The first student visit from Western’s CORE program has ended…and I’m happy to report that it went off without a hitch! Having 15 extra people here sure makes the finca buzz with life and energy! In their absence, it’s a little TOO quiet and maybe even a bit lonely. Let me start off by saying that having the students here was an amazing experience for us at Finca Bellavista and so much fun! The students were an absolute joy to have at the finca to spread positive energy, interact with visitors and neighbors, and help out with the day-to-day operations. It was great getting to know each one of them and it will be rewarding to watch them grow in the years to come.

The students stayed busy while here at Finca Bellavista. Our project manager Owen Hyams taught a tree rigging and climbing seminar (he is one of the zipline construction and tourism pioneers here in Costa Rica and has 15 years of experience under his belt). Owen’s wife, Vera, taught 3 weeks of Spanish lessons on site. Her laid-back, spunky style seemed to be a great fit with the group, and it was amazing to see how much they picked up in the short amount of time they were here. Gerardo Rivera, one of Costa Rica's leading arborists and botanists, led a native flora seminar on site (he is also the gentleman that assesses trees here for treehouses and created the botanical inventory for nearby Piedras Blancas and Corcovado National Parks.) Gerardo toured the students around the finca, teaching them the secrets of the rainforest, and explaining the edible and medicinal uses of the plants and trees, as well as those useful for making tools and other items. He taught them how to harvest wicker and weave baskets as well. (The highlight, for me, was the introduction of a plant that makes a dark, indigo-colored dye for the skin. Indigenous tribes use this as means to create semi-permanent tattoos. He harvested some for the students, and left it in the lounge area. Several of the students stayed up that night and painted themselves with it… because it has to oxidize to mark the skin, they went to bed thinking it didn’t work. When they woke up in the morning, however, it was a different story! For 2 weeks, Gerry walked around with circular black dots on his cheeks, Tanner had ‘eye shadow’’ and a black nose, and Paul had a gigantic handprint on his back. It was hilarious.) They also visited the Boruca Indigenous Reserve to see what life is like for the country’s native populations. For their service learning project, the group painted the local schoolhouse in our nearby village of La Florida and helped us build and implement a compost system here for the finca. They also helped us to plant lots of trees and plants for erosion control. They created a ziplining certification program for our SkyTrail network here at the finca. They had a couple of informal local cooking classes for traditional Costa Rican dishes while here as well. They went to Drake Bay and Isla del Cano for a week for their Open-Water SCUBA diving certifications. During the certification course in Drake Bay, and toured Corcovado National Park while on the Osa. 

Dr. Jan Schipper, a Western grad (’95) and now one of the world's leading rainforest conservation biologists, and Jose Fernando Gonzalez Maya, MSC, led a fauna and conservation seminar when they got back to the finca. Jose, a herpetologist and the sub-director of Pro-CAT Internacional, a non-profit NGO (founded by Dr. Schipper) that performs the majority of feline research in the country, also took the students on a nighttime reptile and amphibian tour. A handful of the students chose to accompany Jan on a 5-day trek of Mt. Chirripo, the tallest peak in the country (at 12,544’), and collect camera traps that have been gathering precious photos and migration information on the country's wild cat populations.

While here at the finca, the majority of students lived in the ‘rancho’, the finca’s open-air community center. Although mealtimes were a bit crazy, in the end, everything worked out well and everyone had a good time. We are so blessed that we had a great group of students to work wit. We were sad to see them leave in late February… off to surf camp for a week, then a horseback trek of the Arenal volcano area.

I think the best thing about their visit here to FBV is that they had access to an experience that isn’t available to other students in the world. Many of the people that taught courses here are personal contacts that wouldn't do seminars or classes for just anyone. Because these colleagues are friends of ours, they are also sharing their worlds and other opportunities for the students after CORE concludes… one student is doing an internship with ProCAT.  We have also started planning towards working with ProCAT in the future to create a research sub-station here at the finca as we are located in a key biological migration corridor between the Osa Peninsula (National Geographic calls it the most biologically diverse place on Earth) and the Talamancan highlands just above the finca.  We’ve merely scratched the surface on seemingly endless, and incredibly valuable, educational opportunities though alliances with the many conservation groups in the area.

Firstly, we want to thank Dr. Mark Gibson for bringing this wonderful experience to Finca Bellavista. The students were amazing and we had so much fun sharing our rainforest home with them. Secondly, we would like to thank our wonderful teachers and  translators that contributed to this program and gave their knowledge, time, and energy to make it possible. Jan Schipper, Gerardo Rivera, Owen and Vera Hyams, Paul Merck, and Adrian Barboza to name a few. And, we could not have hosted this group without our wonderful, dedicated employees – specifically Lorena, our cook, and her assistant Christina, who kept everyone well-fed and happy.

We look forward to many happy returns from Western and the CORE program!

Until next time!

Pura Vida

Erica and Matt Hogan

Founders, Finca Bellavista