Birthdays and the Big Blue
July 22, 2024
After a hard goodbye, this trip has come to an end. We shared many hugs and tears as the group headed to Atlanta. These past two weeks have been unforgettable. This group is nothing short of special. They are spontaneous, kind, adventurous, and absolutely hilarious. We wish this trip could have lasted forever.
Since we last talked, we have been scuba diving in the amazing country of Belize. We gained a new appreciation for the world underwater and got scuba certified! Once we arrived in Belize, we headed to our lodging called the Royal Rat. We were immediately greeted by our hosts, Mark and Sheila, who made us feel at home. We set our bags down and quickly jumped in the pool to cool off. The group set up their hammocks and jammed out to music before eating delicious pizza for dinner and calling it a night.
We woke up the next morning absolutely pumped for our first day of scuba. Once we got to the dock, we immediately began to learn how to set up our scuba diving tanks. The group caught on quickly and in no time we were on the boat to an island! In the calm and shallow waters, the kids practiced and learned important skills to become more comfortable with the activity. Before lunch rolled around, Kate and Baer inspired the group to jump off the boat into the crystal clear waters! We headed back to the island and ate a delicious lunch of chicken, rice, cole-slaw and fruit before splashing around in the water! We finished off our first day of scuba with our first dive! We explored the depths of the ocean, and Fletcher said it was one of the coolest things he had ever done! On our 45 minute boat ride back, we soaked up the sun, listened to good music, and even took some naps! After a long day, this group continues to bring on the fun! We got back to our lodging and immediately jumped in the pool! Rhys inspired the group to play games in the pool, which quickly became one of our favorite activities! We changed and headed to town for dinner! We ate at a restaurant called Rick’s, which became our favorite restaurant in town! As we were eating dinner, James and Cooper spotted a basketball game across the street! We obviously headed over and the boys hopped in a game with the locals! With sweat dripping from our brows, we of course had to end our day with ice cream!
The next day, we continued our scuba skills. We arrived at Laughing Bird Caye, which was the same island as yesterday. We got the opportunity to do two dives today and practice our skills underwater! The group quickly became pros, even while 40 feet underwater! After a day in the sun, we headed back to the hostel to celebrate Alexa’s birthday! Teddy was quick to jump in and help make Alexa’s birthday cake! We grilled up burgers and swam around before the sun went down. Alexa blew out her candles for another year around the sun, but the day doesn’t end there. A fun hangout quickly turned into a water fight! We all got cups of water and were throwing them at each other! Eventually everyone just jumped in the pool with their clothes on! We ended the night dripping wet during Moonup. This quickly became a memory nobody will forget! We woke up the next day heading to a tiny island called the Silk Cayes! On this day of diving, we got to see nurse sharks, a sea turtle, and even spotted eagle rays! Lilla even said it was her favorite dive so far, and everyone agreed! After our two dives today, the group became certified! We are so proud!! To celebrate, we headed to town to do some shopping and eat out! We went into various shops, collecting souvenirs for loved ones! We ate dinner near the beach and of course we stopped for ice cream on the way home! Once we got home, Vivian inspired the group to go night swimming (our favorite activity)! We ended the night anticipating our big day tomorrow! It was our last day of scuba and Cooper’s Birthday! We woke up early in the morning to head to our coolest reef of all! We headed to the dive shop and ate Nutella, yogurt, and breakfast burritos before heading out for the day! On our way out, True pointed out a rainbow in the distance! Everyone was in awe. We arrived at our final island of scuba diving and completed three dives! We even got to see eagle rays swimming in a pack! It was an unforgettable memory to all. We got back to the Royal Rat and of course, baked a cake for Cooper’s birthday! Hadley insisted on decorating it with a 15 written in sprinkles! We swam around before cooking up quesadillas for dinner! This quickly became the group’s favorite meal of the whole trip! Cooper blew out the 15 candles on his cake (vanilla with Nutella frosting)! The group dove in with their spoons and it didn’t take long before they were smashing the cake in Cooper’s face! This day was truly memorable and so so special!
