LEADERSHIP SEMESTER IMPRESSIONS

I have a much better understanding of Costa Rican culture, it’s a new way of thinking about life, plus I learned Spanish. I learned a lot about group dynamics and having patience, working with what different people bring to the table. The instructors are very resourceful; they make you feel safe. The homestays were a great part, with unique families and beautiful homes. We got to do the solo in that area, it was a good location, very beautiful. My two favorite parts were the SCUBA diving in panama and the homestays. The Lopez house was great, we’d play soccer and then just run to the river. The island in Panama was amazing, we got to interact with the indigenous people and play baseball. Now that I have the certifications I’d like to finish my degree and then go to a foreign country and start a company doing rafting and SCUBA diving and then see where it goes from there.

Alex Ames
20, Massachusetts, USA
Leadership Semester 2006

This was an awesome course, everything was really organized. I loved getting all of the certifications.
I loved the whitewater raft guiding, once I got it. I am definitely going to do it back home. This really challenged me mentally and physically. It was go-go-go all the time, one activity to the next. It really got me out of my lazy lifestyle and it got me out of my shell. My work ethic has improved a lot.

Gavin Hurd
19, California, USA
Leadership Semester 2006

I liked it a lot, I found it intense. Rafting was my favorite, it was the most fun. I think, for me, the other certifications are more valuable, I will definitely be using them in the future, but raft captaining was still the most fun. Phil Perez is the best teacher I’ve ever had through college or highschool. He brings people in and makes sure everyone learned, even on the difficult subjects like knots and the WFR and systems. Every teacher back in the US should be like him. Totally worthwhile, totally cool.

John Otts
23, Florida, USA
Leadership Semester 2006

This trip was lots of fun, I loved it! My favorite part was living in Piedras Blancas. I loved seeing the simplicity—open houses, no barriers. The chicken ceremony was great. I felt a spiritual connection with the food. The families were so welcoming and the town is so interconnected. Everyone helps everyone else. There is a sense of family there not like any I have ever seen, I definitely gained more appreciation for my own family back home. I came for the WFR and SCUBA certifications but after being with the instructors and doing the Swift Water Rescue and the Technical Rope and Rescue has opened my eyes to rescue work, I now want to be an EMT. In the long run I think all of what I’m doing now will help me pursue a career in wilderness group therapy. It has changed me, and I know I can really help people with this. Panama was great. We ate like kings there, I thought that it’d be all dehydrated food. Stepping out of the tent and being at the water and then SCUBA diving at night was amazing. I also liked the hiking and wakeboarding we did. The island is just so different from anything else I experienced, their water comes from rain, their energy is all solar-powered. Ticos are awesome! They are so friendly, so open, and they are always looking out for you. I have huge anxiety at school because the teaching methods in the US are not inclusive, the instructors here made me feel at ease, he made everyone feel at ease and excited to learn. It was really personally challenging for me.

Megan Lerch
22, Massachusetts, USA
Leadership Semester 2006

The last 60 days have been fantastic. I’ve learned an incredible amount of information, how to deal with people and all of the activities. The whole thing has been my favorite. My motive for coming was that I wanted to get out, into a foreign land and live with people, plus I really wanted the River certification. That was my favorite part, I felt really comfortable and now I want to raft captain either here or back home. A lot of the certifications I will use in my future. Both the homestays and the instructors brought about cultural themes, everyone is so family oriented. Not only did we learn how to ration and survive, but it open my eyes to what we take for granted back in the US.

Seth Alcorace
23, South Carolina
Leadership Semester 2006

The last 60 days went by really quick, its been awesome. The land phase with the homestays was the best, we really got to experience how the culture is. Panama was great, we went to an island that I never would have gone to if I was not with Outward Bound. Every person who I had contact with was great.

Danielle Borman
19, Colorado, USA
Leadership Semester 2006

This course was pretty unreal - exotic, exciting, and fast moving. I had so many highs, it was all just a new experience. I really enjoyed Panama it was a good start to the trip, I’m so excited for my SCUBA certification, I can’t wait to go back to Australia and go to the Great Barrier Reef. Phil Perez [WFR, Swiftwater Rescue and Technical Ropes Rescue Instructor] is inspirational, how he can conduct a group like that and get everyone interested and able to learn. 100% of the certifications I’ll use in the future, I just love the outdoors. But the Raft Guiding and the Ropes were definitely the most demanding.

Fucshia Sims
20, Sydney Australia
Leadership Semester 2006

This was an experience for sure! It was good and had a huge learning curve. I work with at-risk youth back home and I wanted to build on my technical skills and I need more experience on longer trips. The course is like an internship, now I just want to work, I feel I can and I think it would be huge extra practice with groups what we had just learned. My favorite part was all the cultural interaction with the homestays, I actually hoped for more, I just really appreciated all of the activities with the families.

