Important work and a wonderful experience

This trip to Costa Rica was my first time traveling alone AND my first trip outside of my own country. I stayed for one week--from July 28th to August 3rd. I was terrified beforehand but really shouldn't have been. The staff and people are all so friendly and helpful, and I rarely felt overwhelmed or lost. This program is a perfect blend of meaningful work, cultural immersion, and fun activities.

The work itself ranges from feeding and cuddling baby porcupines or possums to mixing concrete to build stairs, from cleaning cages to chopping up food for the animals. Along the way you learn a lot about the issues that face wildlife in Costa Rica, and you learn why each of the animals are there. We usually kept relatively busy, but it wasn't as structured as I expected, and we often had to just wander around looking for a staff person to tell us what to do. But whenever we weren't working we could just play with the monkeys or explore the project. Anyway, it was really important work and fun to do.

I also learned a lot about the culture. Staying with a host family was so rewarding. During my stay I had long conversations about Costa Rica and its people, witnessed lots of soccer games in the backyard, and attended a service for the Day of La Virgen de Los Angeles. My Spanish also improved rapidly--I was using it all the time except with other volunteers, which was incredibly cool! Many staff members and host families speak no English at all, so I definitely definitely stress the importance of knowing at least intermediate Spanish before coming on this trip--especially when traveling away from the project.

The staff is also very willing to, among other things, plan weekend excursions for you--anything from zip lining to rafting to visiting hot springs. I had a great time doing a canopy tour in La Fortuna with other volunteers, arranged at the front desk of the project.

I never had a boring moment during my short stay in Costa Rica. Even if you didn't have something structured to go do, it was always fun to just explore or talk with the locals or your other volunteers. It's a breathtakingly beautiful place, really important work, tons of fun, and a fascinating experience. I always felt safe too. I recommend this trip to anyone as long as they're reasonably adaptable and love nature. As you can see, I was only there for a week and I can't shut up about it.