breakfast is at 9am- we had fried bread, bananas and pineapple rounds. i drank black tea with half a spoonful of sugar. it was yummy. val slept through her alarm and missed her patrol shift last night. i told sandra i had a hatchery b shift at noon. she will make me an earlier lunch and a later dinner. Anibal cooked himself a late breakfast. we talked to him and he said he could take us on a lagoon tour the next time we have a free morning. he also invited us to the bar the next time we had a night off. i packed my bag for my hatchery shift. there is still no shelter there so i hope i don´t burn because val already did. i packed my word search and fill in puzzle book, spanish textbook, water, the last of my sesame sticks, poncho, sunscreen, bug repellent (for when i leave my shift) after bite, and a book to read. val said her legs looked diseased from her bug bites. mine are a lot worse. i told her i could play connect the dots with them.


















lunch pasta and hot dog in tomato sauce with freshly squeezed pineapple juice. Sandra made me lunch for 11:30 pm. she´s like my spanish mother. she really takes care of us. i made sure to put on sunscreen before i left even though the sun was overcast. i had to leave earlier to meet Ilona at the station.

Hatchery B we had to check the canasters every ten minutes for babies. in between, i went to collect shells on the beach but going up and down to pick up shells made me feel light headed. i sat down to read On Chesil Beach. ten minutes passes by very quickly. we checked on the nests so frequently! today´s afternoon activity was beach cleaning. groups were sent along the beach to rake loose leaves and sticks and remove logs. one group came up in front of the hatchery. val and Darian slacked off by our chairs. we got to chat and it made the time go by faster. val was able to ask stav for thursday as our day off. i´m so excited. we´ve going to Cahuita! Beach cleaning was done at 4:30pm. Chris (girl doing her masters here) came by and we helped her look for nest B115. the nests were not tagged when relocated, just marked with sticks. Ilona went back to the station to pick up canasters for more nests. she came back with Holly, so they were able to carry 4. holly helped us dig up the tags for the rest of the nests. one had a baby near the top. he was barely moving and had maggots. we released him as close to the water as we could. there will be at least one nest of babies tonight. too bad there were none on my shift. at least i was able to see a baby.

































































walked home in the dark the girls that were supposed to relieve us came late. when i got home, everyone was waiting for me to have dinner. we had chicken patty, soft cheese, boiled potatoes with pineapple juice. i took a shower and got ready for bed. sandra showed me where to get cornflakes, milk and bananas for tomorrow´s breakfast. she won´t be cooking for us because we leave early for a lagoon tour with Anibal at 8am.

breakfast i got breakfast at 9:30. we had fried dough with jam. i chose pineapple jam. there was no juice left, so i had coffee. afterward, i went by carmen´s to pick up phone cards, but she didn´t have c3000 ones. at first, i could not understand the lady, but another volunteer helped me out. then, she invited me to sit on the porch. we moved to the beach to play volleyball. more volunteers came by and it was nice to have some company. they were on tour with i-to-i. 3 weeks traveling with 17 other people. that sounds nice. i sort of regret not doing ISV. it has been lonely with just me and val. the station crew has their own clique and we are left out of the loop. hopefully, we meet more volunteers. there are two new girls next door, Ilona and Darian. on the way back to the station, i saw them on the beach and i sat with them 10 minutes before their hatchery training. it is windy by the beach and sunny unless you find shade. back at the station, i took off my contacts. it is hopelessly hot. i´m sitting on a hammock, but there is not that much wind and i am sweaty being still. val had a 6am to noon shift, maybe we can get phone cards when she comes back.


















lunch Judith´s boyfriend, Kenry, made our lunch. i think it is Lydia´s day off because i haven´t seen her all day. curry chicken wing, plantain chips and cabbage salad.

Canadian Neighbour Henry left a message for us at Sandra´s. it was an adventure to her house. we were with Ilona and Darian. Val and I didnt´know how to get there. we wandered into the yard of a big stone mansion. i saw a dog (mastiff) get up and come towards me. it barked and started running. i screamed and then we were all yelling and running. a man came out and we edged back onto his property to talk to him. he said Sandra´s house was further down the road. when we turned to leave, he said ¨don´t leave, you´re cute¨.


















