Raleigh Costa Rica and Nicaragua: 09F - 10 Weekers Finish Phase Two!!

Tuesday, 18 August 2009

09F - 10 Weekers Finish Phase Two!!

So the word on the street is that all four Alpha Groups have finished Phase 2!!! Alpha’s 1 & 2 made it to their respective beaches for some much-deserved fun in the sun. And superstar teams Alpha 3 & 4 both successfully finished their projects. All groups are celebrating a mind-blowing whirlwind phase of challenges and triumphs!! Can’t wait to have you all back at field base soon!
And the question on everyone’s mind.......................what the heck is going on at field base??? Here is a wee peek at the confidential and highly-coveted field base antics.......

Rachel making a roulette wheel for our Viva Las Vegas night at Field base during changeover

Rachel and Lisa struggling to meet deadlines

Julian wheeling and dealing

All of us enjoying Sandra's 5 star cuisine

Lisa working diligently on the blog

Don Martin and Sandra planning our bar-b-que for tonight

And finally, by far the most unbelieveably entertaining, weird, wild, and crazy thing to happen this phase at field base..................oh never mind.

Hasta luego amigos!!!

Lisa-nothing-but-smiles-Barrett

10 comments:

Anonymous19 August 2009 at 02:08
Hi Ross
Hope all went well on the trek and all the equipment did you proud!
Cant wait to see all the photos and read your note book on it all!
We are now all back from France having had the usual relaxing time in the sun.
Looking forward to hearing what your up to in phase three

Take care

love Dad
x
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Janet and Wilf19 August 2009 at 12:33
Its good to see that creativity is alive and well at fieldbase. We are now back home and reflecting on our amazing experiences in South America and not the least our glimpse of life at fieldbase. It is all very impressive and we wish you a happy third phase. Rachel - Minnie is also alive and well having made a friend of Michael. Much love.
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Anonymous20 August 2009 at 06:05
hi wills,
great to talk to you on the phone- was such a nice surprise. We are all so happy that you are enjoying yourself and making the most of everything. Congratulations with your results- you must be so pleased as everyone is back at home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
we will try our best to post you all the blogs we can so you feel more loved but we are thinking of you every day and miss you masses. lots of people are asking about you so you shouldnt feel forgotten......
love you so mcuh and miss you loads and loads and load and loads.. have fun in the jungle :)
love mum and katherine xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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Anonymous20 August 2009 at 07:12
Hey Ross ~ Glad you've managed 2 out of 3 experiences with just one more to go! Sounds like everyone's having a ball! Thanks for the 'surprise' birthday card! Had a great time in France - Wilson has the best tan of all. See you soon! Love Ging x
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Anonymous20 August 2009 at 08:55
Michael Raymond

hi from an internet cafe in cornwall (mum came in and ordered tea!!) good to speak to you the other night glad you are enjoying yourself even if covered in fleas and cow s**t.

Weather here is better than last year - not as wet and some sun. Soph arrives on Sat so we'll have a few days with her and can catch up.

Enjoy chasing turtles and lying on the beach - We've checked the local beach and I can report there are no turtles here!!

see you next month, love from us all

Mum, Dad & Jessica xxx
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Anonymous20 August 2009 at 12:41
Hey Shane!
So annoyed I missed your call, sorry about that.
Yeah I got offered a place for medicine in RCSI, crazy! Such a hard decision to make now, I think I'll prob take it tho..I need u here to help me!!
Sounds like you're alive and well, good luck with the last 3 weeks! Cannot WAIT to hear everything!
Love from me
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Anonymous21 August 2009 at 14:18
Shane...

And I got your letter this morning just to let u know! Thanks so much!
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David and Suzanne22 August 2009 at 05:11
Hey Wills,

Just waiting for your folks and Katherine to come down and wishing you were with them. The hot tub is up and waiting and another VERY large bottle of fizz awaits you on your return. Will email you a few pics of your last visit! Congrats on your results we are really happy for you. Decent boating weather today but not as warm as CR. Love,

David and Suzanne
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Anonymous23 August 2009 at 17:16
heyyy ben, claire an paul :) hope your havin an awsum time :D ive sent a letter not sure if youll get it in time tho :L youll have to tell me all abwt the 2nd an third phase wen u all get bk, take loads of photos so i can see wa u guys been up to ;) lots of love josh :) xx
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Anonymous2 September 2009 at 12:42
Hi Willy, am i on the right channel? End of summer update - had a decent time in turkey, almost starved to death but was saved by a free beer from the barman. Not much has changed there you'll be pleased to know. Couple of days in spain with bits of your family, all went well but too bad helen couldn't make it. some people didn't like the air con (too windy), the knives (too blunt), the beach (too crowded), but taken all round we all had a good time I think. So back to the grind, searching for some gainful way to spend the few remaining years, any ideas? i saw the star of bethlehem over highgate the other day which explains the rash of above average exam results i think. Well, must settle down for a drizzly evening here, a little tv, a beer and a couple of fags. take it easy in the juggle, Oliver
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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?”