Blogs from Costa Rica, Central America Caribbean - page 485

One week down and moving into the second... After the first day of school, Ari said, “One day was enough. I don’t want to go back.” Now after a week is done, I think he really likes it (although we don’t get more than an “it’s ok” out of him, you can tell that he does). He comes home dirty (from playing at recess) and smiling everyday. The other night at dinner he said, “There are some things that are better , some things that are worse and some things that are just different.” The things that are better are what you’d expect - 2 recesses per day, gym twice per week (instead of once), ½ day every Wednesday. Things that are just different - here they provide snacks and lunch for everyone every day; in ... read more

Hola Amigos, Hoewel ik, zoals jullie weten, geen "strand-persoon" ben, heb ik toch besloten om voor 1,5 dag naar Montezuma, een strandplaats te gaan. Super toeristisch (niet mijn soort mensen), maar erg mooi strand. Mijn snorkel trip was echt geweldig: veel verschillende soorten vissen, zeesterren e.d. en op een bepaald moment zelfs met een grote schildpad (doorsnede schild meer dan 1 meter) meegezwommen. De lunch was ook super: verse vis, met groenten en veel fruit. En voor de lunch kreeg ik van de gids (die mij had gevraagd of ik van oesters hield (nog nooit geproefd) en koskosnoten (lekker) eerst een schelp met heerlijk klaargemaakte oester en vervolgens een verse kokosnoot... Jammie Op de terugweg zagen we vanuit de boot 2 walvissen (moeder met jong: hunchback wales)... read more

Puerto Viejo er totalt olikt Cahuita...her myllrar de av turister, men vi har lyckats undga de varsta turistfellorna och cyklade igar ut till en strand som heter Punta Uva. Farden gick pa en liten gropig sandvag..(har ont i baken idag:) )vi var ej helt sakra pa vilken av stranderna var Punta Uva, men vi fann till slut en jatte fin strand dar vi var helt ensama. Idag har Fredrik hyrt surfbrada och provat sig pa den stora stranden med de stora pojkarna.. Vagorna (bolgerna) var enorma..jag var ganska orolig da han begav sig ut, men han kom helskinnad opp pa land. Idag har de varit jatte fint vader, igar var de molnigt. Men solen er super stark her nere. Var plan om att aka till Panama och Bocas del Toro har andrats... vi aker imorgon till ... read more

Today we are invited to join the CCS volunteers and visit some of the other placements in San Carlos. We begin first at a boys only orphanage, 12-18 years. Once they found out Sandy and I were artists they ran to their rooms and got their collections of drawings and paintings. They huddled around and watched closely as we paged through colorful landscapes of volcanoes and palm trees and ocean sunsets, and ooodles of superhero cartoons that were meticulously drawn with care, the kind that all young teenage boys have in the back of their lined copybooks for school. I became so sad, these boys had never once taken an art class. These drawings were so beautiful, they had so much talent, who would ever know, and would THEY ever know? Our next stop is to ... read more

Today is Election Day in Costa Rica. This election is particularly important as its citizens select a new president to replace the outgoing president, Abel Pacheo. By many accounts, Pacheo was not terribly successful. Not a professional politician (he was previously a radio announcer among other entertainment-related professions), he did what he could but it seems the country slid backwards a bit during his term. Many in the electorate claim the transportation system, particularly the roads, are in major disrepair, poverty is up, environmental issues are becoming much more serious, and the educational system, while considered the best in Central America, is not educating its students long enough, or as Bill Clinton used to say, “for careers for the 21st century.” In fact, the majority of students leave school sometime during high school and end up ... read more