Team Costa Rica: Sunday Funday

Most of the USC students met in Columbia, but others connected with us in Atlanta. The flights were smooth, and the flight from Atlanta to San Jose, Costa Rica only took 3 hours and some change. we all made it to the hotel around 11:00 Costa Rican time, but around midnight in the USA. We checked into the Best Western and soon after, fell right to sleep!

We met at the hotel Denny’s at 7:00 in the morning, and had some yummy food to kickstart our day. We were on the buses by 8:00 and we headed to Volcano Irazu, the largest active volcano in Costa Rica. We passed lots of beautiful and authentic Costa Rican country side and farmland. There were fields and fields of crops and they even had horses and cows tied to poles by the streets. It was beautiful!

Upon arrival to the volcano, we parked and walked along the trail to the volcano. It was so beautiful, and we were 3,000 meters above sea level!

We had the option to ride the bus or hike 25 minutes to the top. Those who walked enjoyed the experience, but truly learned about altitude sickness. Once we were at the top, we had some fun and were over 11,000 feet high.

Soon after, we headed back down the mountain into the city for lunch. Whiledriving down, we decided to stop at a street vendor and indulge in some Costa Rican fresh fruit! Straight off the farm!

We were able to truly experience the amazing Costa Rican Food at La Tortileria. We also were able to enjoy authentic Costa Rican beverages, that were similar to smoothies.

We returned to the hotel after a fun day in Costa Rica, and attended our trip orientation session and completed our inventory in order to prepare for our clinic days.

We are all so excited for the week ahead!

+Leigh Fleming, Pharmacy Student
+Krystal Carmichael, Medical Student