Mark: Finally at La Selva.  Impressive Harlequin Beetle, watch out, she bites.
David: Banana plantation visit.  The man says that Dole is very concerned about the environment.  I think consumer demand is the real concern.
AB: Love the birds of La Selva, the hummingbird in particular.
Travel to La Selva; comparing untouched tropics to human domination.
Banana curve is a search for the right direction.  Cool.
Informative visit to banana place.  It’s hot and humid.
Alisa: Awesome night walk through La Selva.
Corridor link between LS and Braulio Carrillo National Park is an interesting conservation concept.
Noel: Exciting bus ride, which I’m getting used to.  Looking forward to immersing myself in the rainforest of LS.
Roger: The trip was great.  Informative look at the BC park and the plantation.  Didn’t know that those little bananas took so much to produce.
Love that poison dart frog.
Nancy: Wish the day was clearer.  What do you expect?  Interesting geology, I would like to do more research on that.
Amy: Night swamping: Nature is better than Hollywood magic and I was there.
Leslie:  Contrast of LS rainforest wild heaven vs. banana monoculture.  Scientists celebrate research opportunity while Dole celebrates profit.
Mike:  Millions of acres of unimaginable living wonder.  Almost all gone.  Destroyed.  Permanently.  Perhaps.  So that we can have cheap bananas.

The rainforest gives us a sensory overload.  The beauty of the bridal veil contrasts with its vile odor that attracts flies.  The pink mushroom and the garish poison dart frogs flash against the dark understory.  Blue morpho butterflies flitter around and never appear to land.

This dazing paradise pulls the participants out of their terror of snakes and spiders.  
Armed with flash lights and rubber boots we brave the trails of La Selva, a rainforest unparalleled in the Neotropics.

The highlights of the day for our group included: Learning about the satellite system and how it has been to cloudy over the past two years to get a clear picture of the preserve…..For others it was the siting of their first three- toed sloth.  It leisurely moved amongst the branches of the tree outside the library. The face almost appeared human as it watched us, watching it. 

That evening after the evening lecture on Understanding Succession in Tropical Forests, a group of us headed out with our black rubber boots and our headlamps. Our destination was the “Canterra” otherwise known as the frog pond. After the heavy rains the frogs are easy to find because they are anxious to find a mate. Tonight was no exception; the Red Eyed Tree Frogs are singing their hearts out in search of a mate. They actually look like they could be posing for the cover of a travel book or magazine that is trying to encourage each of us to come to Costa Rica. It was approaching midnight, and we were unaware of how easy it is to get absorbed in the natural environment surrounding us.  

Many of us were out in the field collecting data.  One of the teachers working on the ant project wrote: 

"I stepped outside my safety zone by walking through waist high grass and not seeing the ground." 

We were all continually amazed at the knowledge and abilities of the expert scientists we were working with: 

"It is amazing watching a scientist work and ask questions...constantly thinking and inquiring.  Wow." 

"I got to work with Andrea Wetterer, an expert in her field and an excellent teacher!  She really furthered my appreciation
and understanding of bats and piqued my interest in becoming an expert myself.  I want to thank her." 

"As our group started getting data on our ant project I could tell that the group was starting to get excited.  We still didn't
have a fixed idea what we were trying to prove because the data changed with more and more sampling as did our hypothesis."

In between field work and our little side trip, some of us worked on getting our papers and presentations in order: 

"Today I celebrated the joy of working in an air-conditioned library while viewing a tropical paradise.  I again enjoyed
focussing on the micro while being surrounded by an unbelievable macro environment." 

"Today was amazing in its "unamazingness."  I spent the day preparing my paper, which was what I most needed to do to
feel caught up.  It was great!"

 D-Day, today is the day that we present our first project to our advisors and colleagues.

-Ah! The light in their eyes… The excitement in their voices… To see each and every teacher as a teacher.  To see the enthusiasm of everyone over their project!
…I spent an entire day in the classroom and lab….I chose to write the most difficult part of the lab…I know that I’ve learned  and grown
…Our project is completed ! And I was impressed with our ability to collect such good data…I have learned more about ants than I ever thought was possible to know

Upon walking back to our rooms, something went bump in the night…
…I will never forget when Christa walked down a path following an eye shining in the dark…I thought it was a snake and it turned out to be a bird!

…. It has not rained, as much as I expected (it will probably flood tomorrow!)

It did

The afternoon found all of us on a visit to the Sarapiqui School District.  It was a striking eye-opener.  We often complain about not having enough computers in class or having to share materials.  These schools have so very little in the way of even basic supplies, yet the teachers are dedicated and the children are smiling.  The children were clamoring to have their pictures taken, and it was incredible to see a group of teachers from the U.S. and Puerto Rico interacting with all of those kids.  Even with the language barrier, teachers wanted to be with kids.  In a sense, we were all home, although it was a home much more sparse than our regular school homes.  We were all touched by the enthusiasm of the collegio teacher we visited.  In the midst of lacking conditions, he was a committed and inspiring educator whose students obviously loved him.  He is a true inspiration to us all!  This was a remarkable day for us.