And That's A Wrap!
July 7, 2022
BCR 2A Signing off! It has been a wonderful and short two weeks spent with all these awesome kids. Hard to believe our time together has come to a close. It is difficult to put into words how much we have bonded. There have been laughs, smiles, tears, and most of all great friendships made in this amazing place. It is hard to say goodbye, but we know these kids will keep in touch and remain close for years to come. With that being said, we wish everyone the best in their future travels and adventures!
Hasta Luego- Andrea, Claude, and David
Better Belize It!
July 7, 2022
Our beloved BCR 2A family and friends,
Wow! What an incredible two weeks we have had exploring Belize and Costa Rica.
Since our last update we arrived in Costa Rica. We have been ziplining, surfing for sunset and sunrise, fishing with dolphins and chasing waterfalls and caves on remote beaches. After we went playing in the waves we traveled to Buenaventura. Here we hiked to do service work at Brujo, including cleaning and painting benches, rooms and walls of a school, and helping mowers clear grass off their field where we played a massive game of soccer with locals kids. Back at Buenaventura, we planted cacao seeds, sang and danced at night, made pupusas and chocolate, and went on an avatar adventure where we painted ourselves and each other with exfoliating blue clay and jumped in a waterfall after hiking up a mountain. We have now traveled to Turrialba where we will wake up and begin our rafting adventure in Pacaure River. Charles didn’t lose his slides while ziplining and shocked us all! He was a pro at surfing, love playing with the cat at Nido del Halcon got really into our soccer game with the kids. Edu caught a Spanish mackerel and posed for a picture and played lots of card games at Buenaventura. Mattie and Leighton had a photo shoot on the beach after our first evening of surfing. Mattie was a defensive wall while playing soccer with the kids and Leighton was a natural on surfboard. Sohana, Asher and Beau were so brave while zip-lining, they all conquered their fears of heights and had so much fun. Sohana and Beau were LODs for the long day of service work and really encouraged everybody, leading by example. Beau’s always letting everyone go in front of him during meals and always say thank you, we encourage his appreciation and kindness to others. Gray was in his element as we were surfing, he was helping others get up, and is always making a group laugh. On our long bus rides, Mason And EB played a game of trivia that was led by Edu. Mason, Charles, Lily and Edu mastered the game of Cambio. Edu is always asking what he can do to help. Lily was really in to the cacao making. Natalie love the blue clay and put it all over her face.
We have had an amazing last two days of our trip rafting down the Pacuare River. On our first day we rafted four short miles down the river and landed at our beautiful eco lodge that we called home for the night. On the short rafting trip, one boat had an especially fun ride. Asher, Mattie, Charles, and Lilly surfed some waves in their boat. Their smiles were so big it made our day, and we know they had so much fun!! After about an hour and a half on the river we made it to our lodge for the night. We unpacked the rafts to get a head start on our jungle burritos for lunch. Gray and Mason carried up the big coolers while Natalie and Sohana carried our backpacks. We settled in and enjoyed our peaceful afternoon full of card games, music, showers, and naps. The kids had a blast hanging out in the hammocks all afternoon and deepening their connections with each other. It was such a great way to wind down the trip and really solidify these incredible friendships that have been made. After dinner and Moonup, Beau, Edu, and Andrea played some games of Cambio. One of the groups new favorite card games! Edu is a master at the game and almost always wins. It was a great day with an even better balance of adventure and relaxing time for the group to bond.
We began our second day of rafting with so much excitement. The group could hardly wait to get on the water. Leighton was the first one in her raft with the biggest smile. She is always keeping us energetic and happy with her bright smile and personality. Our second day of rafting was action packed with so many rapids, but everyone did a great job paddling and listening to our instructors. EB did an especially great job paddling. She was one of the strongest ones on her boat. We could tell she was having so much fun! Some of the funniest memories were made today when Mattie and Andrea fell out of the raft. The rapids were so much fun. Everyone in the group had a chance to take a dip in the river when the guides said it was safe. After the great day of rafting, we headed back for San Jose to close up the trip. It was a long bus ride, but we couldn’t imagine ending the trip any other way. The kids reminisced on all the new memories and friendships they had made in the last two weeks. The ride was full of laughter. As a leader, it was amazing to watch their friendships grow as a group and become family by the end of the trip. With heavy hearts our group had their final Moonup at the Adventure Inn. We are so thankful for this truly amazing group of kids. They are so kind, welcoming, and are always trying new things with so much excitement. We will miss them so much and can’t wait to keep in touch with them.
With much love,
Andrea, David and Claude
AWARDS
- Best accent: Ella Barnes
- Sleep anywhere award: Sohanna
- Photography award: Lilly and Mattie
- Go with flow award: Leighton
- Best Spanish: EDU
- AUX award: Gray
- Best helper: Natalie
- Most curious: Mason
Adventures in Plascencia!
June 30, 2022
The trip Has begun! All the students have arrived safely to Belize City. Despite the unfortunate flight cancellations our spirits remain high.
The first half of our group arrived at Plascencia with David and Andrea. On the flight from Belize City to Plascencia Leighton was given the opportunity to act as co-pilot on our little puddle jumper. Claude and the rest of the group arrived the next day. Everyone was quickly introduced to each other by playing Marco polo in the pool at our hostel. Beau was the first boy LOD (leader of the day) and led the group into our first scuba plunge! They began by learning the basics in shallow water then quickly progressed to their first thirty-foot dive. The boat ride back was full of heavy eyes and sun-kissed skin. Edu and Gray amazed everyone with their impressive magic tricks after moonup.
The following day we delved into more scuba skills and celebrated Claude’s birthday! We had a swimming contest at the local resort’s pool and Mason was the champion of this competition. On our last day of scuba Natalie and Lilly overcame their fear and officially became open water divers! YAY! Most kids got certified but most importantly everyone had fun, gained experience, and tried something new!
After our final day of diving, we headed back to our hostel to begin preparing dinner. Mattie and Beau headed this process. Beau buttering the bread and Mattie on sauce duty. Sohana and Lilly helped David with clean crew after dinner. They were rewarded ice cream for their efforts of course. Charles is always including the entire group whenever he has the chance. Coming up with awesome nicknames such as, Santa Claude, EDU, and Sandrea!
After saying hasta luego to our favorite hostel, The Royal Rat, we embarked on our quest to Costa Rica. Airport time was full laughter, storytelling (from EB in her southern accent), naps, and group bonding Asher was so excited to for travel day and ate an absurd amount of chicken nuggets in the airport providing entertainment for everyone. Even the other group! We had an amazing four days scuba diving in Belize and cannot wait for more excitement in Costa Rica!
Best,
Claude, Andrea, and David
Wheels Down in Belize!
June 26, 2022
Hello Belize + Costa Rica Families!
We have received word from our leaders that the group has landed safely in Belize! The trip is off to a great start, and we cannot wait to hear more stories from their adventure.
Please remember our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips but we will be posting up to three trip updates throughout the next couple of weeks! This will allow you to follow along with the trip and the students will also give a special shout out mid-way through! You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to this summer!
-Moondance HQ
