Living La Pura Vida!
by Hannah Nevitt
After graduating with my Master's in Education, with an emphasis ...
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Sharing in Harmony with Nature
September 21, 2009 @ 3:23 PM | Permalink
Every morning I awake to the sounds of crowing roosters, chirping birds, and the melodic croaking of grasshoppers and frogs. The beaming sun floods my room at nearly 5:30 am. The intricate white lace of my window curtain provides little privacy from the exotic world outside.
Looking out my window I can see a field of lush green plants, vibrant flowers, and a blue sky peaking through tall trees. To the right I can see the magnificent slope of the Arenal volcano…its peak high among the clouds, billowing white puffs of smoke like a teapot ready to whistle. It is incredible.
I have resorted to sleeping with earplugs, otherwise I lay awake for hours listening to every sudden noise or banter from outside. Earplugs are a necessity for wandering souls like myself…always handy in unforeseen moments; crying babies on airplanes, napping on long bus rides, tuning out loud conversations, and in my most current situation…drowning out the chorus of nature so I can sleep for a few hours!
As I pull myself out of bed to prepare for the day I can smell the warm aromas of breakfast being prepared. Coffee brewing, the clinking of dishes and silverware being set out, and the sizzling of eggs being fried—Buenos Dias a Costa Rica!
After a plate of watermelon, pineapple, or bananas I enjoy a cup of coffee with my host mother and father. The kids are frantically trying to get ready for school…ironing their uniforms, (blue skirts/pants and white button up shirts) brushing their hair, and putting on their shoes. They hug and kiss their mother on the cheek before running out the door. Dario smiles and waves goodbye to me…only after I promise to play soccer with him later in the afternoon.
It is now my turn to say goodbye and head to work. For the next six months I will be working with student volunteers at an eco reserve, animal rescue center, and language institute called, Proyecto Asis. One of the girls that lives next door to me was kind enough to let me borrow her bike. I now have a means of transportation to and from my project site.
I grab my bike and wave goodbye to the crowd of kids and mothers cleaning their homes. Once on the small rural road, I look both ways…distracted each time by the looming presence of the volcano ahead…and continue on my way. Proyecto Asis is down the road about 2.5 miles, except the journey is all downhill. I coast at rapid speed the whole way there, wind blowing through my hair and causing my eyes to tear. There is a feeling of freedom almost like I am flying. The green fields of exotic plants, coffee plantations, palm trees, and fruit orchards line the road….speckled with tiny houses along the way. This really is a beautiful country.
As I hit the breaks to slow down (only one side currently works), I enter the gate of Proyecto Asis…the sign reading, “Learn, serve, and share in harmony with nature.” I bang three times on the large gate with my fist and yell, “Hola, Hola, Hola!” waiting for someone to let me in. A few seconds later I hear footsteps coming closer and the door opens; it is Teniente…the groundskeeper. He smiles and says, “Pura Vida” and continues on his way to feed the animals.
The property spans over eight acres of protected tropical rainforest, bought and preserved by Don Jaime Castillo and his family. He is a trained veterinarian and has dedicated the property to be a haven for wild animals, either injured or unable to survive in the wild. His son, Alvaro Del Castillo is the director of Proyecto Asis, (Project Asis, named after Saint Asis, who cared deeply for animals) and started the volunteer center and language institute. They are a wonderful family and take great care of the animals that are often injured by cars, or abandoned and left at their doorstep.
Walking around the property you can see monkeys, toucans, and parrots in cages built for rehabilitation. Some are being rehabilitated to be released back into the forest, while others will remain on the reserve because they have been raised in captivity or are otherwise unable to survive due to injury. Beautiful flowers and exotic plants grow freely next to cacao, banana, plantain, and fruit trees. As I cross the bridge over the small lagoon, a train of ants are hard at work carrying small green leaves. To my left the lagoon is filled with lily-pads, perched ducks, colorful fish, and swimming turtles. It is also home to a few crocodiles…which are apparent as soon as I see quickly moving lily-pads and a pair of yellow eyes pop out of the water.
In the center of the property is a large hacienda where Don Jaime and his wife live. This is also an open space for volunteers to relax and have lunch or coffee breaks. As we sit and enjoy a cup of tea and crackers the two raccoons scurry by us playing with the dogs. On few occasions they join in for my Spanish lessons…sitting in the chairs curled up in a ball or sleeping on the porch of the hacienda.