Sandra's House we went to the restaurant and a volunteer living in Sandra´s house led us there. it was hidden behind a forested path, so it was good we asked for help. the volunteer helped us translate what sandra had to tell us. Henry said we would find living here better, but it was up to us whether we wanted to move or not. at first, we were hesitant, but she told us we could look around the house. when we saw the washroom, we instantly agreed! it was tiled with a big bathtub. now we don´t have to go to the washroom, walk 50 meters to wash or hands and another place to take a shower. it took us 3 trips to move all our stuff from the station to Sandra´s. Henry called us to make sure everything was okay. he said we could go to Maria Gonsalez to get phone cards. we gave her money so her son could go to sixaola tomorrow to buy them for us. we both bought 2 c3000 ones. we set up our rooms. val took the top bunk. there was nothing she could tie string to, so i lent her my tent poles. i used one of Sandra's mosquito nets instead. i sifted all the sand from my seashells outside and talked to chris, one of the volunteers living there. i also rinsed out my water shoes from last night´s patrol. i forgot my contacts in our old room, but Judith did not have a spare key. i tried to wait but she said stav would probably not wake up for dinner. i need to go at 7:30 pm. it will be dark then. i hope i don´t see snakes or get bit by bugs!




















































dinner fries, fried rice, and cabbage salad. we all sat down to eat together. Sandra´s son sat at the other table because there wasn't enough room. my bug repellent ran out and i got 4 bites all on my left leg.

Asdrubal and Anibal after dinner, Asdrubal stayed to talk with Noami. i brought out my spanish text book to study but i ended up listening to them joke and tease. they danced in the kitchen while Asdrubal sang, it was so cute. Anibal came home to eat a late dinner. we talked. i tried to do it all in spanish. he asked me how old i was, what i did back home and what sports i liked. i told him about dragon boat and he thought i meant dragon ball, the cartoon, because he´s never heard of dragon boat before (even though it is international, not many people know about it). at 7:30 pm, i went back to the station to pick up my contacts. the barking dogs in the dark scared me. i went back to see if Anibal could walk me, but he already went to the bar. i asked Aine and she nicely accompanied me. i didn´t want to disturb val napping before her 9:40 sector c shift. so i sat in the kitchen to study more spanish but the bugs soon drove me to my bed. Sandra doesn´t really speak english. i hope my spanish will improve with the new location. tonight has been the first time my ring has no felt tight since i got to costa rica. yay! i don´t have fat fingers anymore.

midnight pee + shift i drank a lot of juice during dinner. i woke up at 11:18pm and i had to pee. it sounded like it was raining outside, so i changed into a bikini. however, when i went outside, it wasn't actually raining, just water dripping from the trees. soon after i got back into bed, Stav knocked and asked val to do the midnight shift. hatchery B was demolished from the waves and the nests were relocated to mahone 48. they had 4 girls stand watch so they could take turns sleeping. i couldn't really sleep. i woke up at 4:18 and i had to pee again. i planned to brush my teeth after, but it started raining outside. val came home at 5:00 am. i waited till it stopped raining to go outside. i left for my shift at 5:50am with a word search puzzle book, poncho, afterbite and snacks.

Sector B i relieved two girls. there are no more nests, but i still had to go to Hatchery B to watch over the equipment. my partner came late because she went to check on her son´s ankle. he was hit by a piece of driftwood last night while relocating eggs from Hatchery B. she shared some butter cookies with me. holly came by to collect some thermostats. jackie (the girl in the room next to us) came by to take some pictures of the broken hatchery. i only took pictures this morning. i wish i had some before the waves washed up. there are two yellow crabs nesting in front of the hut. i´m trying to capture them on my camera but they are either boring bumps-on-a-log or too fast for me. i had some sesame sticks and my apple but the nectarine had gone bad.


















