Costa Rica 2015: Day 3- Horses and Falls (Water-falls!)

Our day began with espacio, a Sacred Heart tradition of taking time for silence, and an opportunity to identify a word/intention for the day and write it on a Post-it, affixing it to their chest. After a few moments of walking among themselves and looking at the words others wrote, they gathered into groups of same/similar words and shared about why they identified that particular word. This allowed us a chance to understand that although we may each have our own expectation, this shared experience helps connect us on many levels.

My group headed out to Nuayaca Falls and just a few minutes into our bus ride we pulled over to see a sloth hanging from a tree, and were delighted by a Toucan swooping over our heads to land in a tree next to a second toucan! On arriving at the Nuayaca property (consisting of over 120 acres!) we had a chance to make the trek by horseback to Nauyaca Waterfalls. The horses had life and spirit and we all remarked on how the horses seemed to have an understood “pecking” order, making our ride that much more exciting. Here is Jordon’s horse cam with part of his ride from the falls to our midway point where we stopped for lunch. Check out the horse’s unspoken communication as they kick it up a notch together to cantor speed at around 14:28.

Our guides were pros and made us feel safe and appropriately challenged. Their savy at helping us climb the face of the falls to jump into the pool below was impressive. Here are some photos of the ride and the Falls:

and a movie montage of snapshots of our experiences:

We closed the day with some traditional Costa Rican dancing led by a group of local high school students connecting to their cultural narratives. Check out the High School Cube stream with our students participating:

And finally, a night of shopping from the convenience of our hotel property, a Marketplace that brings local artisan crafts, coffee and souvenirs. A portion of the proceeds go directly to support local needs including an orphanage as Carlos explains. See the stream here: http://thecube.com/event/costa-rica-marketplace-446482

Stay tuned for our last day of our three day rotation: my group’s participation in Hacienda Baru’s “Flight of the Toucan” zipline and eco tour experience!