Raleigh Costa Rica and Nicaragua: On the trail with Alpha 1

Friday, 23 July 2010

On the trail with Alpha 1

We caught up with our brave Maribios trekkers in Colonia Santa Cruz, a small village in north-west Nicaragua, as they prepared to climb Volcan Casita.

And we've got some photos of Alpha 1 for you too:

15 comments:

Sandra Morris24 July 2010 at 14:51
Hi Chris Morris
Good to see pictures of the group, the scenery looks fantastic. Daz passed his driving test last Tuesday he is very pleased. Joseph says hi and he is missing his big brother. Sooty and Toby are both well. Take care and make sure you eat plenty. Love M D D J XXXXXXXXXX
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Becky Marsh26 July 2010 at 06:36
Hey Trins!! Looks amazing out there and I hope you are having the best time ever. Looking forward to seeing you when you get back. Love you and missing you loaaaads. Love Marsh xxxxxx
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Mary Gillingham26 July 2010 at 16:42
Grace Abel Delta 1
Fantastic photos of progress on the school and pic of you measuring and muddy and you all having laughs. Very reassuring to see you just as you always are. Saw Ettie on picnic through creeks to Little Japan at the w/e, blustery sail home. She says to come by when you're down and is planning to race a 4.7 in the regatta and hopes you'll join her at the back of the fleet! Joe's been out to sea snorkelling and having fun jumping off boat. Alex on the other hand working hard. Dad and I send much love as ever Mum xx
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Becky Marsh27 July 2010 at 07:31
To Catriona Till 10F Alpha 6

Hey Trins!! Looks amazing out there and I hope you are having the best time ever. Looking forward to seeing you when you get back. Love you and missing you loaaaads. Love Marsh xxxxxx
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Anonymous27 July 2010 at 12:51
Hi Amy,

We are still trying to figure out the blog thing -hope youre well - we are!

Love,
Mum, Dad, Susan, Dean
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Ali27 July 2010 at 21:47
To Ariadna Venegas, Delta 2

Ariiiiiiiiiii =( digamos que me paso fijando en el blog como 293874 veces al dia, ud que se ha creido?!?!?! gatomat!! jajaja T_T creo que por aca todos te extrañamos suficiente, cuando te fijes en tu fb lo vas a notar =p yo me voy a volver locaaaaaaa jajaja bueno ya me comporto T_T pero la extraño tonta!! y y y tengo muchas cosas q contar, y solo xq esta construyendo escuelas piensa q tiene derecho de desaparecer?!?! jajaja bueno ya perdon, te quiero mucho carajosa! =D cuidate fea!
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JWS28 July 2010 at 08:16
To Ellie Williamson, Delta 2
Hi Ellie, hope all is still well. Glad to see at least the girls are being manly. Off to Dave's in 2 days time and Langeoog on Monday. Hope to be able to keep in touch by Blackberry. Lots of love, Mum xxx
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Anonymous28 July 2010 at 09:31
Rose (Alpha 1)- hope your blisters have healed and you are back with the others. Looking forward to seeing the latest photographs. D x
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Fiona Sconce28 July 2010 at 14:51
Susannah Sconce 10G Delta 2
Hello Sus! No photos of you for a while but from the ones we've seen, you certainly are getting your money's worth out of those
DofE/Kili/NZ/C.Rica boots! Little Lottie is just splendid and cousin Lucy looking forward to meeting her very soon. Dunc in the midst of exams but may be here when you get back. Ross home and has bought a car. Riverline arrived and you have a two page spread! Hope you're having a wonderful time. Looks amazing. Much love from all, Mum xx
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Ivan (HK Raleigh)28 July 2010 at 22:02
Wing (Alpha 1)

Saw your amazing smiling face in blog ~ Look that you really enjoy the trekking!!!

That remind me in the trekking phase in last year and I lost a lot of weight during tht... bet tht you are the same...hahaaaa!! good for you~~

Look forward to see more update!!!

努力!!!!加油!!!

p.s. not sure whether they can print out chinese word...keeee

Ivan (from HK raleigh)
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Anonymous28 July 2010 at 22:34
Lisa Cranfield (10F)

Hey Leese,

Looks amazing and bet you are having a ball. Can't wait to hear all your adventures, the country is amazing, isn't it?

Bring on the gasbag, miss you.

lots of love Fran xxxxxx
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Anonymous30 July 2010 at 07:25
Hi Aidan,
We have just seen the photos,it looks like things are going well for you. Sorry to hear about your toe, hope you have a speedy recovery and get back on the trail. We at LCS are all very proud of you and the journey that you have taken so far.... PS Keep the photos coming... its making us all real jealous here...
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Mary Gillingham30 July 2010 at 11:46
To Grace Abel of the Mighty Delta 1
Terrific achievment to have finished your school and the other Deltas too. And what a poem! It gives a great insight into life in Nimari, school building. Am getting in the chocolate and soap! Picking up Joe tonight and doing the lapwing champs at the w/e. Enjoy the adventure next week. Lolly Mum xxx
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Tom Anthoni1 August 2010 at 03:54
Lisa Cranfield (10F)

Hey Leese,

thinking of you! Eating rice and beans and rice and beans and rice and beans and rice and beans and rice and beans and rice and beans... You're probably glad I'm not around!

Miss you.

Love,
Tom
XX
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Sue Tickner5 November 2010 at 03:05
To: Adam Tickner Alpha 1

Hi there, It was lovely to hear from you yesterday. So pleased you're having a great time, want to see more pictures! Speak soon, Love Mum x
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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?”