Rainforest & Final Thoughts

Written by Michael Pittek

After our week in San Jose we headed for the rain forrest. One of the challenges we had was getting there. It wasn't the 4 hour van ride that was difficult but the hike. The first thing we noticed when we arrived was the humidity. You would literally sweat just from standing, for me it was one of the most annoying things that we had to deal with. The hike took an hour and the higher we went up the more you could feel the air thining. It was one of the most difficult and tiering things that we had done. After what seemed like forever we reached the bridge. It was a swaying bridge that was high over a river next to a water fall. It was intimidating for some but I had no problem with it. It was a big accomplishment for me because I am normally scared of hights but I was not phased by the bridge. We had reached our cabins and our new homes for the next week. During our time in the rainforest we spent a lot of time working. We helped move bags of rock and spread them on the trail to improve the roads. It was hard work in the hot sun and it was tiering but there was no time to rest because the next two days consisted of mixing concrete and building a retaining wall to support a rode that was next to a waterfall. We spent a total of 8 hours in the next two days mixing concrete by hand, with no eletric mixer. After all the hard work the wall was complete and it really felt like we helped the people by making sure that thier road was sucure and safe. However it was not all work we did have some down time to relax. One of the most awsome things that we did was play a game of soccer with the towns people. They are very very good at soccer and it was a lot of fun to watch them play and join them in the game. We also played lots of card games in the rainforest. Another thing that was cool about the rainforest were the animals, we saw a lot of them. We say monkeys, lizards and birds. It was a very uniqe experiance that I will remember always. The last night there we were thanked for all of our work by the local residence and we shared a meal together.

Overall I think that the trip had a very positive effect on me and my peers. We learned a lot during our time there. Not only did we learn about the culture of Costa Rica but we also learned about hard gratifying work. We were able to help people and communities that truly needed it and it felt good to know that we made a real difference in someones life. It was a great experiance and I will remember it always.