses through many things that we do such as: learning to salsa dance, paving roads, digging a ditch for a pipe, speaking Spanish and much more. As said in an interview with the Minister of Culture, Manuel Obregon, on day 3, for us to forget our own problems and to help others solve their problems generates happiness for everyone.

Days 1 & 2 & 3 !

written by Antoinette Davis, Student
edited by Mr. Moreland

Day 1:

Waking up at 2:30 in the morning was a hard thing for me to do. When I arrived the airport I thought I was going to cry but surprisingly me nor my mother did not cry. As I got ready to get on the plane, I was very nervous because I have never been on a plane before I only heard stories about them. When I got on the plane I was still nervous but as I looked out the window I started to become less nervous until I experienced turbulence. Now that I have experienced that I HATE planes.

Anyways, as we arrived in Cost Rica I noticed that it was totally different from what I was used to. I noticed so many differences between America and Costa Rica. The biggest difference was the food. I though I wouldn't like it at all but with my side of Red Hot Sauce it was okay. When bed time came round I was exhausted and I slept like a baby this night!

Day 2:

Getting up wasn't too hard because I got such a good rest, but when breakfast came round my attitude changed. I didn't really like the breakfast so I didn't eat anything but the toast. As we left the hotel we went to visit the Dos Pinos company. The tour was very interesting. At the end they gave us ice cream which was nice. After that tour we made it back to our hotel for lunch which was OKAY and then headed out to meet our pen pals. As we were leaving it started to pour down rain so since we walked there we were soaked. That was the hardest thing for me to deal with. I really don't like being wet, so having to sit in wet clothes and talk to people gave me a little attitude. That quickly changed when I meet the students. They were so nice and funny. Even though I don't speak much Spanish and they don't speak much English we manged to make conversation. So after that was dinner then salsa dancing which was very fun. I learned that I am very good salsa dancer. I wish we could of stayed there a little bit longer but it was too late.

Day 3:

I'm still getting used to everything but today the breakfast was good. After breakfast it was our first day to start work. After going out to La Carpio all of my thoughts about how I live and what I do changed. Seeing their community in the shape it was in and learning that the people of the community have to fix it themselves made me what to help out much more. Helping them felt good and even though we couldn't fix every thing I think our little bit of helped worked. So since we have two days to work at La Carpio I think that everything we do between the two days will help the community out in big way.

Day 3

Written by DJ DAUGHTRY , student
Edited by Mr. Moreland

I would like to say that today was tough. We woke at 5:30 to eat at 6:30, so we can get out and work. Because this is Costa Rica's rainy season or winter it rains a lot, which in turn means they have early and long days. So similar to the average Tico or Costa Rican we got up early and went straight to work. It was amazing. I personally love working with my hands and doing hard labor because it just feels good to me, but this was different because it wasn't just mindless work, it was work that really helped the community. We helped finish a cement road.
Some of the reasons this job really benefits the community:

• La Carpio is what is know as a squatter town, mainly Nicaragua immigrants,
  
• Because it being a squatter town the people have no right to their land, and
  
• The only way they get full access to their land is to build roads, sidewalks, indoor pluming and such

So by doing this we are really helping La Carpio. And we have another early start tomorrow!

Another thing I want to talk about before I catch some sleep. is a CCI or Cross Cultural Incident. In class before we talked about how there are general cultural differences between Latin America and North America. One we talked about and I observed was the fact that here it's more about team work than self glory. In the Dos Pinos factory we were told how they are a co-op or a cooperative. In a nutshell this means that they are not like a corporation who has one main leader, rather the Co-op has many and equal share holders. All these share holders cooperatively provide leadership. They are all equal and make decisions as such. And this is a major change from American business philosophy.

All in all I'm having a great time. Today was no rain which I loved, and the food gets better everyday. Today we had new drink made out of fruit that grows in the back yard!

Day 3 of Costa Rica

written by Robert Murphy, student
Edited by Mr. Moreland


I am recovering from our salsa dance lessons at "Peppers" night club last night. At Peppers I learned how to dance the salsa. This dance to me at first was a challenge since I didn't know how to dance at all before this experience. I am looking forward to future events where I can show off my salsa dance moves.


