20.02.13 UN World Day of Social Justice Dia de las Naciones Unidas de Justicia Social

On 26 November 2007, the United Nations General Assembly declared that 20 February will be celebrated annually as the World Day of Social Justice. 

En el 26 noviembre 2007, la Asamblea General de las Naciones Unidas declaro que el 20 febrero sera celebrado anualmente como el Dia Mundial de Justicia Social.

Raleigh Costa Rica & Nicaragua's Volunteers on Expedition 13A are individuals who are dedicating themselves to working with people from around the world, inspiring, developing and challenging themselves; working in partnership, learning to build in a sustainable way within communities and to conserve the environment. 

Los voluntarios de la Expedicion 13A de Raleigh Costa Rica & Nicaragua son individuos quienes estan dedicandose a trabajar con personas del todo el mundo, motivandose, desarollandose y desafiandose a si misno. Tambien trabajan en colaboracion, aprendiendo a construir en una manera sostenible dentro de las comunidades, y a conservar el medioambiente.

As part of their first phase every Volunteer Manager and Venturer was asked: What is Social Justice and what does it mean to you? This is what we believe:

Como parte de la primera fase, se preguntaron a cada voluntario: Que es Justica Social, y que significa para usted? Eso es lo que creemos:

Find out more about World Day of Social Justice >

Social Justice: Spotlight on CATIE, Working for Sustainable Development through Agricultural Reseach and Learning

Raleigh Costa Rica and Nicaragua's Fieldbase is located in Turrialba, Costa Rica - it is on the site of the Centre for Tropical Agricultural Research and Teaching or, as it is better known, CATIE (Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza).

Main building at CATIE

CATIE is a regional center of excellence, working to help rural communities in Latin America and the Caribbean achieve higher levels of sustainable development through integrated management of agricultural and natural resources.  By a combination of cutting-edge scientific research, education and technical cooperation, CATIE works hand-in-hand with families, local organizations, national governments and international partners to influence decision-making and to encourage sustainable development. The aim is to maintain a balance between increased productivity of food and export crops.  Ensuring the sustainability of production systems while promoting a fair distribution of the benefits is also key.

Crop research at CATIE

CATIE’s aims fit very well with Raleigh’s mission of helping young people to learn how to build sustainable communities and conserve the environment. Food security is a vital issue to communities such as our Nicaraguan projects in San Ramon, Siares and Arenilla all located in Nicaragua and Conte Burika in Costa Rica.

More than 100 CATIE research and sustainable development initiatives are taking place in 17 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, including work on the roya disease crippling coffee production that we blogged about on 31 January.  CATIE estimates that over the last decade, at least 100,000 people have directly benefitted from its projects. 75% of those projects are directed toward low-income families and grass-roots level organizations, including women’s

groups and indigenous populations.

CATIE also hosts an improtant tropical botanical garden

Alpha group allocations - then off to jungle camp

An important day today, the venturers were told which projects they will be doing through the first phase of expedition.  The project managers took to the stage and performed project based skits - hence the kilts, mutant turtle masks, monkeys and shell suits that appear in the photographic record.

So here is the running order...

Alpha 1 - Coast to Coast Trek

Left to Right: Pedro Ocon, Florentine E van Selms, Jonathan Gerardo Corrales Marenco,Vera Juarez Vargas, Aisha Green, Sophie LaMarre, Benjamin Avern, Natalie Metcalfe, Matthew Wilkinson, Benjamin Hilton-Delhaye, Nicole Ferris, Rory Thompson, Dave Myer

Alpha 2 - Miratombo Trek (Nicaragua)

Left to Right: Claudia Fiedler, Diego Molina Rodriguez, Arlenne Rodriguez Leandro, Puck van der Vet, Archie Finlayson, Benjamin Persofsky, David Rosam, Suwen James, Harley Decker, Shannon Potter, David Agombar (Omar Antonio Amaya Ochoa will join in Nicaragua)

Alpha 3 - Playa Hermosa/Carara National Park

Left to Right: Henry Anderson, Tracy Heyburn, Callum Blues, Angel Roberto Mejia Quintero, Marco Mora Jimenez, Eveline Kroese, Rahim Hassanali, Laura Perry, Jim Howard, Lilian Keller, Clare Skelton, Lydia Auty, Matt Whiteside (Max Smith arrived today to join the group and Andrea Grundke will join shortly.)
  
