We were sitting on the front porch of the Center, enjoying a beautiful view of the grounds, and watching the brisk
morning fog rolling in. It was 5:30 in the morning, and most of us were using
this view to wake up our exhausted bodies. It wasn’t a dreaded exhaustion, but
a refreshing tiredness that only comes with knowing you have had an experience of a
lifetime. To be honest, we didn’t want to leave. We enjoyed the warm and homey
feeling that was brought to us by Margherita and the small, quaint town of
Montserrat. After eating a yummy, traditional, Costa Rican breakfast, we packed up
our things, loaded the Dinosaur (Margherita’s SUV) with our luggage, and walked
down to the school.
The one-room schoolhouse is perched on a green, grassy hill, with a worn out swing-set, and a classic
metal slide. It was a humble place, with a large “mom and pop” porch, and a
colorful "Bienviendos" on the door. The children were bashful, smiling as they
found their desks. I can’t imagine sixteen Americans staring at me either! The
children had a surprise, they had written and crafted a story book for
us, and presented it. Such a precious moment. After we said our good byes, we
loaded the bus, and off we drove, leaving the chilly cloud forest, to enter the
hot and humid lowlands, something we weren't used to.
The bus
ride was quiet, everyone was able to catch up on their sleep and process
all the knowledge we had gained. Adrian noticed that we had been
deprived of our American junk food, so he made a stop at a grocery store to buy
us some cookies and banana chips that satisfied our cravings. We kept
driving until we left the high-altitude, and began to see the true rain forest.
The bus
came to a stop at a chain-link fence, and behind that fence, were nine
precious children smiling at us in brightly colored outfits. They had a whole
presentation set up, with rows of seats like a theater, and a small CD player
in the corner. We introduced ourselves first, they in English, and we in
Spanish. They danced for us, and then toward the end of the dance, pulled
us up to dance with them. The kids really wanted to play soccer, so we split into two
groups and played for awhile. After, we enjoyed a fruit snack, and gave out
presents to the kids. It was sad to leave them after all the fun we had, but we
had a whole adventure waiting for us at the Veragua Rain Forest Park. 
We arrived at the park, got our room
assignments, and settled in. Later, we hiked down to the restaurant to have a
late lunch. We ate, and immediately got on the tram that took us through the
canopy and down to a trail leading to a balcony that overlooked a massive
waterfall. Of course, we stopped to take many selfies and group pictures. Once
we filled up our memory cards, we hiked back to the tram, and returned to the
main area. Our guide then took us through the snake, frog, and butterfly exhibits.
All the animals we saw and learned about were found within the perimeter of the
park. It was quite frightening to know that most of them were
poisonous or venomous! Even more exciting than seeing them, was meeting the
scientists that were in charge of the exhibits and seeing the research they were
conducting. It was so amazing to hear about the accomplishments they have made, and
at such a young age. It was inspiring to all of us, especially since most of
them don’t have college degrees. It shows how being immersed, and experiencing
the subjects your interested in can be more valuable than sitting behind a
desk. It is also encouraging to know that you are not defined as an expert solely by a
college degree.
After being
humbled by these scientists, we got to help them out in the lab. Julian, the
butterfly expert at the park, let us release butterflies into the garden.
It was incredible to hold a Blue Morpho and see its aqua colored wings flutter
away into the garden. For many of us, this was our favorite part of the day.
Once we released the butterflies, we helped Julian hang some cocoons in his
lab. It was a tedious process, done by weaving a needle into the silk of the cocoons,
then hanging it in his butterfly cabinets where they would become the beautiful
butterflies of Costa Rica. We finished
up our work, exited the gardens, and headed to dinner! Phew, what a day!
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