Date: 11th of January 2021
Author: Clara
Position: OneWorld Farm, Talamanca
Geographical Position: Atlantic Coast of Costa Rica

Goodbye to Vista Guapa

Today started for the most of us quite early (around 05:30), because we had to pack our stuff and also our tents. Against my expectations (because at some point we had a very huge chaos) it all went pretty well and we were finished with packing around 07:30.

We had our last amazing breakfast in the Vista Guapa Surfcamp at 08:00. At this point we want to say again a big thank you to Kandice and David and the whole Vista Guapa Team, who made our first week in Costa Rica to an amazing experience.

We saw great guest friendship, the food was really nice and also the surf lessons were very much fun. So Vista Guapa is a big recommendation to everyone, who wants to have a good time at the Pacific Coast in the Pura Vida land!

After the breakfast our bus came and our voyage to Ken and the One World Farm started.

Change of Perspective

I am standing next to the road. Like every day. I stand here with my brother, Pablo. Like every day. My mother is coming to bring us new bananas, that dad just brought from the fields. It’s starting to rain. You wonder who I am? My name is Jose, I am six years old and I live in Costa Rica. My dad is working at a banana farm, my mother is watching after our house and my siblings. I have six siblings, Pablo is the oldest one with 16 years, then I have three other older siblings and two younger. My youngest sister Maria is now six months old.
We live in a very tiny house next to the road, I think you can not even call it a house, and I share the room with all my siblings, except from Maria.
My dad can get bananas from the farm for a very cheap price and then we try to sell them at the street to get a bit more money.
We do this every day, all of us help to sell them, no matter what weather or any other conditions there are. We need the money!
Today I was standing there for more than four hours, when I saw these two little Busses with a lot of students in it. They also had a lot of bags, which were on top of the Busses, but that’s quite normal here in Costa Rica.
The students in the Busses didn’t look, as if they would come from here. I would guess they would come from any country in Europe, but I don’t know exactly.

Wow, what a nice life and what a big chance they have. Being able to travel the world in general, then especially in Covid Times… how lucky they are!
The Busses passed quickly and the last two hours of that workday, too.
Afterwards we had dinner and then I went in my room, where I started drawing into my little book.
Today I drew a big sailing ship. It looked a little bit like a pirate ship, three masts and a black and white hull.
Then I went to bed and thought about my pirate ship and the group of young students, which I saw earlier this day. My dream is to travel the world with some other young people on a sailing ship. How great would this be?! I know, that this dream will never come true, because we are too poor for this.
I started sleeping after a long day with the thought how lucky people are who have this opportunity! Even the thought about this thing made me quite happy and I started sleeping with a little smile on my lips. Also, because I am looking forward to play with my siblings tomorrow, help my parents and have fun with my friends.

What Jose wants to teach us

So, it’s me (Clara) again. I think, that many people are just in very few moments as happy as they could be. When the weather is nice, it’s too hot, when it’s winter it’s too cold, just as an example. Jose is dreaming of our journey and I am very thankful to have the chance to be a part of Ocean College! Let’s try to be a bit more like Jose, to keep on dreaming and think about things, that make us fly, but without loosing the reality and appreciate the daily life, which is beautiful as well.
And don’t forget, what was said in the story of ‚Der kleine Prinz‘: „Man sieht nur mit dem Herzen gut. Die wahren Dinge sind für die Augen unsichtbar.“

Greetings:
Ich grüße Mama, Papa und Luki, euch würde es hier im Regenwald absolut gefallen. Es ist ein bisschen wie in Malaysia und wir leben mitten drinnen! Grüße gehen ebenfalls raus an Oma, Oma und Opa, an die COoC Gruppe und meine Freunde, besonders an Clara, Carlotta, Hannah und Annika.