Written by: Ms Robinson
La Carpio
was very humbling and excellent! From the moment we entered La cCarpio, we knew
there was a lot of work to be done. The streets,
in some areas there were roads, but in other areas there were piles of rocks
and dirt. The first thing we began to do was level the roads in order to lay
the cement. Quickly, we saw the students
create their own teams and begin working on the project. There was not a single
standing body, everyone was working, and we all worked very hard together. As we worked, the adults of La Carpio came
out to see what we were doing and how we were working. By mid morning, on the first day, the streets
began to fill with small children who stood closely by their parents to watch what
we were doing. Because of our students great team work and hard efforts, we
were about to flatten 5 blocks of road and remove tons of large rocks that
crested the hill top that many families needed to use in their daily travels.
We all paused for lunch and were given time to relaxed for about an hour. I rested in the church with some of the students,
and what brought tears to my eyes was the later opening my eyes to the sounds
of children’s play and laugher. I looked
outside and saw Our CityHigh students laughing, hugging, and playing soccer
with the young children in the community.
It was absolutely a fantastic time.
The smiles of the parents toward our students I’ll never forget, and the
smile on everyone’s faces was priceless.
After lunch we headed back to work rejuvenated and ready to go. We were taught the formula needed to make the
cement, and came up with a plan to make and lay the roads. Again, no real complaining just purposeful work!
I am so honored to know, work with, and be with these students. Their diligence and dedication is amazing!!
By the next morning we were able to see how our hard work paid off. The community members, along with one of the
of their leaders, gave us a tour of all of the places CityHigh worked/helped that we were able to do in the last 6 years,
and how this work truly improved the lives of their entire community. At lunch, some of the students again played with
the children of the community, but this time there were lots more children who
joined. A few other children sat with
the store owner who spoke to them about the children of La Carpio. She explained that it costs money to go to
school, so many of the families cannot afford to send their children to school. Most learn from their parents and learn to
work as well. Throughout the entire second
day more and more families and children began to help us work, and by the end,
it almost felt like we became a part of their community, which ended with a
celebration that was inspirational to all!
Thank you La Carpio for your hospitality and graciousness. We will never
forget you!
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Friday, June 29, 2012
Day 5 in Costa Rica :)
After an late wake up the day turned around. The volcano we visited was were amazing! The smell wasn't the best however. Most people complained about the climb, but it was actually relatively easy. After the fun on the mountain, we took a 45 minute trip to the other side of Costa Rica to see one of the most famous mask makers in the entire world. It was exciting, because he was a very happy man, and continues to make mask, but he WILL NOT SELL them to anyone. Leaving his house, we went to the coffee plantaition where the best coffee in the world is grown LITERALLY. To conclude this long day the group wound down for the rest of the day at the hotel.
La Carpio Days 1 & 2 and the Volcano
Day 1 in La Carpio:
This is the first day that we had come to this amzing part of town. The very moment that I entered this area, a young female, age 11, by the name of Ana had grabbed me by the hand asking me for my name. After lunch following hard work leveling out the roads, I got to play with the children. A simple game of catch had turned into a large game of soccer. This is the moment that all of the kids and I had a connection that could not have been broken.
Day 2 in La Carpio:
Unfortunatley, this is the day that we had to leave. The people of La Carpio had made us two cakes along with prepared a pinata for us to play with. The kids that I had met the day before had urged me to play and hit the pinata. After that, the children had walked with me to the van and said their good byes. This is when I had given my young friend Ana my hat so that she can remeber me. It was very hard to leave the people of la carpio. They were all very nice! All of the people had a sence of happiness and it touched my heart. I will forever remeber the moment that Neil accidently walked into one othe people's houses and the little kids had sang, "Gringo in mi casa! Gringo in mi casa! Gringo in mi casa!" as they danced arround.
The trip to the valcano:
The trip to the valcano in the cloud forest was very interesting. I think that it was a beautiful sight to see along with a great walk. While we were walking, Mike was "bullying" people which consisted in him running arround taking pictures of random people including us and himself in a very funny fasion. This was deffinatly a highlight to the walk itself. I just wish that we could have spent more time actually looking at the valcano and taking pictures.
This is the first day that we had come to this amzing part of town. The very moment that I entered this area, a young female, age 11, by the name of Ana had grabbed me by the hand asking me for my name. After lunch following hard work leveling out the roads, I got to play with the children. A simple game of catch had turned into a large game of soccer. This is the moment that all of the kids and I had a connection that could not have been broken.
Day 2 in La Carpio:
Unfortunatley, this is the day that we had to leave. The people of La Carpio had made us two cakes along with prepared a pinata for us to play with. The kids that I had met the day before had urged me to play and hit the pinata. After that, the children had walked with me to the van and said their good byes. This is when I had given my young friend Ana my hat so that she can remeber me. It was very hard to leave the people of la carpio. They were all very nice! All of the people had a sence of happiness and it touched my heart. I will forever remeber the moment that Neil accidently walked into one othe people's houses and the little kids had sang, "Gringo in mi casa! Gringo in mi casa! Gringo in mi casa!" as they danced arround.
The trip to the valcano:
The trip to the valcano in the cloud forest was very interesting. I think that it was a beautiful sight to see along with a great walk. While we were walking, Mike was "bullying" people which consisted in him running arround taking pictures of random people including us and himself in a very funny fasion. This was deffinatly a highlight to the walk itself. I just wish that we could have spent more time actually looking at the valcano and taking pictures.
