Raleigh Costa Rica and Nicaragua: Messages from The Crab and Blog from Mags

Saturday, 6 December 2008

Messages from The Crab and Blog from Mags

As I mentioned yesterday, Rachel and I dropped in for a cup of tea and cake with the Alpha 3 crew. Mags one of the A3 members is here with us a fieldbase and captions for the photos come from her - enjoy!

Rhys, Andrey, And most of all Daddy Al. This is the chill out time playing lots of cards we learn drifferent tricks.

Matt taking a seat after a hard days work

Andrey, Rhys celebrate victory over daddy al at cards

Emily glad to take her
boots off and rest her feet
and relax after our
hard day work.

Rosie and Jen preparing our lovely lunch of peanutbutter and great kracker's ohh yeah we are happy can't you tell with the smile's on our faces.

Libby, Hattie so proud of the work we have done. Our lovely jungle camp and the wheelchair path we have a solid strong team and we stick together.

Hattie, loves Mum, Dad, Tom, Sam, Dave misses them lots.xxx

Emily sends big hugs to all her friends +family.

Rosie misses all but would love to get more messages.

Al, thanks everyone for all his birthday messages, it was the best birthday ever +He had the most amazing energy bomb cake.

Matt, to everyone who has sent messages to him - thanks.

Jen, sends her love to everyone, can’t wait to see them + is looking forward
To Xmas cuddles to black, spang+ tabby cat+ chee. Lots of love jen xx

Rhys, hey mum+Richard see you at Xmas can’t wait to see your smiling faces again + wedding pics miss you loads. Love Rhys

Dad + Angela, see you at Xmas miss u loads Rhys.

James: I'm using this forum because I imagine that everyone I know here is tired of hearing me talk about Katherine: Katherine is great and I miss her! - (I don't get tired of hearing about you Katherine, I think it's lovely!)

7 comments:

Anonymous7 December 2008 at 02:58
Hi Jen
Great to see another picture and know you are well.
Only just over a week and we will see the real you.
I am writing this from Bath its Sunday and I am Christmas shopping!
The Blog is simply great thanks for the message.
Liz is at home caring for the animals.
Lots of hugs and kisses.
Mother xxxxxxxxxxxx
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Anonymous7 December 2008 at 04:30
James (OHalloran)

Wow I feel very special! Thanks for the personal message via the blog! Only 2 more weeks and I'll be in Costa Rica - yay!

Missing you lots too but getting very excited about coming out. A hot water bottle doesn't do the job in replacing you! It is cold here, last weekend my mum and dad got snowed in!

Keeping myself busy with all the preparations (and all the jobs I intended to do while you were away!) so it doesn't seem so far away until I get to see you.

Going for a run then to Spitalfields today. Will write another message soon.

Love you
Katherine
xxxxxxxx
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Anonymous7 December 2008 at 12:14
hey rossy! it's becki here again.
so jealous of you still! it's freezing over here =[ it will probably be snowing any day now. and i keep slipping on the ice =[. anyways, christmas is soon, which means one thing: YOU'RE COMING HOME =]. yay! can't wait to see you again. love your bestest bud =P
xxxxx
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Anonymous7 December 2008 at 13:33
hi emily, some great mozzie bites! Great to see your picture today. Cold weather has arrived scraped ice off the car. We've help make the christingles again, and the village christmas tree has been lit. all looking forward to seeing you again soon. Love Mum & Dad
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Anonymous7 December 2008 at 14:39
Hello Jungle Jen - looking good girl!!! Sat here watching strictly come dancing and the black cat is eating crisps!Its been cold here today so soak up the heat and get ready for the chilly winds. Christmas is coming and I am thinking about the cheese sandwiches. Enjoy every moment and I look forward to a long evening hearing all the adventures. Best wishes to everyone in Costa Rica!!!!!Life will not look the same when you get home!!
All my love and more
xxx
dada
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Anonymous9 December 2008 at 05:34
Hey Rhys!

Everyones Asking Me About Yuu!!

Didn Think Yuud Be Missed So Much, LOl x

Yuu Are!!

We All Excited To See Yuu Again!!

Wait Till Yuu See What Me And Beth Got Yuu! HaaHaa!!
Yuu Love It!

Love You!! Missing Yuu Loads!!

