Thursday, February 12, 2015
Day 4
Today we went to Camuy Caverns, a mysterious cave. It was carved millions of years ago by the Camuy river. The cave was big enough to easily fit 17 buildings. The cave was filled with many formations resembling faces. The faces gave the cave an eerie and mysterious sense. The cave had ramps which were made slippery because of the water dripping from the ceiling. The lack of railings at times forced us to go slower. This was difficult, but also nice because we got a chance to observe the cave more. Before we went in, the tour guide told us how if we felt a cold drop from above it was the "kiss of the cave." If we felt a warm drop than it was bat guano, which is considered "lucky" in Puerto Rican culture. To get to the cave we had to take trolleys that looked like the airport baggage carriers. We saw rainbow trees, a Sierra Palm trees and many other distinct trees from other Puerto Rican places such as El Yunque. The cave entrance was mystical and green, making everyone look tiny and unimportant in comparison. Next we went to Arecibo. At Arecibo Observatory we were brought into an interactive museum. Inside the museum there were little exhibits, many explaining how the telescope worked. Other exhibits were about nanotechnology, the galaxy and many other things. Then we saw a short movie about the observatory and the telescope. After that, it was time to see the real thing. A 1000 foot in diameter radio telescope capable of producing far better images of other galaxies than any other telescope in the world. It was giant. People act like the radio dish is the biggest and best part of the telescope, but in reality the eye-ball like dome on top was the best. It might have been our angle from up above but the dish just didn't seem as impressive as some people have made it out to be. In the evening we went to Metropol restaurant for some delicious food. Post by Marguerite and Erik
Day 3. The Rainforest, Luquillo and Biobay
Rainforests, beaches, and bioluminescence, oh my! Yesterday, we had the pleasure of checking out some of the most unique and interesting corners of the Enchanted Isle.
Our day started in the El Yunque rainforest. Though the country's smallest National Forest (at "only" 28000 acres), it has more species of flora and fauna than all other national forests - combined. We hiked throughout, stopping only for a break in a swimming hole beneath La Mina Waterfall.
We then spent a few hours at Luquillo Beach, where we learned about ocean waves and their characteristics, wind deposition, water currents, and how hard it is to to play ultimate frisbee in the ocean.
After the beach we stopped at Lolita Restaurant for a Mexican meal.
We wrapped up our day at one of Puerto Rico's famous bioluminescent bays, where every paddle left a swirling mass of yellow light. We had the fun challenge of kayaking through the bay in the dark, as we learned about dinoflagellates, how bioluminescence works, and how not to crash into a tree, and we wrapped up an awesome day.
By Conor Chung
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
San Juan and the Beach!
Today we ate breakfast at the hotel, and then headed out to a beach within walking distance. It was fun and we all tried not to get our shorts wet but many of us went back to the hotel with sandy and/or damp shorts. After we got changed we got on the bus and went into the city to see Museo de Arté de Puerto Rico. Everything in the museum was created by artists who had lived in Puerto Rico and even the marble which made up the floor came from the island. We took a tour and wrote "I notice, I notice, I wonder" statements in our trip journals. The museum had a sculpture garden in the back with a beautiful trail. There was also a pond with many koi fish and one lonely turtle. From there we went to a local park where we ate our lunches. Then we took a short tour of the El Philipe de Morro fort. There we learned more about rival countries attempting to take over Puerto Rico. Next we took a tour of Old San Juan which included frosties at Wendy's, and souvenir shopping! For dinner we went to El Jibarito where we also celebrated Aira's 13th birthday. At the end of the day, many of us decided to relax in the hotel pool. As our first full day in Puerto Rico, we managed to learn, have fun, and relax all at once.
Sincerely,
The middle schoolers of WHMS (Aira, Ava and Harper)
First Day
¡Hola! Our first day was a blast! After we got off the plane, Susan assigned us each a number, from 1-32, starting with Aidan, and ending with Conor. We then got on the bus and drove the the grocery store. The teachers brought along two children with them to help pick up the food, while the rest of us waited on the bus. After that we went to the hotel where we checked in an got our room keys. When we got to our rooms the teachers told us that after we made a lunch for tomorrow, we could go swimming in the pool. The pool was nice and relaxing, especially with muggy weather! We stayed in the pool for a while, dried off and set off for food. We had a Puerto Rican meal. The food was delicious! We evan had desert on the house! After the meal we settled down at the hotel, and got some rest for the next day! Post by Caleb
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