During the first two weeks of the Costa Rica program, students stay in dorm rooms at the Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica in Santa Clara. Rooms are double and triple occupancy. All have a fan and come with bedding. There are separate men’s and women’s bathrooms. Showers are often cold. The school has a computer lab and soda on site; our laundry is done by a cleaning lady. The rooms are Spartan, but extremely clean and well maintained. We live just like the local students— nothing special for the gringos and that is a cool thing!

After we complete the two weeks at the technical college, we travel for the remainder of our time in Costa Rica and stay in very nice hotels and resorts— the Los Lagos at Arenal, Hotel Espadilla at Manuel Antonio National Park, and the Balmoral in the capital San Jose. These hotels and resorts have all the services and amenities one would expect at a U.S. hotel/resort.