The breakfast today really wasn't what I was expecting because we received pineapple and watermelon slices on a plate and then a piece of ham and cheese and a croissant. I was hoping for more of a breakfast that included rice, beans and fruit. This meal shows me that the Ticos have all sizes of meals and that they are not generally the same portions everyday.


Today we went to La Carpio where we interviewed the president of the local community association. I found out that La Carpio is a squatter town which was created 18 years ago.

Five years ago the people of La Carpio held a protest because they wanted running water brought to their area, so that they didn't have to walk two miles to go get drinking water. The people of this community protested by blocking the road that was the only entrance to the city dump. San Jose was unable to get rid of its garbage and the city provided La Carpio with running water. Since the people live in a squatter community, the people of La Carpio don't own the land that their shacks (houses) are on. That means that the government can come in at any time and kick them out.

The service project that we worked on today was to help the community become an official community of San Jose. In order for the community to do this they must build their own sidewalks, roads and drainage control for the run off water when it rains. The roads must be paved and must be a certain length across.

While I worked on this project in the community I noticed that there were stray dogs and these dogs were eating anything they could get from dirty diapers to small amounts of food the community gave to them if they could spare food scraps.

Also I noticed that when we took a water break as a group the members of the community that were working with us kept on working and when they worked they weren't in a rush to finish the project. This is different than America. Usually, American contractors rush to get jobs done so that they get paid.

This service learning project isn't done and we will be going back tomorrow to finish paving a section of the road and finish removing and replacing an old drainage pipe that runs through the road.

Im looking forward to going back out and working in the community

now that our feet are wet, we're diving deeper now!

By Ms. Cunningham, Social Studies Teacher

I love watching the reactions of students as they start to make sense of their new surroundings. I hear constant comparisons between San Jose and Pittsburgh. As we are in the capital city, they are seeing many similarities still. Things will be different in a few days when we head for the countryside ;-) We have been letting students just write their initial reactions for the first few days, but now we will begin to push them to really reflect on this experience from a cross-cultural perspective.

We had a really satisfying morning of work in La Carpio, a squatter community in San Jose with very little support from the city or national government. Nobody in La Carpio owns their own land yet - in order to get land titles to their property, they need to band together and make certain improvements such as paved roads, sidewalks, and sanitation drains. The city gives them some support to buy materials, but not enough. And the city gives them no help with the labor. That's where we come in -- we spent the morning leveling the dirt road, mixing cement, and spreading it out. We'll go back tomorrow morning to finish our work. We saw all the portions of road laid by City High groups in years past -- you can really see the contributions we have made to this community in the past five years of our previous work here.

Its great to be back on this trip after four years -- I last came to Costa Rica with City High in 2007. Its amazing to see how technology has become more accessible in the past few years-- in the city our hotel has wireless and most people we see -- even in La Carpio -- have cell phones. I don't remember this level of technology infrastructure 4 years ago. Nonetheless, the school that we visited yesterday only had 2 computer labs (about 25 desktops each) for a school with over 1200 students. They were very grateful for the 4 laptops we donated to their school. It was a nice gift from our technology-f0cused school!

OK, dinner time in San Jose :-)

~ms cunningham

Esperanza = Hope

By Señor Hernández – Teacher

During the last two days I've seen our students go through quite a significant journey. I have seen them interact with students (pen pals) from a local school during our meeting with Ms. Melissa Gonzalez. What I found most refreshing was that students who have never studied Spanish formally were making every possible attempt to communicate with students from her class. They decided to take a worthwhile risk and remove all anxiety or apprehensiveness in an effort to learn more about their pen pals. I am very proud of how our kids represented themselves and their school.

Today we went to the La Carpio community to fulfill our service learning project endeavor. During the next two days we are helping to build a road in that community so that they may attain property rights for their homes. I have to say that it was eye opening to see how optimistic the people of La Carpio are. Unfortunately, they don't enjoy some of the "luxuries" that we in the U.S. enjoy. Could you see it by looking at them? The answer is a resounding "No." I have never met a more optimistic and happy people. They were more than willing to offer you a kind word and a smile without expecting anything in return. When one of our students asked Chicho (the president of the local community organization), what his most valued possession was, he pointed towards a little girl in the room. I think that he and the people of his community have an overabundance of "Esperanza" or "Hope." This is a more valuable luxury than any material luxury anyone can have. My inspiration for writing this blog post was the picture that I found on the outside wall of a house in La Carpio and it is also included in this post. LaCarpio is a wonderful place.