morning activity people started to come to the hatchery at 10 am. i went back to change into clothes that i could get wet, go pee, and drop off my stuff. we had to tear down what remained of the hatchery. we dug up all the sand bags. it was tough on our knees, back and wrists, but i liked it much better than carrying logs on our shoulders. the bags had to be emptied and put away. there were at least 3 layers of sand bags. some people took down the fence and rolled it up. i helped to dig up the poles and cut off the twine. we brought all the supplies back to the station. we put all the sand bags in a garbage bag. i washed off some sand and put on long pants and a long sleeve shit because mosquitoes were biting. the bites are not so bad if i can get afterbite on them right away. then i helped separate section numbers from the sticks by using a kitchen knife on the twine. i threw the sticks back into the forest. last night, lots of tubs were used to transport the eggs. we took the broken ones to the garbage and cleaned the others.

new volunteers before lunch, Darian, the first of a batch of new volunteers arrived. she locked her stuff in our room because Jackie wasn´t back yet.

lunch when i got my plate, a frog jumped from the dishes to the wire mesh wall. we had soup, rice and veggies. it was the first time i managed to finish all my food. i was so full.

leisure time i was so tired. after darian took her stuff out of our room, i slept till 2:45pm. we went out to make phone calls, but i brought the wrong card so we walked back to get it. we took the beach path because there are less mosquitoes . i brought back a handful of shells. on the way there, i picked up some more! i called my parents to wish them a Happy Anniversary. it made me upset that i couldn't be home to celebrate it because my mother always insisted it to be a family event. we tried to buy a phone card but they only had c500 ones left. the lady at the store told us to come back at 5pm.

dinner potato and hotdog in sauce, rice and small beans. we went to the store again, but carmen had not come home with phone cards. we will buy them tomorrow.

in my tent i have night patrol from 12 pm to 4 pm. we meet at the white training tent at 11:40 pm. i took a quick shower so i would be clean in bed. there isn´t enough time to put on my contacts, so i will wear them after my shift. for now, i will just lie in bed. i´m too hot and itchy to sleep.

night patrol another 4 hours of walking. this time i was smarter. instead of wearing crocs, i put on socks, tucked my pants in and wore water shoes on over that. the earlier shift saw a false crawl. that´s when a leatherback comes up to look for a place to nest, but does not lay yet. we did not see her lay tonight and it is likely she will tomorrow. the walk was tiring. we got wet early on. the girl behind me kept kicking sand up. i normally would not care but it made the bites on the back of my calves sting. the tide was high tonight, we got wet more than usual. at the end of our shift, Holly and two others went to playita. i walked with two other girls back to the station. luckily, we found the path back with no problem.

homesick sometimes, i want to pack my bags and leave, especially when i see girls crying at the phone booth. it´s not just that i miss home, but it is really sun fu here. i keep counting down the days and tell myself i can get through this. i can´t let such a rare opportunity go to waste. even though no one is forcing me to stay, it feels like camp. like i begged my parents to let me go to summer camp but when i get there, the kids are mean, everyone cries, we work hard, i can´t eat the food, everything is dirty and i feel miserable. i haven´t seen a mother or handled a baby yet. hopefully, i get used to this or get a chance to do something fun (snorkeling, lagoon tour) so my spirits turn around.

premature wake up call monkeys started screeching as the sun came up. we set the alarm for 9:15, but i kept waking up towards 8 and i got out of bed for 8:30. the mirror showed a droopy eyelid from the bite i got last night. i got my morning routine done, put on bug spray and ointment, then headed for breakfast. we had rice with beans, scrambled eggs and watermelon with hot chocolate. after eating, i went to cut my toe nails because they were too long for yesterday´s hike.


