Alpha 4 - Carara National Park/Playa Hermosa

Left to Right: Hidde Van Lent, Ben Byers, Victoria McIrvine, Carlos Lugo, Patrice Hollywood, Gustavo Granados Bolanos, Zahir Parri, Yorleny Bermudez Murillo, Paul Darius, Antigone Taliadoros, Jae Quiroz, Sarah Crawford, Charlie Cox, Pauline Wright

Alpha 5 - Water project, Achuapa (Nicaragua)

Left to Right: Florian Cross,  Jose David Quesada Murillo, Sarah Flynn, Vic Lapsins, Jonas Koch, Hester Van Marwijk Kooy, Anika Kandola, Melania Piedra Castillo, Nicholas Masters, Alexander Robertson, Anna McManus, Luke Waldock (Jakeling Escoto Rivera will join us in Nicaragua.)

Now that the Alpha groups are formed each will head out to learn campcraft and navigation skills, bonding over basha beds and trangias.  Bags packed they headed off to spend the night at jungle camp.

Two Countries. One Expedition.

As a Raleigh participant travelling to Costa Rica and Nicaragua, it would be wrong to miss an opportunity to tell everyone back home a little bit about this part of Central America that Raleigh chooses to run its expeditions in, and has done since 2001. Raleigh and these two beautiful countries have formed an amazing two-way relationship – with the communities and ecosystems benefitting from Raleigh’s involvement, and Raleigh participants benefitting from all the amazing experiences the two countries have to offer – in terms of culture, history, people, breathtaking natural beauty and wildlife.

Let me not write about Costa Rica and Nicaragua in the same sentence any longer however – as both are very different and the task, challenges and benefits as a result are unique from one another.

Costa Rica, meaning ‘rich coast’, is a democratic, peaceful and relatively well-developed country, however what often goes unwritten and unspoken is the indigenous community who live in remote areas and as a result don’t benefit from the same excellent facilities for education, clean water and sanitation and power enjoyed by the majority of the population. As a whole, it is known as the happiest country in the world, a notable achievement and one they can be proud of – Raleigh’s aim is to ensure that this starts to apply to the whole country including these indigenous peoples with he community projects it runs.

Costa Rica is also one of the most bio-diverse nations on this planet, and as a result is protected by a huge national conservation system and a policy of sustainable development – which we at Raleigh also get involved in on our environmental projects.

Nicaragua, the largest country in Central America, is in contrast the second poorest in the western hemisphere. It is starting to increasingly benefit financially from tourism because of the beaches, scenic routes, the architecture of cities such as León and Granada, and most recently ecotourism and agritourism, particularly in Northern Nicaragua. Despite this, however, many communities are facing extreme poverty and have few basic amenities such as clean water and safe sanitation, hence Raleigh’s efforts in providing school buildings, housing and sanitation in the projects we operate on our expeditions. 

It is an honour and a privilege to be here in this part of the world and able to immerse ourselves in a mutually beneficial relationship with both of these nations. Gracias por recibirnos!