It has been exciting to see the possibilities in tying this trip to our Spanish program at school. The possibilities are endless. I can't wait to experience what the rest of the trip will bring for our students!

This is Day 3 I think?

Written By DJ DAUGHTRY
All the days are melting together. It feels like we just got here, but it also feels like we´ve been here forever. Wow this is amazing I´m so glad I came. Some struggles I thought I would have I didn´t like:

• The food (just kidding I knew i would be good with the food)
• The people...That was serious. The first day I was really tired and really annoyed with the other participants. It was awkward but after that first night I felt alot better
• The Fresco´s (Natural Fruit Drinks) I´m am not too parcital too but they are still good

Today we are going to La Carpio. It´s our first work work day. Yesterday we met with our Pen Pals and just other kids. I met two guys Arthur and Jared and they were just like twins of Me and Toor. I´m loving everything so far. I love the beans and rice. All in all I love the trip thank you too all who helped me come here. Stay updated with my Blog and you too can follow my adventure!

But I have to go it´s breakfast.

Edited by Mr. Moreland

Day Two First Impressions

Posted by Bethany Daffern Student
Edited by Mr. Moreland

So its our second day here and we have done so many things already. We went to the Dos Pinos today, and then we went to lunch, and my oh my was it yummy! We also got to meet the high school students of Liceo Vargas Calvo. Oscar and Jose, two very sweet young men one of which is my pen pal. Tonight from 8 until about 10 we are going to go Salsa dancing and we will use this skill on Friday during our social. Tomorrow is our service day, and it is just another journey that we all are going to go on together. I miss my famliy, but I am not looking forward to leaving this place. I mean last night I looked at the stars, something you really cannot do back home in Pittsburgh. But this is something I will never forget thanks to the journal we were given. But there will be more on the rest of our trip later on.

Adios :)

Our second day here!

By: Alec Cepek, student
Edited by Mr. Moreland

Today was pretty awesome. The food is great and so are the people. We met our friends from the high school. They are just like us. (The reason I am typing so weird is because the keyboard here is laid out differently.) Nacho and Adrian are both my new best friends! I am excited for tomorrow and also for the rain forest!

Day 2 in Costa Rica

Written by Robert Murphy, student
Edited by Mr.Moreland

Today was day 2 in Costa Rica. We woke up early around 6:30, and for breakfast we had rice, beans, 3 balls of skinned potatoes and eggs and toast. It was all quite good.

Then we headed off to Dos Pinos, which is a dairy cooperative (owned by 1400 owners like stockholders in the U.S. but they actually get a say in what the company does). We went on a tour of one of the buildings where they make some of their products such as butter, milk, yogurt and ice cream to name a few. We interviewed a Dos Pinos representative who is trying to expand their business outside of the Costa Rica. Then after the interview they gave us free ice cream in a cone that they make at their plant. They also let us try a new product that they are trying to get sold in stores in Costa Rica. It was like Dibs ice cream but with more ice cream in them and more of a dark chocolate on the outside (they were a bit frozen so had to let them melt a little before being able to eat them all the way).

After Dos Pinos we went to exchange money and the rate for exchanging money is $1 u.s. dollar equals 498 colones (named after Columbus). Then we went to lunch where I had a casado de pollo(chicken platter) consisting of a small salad, breaded chicken, white rice, black beans and a dried cole slaw. Very good food for lunch, good portion too. For a drink I had a watermelon fruit drink that was really good and tasted like watermelon and was fresh.(I would definitely get another one if I have the chance).

After lunch we went to the Costa Rican high school where we met foreign students that were taking english classes in the last year of high school. This was one of more difficult things for me so far in my trip experience because their was a language barrier separating me from talking to the other students fluently. The Tico students and I had some things in common like playing soccer, hanging out with friends and working in the community. The one thing that I think the foreign students liked was receiving the american candy (Pop Rocks) I handed out to them.

After visiting the school we headed back to our hotel via the public bus system where we had a brief group meeting and then had dinner that consisted of noodles and ground meat and a small salad. This dinner was interesting as I thought all of the meals were going to come with rice but this meal didn't.

Tonight we are going out to learn to Salsa dance to prepare for our party friday night with our new student friends from Costa Rica.