Beth, Laura, Ruth And All The Family!!

xxxxx
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Anonymous10 December 2008 at 04:22
Hi My Beautiful Bol,

Thinking of you today as every day and dying to hear your voice with all your news!It is frosty but sunny here today and I am going to take Millie along the river........bet you are glad you are missing it! Tree up and lights on so trying to get a bit Chrismassy without you! I phoned Dave on his birthday but didn't get through so popped in to see Nicky. She said he is fine, not missing them at all but you loads!!!!!!! Not the only one...everyone is!Nice to see your photo but not the usual pout!!
Speak very soon I hope...
Millisquilly,

Mumsywumsy x
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Add comment

Hi,

Thank you for visiting our blog. Comments are monitored daily and we will ensure messages are promptly delivered to your loved ones. Please ensure you state the name of the person to whom your message is addressed. This is so we don't miss any out. Muchas gracias!

Pura Vida!

How to send your loved ones a message

It's easy. Scroll down to the bottom of the most recent entry and click the comments link. A box will then appear where you can write your comment - please don't forget to tell us who the message is for including the full name and project group of the recipient. You can select name/URL from the dropdown menu to tell us who it's from (you can leave the URL blank if you wish). Finally, click on 'Post Comment' and you're done.

As you can imagine there are 180 volunteers so hundreds of messages for loved ones, no comments go live immediately and have to be moderated for appropriateness, so please do bare with us.

All comments that are pertinent to the post will be publshed and all personal messages will be delivered (even if they don't appear published). Messages mean a lot to all the volunteers; thank you for your continued support.

Raleigh Lingo

Copy that?

Sometimes our Raleigh technical terms can be a tad confusing so we've put together a glossary for you blog followers. This will appear as a quick-reference section on the right-hand column so you can translate our Tico-terms into something a bit more palatable. And for those keen to brush up their Central American Spanish, we've included some handy translations. Here's a few to get you started...

Alpha, X-Ray and Zulu groups
(Grupos Alfa, X-Ray y Zulu)
The official name for project groups during the phases of CR&N 13A. Alpha will be out on project from 3rd to 23rd February, X-Ray from 24th February to 15th March and Zulu from 17th March to 5th April. Project groups are allocated during induction

Basha
Jungle ‘bed’: consists of a tarpaulin for shelter, a hammock and mosquito net. A basha is hung up between two trees and supported by rope, bamboo and canvas straps

Bodega
A Spanish word meaning store or warehouse

Bravo
A term of endearment for our hard-working Land Rovers. The four vehicles are officially, and imaginatively named Bravo One, Two, Three and Four

C.A.T.I.E.
The agricultural and development research institute on whose campus Fieldbase is situated. Find out more at http://www.catie.ac.cr/

Changeover (Cambio de Fase)
Two day period where all staff and Venturers return from their project sites for some respite before they are all reallocated and sent off to do it all over again...

Chicas, Chicos
Spanish term meaning girls (chicas) or guys (chicos) or both (chicos aswell). As in “Vamonos chicos!” or “Let’s go guys!”

Craic
A way to gauge how people are feeling, usually measured from 0 to 90. If your ‘craic’ is high, you’re pretty happy. If you announce a low craic, people will probably fix you up with an energy bomb and a nice big hug

CR&N 13A
Costa Rica and Nicaragua expeditions 13A

Day Leader (DL) (Líder del día)
Every day on project, one of the Team is designated DL – they are in charge of the day, including organising the day’s briefing, keeping group morale up, dealing with any problems, sticking to schedule and de-briefing at the end of the day. The DL role rotates round the whole group so everyone takes a turn

Energizer (Actividad Levanta Muertos)
An activity to gather the group together and raise energy levels. Can be used at the beginning of the day, or whenever a quick pick-me-up is required

Energy bombs (Explosión de azucar)
A trekking treat – mix together oats, raisins, condensed milk and chocolate powder and roll into little balls of gooey goodness to power you through the day

Fieldbase (FB) (Campo Base)
Refers to the Raleigh ‘office residence’ which is where the Fieldbase staff eat, sleep and work, whilst organising the expedition, manning the radios round the clock, supporting the projects, planning transport and logistics, keeping tabs on the finances and much, much more

Field Base Volunteer Managers (Equipo Logístico Voluntario del Campo Base)
Volunteer support staff for the expedition. The team looks after the ‘behind the scenes’ of the expedition and ensures everything runs smoothly. This consists of three permanent staff members - the Country Director, Country Project Manager and Country Expedition Manager - plus a team of volunteer staff including the, Medic, Photographer, Administrator, Finance Officer, three Logistics (logs) team members and the Communications Officer

Gallo Pinto
A traditional Costa Rican dish of rice and beans (yum!)