I loved all my instructors! They are the reason why I’d work here, Orlando is just amazing. Swift Water Rescue was the most intense certification to get, it was so new, so physical just being in the rapids. Every day I’d wake up and say “I cant believe I’m doing this.”

Amy Smith
24, Yukon, Canada
Leadership Semester 2006

I just graduated college as an engineer and everyone goes off and tours Europe, but I wanted an adventure, something radically different that would change my perception while becoming a leader with more self confidence. This course did it all. The last 60 days were uncomfortable but challenging, often intense and definitely dynamic. The river was my favorite, especially the middle part where you are still learning, it’s physically demanding, you’re in the middle of the country and learning leadership skills all at the same time.

Mike Shannahan
26, California, USA
Leadership Semester 2006

When I was 15 years old I went on a 30 day Outward Bound course in the US, ever since then I’ve wanted to do it as a career. Right now I’m getting my teaching certificate and this course has been like a study abroad. The great instructors made this course for me. They are the reason I want to come and be an instructor here. I wanted to get WFR Certified, I wanted to get SCUBA certified, and I was psyched about the Technical Rope and Rescue certification. I had never done any rafting before but I did really well on it. I found the WFR the most mentally intense and lifeguarding certification was definitely the most physically. Panama was a definite highlight, the island is incredible! The night diving and night snorkeling I’ll never forget for the rest of my life, I’ll be telling my grandkids about that. The homestay made me feel the greatest point like “this is what I want to do”, I was at home here and wanting to work for Outward Bound.

Wesley Thayne Peterson
29, Minnesota, USA
Leadership Semester 2006

It was adventurous, wet, friendly, welcoming, beautiful, and fast-paced. I wanted to do a study abroad experience, because everyone does it and raves about it. So I was thinking, how cool would it be if I could do it on an adventure? Both the WFR and the Raft guiding certification were the big attractions. They really hit me up another notch employment wise. I couldn’t find anything else that had all the training. I want to raft guide back home and eventually after I graduate use my degree with the outdoors to help youth. My favorite part was how many rivers we actually got to raft on, it was great, I was really surprised that we were so many. I feared that we’d just do the same river until we memorized it. My other favorite was the homestay because there was more of a cultural component then I thought there would be, but once I got here, and I loved it so much, I wanted more. I really think its great to have Tico instructors and then go to their homes and see how the live. I learned a lot of Spanish with Orlando and Santiago.

Anusheh Warda
21, California, USA
Leadership Semester 2006

This was a great course, I’m happy I did it. We did a lot of stuff, always go go go go go go go.
I’ve been on and off in the outdoor recreation field for a while now, and I was looking to get the WFR, which would make me more marketable and I saw this course. It had all the certifications in a bundle.

WFR was definitely the most difficult certification mentally, and the lifeguarding was the most physically challenging. My favorite parts were the river, the SCUBA, and the homestays – the best thing going for this organization are the people and those houses in Piedras Blancas. The island location in Panama was really well thought out, we got to interact with the natives and snorkel whenever we wanted to.

Scott Moore
34, Arizona, USA
Leadership Semester 2006

The last 60 days have been great, really action packed, I learned a lot and met some good friends.
My motive for coming down here was to see Costa Rica and learn skills that will make me more employable. My favorite time was in Panama, all the free time to play soccer and baseball with the community and snorkel whenever. Plus we got SCUBA certified! The WFR was the most intense certification: it was hard. I loved the river and learning how to captain a raft, it was kind of like driving your car on ice, I mean you slide your turns and maybe not go the way you want to. The homestays at Piedras Blancas were awesome. We prepared our own food, but we got to see where the food comes from, I definitely respect it more.

Hugh Stolarz
19, Nova Scotia, Canada
Leadership Semester 2006

I was going to college and didn’t know what I wanted to do, I was just taking classes. It was my dad that told me about NOLS and Outward Bound, so I looked up the one in Costa Rica and really liked the program. It was fun, challenging, a lot of learning, new people, new friends… it was awesome.

My favorite parts were the rafting and the homestay. I had gone whitewater rafting before but never guided, on my first day I thought “this is awesome!” The homestays were great; being with the families was the biggest cultural experience. Getting to help out at the Lopez house and interact with the kids down at the school, the whole thing was great. WFR certification was the most challenging because it was so much information, but it was worth it. I’m going back to school, when I get home, but I’m going to look into these activities more. I never really considered the possibility of being a wilderness instructor.

Chazz Peterson
20, Pennsylvania USA
Leadership Semester 2006