Playa Espadilla Sur

The beach was a place of beauty, with sparkling sun, amazing sunsets, and stunning night skies. Some of the happiest memories from my trip are here. It's still a special place for me.

Hotel Verde Mar

I spent two weekends during my eight weeks at Coope Silencio in Manuel Antonio. I stayed at this hotel, which led onto the beach.

Quepos

If you don't have your own car and can't afford a plane ticket, this is the best and most trafficked way in and out of Quepos. I came here from San Jose on a bus - halfway across the country.

Soccer Field

There were many small towns that we passed, built for the workers in the palm oil plantations. Every town had a campo de futbol (we call futbol 'soccer') and frequently held matches between towns.

Highway

I was in luck when I went to Coope Silencio - the side road to the town was gravel, but the highway had recently been paved for the first time and a brand-new bridge was completed while I was there. If I had gone a semester earlier, the bridge would have been wooden and the entire highway gravel from Quepos to Silencio!

La Huerta

The fourth place I worked was at the organic farm. Here they grow many fruits and vegetables to help support the community, including lemons, bananas, plantains, papayas, maize, and yucca. I helped harvest these things as well as fertilizing plants, monitoring the compost, and sowing a field with corn.

Chicken Farm

The third place I interned at, the chicken farm, is just starting up, which means I did a lot of construction there. I helped fix coops, dig ditches, and move wheelbarrows full of rocks.

La Lecheria

I spent the second part of my internship in the dairy, learning how to milk cows, repair fences, feed pigs, and plant saplings.

Centro del Rescate

I spent the first part of my internship here, learning to feed and take care of spider monkeys, green parrots, scarlet macaws,deer, and howler monkeys. The trees mostly obscure the clearing.

Homestay

This is where I lived in Coope Silencio for the duration of my internship.

Image © Amanda DeLand, 2009

Just so you know

I might continue this, I might not. It's been started for an Environmental Studies project. I'll be uploading pictures from my Costa Rica trip soon.