Raleigh Costa Rica and Nicaragua: Phase 1: Missions accomplished

Friday, 30 July 2010

Phase 1: Missions accomplished

Phase 1 of Expedition 10F&G is all but over with our Delta groups expected back at Fieldbase at any moment and the Alphas getting ready to return for their changeover over the weekend. And it's a pleasure to report that it's mission accomplished for all our project teams!

Over the next few days we'll have heaps of photos and updates from the Venturers as they get access to a computer. There'll be a lot of new posts so we'll create an easy way to find info on the projects you're most interested in - keep an eye on the right hand sidebar.

In the meantime, we have a couple of updates written by our Venturers earlier in the phase to whet your appetite...

Delta 3: Getting underway in Alto Pacuar
Alpha 5: Getting down and dirty in Rio Arriba

7 comments:

mum and dad30 July 2010 at 14:58
Owen Nicholson Delta 2 ( sent this to Delta 3 sorry!)
Hi Owen Glad to hear all has gone well and you are back safely. Jess rang us with your news. Hope you have enough energy left for the trek. Take good care and enjoy yourself. Flat moving forward but slowly.
All our love mum and dad
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Anonymous30 July 2010 at 15:31
Hi Ana, I hope that you are enjoying your journey both the physical and the meta physical ones. I was talking to Heather from Lisburn AC and telling her that you were away on a Raleigh expedition and she was so excited because she went on a Raleigh expedition to Namibia in 2000. She then went back to be a PM on another expedition and says that she is still in contact with loads of her Raleigh friends. Are you enjoying this great experience? The painters have finished painting your room and the skull mural arrived yesterday. Niall has been at summer school all week and has had a great time, cinema, bowling, Newcastle and cocos, forest park, etc. I was looking at some of Brian’s pictures from Argentina and Uruguay and they looked really interesting. I hope you have been taking lots of pictures of your trip and we look forward to seeing them when you get back to base. Anyway, lots of love and see you soon. XOX Dad.
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Ryan30 July 2010 at 16:52
Gaby Cichonska - Delta One

I enjoyed that email. I miss you so much. What happens now? We haven't been given much information about what you're doing from now till you leave. All I know is that it's something I'm going to be insanely jelous of. I guess you're going away again, how long for?

I can't wait to see you again. It sucks and it feels so long away still but I'm so proud of you and glad you're having an amazing time.

Your phones broken, so I emailed you my number again in case there's any phone access over there...

Love youuu
xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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Ryan30 July 2010 at 17:09
Gaby Cichonska - Delta 1

Ohh also a really exciting thing happened to me today. I bought a strawberry cornetto on my break from the film shoot and it had two wrappers. It was like I got to open it twice. EXCITEMENT. I wanted to call you and have a giggle about it but I couldn't :( That's about the most exciting thing that's happened to me the past month.

Email or something before you disappear again?

I miss you so much it's retarded.

xxxxxx
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Anonymous31 July 2010 at 05:46
Will McN : Alpha 5

Hi, bet the fruit gums are nearing their end! The phot's are amazing and you look like your've having fun. We're heading off to Grenada tomorrow,, so getting nearer! Hope the days off are fun,

Much love and big hugs, M+D
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Unknown31 July 2010 at 12:43
To Andrey Kolosov (Alpha 4)
Hi Andrey! Good to see you on pictures! Hope you are doing well. Please try to call us during changeover period - we are keeping Skype switched on over the night.
Love you, Mom
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Jo Round1 August 2010 at 11:01
Bethany Round Delta 4
Hi Bethy.
Missed your chat with George but got your letter, sounds like you have enjoyed the project. I hope the adventure phase goes better than last time..! Kitchen is in with tiles going up this week, it will look well used by the time you get home.

Looking forward to seeing lots of photos and speaking to you on the 8th. Lots of love M xxx
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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?”