Costa Rica trip is an extraordinary experience for TROY students, faculty and staff, and Russell County educators

On May 26, eight Troy University students from Alabama, Florida, and Virginia and seven educators from the Russell County School District, along with TROY faculty and staff, embarked on an eight-day study trip to San José, Costa Rica.

The group was hosted by TROY’s international partner, GlobalEdu, the Association of Universities of Costa Rica for International Education, which seeks to promote Costa Rica as an educational destination and encourages student and faculty mobility based on our human, cultural, social, and environmental strengths. The goal of this study abroad was to immerse students and faculty in Costa Rica’s rich and diverse culture and experience the country’s educational system.

On the first day, the team took in the beautiful landscape and panoramic views offered by the village of Quitirrisi Indigenous Territory, home to Costa Rica’s first indigenous tribe. During their stay, the team heard from a shaman about some of the customs still preserved by the Huetar people. They joined locals in making authentic corn tortillas, rolling clay turtles, and participating in a cultural blessing ceremony.

On the second day, the team began the day with a visit to the Universidad Santa Paula in San José. The mission of the Universidad Santa Paula is to generate innovative knowledge and develop professionals capable of competitive work in the field of health and human development. The team listened to some administrators and professors, but were ultimately impressed when the son of the school’s founder showed them around all the facilities. The passion with which he spoke about the school and his mother’s work filled everyone’s hearts as they walked around the grounds.

The group then headed to downtown San José to tour the National Theater of Costa Rica, a source of great pride to Costa Ricans. Built in the 19th century by an Italian architect, the theater is one of Costa Rica’s most beloved and beautiful structures. Walking through the large entrance doors, students and teachers were surrounded by large open ceilings and gold velvet curtains with statues and sculptures throughout the building. Two highly trained and entertaining actors led the group around, telling them about the rich history of the painted ceilings and marble staircases, and how every four years they raise the floor of the theater to turn it into a ballroom to celebrate the presidential election.

The third day began with an impressive tour of the Children’s Neuropsychiatric School, founded in 1954 by the Ministry of Education as an institution focused on special education. The team listened to the director, social worker and psychologist on the daily operations, development and growth of the different programs, and a mother who had several children who attended the school. This was followed by a tour of the National Museum of Costa Rica, which was founded in the late 19th century to provide the country with a public facility for the preservation, classification and study of natural and artistic products. From its earliest years, the museum has been oriented towards scientific research, education, exhibitions and the defense of cultural and natural heritage. Finally, the day ended at La Católica Hospital, where the team listened to one of their top doctors on the history and current functioning of the health care system in Costa Rica.

Day four was probably the busiest day for the team as they loaded up the bus early and headed to Jardín de Niños y Niñas Margarita Esquivel, a local public school located in the center of a low-income neighborhood in San José. Students and teachers had fun singing and dancing in the classroom with the preschoolers, playing “Red Light, Green Light” on the playground with 2^and classes, and even took part in a round of the class. From there, the team was transported across town to the private school St. John Baptist De La Salle. Founded in 1719, De La Salle is one of the top private schools in Central America. After lunch on campus, the team quickly made a trip to the Costa Rica Museum of Natural History. The only natural history museum in the country, where you could see everything from dinosaur bones to various underwater animals to a huge exhibit of butterflies and moths.

After visiting the museum, the team had the opportunity to meet with the Costa Rican Ministry of Public Education (MEP). MEP is dedicated to developing and consolidating an educational system that allows the entire population to have access to high-quality education. The team had the privilege of meeting with the MEP’s Director of External Affairs while the Russell County Educators discussed developing a potential partnership between the two systems. Some of the students also shared their thoughts and ideas on how current TROY students and alumni could benefit from the partnership before moving on to full-time teaching. That evening, the team was taken to a mountaintop restaurant where they enjoyed stunning views of San José, authentic Costa Rican music and dancing, and a great meal.

Friday, the team spent the morning visiting the village of La Carpio. La Carpio is a neighborhood in San José that lies west of Hospital Mexico. It is one of the poorest places in all of Costa Rica. Nestled between two polluted rivers and next to a massive garbage dump, it became home to thousands of refugees from the Nicaraguan civil war of the 1980s and 1990s. The team was hosted by Gail Nystrom of the Costa Rican Humanitarian Foundation. Nystrom, an American, has spent nearly three decades working at La Carpio. Nystrom has shown every teacher and student what it looks like to live a life fueled by passion and a desire to serve others, and she will “continue to do so humbly for the rest of my life.”

After La Carpio, the team split into two groups. The TROY students were taken to the Museo De Arte Costarricense, a local art museum that houses over 6,000 works, including paintings, sculptures, photographs, and other works by national and international artists dating back to the mid-19th century.^t century to the beginning of the 21st century^saint The art museum was built as Costa Rica’s primary airport and was even President John F. Kennedy’s preferred airport. Faculty, staff, and educators from TROY had the honor of visiting the United States Embassy in Costa Rica, where they met with a group of Foreign Service personnel.

Saturday, June 1st, would be the team’s final day of exploring Costa Rica. The day began with an hour-long drive up the mountain to the beautiful Hacienda Doka coffee plantation. The guide for the day was a loyal one called Bubba, who taught the group the entire process, from planting and fertilizing to sorting and drying coffee beans. He explained how Costa Rica’s altitude, combined with the volcanic ash and the right mix of heat and rain, made their country one of the best places to grow and harvest coffee beans. After the plantation, the team headed up the mountain to explore Poás Volcano National Park. Nestled in the mountainous forests of the Central Volcanic Range, it boasts a magnificent natural landscape. After an easy 10-minute hike, the team saw not only an active volcano, but one with one of the largest craters in the world.

The team then traveled to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve, one of the last remaining areas of pristine cloud forest in Central America and a pioneer in a progressive model of conservation and ecotourism based on biodiversity research and education across the 10,193-acre reserve. It is estimated that about 50 percent of Costa Rica’s biodiversity may be contained within this area, an impressive 2.5 percent of the world’s total biodiversity.

While there, the team had lunch overlooking the beautiful rain garden exhibit, which is home to over 700 species of trees and 500 species of orchids. The group walked through various exhibits that housed animals such as sloths, monkeys, butterflies, parrots, toucans, cheetahs, frogs and snakes, before descending the river trails through Monkey Pass to take in the stunning views of the three different waterfalls the reserve had to offer.

The trip was an unforgettable experience for our TROY students and Russell County educators. The relationships and memories that were created are ones that each person will carry with them.