The next day we woke up with our activity canceled due to stormy weather, but this didn’t stop us from having fun! We ate breakfast and immediately headed into town! We stopped at two coffee shops, going between each for coffee and smoothies! We shopped around before running in the rain to our favorite restaurant for lunch (Rick’s)! We licked our plates clean while the rain slowed down. In order to have an outfit for banquet, we had to go to the thrift store! The group picked out each other’s silly outfits for our big night! We got back home, and the group simply could not wait to wear their outfits! We changed and had a photo shoot before heading to dinner! Before dinner we had a pickleball competition in our silly outfits! During pickleball, Lila pointed out a Royal Rat, the national animal of Belize! At the beginning of our trip we mentioned whoever saw it got a prize! After our big tournament, we ate a delicious dinner! Of course, we had to end dinner with large cups of gelato! We ended the night with a few tears shed and an amazing moonup to close our trip.
We are so beyond thankful we got to experience this trip of a lifetime with a group so amazing. This group is unforgettable. They are respectful, supportive, kind, and absolutely so much fun. We are so lucky to have gotten to lead them these past two weeks! We surely hope to reunite in the future!
With so much love,
Catherine, Alexa, and David
Riding Rapids in Costa Rica!
July 16, 2024
It’s so hard to believe we are halfway through the trip! This group is nothing short of special. They are adventurous, lively, and hilarious. They make every single moment fun! We absolutely loved our time in Costa Rica, but we are so excited about scuba diving in Belize!
Since we talked to you last we have made so many more memories! We started day 5 ready to attack our most challenging hike of the trip! The group was eager to transform into Avatar characters at the waterfall we hiked to. We had a delicious breakfast of oatmeal, cereal, fresh juice, and fruit to start our day. Cooper was extremely chivalrous and even offered to clean everyone’s plates! At the beginning of our hike, we did a farm tour of Buenaventura! Kate was first to jump in and feed the horse named Cacao! She even had a country accent throughout the tour! We began the hike with a straight uphill climb, which Lila was not afraid to conquer and encourage the group throughout the hike! We admired the beautiful mountains of Costa Rica behind us. The luscious green view took our breath away! We shortly arrived at Toucan Falls where everyone quickly jumped into the pools of the waterfall! Teddy even found an air pocket under the waterfall where he could breathe underwater! The group quickly followed him under the waterfall. After swimming around for a little, the group covered themselves in blue clay! Rhys was the first to slick his hair into a mohawk with the clay, he made everyone laugh and the boys were quick to follow! After covering ourselves top to bottom with blue clay, we got to draw designs in orange clay to really turn into Avatars! True was great at drawing designs all over the group which everyone loved! It was truly unforgettable, and something nobody had ever done before! We jumped into the water to wash off the clay and splash around before heading down for lunch! We showered off and enjoyed a lunch of rice, chicken, coleslaw, fruit, juice, and chips! Everyone licked their plates clean before packing up! We gathered our things and sadly said goodbye to our amazing adventures at Buenaventura! Quickly after, we hopped in the bus for our longest drive, which felt like two seconds with this group! We played games and sang songs to pass the time before arriving at Turrialba for white water rafting!
We woke up the next morning PUMPED for white water rafting. We had our favorite breakfast yet, pancakes! We quickly ate before packing up and jumping in the van! While we were in the van, Vivian requested the song “Gasolina” which got the group hyped up for the day! This song quickly became one of our favorites of the trip. We arrived at the river and divided into teams to conquer the rapids. We learned about the commands of the rapids and how to be safe on the river before heading out! James was the first to hop in the front of the raft, not afraid to take on the challenge! We headed down the rapids to the river lodge. The lodge quickly became everyone’s favorite place with its insane view of the river and the rolling mountains on each side. We enjoyed our afternoon by playing group games and relaxing in the hammocks! We ended our night doing Moonup in the top bunks of the girls room, which is something we will never forget. Eventually, we rushed to bed, excited for our intense day on the rapids.
The following day we woke up with another breakfast of pancakes! How exciting! We gathered our backpacks and headed down to the rapids. Throughout the challenging rapids, Hadley kept us all entertained with riddles! Spirits were high and the group fearlessly rafted down class three and four rapids, which are the most difficult on the river! Fletcher was quick to hop in the water to float down the canyon between rapids! We ended our white water rapid adventures celebrating with sandwiches, fresh fruit, and chips! We hopped in the van and headed to our lodging for the night, to prepare for our big day in the airport! We ended the night with a memorable Moonup led by Lillia and Baer! They started with a hilarious skit where Baer was pushed into the pool fully clothed! Everyone was crying and laughing, and it quickly became one of our favorite moments. After, we headed to bed for our extremely early wake-up!
