It was Costa Rica, a vision of crowded, colorful houses and flat tin roofs caked in flaky, thick rust, and hillocks of kaleidoscopic litter cascading down the dirty streets. It was the sun, the blistering rays of hydrogen and helium particles, or perhaps it was the paint, the dewy fluid of banana and honey hues. Whatever it was, we were all aware of the change coming gradually upon us.
We were in Upala, Costa Rica: fifteen or so teenagers in a canton in the province of Alajuela, equipped to serve the native Costa Ricans. I can only speak for myself, but my nose was lifted a little higher than it should have been. I came to Costa Rica believing that the native Costa Ricans desperately needed me, that I would somehow drastically change their lives. No, no. I was served a sublime slice of humble pie. I desperately needed them. They drastically changed my life.
A Costa Rican pastor led us to his church—a turquoise, one-room building of cement walls and tin boards. The desolation of the church was alleviated by the radiant attitudes of the church members. They lived a life in sincere peace, despite their decrepit circumstances and limited opportunities. Every part of their bodies—their eyes, mouths, and mannerisms—overflowed with genuine love and happiness. It was haunting. It was surreal. I walked into the church and at the first glance of the exterior building, assumed that I was better than them. I adorned myself in a cloak of superiority, and the illusion of an authentic concern for them was my mask. The thing that I did not know was that my mask was similar to one created by botulinum toxin; its purpose was to conceal flaws, but it ended up appearing even more false.
The amazing thing was that they saw right through me. They knew that I felt this way, but they still welcomed me with open hearts.
After two days of spending time with such hospitable people, we were given the task to paint the walls of their church and outdoor bathroom. All my preconceived notions and delusions of them were stripped away. No feelings of “I’m-better-than-you” or “I-am-the-best-thing-that-happened-to-your-life” existed anymore. The cement walls that we were painting over were emblems of my prior feelings. Goodbye, cold, raw, ugly walls. Goodbye, arrogance. Paintbrushes immersed in banana paint stroked and spattered the walls. Hello, warm, refined, beautiful walls. Hello, humility.
Costa Rica impressed upon me that the world is big and life is hard. Still, the earth continues to spin and revolve, the sun sets and rises, and people smile and rejoice. They are able to radiate with smiles indicative of happiness in spite of unfortunate situations. And I was the one looking down on them? Funny. I realized that we are all the same: we feel pain, we enjoy bliss, and we understand love in different ways. Unity exists despite diversity.
I needed them. The process of reverse-botox was no easy or painless operation. Mark my words: it hurt. But they opened my eyes to the social discrepancies of a different country and the astonishing perspectives of a different people. I was disillusioned by the banana paint and the blistering sun and crowded Costa Rica: impoverished regions exist in the world today. But if they needed me—for what reason? I do not know exactly. Maybe they needed me so that I, in turn, would show others that we can no longer be complacent with ourselves. We should not choose apathy over empathy. We are all connected.
And emotional botox is ugly.
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Very tasty.
Dubai is a glorious city in the world but the desert safari is most thrilling tour in Dubai since 1980 . This is a great post and great team work .
When I was reading this I realize that this is the best blog as compare to others. Its really appreciated.
Don’t stop keep posting this type of posts
Good address for ski. My daughter loves skiing very much. It will be a good option for us for the next winter holiday.
Good to know as I have a daughter at 10 YOD and she loves skiing very much.
Seems there are lots of fun for kids in Las Vegas. I have never though about a such thing there. It will be a good option to consider for our next family holiday. Thank you.
What’s a wonderful & luxury holiday. I am dreaming about it.
It’s Fantastic And Useful Blog About World Heritage Sites and There information is very informative and useful.
Thanks for sharing.
I love reading your blogs, there are many useful information for travelers. Thank you very much for sharing.
Good advices when traveling with kids. Thank you very much.
What’s an amazing trip. Thank you for sharing.
Very nice day. We don’t have it in Vietnam 🙁
Amazing hotels. I love eco-resort with nature style instead of modern hotels.
Good to read this before I prepare my family trip in the summer.
Good to know this. Thank you for sharing. I will consider this for my children.
Thank you for these tips on how to plan a family safari! I’d like to be able to take my whole family and show them the beauty of Africa. But it always seemed so daunting to plan a whole trip that everyone would enjoy. I mean there’s always the age differences, and differences in interest as well to think about. Just thinking of ensuring that everything goes well planned is stressing me out. That’s why I turned to the internet in search of tips! Definitely will use your tips on how to choose a safari.
Very good tips. We all should follow these tips for a safe road trip. Thanks for the great help.
Thankyou Mr Ralph S for giving precise information on the overland.
i will be travelling for the 1st time from adelaide to melbourne this month end. it will be of grt help.
Soon I’ll be planning a trip to Dubai. Thanks for the information about what’s worth visiting.
