Costa Rica w/ Lift Our Planet!!!
This year I was lucky enough to go to Costa Rica not once, but TWICE. I loooooove Costa Rica so I was extremely excited to go back again so soon! The second time, I went with a humanitarian travel company called Lift Our Planet. Here’s a little bit about Lift Our Planet:
“Lift Our Planet combines immersive volunteer experiences with adventure travel at an exceptional value that support conservation efforts and community development initiatives around the world. Through exciting volunteer opportunities, our goal is to encourage life-long learning, foster responsible global citizenship, and leave a positive and permanent impact on both the planet and the participant.”
Not only did I get to teach English to kids, save baby sea turtles, and help build a school for an orphanage, I got to document the entire trip and take videos for the company. I got paid to do my favorite things! It was a dream! Here’s a video to recap the trip…you definitely will want to watch it!
The trip was truly a dream! Like it shows in the video, we did SO MUCH in ten days! The best part is I gained twenty new best friends from the trip. Every single person on the trip came by themselves, from a different state, and we left as the newest lifelong girl gang. I believe we will all be friends for life after this experience!
We started out at a children’s home where we got to play with kids, refurbish furniture, clean the home, and build a garden from scratch. For the children’s safety, we could not take pictures or videos of them. They had the sweetest spirits and we learned so much from them. It’s so great to get out of our comfort zone and see the world. To see how other people live. To see how other people react to their circumstances. It’s humbling and reassuring. If you haven’t done a humanitarian trip before, SIGN UP FOR ONE RIGHT NOW. There’s so many reasons it will change your life, but this is a BIG ONE!!
We also participated in the most amazing project for sea turtles. Sea turtles are in danger of going extinct due to people eating the eggs, selling them, and making jewelry out of their shells. In this project, we stayed on an island and patrolled the beaches 24/7. We would go at night, walk 6-8 miles, and come back and sleep. We would keep an eye out for poachers and ensure the safety of the turtles. It was AMAZING. We then would work in the hatchery, where the turtle eggs were kept. We would monitor the nests and ensure the turtles got out safe. Once they hatched, we would take them to the beach and watch as they scrambled towards the ocean as fast as they could. Another reason to watch the video above!!!
The best part about Lift Our Planet trips is we get to do tons of adventure and cultural immersion activities as well! We went zip-lining, white river rafting, beach hopping, ate tons of amazing food, and so much more. I wouldn’t change my experience on this trip for the world. In just two weeks, 8 of the girls are flying to Utah to stay with me! It has seriously changed my life and I wish every single person could have this same experience.
If you’re interested in going on a trip, check this organization out!! Lift Our Planet is seriously the best. You can head to their website www.liftourplanet.com or click here!!
xx.
Kassidee