Our airport day was nothing short of fun with this group. They made everything easy as we transferred to Belize! We absolutely love every second spent with this group and wish it would never end! We cannot wait to learn how to scuba dive and we will update you all soon! For now, here are some shoutouts from the group!
Vivian: Hi! Miss and love you guys a lot! Can’t wait to see to you but having so much fun! Going scuba tomorrow and I’m so so so excited. Hope dc is just as fun. See you soon!
James: Hey, I’m had a lot of fun in Costa Rica and Belize is really cool. Don’t really want to come home but I am excited to see you guys!!!
True: Hi! I’m having so much fun, this is the coolest trip ever. we just got to Belize and we have had so much fun. The group is so much fun and I love y’all but don’t really wanna come home. Okay bye
Cooper: Hey Guys! We’re having a lot of fun! My group is awesome and can’t wait to tell yall all abt it but! I love and miss yall! I hope D liked his present!
Fletcher: Hey Mom and Dad! I’m missing you but I’m having the best time here. We all just got to Belize and will start scuba tomorrow! See both of you in a week! Love you!
-Fletcher G
Lillia: Hey! Me and True are having so so much fun here and I can’t believe we are already in Belize! We love our group and have had tons of fun with them. Tomorrow is our first time scuba diving and we already surfed, zip lined, white water rafted, and did community service. Can’t wait to see y’all, Mackenzie and MB!! I hope the surgery went well! -Lilla
Kate: HEY FAMILYYY!!! I am having the best time ever, and this trip is already 10x better than last years. My group is amazing and I love love love my counselors. So far, we’ve gone white water rafting, surfing, and did some service work. We just arrived in Belize and tomorrow we start scuba diving!!! I can’t wait to see yall and tell you all about my trip. I love yall❣️❣️ (and Millie & scout)
Rhys: Hey, mom and dad I’m having an amazing time here. My group is amazing and everyone is really nice! We’ve gone white water rafting, surfing, and zip lining and now we are in Belize ready to go scuba diving!! And I can’t wait to come home but at the same time I love it here! But still can’t wait to see you guys!!!
Lila: Hey! I’m having such a good time! We are scuba diving tomorrow so I am so excited to tell you all how it is. We just arrived in Belize and it is sooo hot and my clothes stink. Hopefully washing them in the sink will help. Cant wait to see you all! ❤️❤️ Love you!!
Baer: Hey Mom and Dad! I’m having such a great time, today we just got to Belize and it’s soooooo hot. I love my group so much and all of our activities so far have been incredible! I can’t wait to see yall next week and I’m having the time possible. I love yall!!! ♥️♥️♥️
Teddy: Hey, Mom and Dad I am actually having the best time ever!! The people and the counselors are so good and I love all of you guys so so much. We have done so many activities like white water rafting, surfing, and zip lining! The next activity we do is scuba diving which is going to be the best time ever!! Tell Libby that I miss her so so much! I love you guys!!
Hadley:
HEYYY!!! I miss all of y’all so so much. Costa Rica was absolutely amazing. I literally can’t pick a favorite part it was all magical🪄We just arrived in Belize and are now preparing for our big 4 days of scuba diving🤿Im SOO hype. I love my group and the counslers!! Everyone here is so nice. And guess what… in Belize I can find some shopping🛍️Tell Monty I miss him TONS!!!! can’t wait to see y’all next week.
Love y’all
Adventures in Costa Rica!
July 13, 2024
Beinvendios a Costa Rica!
We have been absolutely loving our adventures in Costa Rica over the past couple days. The students arrived on Monday to bright and sunny Costa Rica and were all eager to start our trip! We settled in and immediately jumped in the pool to play some pool games. After the pool, we played a group wide game of “family” which Hadley absolutely stumped everyone and won the first game of the trip! After our first Moonup, we all slept so easily, excited for our first full day!
