And So The Journey Begins!

Hey everyone, it's Maya! Welcome to my first blog post about the Borlaug-Ruan International Internship, with the World Food Prize Foundation, where I am headed to EARTH University in Costa Rica! So far I have loved the World Food Prize programs and am beyond honored to have gotten this position as an intern to do some research in Costa Rica. So now that you know a bit lets get into it!

I'm writing this as I sit in an arcade 5 hours after walking the stage and graduating from high school and I can’t wait for what this summer will bring. I have one week until I will be at EARTH University in Guácimo Costa Rica and from the few people I’ve talked to there I can’t wait for the classes, experiences, and the people I will meet.

All my packed bags!

...And that is what I started writing one week ago when I planned to have it posted by Saturday night, oops. It is now in fact that one week later and I am sitting in the airport after my 5:00am flight to DFW waiting for my next flight that will bring me to San Jose Costa Rica! I'm all packed and ended up with a very heavy duffle bag, a travel backpack, and a hiking day pack. I maybe overpacked and still definitely forgot things but as long as I have the essentials I should be good. The best surprise this morning at 3:00am was my closest friends meeting me at the airport waiting to say goodbye.

♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️

As far as logistics once I get to Costa Rica, there should be a driver sent by EARTH at the airport when I arrive and then we will be headed on a 2-3 hour drive through the mountains to get to the university. I found out this morning that I have a roommate who is a fourth year student, so I will hopefully find my room and set my bags there. Then once at EARTH, Ronal (a current third year student), will help me find the cafeteria for dinner. While I can't wait, I know I will be so exhausted after a whole travel day and about 2 hours of sleep last night. Then tomorrow I'll get a more in depth tour and hopefully start to learn the ropes!

I'll try to do weekly updates on here with stories, pictures, and an overview of my project status!