Final Post for Costa Rica 2019
The past few days of our trip have been amazing. Let me take you on a literary journey through all we have done at our newest location, Nosara Costa Rica. After arriving at the Playa Pelada Beach Camp Tuesday afternoon, we walked down to Playa Pelada to watch the sunset. I took this as an opportunity to jump into the ocean– which was approximately 95º F & delightful. It was time for dinner so the group attempted to take a “backroad path” which did not work out well & ended with a multitude of bug bites & lost shoes. Long story short, we got a ride instead and ate some yummy pizza for dinner then went to sleep in slightly moist tents.
The next morning we woke up at a ripe 7:30 & went to the Nosara Recycling Center & learned about the trash disposal issue among the 6,000 Nosara residents. We visited a popular trash drop off area on the side of a road & spent a few hours knee deep cleaning up diapers & bottles. We ended up collecting close to 400kg of garbage which was both rewarding & saddening. Next, we drove to the beach where half of us surfed & the other half soaked up some sun. Unfortunately, this soaking resulted in many sunburns & we collectively used one full bottle of Aloe. Nonetheless, we kept high spirits & ate a delicious vegan lunch at Nosara B&B Resort. We pretty much chilled for the rest of the day then ate dinner at a local restaurant near the beach. That night we had a really eye opening discussion about our own trash production & shared reflections from the day.
The next morning we awakened at 7:30 & went on a short hike to a beautiful waterfall. Then it was off to the beach, yet again, where the other half of the group got to surf. We then got lunch at a cute foodcourt in town. After lunch the posse split up into those who wanted to go back to the beach & those who needed a little “me-time”. I went to the beach to surf & watch the sunset form the water. That night we actually returned to the same B&B resort from yesterday because we just couldn’t get enough of the chef’s scrumptious vegan cuisine. With tight pants & bulbous stomachs, we waddled back to the camp & here we had a short meeting then went off to bed.
We rose at 7:30 the next morning & went to Refugio Nacional de Vida Silvestre Ostional where we watched a long video, had a Q&A with an employee, & walked around the Ostional beach which is known for its thousands of sea turtle nests (arribadas). This groups mission plan was probably the most complex & challenging forms of sustainability we have come across this trip. They, along with many other groups, have worked to set up a turtle egg harvesting regulation system that keeps the turtle population stable while economically benefiting the people. It is a tad too complicated to get into but feel free to look it up or ask one of the group members about it. The rest of the day was spent hopping from one beach to another & enjoying our last full day in the sun. By dinner this beloved sun went away & a roaring thunderstorm took its place. The posse got comfortably situated at a casada dinner place & we all went over our independent projects & sustainability action plans. Warm food, good people, dry bodies, it was a great time. We came back to the camp, shared some life stories, & then hit the hay.
Now onto today. This morning we jumped outta bed at a, you guessed it, RIPE 7:30 & headed to our surprise activity. We ended up going on a boat to look at some of the marine life! We sang some songs & saw 37 pairs of turtles (some of which were mating but you know it was all part of the experience). Now we are in the car driving to our final stop of the trip, Alajuela, because we are all leaving tomorrow! I don’t have words to describe how absolutely incredible this trip has been so that’s it then.
Best regards,
Jeremy J.
