Perspectives from students on Spanish Emphasis Outward Bound

My Spanish was pretty bad coming down here. My Spanish teacher laughed at me when I told her I was doing this. But the staff kept us busy and into the actividades. It's life-changing – physically and intellectually. The first day of hiking was the worst day of my life, but it was a good day. I’ve never worked that hard in my life. I enjoyed Outward Bound. It’s harder than it looks but it was fun. My favorite part was rafting on the Rio General. It was just fun rafting. I’d never rafted before. I saw a bunch of wildlife, like crocodiles and monkeys—things I’d never seen before. The homestays were shocking. Some of their tactics to living were like going back in time. It was cool seeing how the people live here with minimal technology. I worked on a banana plantation, and it was really fun. I want to return there. I’ll probably come back with some friends. They make you feel welcome and like family. And the kids, these kids are so young, and they take on adult responsibilities like it’s nothing. I think I’ve changed a lot mentally and physically, I’ve opened up to different ideas. It was a cool experience, and I’ve learned a lot.

Keeland Badrigian
16, California, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

I loved seeing the country guided by locals and staying with locals. It was a great way for me to experience a different culture, and I felt that it was set up in a way that wasn’t the typical tourist trip. I would certainly recommend this to someone looking for a non-typical visit to a different country. The ten days spent in Piedras Blancas was the highlight of my trip.

Heidi Berry
24, Vermont, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

CRROBS is an extremely well-organized and fun organization that, unlike other programs, is not a bureaucratic tourist experience, but a grassroots project, comprised mostly of local families that work together for a final experience which stays with you for a lifetime. It was really authentic. Thestrongest component of the school is the mutual relationship between the locals and the organization. This has been an experience of a lifetime. My Spanish improved very much. I arrived with no Spanish instruction or preparation and I can now understand so much like movies and discussions, and I can converse. I spent a month completely immersed in Tico culture, embedded in the water rushing through the rapids, earth in the forest beneath the towering sable trees and most importantly part of a local family. I loved the homestays: the family connectedness, living alone in Piedras Blancas, really feeling included in the family in a non-gringo/touristy style. Language barriers were irrelevant as I became one of eighteen children, working in the plantation, preparing meals, milking cows, and spending unforgettable nights laughing hysterically, sharing stories, and finally learning how to speak Spanish. The instructors were absolutely awesome. I loved talking to them and learning. It was one of my favorite activities. They were beyond knowledgeable. I was so impressed with everything they knew and taught us. I will never ever forget them and I know that I will stay in touch. They have become a part of who I am. The group discussions really put things into perspective and brought the group together. The rafting exceeded my expectations a lot. It was very well organized. I loved swimming in the river, picking bananas, mashing corn for pancakes, making sugar, washing clothes. We made all of our food. I ate more than ever before. I loved the hiking. It was the most intense phase. I loved the physical challenge. The group really came together with that challenge. I wish we’d hiked more.

Martha Chertkow
17, Quebec, Canada
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

CRROBS changed my life. It was a great experience, and I am going to recommend it to all and I hope my brother comes down. I loved the surfing and the homestays. It is the experience of a lifetime. I had three years of Spanish in high school. I’ve improved. I understand a lot more. I can’t speak much better, but I understand a lot more. The instructors were perfect.

Michael McGrath
16, California, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

I came to CRROBS expecting to be pushed to my limits and beyond and I was, and I have never been more grateful to be pushed and I will neverforget my trip. I hate hiking, but pushing myself was amazing, in the end it was worth it. I forced myself in this to be uncomfortable—to do what I normally wouldn’t do. Now, I can see myself camping more and doing more hiking. I grew to like it. I came on this trip to appreciate hiking and to be forced to do it. CRROBS is a life-changing experience. I pushed my limits and had an amazing time. Anyone who wants a challenge would be challenged in every aspect and people who aren’t challenged enough should go to have fun, to experience what they miss out on, and to push themselves to the next level, because in the end it’s all worth it. CRROBS is amazing. I now have higher self esteem. I liked the rafting. It was scary at first, but it was good and the group worked well on the river. The group was all really different. I was surprised by how well we all got along. We never got in any big fights. We all cooperated with each other, and I’m pretty sure I’ll keep in touch with all of them.
Thank you CRROBS.

Alexa Ferro
16, Florida, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

This course was deliriously amusingly entertainingly amazing! I have learned so much about a different culture, and I think that more people should be exposed to this way of living, thinking and being. I liked the awesome people I met and really everything we did. I especially enjoyed the physically challenging activities though I can’t think a favorite part! The zipline was good. I liked the volcano. Hiking to it was pretty hard, but it was awesome to see. I liked the group—everyone got along. And I loved the instructors. They were super nice and took good care of us. I’m leaving with a new mindset. I love the pura vida lifestyle. I liked seeing how people live in the homestays. It does more than whip you into shape, it helps your perspective on living. I definitely have CRROBS!