Lost in Translation, Dos Pinos, and Distracting Ticos

By Jocelyn Mclaughlin, student
Edited by Mr. Moreland

Wake up time. I actually woke up before the alarm went off. I guess we had what you would call an early start. For breakfast we had eggs, bread, rice & beans (no me gusta el beans).

Any way, after we had our meal we headed off to the Dos Pinos company, which in Spanish means two pines. Dos pinos is a dary cooperative, a group of farmers that all own a company. We had a brief tour of the plant, and we got to meet the Dos Pinos mascot, Lula, who was very entertaining. After that we conducted a free trade interview with representatives of Dos Pinos.

One highlight of the trip was waving to Costa Ricans.  Once a man was so distracted by our group that ran into a stop sign while he was waving back.

Well it is our group meeting time!  Talk to you soon.

A Trip In the Rain

By Rob Matchett (Student)
Edited by Mr. Moreland

Today was our first real outting as a group. We started things off with breakfast, then headed out to Dos Pinos Dairy Plant. We met officials there and talked about the production of their dairy products. When we actually got into the plant we met Lula, the Dos Pinos mascot.  She was entertaining both children and our group. During the visit, she started breakdancing and she challenged one of the students, Seth, to a dance off. It was really cool to hear about the different production processes. The tour ended by getting stuffed Lula Dolls and free ice cream. After that we transfered our US dollars to the currency down here which is so cool because it has hammerhead sharks on it.

Unfortunately when we were leaving for our pen pals school it poured down rain.  While we were walking, getting soaked, I began wish that a tour bus would come and pick us up. Anyhow, the experience of meeting the High School Students was great. They gave us food and drinks and we interviewed one of their teachers Ms. Mellisa Gonzalez. When we came back to the hotel it stopped raining which is good. We are heading to salsa dancing lessons so we can dance at a Friday social event with the high school students.

First impressions

By: Rob Matchett (student)

Despite the plane rides that took up almost half the day yesterday turned out to be pretty cool. We arrived here in San Jose and got to our hotel. So far it does not seem too different. It just seems like someone put a blindfold on me and then switched the signs to Spanish. We went to a grocery store and it was really cool. I was shocked at how cold it gets at night.

The food is really great here though so I guess I could learn to like it here.

Buenas dias

By: Julia Rippel, student

After quite a bit of waiting in airports yesterday, we're finally here! So far I like the food here, and I'm having fun. (Luckily, I'm using Mr. Moreland's laptop right now, because it's been quite an adventure trying to use symbols on Spanish keyboards.) Today we're going to meet a representative from Dos Pinos, and later we're going to meet our high school student pen pals! (There was a slight change in the itinerary because of the politicians' schedules.) It's almost time for breakfast now, adios!

What time is it?

By: Danyelle Washington, Student.

I have lost all track of time. There is no daylight savings here. So, when I woke up at what I thought was 7,it was really 5. It was light out. I woke up three different times. I guess I will get used to it in the coming days.

Ps.I cant stand these keyboards. I can not use the symbols.

We´re Here!! And Impressions on the Food

By Danyelle Washington, Student

It took around 6 hours and two planes but we made it safely. Um I don´t know what else to say excep that I am look ing forward to a wonderful time with the other students. Our dinner went extremely well, (tasted a little bland though). I am all out of things to say so ,

Hasta Manana

Arrival at Costa Rica

By: Robert Murphy, student
Edited by Mr. Moreland

Today we left Pittsburgh International Airport and arrived in Charlotte, North Carolina. After a brief layover, we took the plane to Costa Rica where we met our tour guide, Matt Cook. On arriving in Costa Rica I noticed all the bars and gates on the houses as we went to our hotel. Then we got settled in and had a brief meeting and a snack. Then we went to a local grocery store where we went around looking for Dos Pinos products as we are going to go visit the Dos Pinos dairy plant tomorrow. The grocery store was like an American grocery store. Fresh produce, fresh meat and bread. A 20oz coke cost $2 in American money.

I look forward to day two in Costa Rica.

Our first batch of photos are in!

Please take a look at our group's photos!  Click onto the pictures link at the right hand corner of the blog.

Sincerely,

Mr. Moreland
City High Science Teacher

Now its kicking in... ;-)

OK now the excitement is starting to kick in. I can't believe 11 of you graduated today...this trip is going to be such an amazing final City High experience!