hatchery training lots of things to know and do! hatchery duty is 6 hours long, not including the time it takes to get there. hatchery A is 40 minutes away and Hatchery B is 10 minutes. you need to check the temperature of nests and air temperature. the nests have to be checked every 10 minutes during the day because the hot sand will dehydrate the babies. at night, we have to check every 20 minutes. when the babies hatch, we take 15 and measure their width, height, and weigh them. we look for deformities before releasing them. if there are maggots (usually in the eye, belly button or bum), we use tweezers to remove them and disinfect the area. there are two charts to fill out. we only release babies at night because daylight is too hot and the sand will burn their flippers. we´re supposed to put them on dry sand and let them go into the ocean so they can imprint and know to come back to lay their eggs. releasing them in groups of 20 are okay, but no more than that. the hatchery is fenced around sand that has been sifted of organic material. it is as pure as it can be. it took 3 weeks to build the hatchery and it has to be torn down august 15, when the project closes. string run on top of the sand to form a grid, it is labeled like a map or a chessboard with numbers along one edge and letters along the other. nests are relocated to the hatchery if it is not laid in a good area. the dimensions of the original nest is recorded and dug in the hatchery. eggs must be relocated within the hour. half of the hatchery is in the shade because leatherback sex is determined by temperature. the mark is at 29.5 degrees celcius: hot chicks and cool guys.

lunch beef, mashed potatoes with a cabbage salad (coleslaw) and juice. people talked about july 4th coming up. i got homesick because we would be missing Canada day. after lunch, we walked to make phone calls. i saw a doggy the size of my forearm with a pink collar. at first, he walked away, but i crouched down and he came over. he rolled to show his belly so i could scratch it. he let me hold him to take a picture. it cheered me up right away.


























afternoon activity everyone gathered at 1:30pm to fix hatchery B. the waves eroded it so badly the last week that 2 rows of nests had to be relocated. first we tightened all the rope holding the barrier. we unknotted and cut all the rope that was useless and salvage them. then we had to find dark, heavy logs to break the waves. those were tough to find and also tough to carry. the sand in my crocs irritated the bug bites on my feet. when we carried enough logs (usually 8-10 people per log), we filled up sandbags to put around the hatchery. dry sand is the lightest option, but was hard to find. the bags were canvas. the tops needed to be twisted and tied with twine. the waves are big coming onto the beach. we often got hit hard while working on the hatchery. our clothes were salty from the sea. i washed my clothes the same time as i showered.

dinner rice, small beans and veggies (carrots, melon) with juice. we both have to get up at 5:30 am tomorrow for our 6 am shifts. i told Lydia not to make me breakfast

buenas noches i packed the nectarine Henry gave me, the rest of my sesame sticks, orange juice and an apple for my 6 hour hatchery shift. i brushed my teeth and put on my contacts and retainer (i´ve forgotten to put it on since i left). it´s 6:30pm and super dark outside. i´m going to lie here until i fall asleep.

long day of travelling we set the alarm for 4:30am, but we kept waking up the whole night and just got out of bed at 4:15 am. we went to check out so we would be ready when Henry came, but no one was on the front desk. we put our bags down and went on the computers. when the guy came out, i asked if we could "sign out" instead of "check out" (i´ve been on the internet too much lately). Henry is meeting us at 5:15 am to take us to Los Caribenos, the bus station that is only 5 minutes away from the hostel. we are going through Parque Braulio Carrillo. this is the biggest national park in Costa Rica. the bus will stop in Limon after about 3 hours for drinks, food and a washroom break. another 2 hours to Sixaola. from here we will take a shuttle bus to Gandoca. it should take around 20 minutes.

in Gandoca, i´m not sure what the internet situation will be. i have read that there is an internet cafe in the closest town of walkable distance. however, Henry told us we would have to take a hour and a half bus to get to a town with internet. i hope that is not the case. anyway, if i don´t update in the next few days, keep checking because i will be sure to.

taxi to the station we loaded our bags into a taxi Henry called when we got to the bus station. the taxi driver held my orange backpack in the air so i could put it on. that was so thoughtful of him! henry gave us each a packed lunch with an apple, banana, plum, juice and baked sesame sticks. the bus was scheduled for 6 am. we sat in seat 13 and 14. Sixaola is the last stop on the route. we had an apple while we waited to get on the bus.


























bus trouble the bus driver got off the bus without saying anything and just walked down the road. the bus was broken and i think he went to find reception to call for help. there are vines growing on the mountain with leaves bigger than a bus driver´s steering wheel. some are shaped like a lily pad. we left the bus to take pictures of the scenery. i put pengin on the drivers seat and took a picture of him.













































breakfast we had our baguette with humus while we waited for another bus to come pick us up. this new bus was more cramped. the bus driver also went a lot faster. the delay put us 1.25 hours behind schedule. Henry called to let Maria know. i hope the shuttle comes to pick us up.