Alpha 5 in Barva

Congratulations! Alpha 5 gave birth today, to two beautiful .... pipes! We (PM’s Dani (Flaves), Afsun (Afsana),Caroline (in spirit!) and venturers Amanda, Vivian, Jess, Holly, Georgina (Gee), Josh, Sam M, Sam H, Harvey, Brayan, Fu and Tom) are up in the beautiful Barva Volcano sector of the Braullio National Park laying pipelines to transport water to the lovely rangers (RONALD, Fabio, Andres, Alex and Juan) very important work!
Our bus journey here was bumpy to say the least and no one could have prepared us for Sam H’s singing. Arriving at our accommodation (the old ranger station with a range of MATTRESSES and WARM-ISH showers) was a pleasant surprise until the bat incident. Our own Sam Horbye showed his true colours when a rouge bat flew into the house. Screaming like a girl he fled the room scrambling over Afsun in the process. He is now called ‘Batsam.’ Sam M’s similar reaction to a mouse has now earned him the name ‘Ratsam,’ while his vine swinging skills gave him the name ‘Tarzan.’ Both work!

Our first day on project was ... cold! Who needs woolly hats in Costa Rica? ALPHA 5 do! Batsam, our day leader, found the language barrier a problem as our 17th human chain failed again and Ronald (our favourite ranger) was vocal about its uselessness.... learning the hard way we realised that human chains AREN’T the answer to everything.....

Our teamwork got us through the painful process of saving a buried pipe. Any hikers will have been terrified by Dani screaming “I CAN SEE THE HEAD!” The Red Cross helped us for our first day- a six day job became one! Woo! Our evenings consist of cards, mafia, cards and more mafia! On 12th February half of the group (both Sams, Gee, Josh, Brayan, Amanda and Tom) successfully slept through a 6.0 earthquake and those who did wake up mistook it for wind or Bryan’s snoring (IT’S THAT LOUD!) On 14th February we celebrated Valentines Day in style with Bolognaise and chocolate fondue for dessert. Vivian, our resident artist, decorated our house beautifully – hearts and roses galore! The 15th February brought our biggest achievement so far. Under the leadership of Josh we put together 250 metres of pipe! That’s 1/5 of our total distance! Boom! We also saw Tapir and big cat footprints (spotted by Flaves and Fu). Next time let’s hope it’s the real thing!

Work is quite muddy and cold but visibly seeing our progress is amazing! Not to mention we are in an untouched jungle! Today Amanda and Jess got Jungle Feve; non-stop giggling! Josh banished them with odd jobs haha! Fu’s constant playing of Bob Marley was challenged tonight with an amazing rendition of ‘Rappers delight’ by Holly and ‘Ignition’ by Gee. R.O.C.K.E.D.I.T! Also today Tom ran all the way home from the project site to shower first – DEDICATED TO CLEANLINESS! We found Harvey tonight KO’d on the bedroom floor – no sheets, no mattress, no nothing! Gee’s blister on her leg has become infamous in Alpha 5 and last night something horrible happened.... Josh kicked it under the table by accident and it BURST EVERYWHERE! Eeew!!

Any rules about clothing have gone completely out the window- socks and sandals everywhere, colour clashed layers galore! Our fastastico PMs are keeping us very cheery – Flaves (Dani) dancing (we have videos...), Afsun’s pink fur pinup jacket (which supplies enough warmth and entertainment to keep us going for hours and Caroline – we can’t wait for you to get here and attend to our colds!!

Food-wise we are happy too! Homemade tortillas and Empanadas were a massive hit! There’s a wee bit of resentment concerning peanuts being our daily snack (especially Amanda) and the tinned tuna has caused some problems concerning tuna burps (again especially Amanda haha!) Fresh Carrots caused quite a stir – who knew Costa Rican carrots were so big!?! Our quote of the week is from Batsam – “oh look at that cow, imagine the bacon we could get off that!” Nice one Sammy!

All in all Alpha 5 are a happy bunch! LOADS of singing (ABBA), dancing and laughing. We’ve started preparing a sneaky part for our end of phase skit. “Preview” I hear you scream.... well...
“Its the remix to ignition, ALPHA 5 on a mission...”
Until next blog... Alpha 5 out.

Samos 12B el grupo de Raleigh y nosotros somos Holly, Amanda, Caroline, Gee,Tom, Sam, Vivian, Brayan, Daniel, Afsana, Fu,Josh, Samcito, Harvey, Jess.