I haven't been in Costa Rica for 4 years. I'm excited about hearing Spanish all the time, the food, and the general happy feeling I have while traveling. I love travel adventures. And I'm so excited to witness all of you experiencing this for the first time. Your view of the world is going to totally change...can't wait to see it!

OK, that's all for now.

Oh -- what am I NOT looking forward to? Getting to the airport at 4:10am Monday morning! Yikes. But we can do it!

Excited and Scared

I am very excited about the trip in general. I am scared about talking to the Costa Rican students. I haven't really be keeping up with my spanish, so I am kinda rusty. I am worried aboutt ziplining. Hopefully there is a way around it.

Expectations/Fears

Written by: Jared Sams, Student

I am looking forward to visiting the volcano. I have never seen one in person, especially a live one. It will be interesting to see it for myself than just seeing it on TV. I am also looking forward to seeing the waterfall. Seeing nice sceneries in different parts of the world is also another big interest of mine.

The only thing that I'm nervous about is spending the day with our pen pals. I don't have any true Spanish experience and they don't really know too much English. It will make it hard for me to communicate and also to understand them. Luckily, we have people who speak Spanish and can translate the two different languages.

My Excitement and Major Fears

Just thinking about going to Costa Rica have my nerves on edge, especially since I have graduation going on. I am very excite to meet many new people like Espy Campbell, Manuel Obregon, and my pen pal whose name is Jose. I am looking forward to screaming down the zip line and taking a dive in the water, seeing many animals, like a monkey or a jaguar. What I am not the happy about is that I have get on a plane because I have NEVER been on a plane and I have watched so many scary movie avoiding planes going DOWN. I am, also, not that excited about bugs! They are my ultimate worse enemy and I thought I was over it but I am not. So I have to get over this fear or else...

What i'm excited about

Written by DJ Daughtry
I'm pumped for Costa Rica I can't wait for it. I've been talking with my pen pal and I can't wait to meet him. I think the thing I'm most excited about is zipping through the forest! I love doing crazy things like that. It says well be 60 feet above ground...YES. I also to learn how to say SWAG in Spanish. Also the party I really want to go to that too.

Excitement/Concerns

Brianna Holland

Excitement: I'm excited to meet up with our pen pals and actually get to hang out with them. I'm also excited about the soccer game just a LITTLE that we get to play against them. I am also excited about learning how they live verses how we live here in the USA. I'm excited that I'm getting to go to Costa Rica and learn a lot and actually come back and say it was a GREAT EXPERIENCE.




Concerns : One of the things i am concerned is not wanting to eat the food. I'm very picky when it comes to food so i guess ill manage i just don't like BEANS.!!! Another concern would be the zip line i haven't been on once for years and the one i went on was across the water but this one is in the Forrest so I'm a little worried on that. But i will most likely do it because i know it will be fun. I don't know how much swimming I will do because I CAN'T swim so ill be very careful of my surroundings whenever I go into the water.

blog

One thing in particular that i am excited to do is meeting the other kids. I can't wait to see what it's like to interact with people from another culture. I want to share this excitement by making new friends.
One thing that I am hesitant about is the food. I am afraid that i may go through withdrawal for peanut butter. However I believe i can cope by not thinking about it much.

Blog 1

Written by Alec Cepek, Student

I'm really excited but also nervous about the trip. It will be the longest I've ever been away from home, as well as the farthest. I'm nervous about the plane ride but people have also described it as a roller coaster type-feel which sounds pretty cool to me. The one thing I'm really excited for is to meet the people in the school down there. Although I'm nervous, I'm sure the trip will end up being something extremely fun and something that I will never forget.

Blog 1

Written by: Nikki Landosky, Student

I'm excited about the entire trip overall. This is the first time I'll be out of the country on a trip and I'm hoping to do a lot more travelling in the future. One specific thing I'm looking forward to is the zipline. It sounds like a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to going on it. Being in another country, I'm really excited about doing photography and overall experiencing a whole new culture that I'm not used to. I also look forward to meeting the students over there, that way if I keep in touch with them, I have international friends to talk to. I don't really think there's anything I'm necessarily afraid or nervous about. The only thing would be spiders, I have a major case of arachnophobia.