Limon we took a washroom break at a restaurant. i saw a street vendor bike down the road. i had a banana and talked to Henry. he told me to keep an eye out for a chinese cemetery on the left as we went back on the road. soon after the bus took off again, a man climbed aboard to check our tickets.


















sights on route banana plantation with blue bags around the bananas, a huge bunch of coconuts in a tree, big waves in the ocean, islands and fishing boats, my first Costa Rican butterfly.













































taxi jeep we paid c1600 each for the ride. the road was bumpy the whole way. we stopped two times to move the wire bars for the banana plantation (picture below). Henry was dropped off at Maria´s house. Marvin, Maria´s son, hopped on and the taxi and it drove us to the playa (beach).


















project site we unloaded the luggage. Marvin carried both our big bags. one on his back and another on his shoulder. we walked on a sandy path through a forest grove until we hit the project site. on the way, i saw my first salamander. i also saw pieces of leaf the size of my thumbnail moving along the ground. i couldn't see what was moving it, but i´m guessing ants. i got 3 mosquito bites right away. i couldn't put on bug repellent fast enough. we filled out our volunteer forms, paid our $35 inscription fee and took a tour around the site. Judith, the project coordinator, showed us the tubs to do our laundry in, the boys´ washroom, girls´ washroom, boys´ shower stall and girls´ shower stall, training space, kitchen, store, garbage, recycling and compost. we had a quick lunch of rice, beans, and a drumstick with juice. we washed the dishes and put them away. i went to pee in the boys´washroom because val said there was a huge spider in the girls´.


















our room we set up the mosquito nets, unpacked stuff we needed, but kept most of it in our bags. there is a bunk and a single bed. i took the single and val took the top bunk. my grandma brought two mosquito nets from china for val and i. mine is blue and hers is purple. val didn't bring her tent poles so we had to rig it with string. we share a key to the room. our important stuff and valuables can be put in a locker on the floor above us. i´m glad i brought my lock from when i was in JHS and high school.


























phone call after settling in, we took our phone cards in search of a public telephone. i called home to tell them i got here safe. the walk was really interesting. there are animals and insects everywhere. i saw four different colours of crabs: red, orange, yellow, and grey. we saw an iguana and tons of salamanders. i saw one with a blue tail. we also saw a purple grasshopper the size of my thumb. all the creatures move super fast and you can only catch glimpses. when you walk through the forest, you can hear the waves splashing in the ocean, insects in the greenery and rustling from the crabs scuttling across fallen palm leaves and coconut shells.

beach back at camp, everyone was at the hatchery. i took my camera and we walked to the beach. the waves were gigantic, you can hear them roaring from the project site. the sand is black and it just goes on forever. i saw a little island off the point.


















crangrejo grando while i updated my journal, the cook was in a hammock crocheting a bag out of strips of old plastic bags. she went ¨psst¨to catch my attention. she wanted to show me a crab that came out of his hiding place. he was the size of both my hands together. the cook didn´t speak english so it was hard to understand what she meant. we spent an hour talking to Stav. she told us what to expect during our time here, what we could do with our days off or if we have a morning free. dinner was spaghetti with celery, corn and peas.


















training while she ate her dinner, Jenny told us the rules of the project, what to expect and the history of Gandoca and the leatherback turtles. she also covered some other endangered turtles in the area, the green and the hawksbill.

