Fulfillment of a Dream

From the time I met my co-volunteer at the airport and then our Country Manager and Team Leader that evening until the day of departure, I felt that every part of my dream to volunteer in Costa Rica had been met. Nia Salas made us feel comfortable in her country and explained in detail what we would be doing in Sta. Elena and the guidelines that Global Volunteers has set up to make the experience enjoyable and safe for all involved. Our accommodations (including dietary requests) were totally perfect...just like being at home. The service project included clearing trails in the Cloud Forest, a little bit of heaven, and then building a storage shed for recycling at the Colegio working with an amazing former student with so much enthusiasm that it was hard to keep our feet on the ground. We were treated with tons of respect and were even invited to watch fresh cheese being made and felt right at home every day we were there. We had our breaky meetings before heading off for the day and enjoyed our meals and quality time together in the evening with lots of free time to enjoy our surroundings. For me it was an amazing experience of community, family, love, fun, hard work with a joyous outcome of helping the lovely areas of Costa Rica and making it possible for the students to learn about recycling and maintaining the earth that we so cherish. I am looking forward to taking other Global Volunteer trips in other parts of the world.