Y somos Alpha 5. En casa de los guarda parques del Volcan Barva. En donde nos encontramos, con risa, mucha alegría en donde también jugamos todo el tiempo, en un lugar donde, compartimos el trabajo donde nos ayudamos, los unos con los otros, donde una sonrisa no falta. Hemos tenido momentos muy buenos y pocos los malos; los cuales no se donde están porque no lo he visto y no los hemos encontrado. Todos aqui somos y vamos mas alla de ser un nombre como Alpha 5….

En el corazón de todos y cada uno de nosotros, recordaremos; nuestras caras y nuestro tiempo compartido.. los llevare en mi mente y corazón que es y será nuestra voz…

Alpha 3 - Carara update

Since the last update Alpha 3 have had another great week in Carara National Park. We had a fun time entertaining fieldbase and celebrating Louisa’s 19th birthday last weekend. Our rock collecting may have been interrupted but our brains were certainly put into action as we all deliberated over stick, triangle and music box games. We all enjoyed a quiz evening fuelled by Julian’s extensive knowledge and an incredible energy bomb birthday cake.

On Monday Alpha 3 was buzzing with excitement for what was to be our day off at Playa Hermosa (a beach about an hour away). Thanks to our PMs, Jon and Adri, we had an amazing day. Fortunately the bus did stop for us despite us not being at a bus stop and the sun shined as we spent most of the day in the sea – playing chicken much to Jon’s expense. On our journey back everyone was very refreshed, happy and glowing. We thought our day could not get any better ... but it did when we discovered a man on the bus who was more than delighted as we all whipped out our refried bean packets to trade with him for salted plantains.

Since then we have continued with our work. Thanks to Jemma the mural is completed and looks great. The main focus has continued to be reconstructing the dilapidated pathways in Carara. We hope to finish the circuit we have been working on by Thursday. We have continued to see lots of wildlife while we have been working, including a snake, an anteater, a jungle chicken and of course plenty of Scarlet Macaws.

Back at jungle camp we have enjoyed another quiz night, this time with a jungle theme dress code. And a couple of nights ago we were introduced to the cup game. We are still holding out for a venturer to beat Adri. All in all we are having a really good time. Even our first drop of rain on Saturday was greeted with smiling faces... that is until Ollie tried to sleep in his basher bed.
Over our last few days we are hoping to complete the pathway reconstruction in the area we have been concentrating on, enjoy our second day off possibly exploring the jungle and take down our jungle camp as part of our big clean up operation at the casa verde! Then we will be heading back to fieldbase early on Thursday morning for changeover. Time has flown by so fast, it is hard to believe we only have a few more days on phase one as Alpha 3.

Alpha 3 in Carara National Park

Last Saturday Alpha 3 arrived comfortably early at the Cara Park after just a three hour journey from fieldbase. Having met the rangers and their giant iguana, we were shown to the casa verde, just a few kilometres from the crocodiles we saw on our way. We pulled together as a team and managed to overcome the disappointment that the bamboo wouldn´t be ready for another day so we´d have not one, but two nights sleeping inside on mattresses! Excitement was also at fever pitch at the prospect of showers and toilet facilities for the whole phase…apart from PM John, who was keen to ´go jungle´, and stick to the bucket plan.


Over the next few days we met the Rangers who were keen to get us started on the work we´d be doing; showing us around the jungle that is Carara National Park. On our very first morning we were fortunate enough to see numerous scarlet macaws, ant hills brimming with life and much more wildlife typical of the Park. We were also shown one of Raleigh´s previous projects, a footpath constructed back in 2001, and the area we would be working in during phase one, including a 15m wall on which Raleigh Artist Jemma would be orchestrating the painting of a mural. It appeared then that there was much to do in a park of some 2500km squared, covered by a mere 9 rangers! Our role predominantly entailed the reconstruction of pathways to increase tourist access to the national park, rebuilding stairways and digging irrigation drains along the footpaths. An exciting prospect for the weeks ahead.


