What a Wonderful World (with many trees of green)

21 days have passed. But those 3 weeks were the best thing ever. 

So of course, now that I'm back home, the question "What was your favorite thing you did?" comes up. It's a trick question for me because there is no single favorite if I enjoyed everything. 

We've done quite incredible things in the process of learning about nature, biodiversity, and conservation. One of my favorite activities (because I don't have a singular favorite) was climbing up a fig tree. The strangler fig tree is a type of tree that "strangles" another tree, as the name implies. It wraps itself around another tree and steals its nutrients as it grows, eventually killing the original tree. Over time, the dead tree deteriorates and the fig becomes hollow, making it perfect to climb. It is so intricate and beautiful climbing in it, because of the weaving pattern of the tree. It was also quite high up (not a problem for me!) and led to an amazing view of the area. I definitely did not expect that we were going to do that. 

I also enjoyed the day that we went drifting down a river. Although I'll admit that the water was initially a bit too cold for my taste, it felt refreshing and relaxing. Fashionably dressed in bright red life jackets, we were just chilling and drifting through the rainforest. Talk about getting carried away!  

I'm feel so grateful that I was able to go to Costa Rica and experience the beauty of nature there, along with learning about biodiversity conservation and what I can do to help (hint: reduce the amount of single use plastics, like straws and plastic bottles!). Although I only mentioned two, there were so many activities immersed in nature that I would definitely never be able to do at home, and I'm glad I got to experience it all. 

For my 22 friends (18 high schoolers + 4 wonderful adults) that I was lucky enough to experience this trip with, thank you so much. I'm so grateful to have met every single one of you. We've done so much together, all those cold showers, hours of bus rides, and doing things we had never imagine doing (like catching bats and rappelling down waterfalls along with many more). Even those  times where we weren't quite feeling the best, we laughed and smiled through it all together. I love each and every one of you and thank you for making this trip as amazing and unforgetable as it was. 

¡Pura Vida!

Helena 

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