We enjoyed one last morning and breakfast at Chilamate Eco Retreat. Right after breakfast, we embarked on a much-anticipated guided nature hike in the rainforest. Our guide was William, who carried with him binoculars and a telescope to help us see wildlife from afar.
We began by the edge of the Sarapiqui River where we saw an iguana overhead! After that, we headed into the rainforest near where we had previously seen howler monkeys. The trail into the rainforest was well marked but very muddy. The wide variety of plant life is remarkable. William showed us several varieties and explained more about them. One acts as a natural insect repellant; another can be used in lieu of toilet paper, and many other interesting varieties (including one that has pink hairs lining the leaves, others that belong in the pepper family, and more). Along the trail we saw several types of frogs (such as the black and green tree frog, the "blue-jean" tree frog who has a red body and blue legs, and a non-poisonous frog with excellent camouflage), various insects (millipedes, centipedes, spiders, crickets, cicadas, walking sticks, and bullet ants--whose bite and sting can be very painful), we heard many birds and saw several (black throated trogon, a wood creeper, and chickadee), as well as a sloth curled up high in the threes! We were all very excited to see a sloth at last.
After the hike, we gathered our things and got ready to head for our home stays. Before leaving, we organized some donations we brought to donate to the local schools and the community. Once we left the Chilamate Eco Retreat, we were in pairs or groups of three to join a local family for the week. As we arrived, the families were very welcoming. They greeted us warmly with hugs and excitement! We felt very grateful that these families had opened their homes to us and welcomed us in.
Many of us are non-Spanish speakers, which makes communication a challenge. We are, however, eager to learn and communicate, so we are picking up on things quickly!
We spent the remainder of the evening with our families, and did a variety of activities. We got to know each other, learned about the families, made home-made empanadas, made sugar cane juice from natural sugar cane, played card games, watched the world cup, and spent the rest of the evening together. It was a great start to the week of getting to know each other, the families, and the community much better!
We began by the edge of the Sarapiqui River where we saw an iguana overhead! After that, we headed into the rainforest near where we had previously seen howler monkeys. The trail into the rainforest was well marked but very muddy. The wide variety of plant life is remarkable. William showed us several varieties and explained more about them. One acts as a natural insect repellant; another can be used in lieu of toilet paper, and many other interesting varieties (including one that has pink hairs lining the leaves, others that belong in the pepper family, and more). Along the trail we saw several types of frogs (such as the black and green tree frog, the "blue-jean" tree frog who has a red body and blue legs, and a non-poisonous frog with excellent camouflage), various insects (millipedes, centipedes, spiders, crickets, cicadas, walking sticks, and bullet ants--whose bite and sting can be very painful), we heard many birds and saw several (black throated trogon, a wood creeper, and chickadee), as well as a sloth curled up high in the threes! We were all very excited to see a sloth at last.After the hike, we gathered our things and got ready to head for our home stays. Before leaving, we organized some donations we brought to donate to the local schools and the community. Once we left the Chilamate Eco Retreat, we were in pairs or groups of three to join a local family for the week. As we arrived, the families were very welcoming. They greeted us warmly with hugs and excitement! We felt very grateful that these families had opened their homes to us and welcomed us in.Many of us are non-Spanish speakers, which makes communication a challenge. We are, however, eager to learn and communicate, so we are picking up on things quickly!
We spent the remainder of the evening with our families, and did a variety of activities. We got to know each other, learned about the families, made home-made empanadas, made sugar cane juice from natural sugar cane, played card games, watched the world cup, and spent the rest of the evening together. It was a great start to the week of getting to know each other, the families, and the community much better!
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