Meanwhile at the casa verde we began the construction of what was to be our jungle camp; clearing a small area under trees home to capuchin monkeys, and constructing basha beds, a longdrop and a pathway. It took around a day and a half, but the end result felt well worth it. Not only are there now 15 basha beds, we also have a welcome sign, a loo seat, signs directing us to our hometown and what is soon to be a swing. Understandably we were all excited at the prospect of our first night in the jungle, and it lived up to our expectations, since, with the help of no rain to test our tarps, the bashas are still holding strong .It was great to start our environmental work on our fourth day, a full schedule of sourcing rocks for the path made the dinner of masa and refried beans taste even better.


In the past week, work has progressed at a good rate. Around 600m of pathway has been constructed, and the completion of the mural is imminent. It’s tiring, but rewarding work, especially as many tourists walk through, commending us for our efforts. While we’ve been working we’ve seen our fair share of jungle life – more macaws, a morph butterfly and a poisonous dartfrog.


Alpha 3 has also adjusted to life without showers at jungle camp, bathing and washing in the nearby stream every evening after a long day of work has become a fitting end to some tough days work, and other memorable moments included pancakes on shrove Tuesday, cooked by the indispensable trio of Jemma, John and Adri, in addition to learning Spanish, English, Dutch and Greek!


The next few days contain more of the same, mingled with a beach trip and a visit from fieldbase, and Louisa’s 19th birthday! We’re tired most evenings, but high spirited and looking forward to the rest of our phase!


Pura Vida!

In the jungle, the mighty jungle...

Buenas dias!! Having spent 5 days out on the bumpy road, taking in some of the stunning sights of Costa Rica, Juliet Bravo 3 are now back at fieldbase and ready to fill you in on the goings on of Xray 4! Arriving mid morning at La Cangreja to a muddy, yet extremely chirpy Xray 4, we successfully interrupted their hard work for a cheeky cup of tea and a catch up about what they’ve all been up to for the past 10 days. Without further ado, let’s hear from Xray 4’s blogger Justin……..

‘In the jungle, the mighty jungle of La Cangreja National Park, greetings from the intrepid Xray 4! In our short time here we have been very busy: to talk you through an average day, Xray 4 would wake, spring out of bed into an energy busting game of ninja, then hit the project site, where follows a day of levelling ground, shovelling mud, and working on the greenhouses where tropical trees are grown ready to be shipped worldwide.

The greenhouse the group have been working on

The evenings are spent well, with Claire and Catriona making lovely bracelets for the group, as well as a rousing game (or two!) of Mafia (it’s always jenny!). When it rains in La Cangreja, it doesn’t just rain – it pours! Justin takes the opportunity to dive straight in and use the rain as a shower – it really works!

Xray 4 have also learnt the art of foraging – Lloyd found us an orange tree whilst Isaak and Luke cooked up some plantain. The rangers were also nice enough to give us some fresh piña (pineapple!) The constructive spirit also caught Xray 4 when Maykol fashioned a makeshift shower from basha tarps and a hose pipe. Luke added a roof, remarking that we wouldn’t want to get wet in the shower… (?!)

Even the strongest need their days off, and we found ours when visiting the beautiful Rio Negro, where naturally formed jacuzzis helped the group relax after a hard days work. 

Finally, Xray 4 would like everyone to join us for the celebration of our very own Karen’s 20^th birthday! We celebrated with cake and games such as pass the parcel and musical chairs. Raleigh is not for the faint hearted!

The intrepid Xray 4’s next steps are to the amazing Playa Hermosa, where we will be going out on turtle patrols to rescue eggs and set free baby turtles into the sea. Wish us luck as we stride boldly onto the beach!’

Xray 4 taking some time out from work with a game of cards

Cerro Cangreja - the torrential rain looming in the distance!

Blog written by Justin Shenolikar. Photos by Cathy Titterton.