The whole concept that they would roam around freely took some getting used to. My initial response was to run away or jump onto a chair…but I quickly learned to observe the reactions of those around me; if the people who work their everyday are not afraid of them…aka, if they are not jumping onto chairs…neither should I. Needless to say, I still keep a foot or two away.
Performing in their cages like acrobats, the monkeys on the reserve are incredible. They have Spider monkeys that will hold your hand and are always eager to say hello in the morning. Last week, Teniente and another volunteer finished building a new cage for them; however a white-faced monkey arrived just in time to claim residence. I watched excitedly as they released the new monkey into the pristine cage…he tested all the accommodations by running around and jumping from branch to branch. He looked the like the monkey from the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies so Alvaro let me name him “Jack.”
Walking back to my office, I pass other cages of boars, kinkajous, and “Hedwig” the white owl (he looks like the owl in Harry Potter). How different it is for me to interact so freely with animals that normally I would be 20 feet away from in a zoo!
My job here is unique and exciting. I am here to provide orientation programming and to be an onsite director for incoming student volunteers. Proyecto Asis has a number of volunteer programs at varied durations including working in the wild animal rescue center; feeding animals, building and cleaning cages, etc. They also have social programs where students can teach English or Spanish in local schools, work on recycling projects, or work on other construction projects in the community. We highlight specialty programs for veterinary students or professionals as well as programs in reforestation and conservation.
Individuals, groups, or families of volunteers are able to live in Costa Rica with host-families for varied durations and also learn Spanish at the Spanish Institute. It is my job to work with travel organizations, help with marketing, as well as work with the volunteers and take them on excursions when they are here.
So far is has been really fun and rewarding. One of my first projects was to translate a majority of their documents to English and meet with a few Eco-tourism/volunteer program directors about establishing partnerships. Just yesterday I met with a representative from a program called “Global Lead”, a leadership and immersion volunteer program. It was awesome to talk with her as she was looking to establish annual partnerships with project sites in Costa Rica.
I spend my mornings taking Spanish lessons from around 8am to noon, taking a short break at 10am for coffee. I then ride my bike back to the house to have lunch with my family. By the time I get there I am exhausted as the trek is all uphill…and it is hot and humid! After lunch we have a siesta for about an hour while I either read, (it is nearly the only outlet I have for interaction in English) or take a short nap. At around 1:30 or 2pm I head back to work in the office. It rains nearly every day around 4:30 or 5pm so my journey back up the hill to the house at the end of the day is always a bit more grueling because I am attempting to out-pedal the rain! Unlike rain in Washington, when it rains here…you have seconds warning and then you might as well be in the shower; the rain is heavy and fast and thunders down…it lasts for about an hour.
Adjusting to my new life here has been relatively smooth, but there have definitely been moments of culture shock. For example, just as Ticans strive to live in harmony with nature…this also includes species of another variety…bugs! Let’s just say I am no longer afraid of cockroaches or tiny insects! It was quite the comedy show for the kids when I entered my room one day to find three little cockroaches scampering along the floor! Luckily I didn’t scream…but after pointing them out to Dilany…we called for Dinia who got out the spray (which apparently kills them in a few minutes).
As we were investigating my room for more, I stepped onto my bed to look behind the curtain…just then one flew past my head and landed on my leg! Not ever having seen one before I wasn’t entirely sure if they would bite me or worse…kill me…so I performed a nice little dance on my bed and screamed. It then flew off of me and landed on Dilany who imitated a similar dance! It was quite a scene…and also at around 9pm so we woke up everyone else in the house! Once I found out that they actually wouldn’t bite OR kill me…and that they actually eat other insects…I began to settle down. It would be quite the story the next day as all the kids would laugh at me…but in the meantime, I asked Dilany if I could sleep with her shoe!
Stunning views, massive volcanoes, orchids, animals, and yes…even the bugs have become an integral part of my experience here in Costa Rica. Although different, it is important for me to learn to co-exist with nature, just as the Ticans have done for years. It is just another element of Pura Vida; and an exciting attempt to bridge the gap between nature and man.
With time, patience, and an open mind…I will continue on my quest to embrace this new and inviting country.
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