Shew....it has been a busy couple of days!

My last post was a few days ago because we've been so busy!  Friday we showed our work to Bishop Hector, who brought Rev. Sarah in town to join us.  After showing off the garden we headed over to the church (Santa Cruz) and shared Eucharist with the Bishop and all the members of the mission group.  Then we shared lunch and then loaded the bus and headed to Cahuita.

Cahuita is located on the Caribbean side of Costa Rica, south of the city of Limon.  It took about 2 1/2 hours from the town of Guacimo.  Upon arriving it was raining so it was hard to see where we were.  After unloading our luggage we went to dinner at a small restaurant.  The food was excellent.  I had a garlic fish with salad and rice.  Although we couldn't see much of what was around on the drive back to the hotel, we could definitely feel the humidity and hear the sounds of the rainforest.  Let's just say I was worried that I would have mold growing on me in the morning!  However, when we woke up (to fighting monkeys!) and the sun was shining, we could see the surroundings and we knew that it was an interesting place.  We walked around a little on the trails around to see some of what was around us. 

On to our snorkeling tour, and for my first time it was great!  Although I grew up on an island in the Chesapeake Bay, I've never tried snorkeling.  It was an amazing experience to swim along with the fish, see the creatures below, remember that I can't just put my feet down to stand up because of thousand year old coral that is growing below. It is amazing to see life that up close and personal that is not like anything you see on a regular basis.

After our great snorkeling we walked around the town of Cahuita for a little souvenir shopping then back on the bus for a ride back to Earth University.  After arriving back at Earth, we were greeted by the some adults from St. Mark's that have just arrived to Costa Rica for their mission trip.  We shared a little of what we had been up to, but tomorrow we plan to show the work that was completed during the week.

Another day in the Rainforest

It is now Thursday just after breakfast and I can definitely say that I'm tired!  The coffee here does help get past that, but my body is saying it has had enough sweat, blisters, sun burn, bug bites and humidity for a while!  But no worries, "Pura Vida", we will continue today and sweat a little more...okay a lot more... and plant more plants and "building community in the way of Christ!"

Here are some pictures of yesterday's work:

A lot of planting around the perimeter of the playground as well as the new community garden.

This is the way they transport bananas from the fields to the factory that is located on campus.

Mmmm...coffee!

 After a good night's sleep (with the help of a little benedryl and aleve!) I am ready to tackle another day in the rainforest.  I'm really hoping that the ants and mosquitos are finished feasting on all of us and we don't come back with more bites today.
We just returned from breakfast, with of course, more rice and beans, cheese tortilla and the BEST coffee!  In a few minutes we will be heading out back to Guacimo to continue working on the community garden.  The plan today is to have some more soil brought in and mark out the beds that will be within the large area that we cleared.  We also have a little more ditch digging to allow for proper drainage.  If you remember back to the first trip we did dig a ditch there to lay a foundation for a wall, however this is just a small ditch to allow for runoff and the good news is we started it yesterday and it shouldn't take that long today.  We also hope to get it done before the next rainstorm comes through!

FYI...The picture that is currently on the background of the blog is from my first trip here to Costa Rica back in July 2008.  It is of the church of Santa Cruz where we spent a lot of our work time.  After a quick visit yesterday it was great to see it all completed.  I'll try to post some pictures when I have a little more time.

Don't forget to check out the St. Mark's Youth Blog!

So due to time issues and limited computers I haven't been able to detail our trip as well as in the past.  However...there is good news!  The youth have been using my computer to blog on their blog so I refer you again to check out their space... costarica2011stmarksyouth.blogspot.com

Just a quick note...

We are about to head to Germania for some games with the local youth so I don't have much time to write.  But all is going well and we have cleared out a section of land to be used as a community garden at the Parish House in Guacimo.  Tomorrow we plan to plant whatever the expert from Earth University deems appropriate.  Can't wait!

We have arrived!

So after some delays in Charlotte, we were finally able to board 2 hours later than our original departure.  With that brought a few more delays throughout the day, but we finally made it to "Rancho Robertos" for some much needed dinner!
We then made it to Earth University at around 9:30 local time and we all were definitely ready for some sleep.
Now we are headed over to begin work in Guacimo. I'll be in touch!

After a great pre-trip lunch...

So yesterday the Costa Rica group met to finalize the plans, ask questions, share comments, and share lunch.  The group is curious, excited, and ready to take on this mission trip. 
There will also be a blog that will have posts by the youth throughout the trip, so feel free to check theirs out at:  http://costarica2011stmarksyouth.blogspot.com/
As for me...it's back to cleaning and packing!