So that’s the low down on what Xray 4 have been up to for the last 10 days! All in all the group are on top form and looking forward to spending the second half of their phase on turtle patrol at the beautiful Playa Hermosa. Juliet Bravo 3 are now back at fieldbase eagerly awaiting more blogs to come through on the radio from all the project groups so we can get them up for all of you to read, so keep checking! Pura Vida!!

Blog written by Wellard. Photos by Cathy Titterton. 

volcanoes and trekking

Hi to all the parents, family and friends.  The road trips have been off visiting the projects and you will be delighted to hear they have returned with some blog entries written by your loved ones.  Juliette 3 (as Laura, Amy, Wellard and Cathy have decided to be named) met with X-ray 1 who were on good form and collected these words from Joanna Bartlett:

 It was hot, sunny, dry and approaching midday when we, x-ray 1 took our first step of the 250km Turimacho trek across Costa Rica.  From Cimarrones Arriba we glanced at the Caribbean coast a few kilometres in the distance and then headed towards the pacific.  Kelly reminded us frequently that we would be at the beach soon!  While this reward was on all our minds we also took in the waterfalls, stunning views, nature and people we saw on the way.

 The first few days we trekked alongside countryside paths.  Day 2 also brought with it the mystery of the missing salami, which meant a disappointing lunch for the next day, but also amusing jokes regarding the salamis whereabouts.

 We have tackled the muddy slopes in the jungle.  The climb was tough and in some places the mud was so persistent that it sucked our boots into it; claiming Darens boots on numerous occasions.

 Still spirits remained high and we sang and danced our way through the jungle, yelling ‘pompi’ (in Cantonese) when anybody slipped in the mud, which was quite often.

 Our 14 year old jungle guide Juan Louis was very patient with our trudging pace.  We parted with him on day 5.  This was our longest day of trekking yet, taking us 10 hours to reach our destination, San Joaquin.  This was also the day with the best hilltop views and we passed a pulperia (small shop) for the first time, good news for us and the shop keeper!

 Tomorrow, day 6 we have a 21km hike ahead of us, fortunately we have some energy bombs(an oats, chocolate and syrup mix) to start the day!

Written by Joanna Bartlett.  Photos by Cathy Titterton.

Juliette 3, not lost!  Just checking the route....

a rare sighting of the Deputy programme manager Brie out on phase with X-ray 1

some venturers still manage to look glamorous, even on trek!

off they go for a day of trekking 21km!!!

Juliette 3 (Laura, Amy, Wellard and Cathy) then spent last night with x-ray 3 and can confirm the report below from Alfie of an evening of charades with a lively and fun group.

Alfie writes...........

We have been working on Volcan Turrialba (a volcano) and I can speak for the whole group when I say it has been the most enjoyable phase.  The working day is made easier by the rangers who are pretty damn funny.

I would say that the best part of the day is in the afternoon when we return to what must from the outside look like student digs.  This is the part of the day when we chill out and this period of time has been filled with conversations about what everyone is doing when they go home or are travelling on.  This makes it very obvious that it is the last phase.

Also at night we have our daily game of ‘Come dine with me’.  This is where there is stiff competition in what is made for dinner.  Some so far have seen:

Spicy noodles – Francis

Mac & cheese – Hugh

Curry – Kay

Better than normal pasta sauce – Cam

Cheesy mash – Alfie

Guacamole – Cam

Egg fried rice – Kay

But please don’t get the impression we are living luxuriously!

 On our day off we visited a town that had been evacuated due to acid rain and saw a house which had no roof as it had been totally eaten away by acid rain.  Although we are loving working at the volcano that day made us realise the destructive power it has.

In the evenings we have had a fair few games of charades and Mafia...... it has started to get a little competitive!

All in all we are enjoying every moment of this phase.  There always seems to be laughter from when we wake until we go to bed.  There are many different personalities in our group but this helps to bring us together and widen our conversations.  I feel as if x-ray 3 has become a type of family!

 PS.  Keep the blog messages coming, we really appreciate them.

Blog written by Alfie Carapiet.  Photos by Cathy Titterton.