Hello Lansdell family! This is a great place for a long weekend of outdoors exploration and a beautiful park. In late May, a new business is opening = https://www.floattheriver.net/ = which will run float trips on inner tubes on portions of the river. I asked some locals and they suggested that after biking and hiking and riding the train, your kids might enjoy day trips to nearby Canton, Akron or Cleveland. Each has lots of Metroparks (the public system of urban parks) and museums, etc to do and see. With some planning, all your days can be as full of variety as you would like. We hope you have a wonderful trip.
How did you get around the Darien Gap?
Very good
Thank you for sharing these warm and touching thoughts of yours! I’ve only been the Belarus once, but I wish I read it before going, something in my experience would definitely be different then. I did use some advise – from the telegram channel for foreigners https://t.me/Belanews but I guess your opinion would be great to consider and embrace too.
Thanks for all the info. We are planning on going in August, and are trying to find a nature-centered vacation for our family of 4, kids ages 7 and 4. We are from Southern Ontario, Canada and we came across this national park. Would you recommend this place for 3-4 days? Is there enough to do (hiking, train rides, exploring etc)? Somewhere else? We also looked at the Smoky Mountains but its about a 11-12 hours vs the 5-6 hours to Cuyohoga. Any advice would be helpful.
That place is really amazing. I want to spend my vacations on this beautiful place. Thanks for sharing this nice information.
I've been there last year. If someone is looking for a nice hotel I can highly recommend to take a look at the Hotel Rappen Rothenburg ob der Tauber.
Such a good information.Nice work.Very useful for us.
The gardens of Suzhou are absolutely beautiful and something that you don’t want to miss while you are there.
Traveling with your children in s Suzhou is super easy and safe. My family had a lot of fun and the kids really enjoyed there time there. One thing they really loved was going down all of the canals. Here is some great information on all the beautiful canals that you can explore.
It looks like a beautiful experience. Turkey is a wonderful country -and the fact that it’s not that expensive compared to other countries makes a visit there even more tempting. Thanks for sharing.
good tips, safety comes first so that our trip may be remembered as a happy memoir when we went to see and explore new places and have fun. and not as a terrifying night in the ER. god bless you all , be safe
Thanks for your insight for your fantastic posting. I’m glad I have taken the time to see this.
Great tips for road trips!
Thanks for posting, very valuable information .
Being visiting is one of the best experiences of my life. Being there and enjoying every bit of time is wonderful. Personally, my best experience is an underground aquarium and desert safari. One visited Dubai must go for these two activities.
Would love this for our family!
We’ve always wanted to go and now they are old enough to enjoy it.
Thanks so much for doing this!
The beaches, the weather, the food, the attractions and the activities- everything was perfect.
I think parents should focus more on preparing or educating their children about the proper etiquette and behaviors before the flight to avoid being a nuisance to others. I don’t know much about kids but as a first-time mom, that’s what I will do.
Hi,
You have explained the timeshare information for Spain country very well.Share more blogs which will we helpful for people like us in future.
Thanks
Seeking for your positive reply.
Hi,
I would like to travel out of the US with my son. I understand that I would need his father to sign and notarize a letter. He had not been a stand up dad to take care of his responsibilities so he left and I can’t find him. What can I do in a situation like that to travel with my son?
happy you enjoyed the story. This park is in Ohio where the climate can be capricious! It’s hottest between late April and November, however even April has the danger of some snow. In case you’re enjoying the great outdoors with children, the most secure wager is June to August, since it’s hotter and there’s little downpour. Make the most of your trek.
Wonderfully informative article!
I want to go travel with kids but I was not decided where we go. Your post is helpful for me. Thanks for sharing.
Tenerife is SO stunning! I love this volcanic landscape, sometimes you feel like you traveled to the Moon. This place has it all – great views, pleasant weather, awesome food, wine and laid-back people. Thanks for sharing ideas, I’ll use some of them on my next trip 🙂
Very nice article and msg we likes so much
I automatically think the word “gumbling” when I heard Las Vegas. I never knew that Las Vegas has something to offer for youngsters. Will bring my children here soon.
Nice Article, it is very helpful to me.
There is no Doubt, Dubai is most popular destination among tourists from across the world and have gained high popularity in last decade. If you are in Dubai and dhow go for dhow cruise, there is some thing missing on your list. There are Dubai dhow cruise, Musandam Dibba dhow cruise and Khasab Musandam dhow cruise. Try some of them and you will love.
Istanbul layover tour is a great service to use the best of your time in Istanbul Airport. However if you like to have a private attention and flexibility, you can check private tour services of ISTANBUL LAYOVER TOURS. They are offering the layover tours from Istanbul International Airport.
Great article! Wanted for Christmas again. Do you know anything about this place ? It is very interesting to know the opinions. How much advance it is necessary to book a hotel and various entertainment before the holidays?