Hello Family, Friends, and Others,
I have no clue where to begin, but all I can say is that I have had the BEST time the past
five days. I am one of the ten students who are lucky enough to take the hour (sometimes hour
and a half) bus ride every morning and afternoon to the San Luis Moretti worksite. From the first
day, my group became instant best friends and that’s why I get excited everyday to drive so far.
Whether we play games, talk, or even sleep, the bus rides are always worth it because I would
like to say that we have the best view ever. During our hour ride we drive through the city,
grassy mountains, various plantations, and forests and the view seems to amaze me every single
day. Once it gets to be around 9:30 am and we finally arrive at our worksite, everyone gets off
the bus, sets his or her stuff down, and immediately gets to work. We’ve done everything
between scraping walls, digging trenches, and (I think everyone would agree, the most difficult)
making concrete. Yes. That’s right we are making concrete. Yesterday was our first day making
concrete, and it was also the first day all of us truly worked as a team. Because of how well we
did yesterday, we were able to finish making the concrete and wrapped it around the church in
record time. Props to Anna Victoria, Logan, Marcelo, Matt, and Sibo for making the concrete
because I tried it yesterday and let me tell you, it was impossible. I stuck with Mallory, Mady,
Ethan, Maggie and we carried the wet concrete down to the church, which caused a few bruises
and some scars. I would also like to believe that we were blessed with the best chaperones as
well, because every person that has come along on our worksite has been so incredibly nice,
funny, and are the most hard-working people. They aren’t even required to work, yet every
single one of them puts in 110%. Today was also the hottest day we’ve had, and every other day
has been drastically cooler. We work for around 3 hours (no worries we stay hydrated because
we take breaks for water, thank you nurses) and then eat lunch around 12:30. The food here has
been unreal and I have enjoyed every meal. At 1:15 the seven kids at the school across from our
worksite get out of school which means we get to play with them which is always the best part of
my day. Their faces light up when they see us and it makes me so happy. After working so hard
today we went with the locals and the children to walk up the mountain to see their homes and it
was so much fun. I am so proud of myself and all of my friends for using so much Spanish today
because sometimes the language barrier seems like a challenge. These Costa Ricans are the
nicest people I have ever met (even Manuel, the eleven-year-old who repeatedly and jokingly
calls me “basura” every day because of my lack of skill in soccer), and I cannot believe how
much joy is filled inside each of them especially when living in such simplicity. This is only a
brief summary of our day, and I cannot wait for everyone else to come home and get to describe
each day from his or her perspective. I cannot wait to see what the rest of this trip has in store for
me and everyone else. Sorry for not checking in sooner, (I have surprisingly not been home sick,
sorry mom and dad) everyone here is the absolute best. I cannot wait to see everyone when I get
back love all of y’all so much!!!! Pura Vida
Sincerely,
Catherine Taylor
p.s. We haven’t seen any sloths because apparently the pumas ate all of them!
