We'll get you excited about this tropical paradise!
Here's a synopsis of their interview:
Q. Can you give us a quick summary of the trip?
A. This trip has been carefully designed to see a bit of everything. From cloud forest to rain forest, white water rafting, zip lining over dense ecosystems, nature walks and service projects… learning from locals, helping to cook a traditional Costa Rican meal, being able to see toucans, iguanas, monkeys and sloth in the wild…. What else can top all this?
Every trip is different, and we are more than happy to customize it if needed, but one way or the other, there’s always something new out there waiting for us… Some groups begin their experience up in the mountains of Monteverde, then travel to La Fortuna, where Arenal Volcano can be seen from everywhere, and finally a white water trip down in the rain forest… it could happen the other way around, but no matter how the trip runs it’s going to be always fun,full of adventures and real life experiences.
Q, What are some of the favorite moments - from the kids' perspective - from the teachers' perspective?
A. I feel this trip is a life changing experience for students and teachers. It’s what I call a “open classroom”. Everything we watch on TV, read about or hear during science class becomes real all the sudden.
There are lots of favorite moments, but answering questions is pretty special – everybody wants to see a monkey or a sloth from just a few away… and when that happens you feel something special in the air.
Being able to share our country and culture with people from other countries is amazing – we all learn from each other everyday of the trip. We share information continuously and I can tell that, when we do, travelers begin to learn people do things in many different ways and we can all learn from the others…
Probably my favorite moment has been when a few days after a trip, a got a phone call from a mother of one of the students (the mother wasn’t on the trip) and she said: “Pika, the kid I put on the plane on day 1 is not the same kid you sent back to the States… my daughter is a much better person now, thank you”
Q. What is the best part of bringing students on these trips?
A. All our activities during the trip are very interactive, students get to learn from our tour guides and other locals every day. Taking them to another country is a golden opportunity to grow as human being, learning from other cultures, being exposed to a different language – and putting in practice what they have learned in school.
Q. What are you most looking forward to in getting groups back out?
A. All our guides are passionate about sharing information on history, plants, animals, culture, flowers…. And they are desperate always to be back in the field! Also, most of our destinations make a living out this activity and without groups, lots of people are going through difficult times.
There’s a lot to share, there’s a lot to learn and we certainly need those groups to bring happiness to everybody out there.
Q. What is your favorite part about this trip?
A. My very favorite part of any trip is to see people smiling after learning something new or after seeing something they were not expecting at all.
When I see them smile, it tells me I “accomplished my mission” and once I hear them saying “pura vida” immediately I know they love Costa Rica.