This morning was bittersweet, as we said goodbye to the beautiful, bustling biological station that is La Selva and began our journey to the much quieter Cuerici, secluded in the mountains. After a quick breakfast at the comedor, we grabbed our packed lunches and settled in for the bus ride. Much of the group participated in karaoke, while others slept. At the Mega Super Store, we stopped for some necessities – medication for Julieanne who had fallen ill, and, most importantly, more snacks for the lab. The Chiky cookies disappear almost as if by magic! We also discovered Lindsay’s (and now cassie’s) favorite ice cream, “Mmmmmyo.” The rest of the drive we watched the mountains go by and the little dogs running in front of the colorful houses. As our bus gained elevation, we watched the landscape morph yet again. The trees became much shorter, holding on to earth. We were in Paramo, a unique habitat at high elevation. After taking some pics for the ‘gram and meditating in the fresh air and sunshine, we got back into the bus and twenty minutes later were at the head of the trail to Cuerici!
The caretakers brought a truck to load our stuff into and take down while we hiked the hour and a half to the biological station. At the station, we received the warmest of welcomes from the caretakers who live here in Cuerici. The Cuerici biological station looks like the farm where your parents sent your childhood pet. There are oaks, but different species than the U.S., and where you would see just bark, the trees are populated with more plants. Mosses, ferns, and red bromeliads. A trout farm bubbles just downhill of the station, with long pools filled with all sizes of rainbow fish. We are living in a Bob Ross painting, and all the trees are happy trees. We were given a second lunch and worked on projects between this and dinner. After dinner, we had a movie night in the lab. Curled up next to the glowing fire, we watched “Live, Die, Repeat” in which Tom Cruise fights time-controlling aliens and goes from a selfish good-for-nothing to a noble hero. After the movie, we all hopped into our bunk beds in the large dormitory, blankets piled high in the cold nighttime air. pura vida …
Puma poop! 
Flower resembling female bee. 
Quote of the day: “Where’s Aidan??” – Jacob, immediately after waking up.
Vibe of the day: Refreshed
Rose: Paramo
Thorn: Slow start to the day
Hogwarts Houses:
Professor McGonagall: Cardelus
Gryffindor: Jared, Cassie, Abby, Danny, Jacob
Hufflepuff: Davi, Megan
Ravenclaw: Elena, Lindsay, Julieanne, Aidan
Slytherin: Sierra, Lydia
Davi Bendavid ’22, the upcoming Hozier, Biology major, Geography and Geology Minor
What is your favorite childhood memory in nature?
Camping in Rhode Island, going to the beach and parking in the fisherman’s parking lot. From there, we would walk along the shore and check out tide pools. We would play in them and look at crabs and other crazy things. I thought they were the most fascinating things ever.
Favorite Part of the Trip
Seeing the vast differences in environment in all of the different sites. I expected Costa Rica to be mostly like La Selva but it was cool to see Cabo Blanco which reminded me of Florida, and Cuerici which is kind of like New York.
Dream Job
Anything that lets me travel and be outside. Maybe a fuel scientist but still mulling it over.