The next day we got up early to drive over to zip-lining! Our zip-lining location was absolutely beautiful, nestled in the Costa Rican jungle we flew over trees while looking over to the coast. We completed 10 different cables, one of them we even got to hang like monkeys down the line! Lila was the first student to bravely flip over and laugh the whole way down! All the students finished zipping through the trees, full of laughter while cheering each other on. After a big lunch of pasta and fruit, we packed back on to the bus to head to the coast! After a car ride of breathtaking beach views, we got to our surfing location! The students ran over to the beach and straight into the water! This black sand beach is perfect for surfing with no rocks or coral and super easy waves to catch! The students all got to experience that, with every single one able to catch multiple waves! James was an expert, able to catch wave after wave and impressing everyone! After everyone was done surfing we all ran right back into the ocean for one final dip in the beautiful water for the day. Kate came up with the idea to body surf back to the shore and we all tried to see who could get the farthest (with her winning of course)! Smiling but exhausted from the water, we sat on the beach watching the sunset and eating fresh cut pineapple our surf guides provided. Once we got back to the hotel and ate a filling dinner of quesadillas and cheeseburgers, we played a trip wide game of mafia. Rhys completely shocked everyone, going completely undetected and winning the game! It was the perfect ending to the first full day.
The next day, we got up early to sunrise surf before breakfast! Nothing gets students up like surfing in a place like this! They jumped out of bed, threw on their swimsuits, and we headed over to the beach. Everyone was surfing together and True and Lillia even caught a party wave together! After our morning surf, we went back to scarf down a breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and fruit. We then hopped in the bus to start heading to the service portion of our trip! After jamming in the car passing over beautiful mountains, we reached the remote and serene lodge where we would stay for the next few days. We set our bags down and jumped into our first part of service. Our graceful host, Harlow, showed us the cacao plants he grows and his goals of helping the people in the nearby village grow more cacao for reforestation! We all got to try the sweet cacao seeds before planting them, and Teddy was even brave enough to bite right into a raw one! As some students sifted and mixed soil, other students started to put the soil in small bags for the cacao trees to begin growing. After service, we washed up to start our cooking class! We all learned how to make pupusas, a traditional dish of El Salvador similar to empanadas! Vivian was an absolute natural, earning a perfect 10 from Harlow from how good her pupusa was! We ate our filling meal of pupusas, rice, and beans, and had Moonup watching the rain fall around us. After Moonup, we played a quick game of “spoons” where Fletcher completely dominated and showed off his card skills. Our stomachs hurt from laughing and sleep came quickly after such a fun and exhausting day.
The next day we started our full service day down in the village! We hiked an hour down to the nearby village to begin our service activities. Our projects here were to continue build a new fence and help repaint the community center! Cooper absolutely killed it doing one of the hardest service jobs, mixing and pouring concrete into the fence posts! After we completed service, we played a quick but intense game of soccer with some of the village kids! Absolutely drenched from sweat both from the game and the hard work we did, we jumped in the creek to cool off in the crisp water. We hiked back to the lodge after lunch and had some free time until our later activities. During free time, Baer was a bracelet wizard, and made the students and leaders bracelets with string! After the free time, we got to hear all about how to make chocolate! Harlow explained how to get cacao from seed to bar of chocolate and we even got to be part of the process! We roasted and peeled the cacao seeds, then grinded them to make cacao nibs that would later become full chocolate bars! We all got to try both the cacao nibs and the chocolate bars that Harlow has made with previous Moondance trips! After chocolate making, we had a full dinner of pasta, bread, and salad. Harlow surprised us all with ice cream and fresh chocolate he had made with our cacao nibs! We had Moonup under the stars and settled in for our last night in this remote and beautiful location.
We have absolutely loved getting to know your amazing students! They are so funny, adventurous, positive, and so much fun to be around! We are so happy we can keep adventuring with them for the rest of the trip!
David, Alex, and Catherine
Safe arrival in Costa Rica!
July 8, 2024
Hello Belize + Costa Rica Families!
All students have landed safely in Costa Rica and the group is headed to their first activity! The trip is off to a great start and we can’t wait to share more updates from their adventure.
-Moondance HQ