patrol our first night patrol was scheduled for 8pm to midnight. all patrols are 4 hours long, but it takes time to get to the sector. tonight, we had to meet at 7:40 at the training tent. we didn´t see a mommy turtle, but the stars were out. none of them looked familiar to me. the sky constantly flashed with lightning because of the humidity. the sand would light up when we kicked it up because of the phosphorus, it looks liked fireflies around my feet. there were fireflies around, but they stuck to the forest beside the beach. most of the walk was on the beach, but on occasion, the sand was too eroded and we switched on our flashlights to look out for scorpions and snakes on the forest path. it was very dark but we weren´t allowed to use our flashlights and our patrol leader, Holly, barely used hers. my vision was failing and i couldn´t even see the logs or rocks when people said ¨watch out¨. we walked in single file and i followed val in her grey sweater which dimly reflected light. at times, our feet got wet, but mostly, we walked in mucky sand. it was cooler on the beach than on site, but we had to wear long sleeve shirts and pants. tonight, we patrolled sector A. we had to cross a creek (middle creek) that went knee deep when the waves hit. after that, we walked the beach from one end to another, back and forth. it takes around an hour and a half one way. halfway through is hatchery A. the first time we passed by, there was a batch of babies that just hatched. the two on duty were measuring their dimensions and weighing them for the record sheet. the walk was tiring, i stumbled a lot and stubbed my toes, but i didn´t fall. Holly decided to have an easy night and gave us an hour break at the hatchery. there were no more seats, so i crouched in the sand. as soon as i rested my weight on my heels, i felt sharp pains in my feet and hands. i thought there was something wrong with my blood circulation, but it ended up being ants. the bites were were small and red and made my whole leg itchy and burn. i sat down on some dry sand bags and brushed the sand off my feet. i constantly ran my hand down my legs, i was afraid of more bug bites. towards the end of our break, i got a bite on my left eye lid. i could not be protected by bug repellent because the chemicals could harm and denature the eggs. the creek was proving difficult to cross tonight, so we waited until midnight to bring the next shift of hatchery workers across and the ones done their shift back to the project site.


















shower we changed into swimsuits and took our flashlights to the bathroom. we need to wash our feet outside because the sand is hard to get out of the shower stalls. there is no hot water to shower with. the cold water is a shock, but refreshing afterward. to save water, we turn off the tap when we lather.

good night i changed, put on my contacts and got into bed with my hair still wet. it was past 1am by the time we fell asleep.

good morning i woke up at 7:30 am. i slept really well last night, even though we could hear the loud music and talking from the bar. we used the computers and waited for Henry to come. he had good news for us! our luggage was in San Jose and it would be delivered soon. once the luggage comes, we can take the 2:00 pm bus to Sixaola and then a shuttle bus to the reserve. however, by the time we got to Sixaola, it would be 7 pm and pitch dark. he advised that we relaxed and stayed here another night. we will take the 6:00 am bus from that station tomorrow.


















guitar shopping Henry drove us around downtown San Jose and we looked at two guitar stores. they were very small, around 10 guitars on display. all classical, all new, and all too expensive. we walked around the side stalls. they sell everything! we must have been in over 10 and asked to see their guitars hanging on the wall. all of them were new and more than we wanted to spend. they were also really crappy. there are lots of market stalls, but also a lot of stores with no doors, it's very open.


























luggage when Henry drove us back to the hostel, our luggage had arrived. one of the buckles on my bag broke.. it´s missing support, but i think it should be okay.

grocery store we went to a nearby American grocery store. we bought a long baguette, humus, a bag of small apples and a 6L jug of water. i got a $6 calling card, they didn't sell $10 or $20 ones. on the way back, we missed our street, but we had a map and found our way back easily. there is a big iron gate in front of the hostel. we have to flash our arm bands for them to let us in. they use different colours everyday. yesterday's was neon green, today's is yellow. Henry advised us not to go out after 5 pm. it's not even 1, but we probably won't go out anymore.

