Written by Emily 10th April Today we left Gandoca and the turtles to their own devices. It was a solemn goodbye, made all the more so by the faint, England-esque drizzle that was gracing the jungle with its presence that morning. The journey back was smooth and uneventful, something we haven´t come to expect in Costa Rica, but soon enough, Rach and i found ourselves locked in the bathroom of Hostel Bekuo having this conversation- Rachel-´Bloody hell, that r...

Written by Emily 9th April Our last day in Gandoca began in the usual fashion, but today with the addition of a delightful tropical storm to augment the times. Rach and I sighed, checked the time on Abby´s alarm clock, and finding it was a sweet five to nine (today´s hatchery work being scheduled for nine) leapt (or rather fell and disentangled ourselves) out of our ´beds´and mosquito nets, whacked on rain jackets and ran across the station to the kitchen. ...

Written by Emily (I love how I alternate between two generic and not at all our own images of Costa Rican beaches to illustrate this blog). 8th April Thankfully, no more mental death dreams had permeated Rachel´s sleeping the night before, and we were back to the usual non-sensical and obscure ones that both of us had grown accustom to. Breakfast this morning was a good one, involving many plantains, pinapple slices and fried doughy goodness. Once that had be...

Written by Emily 6th April Today began in an intense fashion, as I was screamed awake by Howler Monkeys as usual, but then immediately informed by Rachel's manic recounts that she had experienced a waking nightmare the night before, in which I had drowned horribly. Delightful. A mightily healthy way to start my day. The main excitement today came very much in the form of new volunteer arrivals. Among them was a young American guy named Matt. However, these and...

Written by Emily 5th April This day is otherwise known as 'Rachel and Emily's Day Off' and as usual, contains many a lol. The rules regarding the turtle project state that after 6 days and nights of hard, tortuga-conserving labour, volunteers are entitled to a hearty day off. Mine and Rachel's fell on Monday the 5th April, and after much discussion and hearty persuasion from a local named Gilberto, we decided to spend a good four hours of our sacred free time,...