Kiley Uihlein
16, Florida, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

I loved the hiking and homestays! Piedras Blancas was AWESOME! CRROBS has changed me permanently—I am going to go home more self-reliant and with an appreciation for the Tico culture and environment. It’s well-organized, professional, and an overall good experience. The families at the homestays made the trip for me. I loved the families. They were so different from mine. We don’t eat together and hang out together. We all usually just hang in our own rooms. When they aren’t working, they are all together in the kitchen. The hiking was challenging. Even though I didn’t like it, I like that I did it. I liked the solo a lot. It was fantastic. I loved the bread and cheese. I loved hanging out with the family and learning Spanish. I’d had three years of high school Spanish. I could conjugate most verb tenses and knew some vocab. I could have slow conversations, but I couldn’t understand much. I’m a lot better at speaking and understanding now. On the final day, we went to an open market and I could bargain with a guy trying to sell me something. My Spanish was so good, he thought I lived in Costa Rica. I made sugar cane and milked cows. I loved that. It was awesome to eat the fruits of my labor—to do the physical work and then reap the benefits. The group was awesome. I wouldn’t have hung out with them much if we weren’t here. I learned to appreciate their uniqueness.

Lauren Fink
17, Michigan, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

Outward Bound is an adventure of the mind, body and spirit. I now have a greater sense of independence, and I have a greater feeling of who I am and what I can do. I was very pleased with the course. My favorite parts were the surf phase and the awesome instructors. They made it an excellent program with many valuable aspects. I hadn’t surfed before and now I can stand up and ride a wave in. I’m going to pursue surfing when I come back home. Although I’ve had three years of Spanish in high school, here I have increased vocab and increased understanding.

Alex Schinis
16, Connecticut, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

My Spanish has gotten a lot better. I don’t have to think so much in order to talk. My favorite leg of the trip was rafting, because rafting by nature is a coolcombination or real excitement and real relaxing. I also loved the homestays, especially the divided one where I stayed at Hernan’s house. CRROBS is worth doing for anyone that wants to learn more about themselves through escaping the comfort zone, but all the while in the hands of excellent instructors and other very cool people.

Luke Cullina
16, Pennsylvania, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

This course offers a challenge to all aspects of an individual and is exceedingly rewarding in a physical, intellectual and emotional manner. Not to mention, this course is fun, exciting and an opportunity to explore an entirely new country. It’s a completely amazing experience that will change your perspective on both your life at home and your own capabilities. It allowed me to use the Spanish I know. Spanish in school is useless without being able to practice it somewhere. I also feel a lot more physically capable. I never would have hiked like we did on my own. I took environmental science and ecology in high school, and it was amazing seeing it all firsthand. Rafting, on the other hand, was a completely new experience. Service projects were great. I felt that I could give them something back for their kindness because of the homestays you really have an amazing experience you never could have had any other way. I’m going to go back home and appreciate all that I have. I have a new sense of what I’m capable of.

Nerine Constant
16, Florida, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

Living in the Costa Rican culture opened my mind to a world I could never have dreamt of until I experienced it first-handedly. This was the best experience of my life. When our group was educated in the daily living of the people in Piedras Blancas, it boggled my mind and made me realize there are so many more possibilities in which to explore and immerse myself. These people are content in living so far away from everything that they have to hike for two hours to go anywhere. I think this was my first step out of my old opinions and my little small-town view of the world. My mind is opened up to new possibilities, and I’m a lot more self-sufficient now. I’d never left the country before, and it’s been one of those experiences when each day opened my eyes to something I’d never imagined before. It’s like you’re in this little bubble and it expanded each day. CRROBS is almost an indescribable experience until you’ve experienced it for yourself. That in itself means that doing a CRROBS course opens your mind to a world unknown, showing you possibilities which seem only imaginable. It was fun, a lot of fun. I hadn’t taken Spanish in two years, and I had forgotten a lot. My experience down here was remembering everything that I had forgotten. I know I’ve improved.

Steffany Bowen
18, North Carolina, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

It was challenging, because it is a completely different environment, but the whole experience is rewarding. I loved the homestays and learning about the multitude of plants and wildlife in Costa Rica. I had a more than a great time and learned more than I thought I would. I have a lot better Spanish and a definite appreciation and understanding of different cultures. I had one year of Spanish prior to this, and I don’t think I improved my vocab and grammar much, but I’m a lot better at being able to vocalize my thoughts quickly in Spanish. I can have conversations with people now. I learned to communicate so much better than before. I would recommend CRROBS, especially if interested in learning about the cultural aspects of Costa Rica and the Spanish language.

Alex Byers
15, New York, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006

It was perfect. It was everything I expected but so much better. I really liked rappelling; it was a completely new experience – scary and exciting.The hiking wasn’t easy as I had never backpacked before and camping took a while to get used to, but I liked it in the end. I loved the homestays. They were better than expected. The kids were so much fun to play with. I had three years of Spanish, so I really only knew the basics, but I put what I knew into use, and now I can think about it more quickly.

Megan Cruise
16, California, USA
Spanish Emphasis, Summer 2006