Hostel Pangea http://www.hostelpangea.com/home.html this is the hostel we are staying in. we get free 24 hr internet as long as there is no line to use the computers. hot water for showering. a pool, restaurant and bar. lots of people smoke here.

pool side we changed into swim suits and dipped our feet into the pool. the water felt really nice, but we didn't really feel like swimming. there was also a huge squished bug in it. we surfed the net and took a nap.



































dinner we ate at the restaurant on top of the hostel. there is a lounge area with couches. we shared a chicken fried rice dish with two bean burritos. after dinner, we reorganized and packed our bags for tomorrow's bus ride. we showered and brought our towels up to the balcony so we don't have to pack wet towels. i took a super long shower because i don't know when's the next time i can do that again.


















happy hour it's happy hour with $2 drinks from 9 pm - 11 pm at the bar. we shared a coconut malibu and coke with our nachos and guacamole. some of the chips were soggy.


















secret knock we decided to have a secret knock. one quarter note and two eighth notes.

bed time 10:00 pm. there isn´t that much more to do except stay up online and chat. might as well sleep on a nice bed. we have to wake up early tomorrow.

How it took us 35 HOURS to get to C.R.

8:00 am this morning, i climbed into my mother´s bed with Chiquita. I played for an hour while we talked. My parents are not worried because they know i can take care of myself. I am going to take this trust and turn it into confidence in myself while i´m on my trip. in the two hours before i left, i packed my contacts and retainer, made 3 wooden thank you boxes for my contacts in Costa Rica, showered, checked emails/fb and ate strawberry miniwheats.


























12:00 pm at the aeroporte, i used an express self-service check in machine to print out my boarding pass. after val arrived, we said our goodbyes to those we´d be leaving and dragged our big backpacks through the doors. check in went by smoothly. my mother gave me 50 cents to give her a call before we boarded. i pulled on the phone cord by accident and hung up on her after she said hi. we had to call again. the vuelo (flight) had small tvs in the middle of the aisle and played a no name movie. we passed the time by taking pictures, doing cryptograms and other mensa puzzles. it was a turbulent flight and we had to wait a long time for the seat belt sign to disappear (so we could pee).


















5:15 pm our next connecting flight in Miami was at puerto (gate) E21. It was a 15 minute walk with a little shuttle service that looked like a mini subway above ground between buildings. we were starving because our flight only gave us free drinks. we had personal pepperoni pizzas and bread sticks from Pizza Hut. we sat by a plug to charge val's camera while we are dinner. after, i picked up some citrus tic tacs. we did more cryptograms to pass time. our estimated boarding time was 7:50 pm, flight at 8:20 pm. our flight got delayed three times, then got transferred to gate D43 (close to where we got off the plane). we took the shuttle back and retraced our steps for another 15 minutes. i bought a fill-in puzzle book to add to our collection of time wasters. we napped too. before boarding, i put on my contacts. we were schedule to leave at 10:45 pm but the plane did not take off until midnight.


















1:30 am the captain announced that there was an aircraft incident at the San Jose airport. they had closed their one runway for the night. we were to return to Miami where agents waited for us. they said all passengers would be accommodated and put on a flight the next morning.

3:30 am collect call to my mother. the airline said this wasn't their fault and gave us vouchers to stay at a hotel for 120 a room and a 1-800 number to rebook our flight. the earliest i was able to book was for 8:20 pm the next day. we went to baggage claim for our stuff and then we stood in a long line to be checked in. when we got to the counter, they turned us away. the man said we couldn't check in until 5 hours before our flight and he couldn't give us an earlier one. there was no where else to go so we sat by a wall to wait for 3 pm. i brushed my teeth and had a crosswich from Burger King.

6:00 am some girls from Holland that took the same 2141 flight to Costa Rica told us they were able to get an 8 am flight with another airline. I called and was given a confirmation number for a flight to Atlanta at 7:05 am and connecting flight to get to San Jose at noon. the check in line was too long and we were not given priority. by the time we reached the desk, it was 6:24 am and the lady said it wouldn't be enough time. however, she was very helpful and thorough. we left with two standby direct flights to San Jose and a reservation for 2:30 pm with another airline that would take us to San Jose for 11 pm (9 pm San Jose time). we went through another security check, then walked to gate E11. we pulled the chairs close to the window ledge and curled up for a nap.

