The plan was to travel to Costa Rica, spend my days helping to rebuild a destroyed high school with Western SOS (Students Offering Support) and explore the Caribbean side of the country – all for less than $2,000.
When I got there, I quickly realized that nothing in Costa Rica goes according to plan.
A group of 10 students and I travelled to the village of Namaldi via an old bus. The bus could only take us part of the way through the mountainous terrain; we travelled the rest of the way in a truck. Of sorts. The floor of the truck was made out of rotting wood and the only seats available were our backpacks. The driver gave us a toothless grin and welcomed us to Costa Rica.
When we arrived at the village, everyone from young kids to the adults came to gawk at us. There were a lot of apprehensive smiles and nervous looks as we were lead to our house for two weeks. I use the term house loosely as what was actually in front of us was a bamboo ranch with a grass roof, no walls and no doors.
The bathroom? An outhouse that could be reached by running down a grassy, possibly snake-infested hill.
Pigs, roosters, hens, dogs and cats roamed freely through our home. It would be an understatement to say I was scared about getting through the next two weeks. We were welcomed to the community by most of the town’s people and a local band. The principal of the primary school explained to us that a high tide had destroyed the old high school. Luckily, the water hit on a Saturday and none of the staff or students were injured.
That night we set up our mosquito nets and prepared for sleep amidst the loud sounds of the jungle.
For the next few days, we helped dig, build and paint both the primary school and the high school. Young kids would run up to us speaking rapid Spanish and offering us flowers and candies. They posed for our pictures excitedly yelling “whiskey,” their equivalent of “cheese.” The children made even our hard work fun, running up to push the wheelbarrow or grabbing the shovels with such excitement that before long we all had smiles on our faces.
During the days, we worked. In the evenings, we would go on excursions.
One day we hiked to visit a village that also needed help establishing a school. The estimate time to get to the neighbouring community was one hour. However a Costa Rican hour is significantly different from a Canadian hour. Two hours after walking through a rocky terrain, climbing a mountain and crossing several streams, we reached the community.
The young principal of the school told us that her students needed more supplies, more food and the school was in desperate need of repairs. She said all this with a smile on her pretty face, pausing to talk to students as they ran and played around her. On the way back, the light rain we had experienced at the beginning of our hike had turned into a torrential downpour. The streams we had crossed on the way had turned into a raging river. All 11 students and our three guides linked arms, holding our bags high to walk across the river. I couldn’t help but laugh. Eleven Canadians students who probably never rode in a car without buckling up for safety were now crossing a dangerous river with no more protection than each others’ hands. Thankfully, we all managed to make it back to our bamboo ranch safely.
For two weeks, we lived, worked and laughed among the people of Namaldi. Most days our diets consisted of rice and beans and almost every morning we would awaken to the rooster’s call with sore backs from sleeping on the ground. Yet still when it came time to say goodbye, we could not help but want to remain in the bamboo ranch, we had begun to call home.
For our last weekend, we went to San Jose to enjoy the tourist attractions of Costa Rica. We visited beaches, national parks and local market places. As I was purchasing souvenirs, I came across a pocket knife with the words Pura Vida engraved on to it.
When I asked the vendor what it meant he explained that those two words were the essence of Costa Rica. They meant everything from live life to the fullest to enjoy every drop while you still can. And there looking at the wrinkled, smiling face of the vendor, I realized that pura vida was exactly what the people of Namaldi had given me.
My trip to Costa Rica was dirty, unsafe and rough – it was also the most intensely pure experience of my life.
This trip would not have been possible without the amazing work of the students involved in Western SOS.
Komal Shaikh is a third year student in the Honors Specs Physiology and Psychology program here at Western.
What is Western SOS?
SOS is a national network of student volunteers working together to improve the quality of education and life for those in developing nations. We accomplish this through a two-step approach.
1. Our Exam-Aid Initiative. Run by senior students, review sessions assist fellow university students by improving their performance on exams. At $20, these sessions are a fraction of the cost of any other exam review available. I first heard about Western SOS when I attended an exam review session held by them. Before long, I was interested in the work they do.
2. Outreach Trip. Using the funds raised throughout the school year, a team of Western students travels to various South American locations and aids in community projects. The upcoming 2011 outreach trip will be to Cabbage, Belize and it will take place during the first two weeks of May. To apply for this trip or for more information about Western SOS, please visit our website at www.westernsos.com.
In addition to our usual initiatives, Western SOS is excited to introduce a new event: The Last Lecture Series. This event is inspired by Dr. Randy Pausch at Carnegie Mellon University.
Two years ago, after being diagnosed with cancer, Pausch shared with his students, life stories, experiences and lessons learnt, during his last lecture. His students had the chance to learn from their teacher in a way very different from the usual structured day-to-day classes. Western SOS is bringing that idea to our very own campus.
The Last Lecture series is a chance to learn what your professors have to say outside the textbooks. Each professor will be holding a lecture as if it were their last one. On Wednesday, Nov. 24, Graham Smith (Geography) will be presenting his Last Lecture in HSB35. On Thursday, Nov. 25, Derek McLachlin (Biochemistry) will present his Last Lecture in HSB236. Starting at 5:30 p.m., these events are free of charge, but students are encouraged to bring a food item along with them for donation.