On Saturday 3rd April, 7 students and I left Abbotsholme to embark upon a Round Square service project to Costa Rica. After travelling for 24 hours we arrived in San Jose where we had a much needed sleep, before getting up the following morning to travel to Durika community where we were to live and work for the next 8 days. Upon our arrival at Durika, we were made to feel very welcome and were struck by the beauty of our surroundings. We were given a tour of the community which gave us all a sense of what a truly incredible project it is that has been undertaken by the members of the community – having started off 18 years ago with just 25 hectares of land, they have now purchased more than 800 hectares on which they have planted more than a million trees, rescuing the land from deforestation. The aim for the people has been to build a biological corridor from their small commune up to L’Amistad National Park, which they have achieved.
Over the course of the week we learned about living sustainably, which included having much dreaded cold showers every day! Every morning started with work at 5.30 where tasks such as working on the banana plantation, gardening, goat milking and goat herding, and trail clearing were undertaking. Daily training hikes were also participated in by all in preparation for a major two day hike up to the Continental Divide – an amazing place from where water flows one way into the Atlantic Ocean and the other way into the Pacific. The hikes were challenging, especially in such hot conditions and at such a high altitude, but all pupils did exceptionally well and pushed themselves beyond their limits.
After a week it was very hard to leave the community but every one of us had been enriched and learned so many lessons along the way - about ourselves as people, about living with and being considerate of others, and also about our fragile planet and how our actions affect our environment. It was a truly unique and thought provoking experience and I would like to thank the pupils for their excellent conduct and attitude throughout the trip, and for sharing with me such an unforgettable experience.