Icebreaker (Rompe Hielos)
A getting-to-know-you game

Longdrop (Letrina)
The camp loo. Literally a deep hole in the ground, it is one of the first tasks to complete when setting up jungle camp for obvious reasons! Short drops are similar, normally used for overnight stops when a shallower trench will suffice

Longs (Pantalones)
From 6pm onwards, we all don long trousers and sleeves to discourage the bugs that aren’t deterred by DEET

Maxis
Short for Maxi Pali, the stock-everything shop about a kilometer from Fieldbase where you can buy all those things you forgot/ran out of/lost

Nicas
An affectionate term referring to the native population of Nicaragua

Ninja
A popular game/energizer used by venturers and Project managers alike. Everyone stands in a circle and tries to hit the team members either side of them on the hand via a single ninja movements. Sound effects welcome

POPS
Legendary milkshake and ice-cream parlour chain found all over Costa Rica – perfect for a sweet splurge

Pork and beans (Frijoles con cerdo)
Another staple foodstuff for trekkers: tinned beans with a slightly sausage twang, served cold for lunch. Usually accompanied by dry cracker dust, sprinkled liberally on to the top. If you’re in a hurry, this can be consumed without cutlery straight from the can

Project Managers (PMs) (Guías)
Project staff for the expedition. Each of the groups has at least two PMs who work with the Venturers to develop skills, lead projects and challenge themselves

PURA VIDA!
A very special Costa Rican phrase that means hello, goodbye, I’m great, it’s good, pure life, basically any positive, feel-good thing can be Pura vida!

Radio check (Chequeo de Radio)
As well as a daily SITREP, all Alpha projects are required to complete a second radio call-in each day to check in, receive messages and report any developments

Review (Revisión)
A round-up that assesses how everyone feels, what went well and what needs work. This is sometimes an ‘activity’, sometimes a chat around the campfire, or sometimes just a bit of time to reflect. It’s an important part of everyone’s personal development so we make sure it happens every day

Roadtrip (Paseo Volando Rueda)
The logistics team and some of the Field Base team drive the Bravos on a loop round to each of the accessible project sites once per phase. They deliver kit, supplies, site visitors, messages from the blog and of course the all important post

Ropa Americana
Purveyors of the finest second hand American threads. Perfect for fancy dress/obtaining that long coveted college sports jersey

SITREP (Reporte de la Situación)
Literally Situation Report. A special radio message sent from the satellite project sites back to fieldbase once a day. It follows a certain format and includes all sort of handy information like where they are, what they’ve been up to, what they need and what they’re planning to do next

Tang
A fruity powder that is used to make squash. Jolly useful for taking away the chlorine taste of purified water

Ticos
An affectionate term referring to the native population of Costa Rica

Trangia (Mini Cocina)
A portable cooking stove. Used primarily for trekking, a trangia’s compact design makes it perfect for easy transportation. Literal translation in spanish - mini kitchen. Makes sense

Turrialba
The location of Fieldbase

Venturers (Aventureros)
Participants in the Raleigh expedition. Aged 17 to 24, they come in three varieties: Host Country Venturers (from Costa Rica and Nicaragua), Partnership Venturers (positive young people from disadvantaged backgrounds in the UK who participate in Raleigh expeditions as part of a longer term development programme) and UK and International Fundraising Participants (who work hard to raise money to contribute towards the charities work and expenses in order to take part in the expedition)

Wash up (Revisión Final)
The last few days of expedition, spent debriefing, returning equipment, performing skits, and most importantly enjoying the farewell party (tears alert)

Zero (Cero)
A radio term that identifies the radio controller at Fieldbase. Fieldbase monitors the radios 24-7, listening out on three frequencies for calls from our satellite project sites. When the radio alarm sounds, we might answer something like this: “Hello unknown call sign, hello unknown call sign, this is Zero, this is zero, do you copy, OVER?”