Day two afternoon and evening

Our afternoon schedule gave us an opportunity to learn about a variety of Costa Rican plants.  During our lesson, we all had a chance to drink coconut water and eat coconut meat. 

We had mixed reactions. Some of us liked the water and meat and some of us didn't. 

We also learned about the "lipstick" plant.  It had little red seeds inside that if smashed turned into reddish orange paint.  We used it like war paint on our arms and faces.  

Some other plants we learned about were sticky leaves, sandpaper plants, and plants used for natural bug sprays and medicine.  We all had a chance to hold a "poor man's" umbrella.  It is heavier than real umbrellas and the sap is poisonous (we put a plastic bag over the end). 

 Our plant guide made us an extra treat...homemade fruit popsicles.  It was a delight in a bag!

Our next adventure was at the river.  We had a team building activity guided by Javier and Randall.  

Our goal was to build a raft to make it across the river and back before the other team.  We had a kayak, four paddles, two wooden planks, three inner tubes, and ropes that we could use to build our raft.  We found out that it was very hard and it took multiple tries before both teams succeeded.  After the activity, we got to swim in the river. We had a contest of who could hold their breath the longest.  Ben won both times by a long shot.  The river was cold and muddy but felt so good after a long day at work.  

After a refreshing ice cold shower, we ate dinner.  Our menu was mashed potatoes, rice, refried beans, mixed vegetables,  pot roast, salad, and spinach soup.  We drank water or star fruit juice.  Fox said it was the best soup ever!  

Jerry's favorite part of the day was building rafts at the river.
Russell's favorite part was swimming in the river.
Caleb's favorite part was dinner. 
Fox's favorite part was shooting basketball with the kids.

This blog post was written by Fox, Jerry, Caleb , and Russell.