Excitement & Fears

Antoinette Davis, Student

One thing that I am really excited about is going on the zip line. I never been on a zip line and the craziest thing is that I am afraid of heights but I really wanna go on it. I think that I might actually lose my voice from screaming on it but it should be fun. Another thing that I am excited to do is go swimming out there. Its going to be different since I never been to a beach out of state so it should be interesting.

Something that I am afraid of is the first day we start our service learning. The only reason is because I'm not a big worker and I am going to have to try my best to doing something I don't normally do. Another thing is meeting the school students because since I don't speak Spanish I feel that it will be hard to talk to the students and especially my pen-pal.

Excitement & Fears

Written by: Steven Tichenor, Student

I'm excited to complete a number of things in Costa Rica. I've been talking to my pen pal Carlos for the last week and i'm super excited. I can't wait to meet him and go zip-lining through the forest. I also think it's going to be fun to interview people there and see how Costa Ricans live. I know it's going to be very different than it is here and the U.S. and I can't wait to see the differences. I'm very excited to see the Poas volcano, because I've never seen a volcano in person and I think it'd be very cool.

I'm most fearful of the plane ride. I'm not really afraid of it, but I've never been on a plane. I'm not really fearful of any of the activities we will be doing in Costa Rica, because it all sounds like fun and I'm very excited to do everything! There's nothing I'm worried about in Costa Rica. I can't wait to try their food and live like they do!

What Robert Murphy is looking forward to and what he is not looking forward to

Written by: Robert Murphy, Student

What I am Looking forward to?

On day 3 of our trip to Costa Rica the first service project where we will be working in the community where we will work with the community where we will to help expand the paved roads in the neighborhood. I think it will be interesting to see how they pave roads down there without the big machines that construction workers use like the pavers and asphalt machines we have here in the U.S. It will also be interesting to see how the community members react to seeing students from the U.S. helping them build the roads and seeing their reactions, some are going to be bad and some are going to be happy.

I am also excited about going to the rainforest as I never been to a rainforest before and I might get to try the fresh fruits of the rainforest that dont have any chemicals on them like the fruits from farms have chemicals that make em bigger and last longer while the ones in the rainforest don't.

What I Am not looking forward to?

Well on Day 10 we will be zipping through the Rainforest on a zip-line, yes it sounds like fun but to me a non-height type of guy, I would rather stay on the ground on my feet not looking down towards the ground at high speeds. As you may tell I have a fear of heights and fast moving things at the same time. This is the only thing on the trip that I am not looking forward to but i plan on trying the zip-line as it is part of the Costa Rican trip experience and I don't want to miss out on it.

Excitement & Fear

Tayler Lo'ren Clemm

Pros:
For the Costa Rica trip I am excited about a lot of things. Im excited to meet so many new people and there cultures. I am anxious to find out how to make a traditional mask. I also want to see the many sites that we will past such as the Central Valley Mountain ranges and the sleepy towns of Atneas and San Mateo de Orotina. Swimming in the beach is one of my main excitements too. I want to see all of the different type of animals as well.


Cons:
I'm not afraid of too many things from the itinerary besides maybe the zip line and a personal fear, which is the birds. I'm not really looking forward to playing soccer for three days, but I know that I will enjoy it. Experiencing the Mexican restaurant has me nervous about trying the different types of food in Costa Rica as well. I am not looking forward to the last day because I know I will have enjoyed Costa Rica so much.

Excitement and fear

Austin Murphy, Student

The Costa Rica trip is one week away and I am so excited to be going on this trip. On Day 3, I am excited to be doing the service learning project in La Carpio and the social activity as we will be working in an environment that needs help. Since La Carpio is on the outside of the city, they do not have much access to paved roads. I think the experience of paving roads, and working alongside the Ticos of Costa Rica. This will be an amazing experience to expand my knowledge of the Spanish language and to practice my abilities in Spanish. Also seeing how the Ticos live compared to us in the United States will be amazing as we know they live differently but seeing it firsthand will be great.

One thing that I am afraid of is zip lining. I am nervous about swinging through the jungle like a monkey. I think this is going to be a fun and rewarding experience for us as a group. I am a little afraid of heights. One way i am going to accomplish this fear is to let other people go first and then ill go. I think this is the best approach to this fair as watching others lets me build up confidence in order to over come my fairs.