Poas: Not Your Grandma's Volcano.
Written By: Neal Niedecker.
Today we went to the Volcano called Poas. It was really high in the air, so the altitude made it really easy to lose your breathe. Now I know how it feels to play at Mile High Stadium in Denver. So we climbed up this hill and got this fantastic view. Poas is filled with acidic water, so all along it there is no vegatation. It was wild. Then we climbed down and went to see this traditional mask maker. We walked up to this guy, rain pouring, thunder and lightning going strong. There he stood with his shirt half unbuttoned and a huge grin on his face. He is one of the few traditional mask maker left in Costa Rica, as the dancing mask tradition has died out. He seemed really happy, and his masks were great. He and his son put them on and danced to the traditional music. It was really funny. Then I got to put on a mask and dance. One of the funnest moment sof my life
Today we went to the Volcano called Poas. It was really high in the air, so the altitude made it really easy to lose your breathe. Now I know how it feels to play at Mile High Stadium in Denver. So we climbed up this hill and got this fantastic view. Poas is filled with acidic water, so all along it there is no vegatation. It was wild. Then we climbed down and went to see this traditional mask maker. We walked up to this guy, rain pouring, thunder and lightning going strong. There he stood with his shirt half unbuttoned and a huge grin on his face. He is one of the few traditional mask maker left in Costa Rica, as the dancing mask tradition has died out. He seemed really happy, and his masks were great. He and his son put them on and danced to the traditional music. It was really funny. Then I got to put on a mask and dance. One of the funnest moment sof my life
Lar Carpio Part 2: Revenge of the Sun
Written By: Neal Niedecker
So we went back to La Carpio today. What an incredible expeierence it was. See first they showed us the progress they had made in the village. Roads that were dirt and mud a few short years ago are now paved. Parts of La Carpio have sewage and electricity. It is cleaner and safer than it was before. So we went back to building the road. Mixing the cement and pouring it. We not only built a road, but also we helped build a path for a sick child to use his wheel chair on. After we worked on the road for a couple hours I was so tired I feel asleep in the church. When I woke up the people of La Carpio had a celebration for us. We had cake and a pinata and exchanged words. It was a really powerful moment. They were so grateful for all our hard work, it made me want to go back to working. Alas we had to leave as later that night we had a concert to go to. We went to a local jazz club where a really great band played. I danced for like 2 hours solid. My classmates were a little lamer though. A couple of them danced with me but most just sat. It was hands down the most fun I've ever had at a concert, also the band was fantastic. I need to find out what their name was.
So we went back to La Carpio today. What an incredible expeierence it was. See first they showed us the progress they had made in the village. Roads that were dirt and mud a few short years ago are now paved. Parts of La Carpio have sewage and electricity. It is cleaner and safer than it was before. So we went back to building the road. Mixing the cement and pouring it. We not only built a road, but also we helped build a path for a sick child to use his wheel chair on. After we worked on the road for a couple hours I was so tired I feel asleep in the church. When I woke up the people of La Carpio had a celebration for us. We had cake and a pinata and exchanged words. It was a really powerful moment. They were so grateful for all our hard work, it made me want to go back to working. Alas we had to leave as later that night we had a concert to go to. We went to a local jazz club where a really great band played. I danced for like 2 hours solid. My classmates were a little lamer though. A couple of them danced with me but most just sat. It was hands down the most fun I've ever had at a concert, also the band was fantastic. I need to find out what their name was.
La Carpio
Written by: Neal Niedecker
Today was a very rough day. Still I enjoyed myself. We started off by taking a trip to La Carpio. La Carpio is not the nicest place. It was a little strange to see, but still it was overall a great experience. See we leveled out the ground and moved some rocks around. Then we began paving the road. If you saw this town you would know how much a road could do for these people. Most of the houses seem to be built out of corrugated metal and miscellaneous trash. I got to use a pick ax for the first time in my life. It was a serious work out but I enjoyed it. At one point I accidently stepped into some one else’s home. The little kids all started singing “gringo en me casa” It was very funny. Overall I’d say this day was great.
Today was a very rough day. Still I enjoyed myself. We started off by taking a trip to La Carpio. La Carpio is not the nicest place. It was a little strange to see, but still it was overall a great experience. See we leveled out the ground and moved some rocks around. Then we began paving the road. If you saw this town you would know how much a road could do for these people. Most of the houses seem to be built out of corrugated metal and miscellaneous trash. I got to use a pick ax for the first time in my life. It was a serious work out but I enjoyed it. At one point I accidently stepped into some one else’s home. The little kids all started singing “gringo en me casa” It was very funny. Overall I’d say this day was great.
Day 5: Off to Poas
By: Holly Herman
Waking up today was rough! The group had to be up and ready
by 6 in the morning. Typically this would not be that bad but thanks to a late
concert last night it was horrible. Besides waking up early the day was
amazing. It was great seeing the active volcano Poas. Lucky for us the sky was
clear and we had a great view of the crater. After the Volcano we stopped at
numerous gift stores and a coffee plantation. Next we took a 45 minute drive,
which was full of laughs and jokes, to see a local mask maker. Overall the day was amazing .
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)