2019 Costa Rica International Research Experience

Another day is in the books! We got started on our research projects today! After performing data analysis on all the riffle samples we took, we were finally ready to start entering our findings into charts, graphs, and graphics. It was interesting to see the final results, and finding out whether or not our initial hypothesis were correct. We got the poster started but it still needs a lot of work. That will come tomorrow. We were treated to a tour of the private garden, which was full of many medicinal plants. Our tour guide, a tribal elder from Panama, pointed out many plants that had medicinal uses for a wide variety of ailments, from simple ones like burns or inflammation, to birth control and prostate treatment. It was incredible the knowledge and training he must possess, acquired over many decades. After we had another amazing dinner, our group met in the reception meeting room to have a sharing circle. Each member of the group took turns sharing what they were thankful for...

Sunday funday! We all had a free day today, so we decided to spent the afternoon in the nearby town of San Vito. We took a cab from the station and got dropped off in the town square. We had a small map of the town, and used it to orient ourselves and we eventually found our destination: the Italian pizza restaurant! We got ourselves a table and placed our orders. I got the Con Todo pizza, or the "Everything" pizza, and it was delicious. After eating we explored the a few city blocks, trying to find shops that were open. Many were closed to due to it being a Sunday. But we found the supermarket and pharmacy and purchased snacks and necessities. We caught a cab back to the house and enjoyed a relaxing evening off. Back to work in the lab tomorrow!

My group's field research was complete so we had a bit of a free day today. I used the opportunity to do some exploring of the grounds, finding plants and flowers that I hadn't yet come across. I spent an hour walking with my camera, trying to collect enough images of this beautiful place. I hiked out to the lookout tower and enjoyed the view and solitude. The first time I was at the tower it was in a group so it was nice to get up there and take my time and really soak it all in. The afternoon was fun and interesting. We began our cultural exchange with Lazaro at 1:30. He showed us how he extracts liquid from a seed, that the then used to make ink for temporary tattoos. He explained that in his culture they wear tattoos at all times, he has them redone when they wear off and it's a part of who he is. All of us students took turns getting the tattoos done, I was third in line. Here's a picture of how it turned out: The pattern is repeated three times around my arm ...

I had one of the best days ever today! It started out like the other days here; get up at 6, eat breakfast at 630, get our equipment ready and hit the forest trails by 8. Only today started off different as we were accompanied by our videographer Lucas! He was a welcome addition to our crew. We made it through the Water Trail in record time since we were so familiar with the terrain by now. We arrived at our spot on the trail where we had to leave the beaten path and forge our own path. We entered the forest going towards culvert Creek. We cut a switchback down a steep embankment and dropped down into the water. Our plan was to follow the creek until we arrived at a confluence, where Culvert Creek met up with our unnamed stream. I took the point and led the way, scouting ahead for obstacles, and making sure my partners new of any obstacles, slippery rocks, and deep pools. Every step had to be calculated, there was no room for carelessness. We eventually made it to our stream. We so...

Today was the second day of research. We hit the Water Trail early today and made our way to our unnamed stream. Scott joined us today and pointed out a lot of interesting things along the way. He experience and knowledge was very much appreciated. We learned a few wild food sources from him, including red bananas and a celery like plant. I tried both, despite the bananas being unripe and the "celery" stalk being picked of its goodness before I had a chance to try it. Thanks Aldwin and Deb! We all had a good laugh! 😂 I really enjoy being a part of such a great group! We get along great, have fun, do great work, and Deb teaches us so much. We made it to the part of our unnamed stream that we wanted to sample. We had to climb off of the Water Trail and follow the stream into the forest to find some good riffles. We picked out three spots and performed kick sampling, with Aldwin and I taking turns. We found a bunch of invertebrates; mayflies, caddisflies, midge larva, fresh w...

I don't know what it is about this place but I have absolutely no issues with waking up 5:30 am here! Back home, I am lucky if I roll out of bed before 7. Each morning here is a reminder that I am part of CRIRE, which is a fantastic and truly special program. I just can't be thankful enough to be here with all these wonderful people. And waking up to sights like this doesn't hurt either: The oldest and quite possibly the most photogenic tree in the garden Following breakfast, we received a blessing before we left the grounds. One of our friends from Panama gave us a blessing and asked for a safe day for all of us in the forest. I didn't capture any photos out of respect, but I assure you it was a very special experience. It's always an honor to experience another person's culture, and this was a great honor indeed. Today we got to begin our research projects with our teams. My team is called Ziibiins, aka the Stream Team! It is my research partner Aldw...