The coast-to-coast trail is the creation of Asociación Mar a Mar, a nonprofit with an objective to promote sustainable economic development to rural villages that typically don’t receive many tourists.
JumpStart camps led by Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) have officially begun all throughout Costa Rica. These intensive four-week English camps provide children from low-income areas the opportunity to learn with their peers before starting high school, and provide hands-on training to public-school teachers.
On Dec. 26, 2016, I woke up relieved. I had made it through my very first Christmas away from home. I remember reassuring myself that my second year of service would be different; I would make it home to spend the holidays with friends and family.
Upon arrival in Costa Rica, and as part of our three months of training before being sent to our permanent sites, all aspiring Volunteers are placed with host families.Â
What time of the year is it? It’s coffee picking season. Coffee all over Costa Rica is in full swing. In my beautiful high-altitude mountainous community along the Panamanian border, that means hundreds of indigenous Panamanians cross the border to pick coffee from September to February.