Volcan Turrialba

The Rangers use quad bikes to get the heavy materials up the volcano.

Kiwi Cam building the paths.

The road trips are still out there collecting blog entries from the venturers in the other x-ray groups so check back over the next few days for more updates.

Blog written by Laura Salmon.  Photos by Cathy Titterton.

Delta Romeo 3 are no sloths

Words: Scott Baxter
Pictures: Briony Wood

Jungle trail building is hard work. Our typical day involves a 4:50am wakeup call for a hearty porridge breakfast and a fine cup of filtered coffee (a coffee sock is THE essential item to bring on phase) before leaving for work at 6am. As we extend the path the walk has been growing longer and longer. We now have a 90 minute hike through spider, snake and puma-infested jungle to get to the end of our path.

Then the real work begins. It is hot, humid, and there are hazy clouds of flies attached to everyone. However, despite this dreary picture of jungle trail building I have so far painted, it is extremely satisfying seeing an overgrown jungle thicket transform into a brilliantly coloured mud path, through our hard labour.

And we were also lucky enough to see a sloth being re-released into the wild:

I also have to mention the waterfall. After work we often stop at one of the river crossings and wade down the river to get to the most beautiful and secluded rock waterfall that I’ve ever seen. The water is crystal clear, and beneath the falls the water is deep enough to swim in. There are moss-covered boulders for sunbathing. A short boulder-hopping trip past the falls is another waterfall/natural waterslide that ends by a miniature sandy beach (we only recently discovered this and still need to have a closer look).

Our days are hard but when we finish work we relax in style!

Delta Romeo 3 over and out.

Alpha Romeo 4 turtle power!

Alpha Romeo 4 finished their trail building project at La Cangreja after a week into phase 2. So imagine their surprise when they found out that their bonus 10 day project was to build trails and dig trenches to save turtles at Playa Hermosa. Aaaaah! Here's Charlie 'Chich' Chichester to explain more.

La Playa Hermosa: a seafront paradise, green palms, bright blue sea, and a small house right on the beach. We wake up in such a beautiful place with the sound of waves crashing, however it's always accompanied by the sweet sound of venturers' snores.

We've been digging trenches and clearing sand in the morning for Costa Rican turtles and clearing out of control jungle paths in the afternoon, next to a crocodile-infested river. As we are more ferocious than the crocs no one seems to be worried, not even our hobble-legged PM Jonny who returned to us after breaking his foot on trek. Jonny isn't quite up to joining the few of our venturers who go for a 5am run along the sand but he is making progress.

Sadly it is the wrong season to see the turtles. Some of us planned to ride them off into the blue horizon of the sea [blogger: good job they hid then!] but a lot of the eggs are at least now secure.

So instead, while working in the baking hot sun, many of us are beginning to look like freshly cooked lobsters. It will all be worth it  though as we'll have helped a new generation of turtles blossom!

Alpha Romeo 3 - living the dream

Words: Helena Parker

It was almost a relief to leave the rangers station at Volcan Turrialba last week as we were feeling guilty about the semi-luxury of it all. We arrived safe and sound at Park Nacional Braulio Carillo, a rainforest park for the next part of our phase, to be met by the head ranger Don Rodolpho.

Among a plethora of wildlife, he showed us a flower called labios de muje also known as woman’s lips, trees whose roots look more like legs above ground, and which literally walk from where they grow to find the best spot. We also saw the deadliest snake in Costa Rica (in the bathroom) and the best part, a waterhole complete with waterfall! Living the dream? We think so.

We should admit it’s not all fun and games though work here consists of walking up one heck of a hill, carrying bags of rocks in our backpacks to lay on the trail. We think we are doing about 15 kilometres per day but we’re hardcore so we get it done by lunch. Good training for the trek (feel the burn!). So after working hard all morning and collapsing in near exhaustion at lunch we get to leg it down to the river to wash off all the dirt and stay there all afternoon. It’s a tough life!