9:00 am the cold woke me up. val's face had sleep lines all over it. we're waiting for our names to be called to board. they just asked for 6 volunteers to give up their seat for a 800 dollar transportation voucher. i saw this lady's Martin. it was very pretty.


















10: 35 pm we're off to D33 to standby for the 12:35 pm flight. the airplane is smaller, but less overbooked.

12:30 pm no go. i'm the poster girl for the movie "The Terminal 2". we have reservations for a 2:30 pm flight on Delta to Atlanta, a 2 hour layover, then a connecting flight to San Jose. The tickets were not transferred, but we got boarding passes in the end. the flight is so soon, our baggage may not reach the plane in time.


















1:30 pm we called home and apparently the 10:35 pm and 12:25 pm flight we were on standby for were still in Miami. the Atlanta flight is on time right now, but who knows how long we might have to wait to get to Costa Rica. i'm glad we got to eat/walk around the gate instead of sit for three hours on the airplane parked at the airport. i was peeing and the cleaning lady swept her straw broomstick halfway into my stall and left wet streaks.

6:45 pm we got our seat requests confirmed with new boarding passes plane is on time. Henry knows that we're coming and a shuttle bus should take us to the hostel.

9:00 pm this flight was the best we had so far. we had dinner, movie (fool's gold) and super soft blankets. we arrived on time, but our luggage didn't show up, so we filed a report and hopefully we'll get it soon. we went through customs and waited for our shuttle outside. this taxi driver almost got us into his van, but i asked him what colour his taxi was (official ones are orange) and he wouldn't tell us the answer. we told him we weren't interested, but he kept bothering us. we almost called a taxi, but we saw a man with the hostel pangea sign and we were so relieved.


























10:00 pm we got to the hostel. it's a bit far from the airport, but apparently right in the middle of San Jose. the area is very sketchy. it doesn't look like downtown of the capital of a country. we went through the situation and options with Henry. he's going to ask about our luggage tomorrow morning with American Airlines and then come tell us what's going to happen. Gandoca is 7 hours away and we will not leave to the reserve without our luggage.

11:00 pm our room is nice. it has a lock on it. double bed with an attached bathroom. we emptied our bags to see what we had. val had a toothbrush with toothpaste and contact solution. we both had towels. i had two pairs of clean underwear, 2 pairs of socks, 2 t-shirts and 2 pairs of shorts (i packed clothes for the hostel stay). no shampoo or soap. no flip flops. we used our blankets in between the sheets because they looked dirty. we decided not to use the pillows and took a case to use as a bathroom feet towel. we took a shower and shared the clean clothes between us.


















12:30 pm bedtime.

i'm all done packing!

i put all my clothes in zip lock bags.




















my backpack weighs 40 lbs and my carry-on is 15 lbs.

SPONSORS: THANK YOU!

Tomorrow is the last day that i'll be actively fundraising with my "A Dollar A Day" campaign. The core essentials of my trip (including program and application fees, airfare, insurance and vaccinations) cost me close to $3000. I have been able to raise 3/4 of it.

I just want to give a huge shout out of thanks for all that sponsored me financially. You have contributed to give me a wonderful opportunity. I hope you continue to read my blog as I would like to share with you both the stories of my adventures and mishaps. I will try to post up pictures I take but I'm not sure I'll be able to upload them during my stay in Costa Rica.

I would love to send you or your family a postcard! If you are interested, forward your address to my email address at heidi.heung@gmail.com.

one week to go

I'm going to see the BIGGEST TURTLES IN THE WORLD! i am so excited! i've never been on the plane alone before, never left the province without my family, never carried a 50lb backpack (hopefully it will weigh less), never been to Costa Rica, and i've never spoke spanish outside of the classroom!

i almost have everything ready, but i need to pick up some basics like sunscreen and bug repellent (though we're not allowed to use it when we're working with turtles). i'll be going downtown tomorrow to look at mini guitars because i'd like to bring one along. since the shifts are all around the clock, there is a lot of free time.

my backpack (we're not allowed to bring suitcases) is full but i still feel that there is so much to pack. i will weigh it when every thing is packed. i am such a pack rat, i hope it doesn't break my back!