Somewhere between the roar of white-water rapids and the impossibly slow blink of a three-toed sloth, our students stopped rushing through life and started paying attention to it during our Term Project Trip to Costa Rica.

Costa Rica has a way of doing that. For seven days, our group of BASIS Independent Brooklyn High School students and their teacher chaperones, Ms. Nalipinki and Mr. Bedes, traded classrooms and schedules for rainforest canopies, cacao groves, and rivers that had absolutely no intention of going easy on them. They harvested coffee beans, spotted baby crocodiles from a riverboat, and soaked their sore muscles in volcanic hot springs as the sun dipped below the mountains. They stood under waterfalls and found tiny tree frogs hiding in plain sight.

This is the story of that trip from the muddy boots to the many unforgettable moments in between.

Landing in San Jose and Jumping In

After the long flight to Costa Rica, our local guide helped revive our group for a walking tour of San Jose. He helped orient our students and chaperones to the culture of Costa Rica and prepared us for the busy day ahead!

Day two started with an early wake-up and a tour of a coffee farm. Guides spoke about the bean-to-cup journey and exactly how volcanic soil, high altitudes, and microclimates create the country’s special coffee.

Then our explorers took to the zip lines! Thanks to one brave soul with a GoPro, we have a video so you can experience it, too.

https://vimeo.com/1204930772?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci

Adventure Travel

On day three, our Bears got up early and went white water rafting. The amazing local guides helped spot local wildlife, including a sloth, macaw, and toucan! There were periods of adventure as well as very calm, scenic moments on the water.

Hiking to the Volcano

The next day, everyone drove to Arenal Volcano National Park and hiked for 3.5 miles to see the volcano. Along the way, our team saw colorful snakes, more toucans, and many interesting insects. The day ended with a tour of the small town of La Fortuna.

Waterfalls and Kayaking

On day 5, everyone began the day by driving to La Fortuna’s gorgeous waterfall. There were 502 stairs down to the river for some lovely swimming, and the 502 stairs back up! Consensus was that the trek was well worth it.

After lunch, it was time for kayaking. Then the day ended with a few hours of relaxing in the hot springs.

Vieja National Park

Another amazing stop for spotting animals and being immersed in nature was Vieja National Park, where our team saw white-faced monkeys, sulfur springs, and mud pots.

River Cruise and Snorkeling Adventure

On the last day, we relaxed together and enjoyed a river cruise, where we saw baby crocodiles and so many monkeys. Afterwards, we went snorkeling and saw beautiful wildlife, including pufferfish, turtles, eels, and incredibly colorful fish.

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BASIS Independent Brooklyn is a PreK–Grade 12 private school, providing students with an internationally benchmarked liberal arts and sciences curriculum, with advanced STEM offerings. Considering joining the Bears community? To join our interest list for the next school year and receive admissions updates and more, please click here.