Introducing Mystery Class #2
|
||||
Hi! We are the 7th and 8th grade class of the Monteverde Friends School located in Monteverde, Costa Rica.
|
||||
| Our School | ||||
The school carries on some traditions and culture established by a group of Quakers who opened the school in the 1950s. Classes start at preschool and go up to 12th grade. Some of us were born here in Costa Rica and some in the United States. Our local language is Spanish and the school is bilingual, so we have classes in both English and Spanish.
|
||||
| Costa Rica and Monteverde | ||||
Costa Rica is located in Central America, between Nicaraqua to the north and Panama to the south. Its political system is a democracy and Costa Rica abolished its army long ago, in the 1940’s.
Our town of Monteverde is located in the province of Puntarenas, which is located along the western coast of Costa Rica (in red on the map below).
Monteverde is located near the northern tip of Puntarenas. The town of Monteverde has a rich history and a strong international community. It is also famous for its Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, and is one of the most visited tourist destinations in Costa Rica. Many scientists and college students study biology and Spanish here. Many of us students live in neighboring towns of Cerro Plano, Santa Elena, and San Louis.
|
||||
| Climate in a Cloud Forest | ||||
Monteverde is located at 1,400 meters elevation, just under the tops of the mountains to the East. Because the winds usually blow from the East and the Caribbean Sea, the tops of the mountains receive much rain and are often in the clouds. That’s why this area is considered cloud forest.
Right now, it is our dry season, but that will change soon and last from May to October, when the afternoon showers start. From November to January, we have a mixture of mist, sun and wind and rainbows are almost constant. Temperatures are usually around 20 C. Due to trade winds, the hot sun, tropical moisture and rugged mountains, Costa Rica has a wide variety of microclimates. Some places are hot and dry (tropical dry forest), some cool and wet (cloud forest), while some are very warm and very wet (tropical rain forest)! |
||||
Life in our Community |
||||
Many people here live or work on farms, some work in the tourism business and some are scientists. We spend much time outside walking, jogging, biking, hiking or horseback riding. The most popular sport is soccer and some of us play basketball or Frisbee. Our school community has many social events including coffee houses, which are open mike talent shows. We also have country dancing on Saturday nights, ultimate Frisbee, parades, a walkathon, a poetry night and more. |
||||
| Foods | ||||
Our favorite foods are arroz con pollo (rice with chicken), casadas (a plate of beans, rice, platanos, cheese, salad and tortillas), and of course, pizza! We enjoy many local tropical fruits such as mango, pineapple, bananas and melon.
Yum! Arroz con pollo
|
||||
| Wildlife | ||||
Our Monteverde area is home to one of the most biologically diverse places on the planet. In addition to having thousands of visitors who come for eco-tourism, we are also visited by many scientists working to study and preserve the biodiversity. In our daily lives here, we see some very amazing mammals, arthropods, and birds too. Do you know any of the these which we see quite often:
|
||||
