What participants say:
"The trip that my wife and I made to Costa Rica with [Lengua Rica] took the two-dimensional Spanish we had been studying in the classroom and made it a three-dimensional language by giving it a cultural context. We would recommend this trip to anyone who wants to experience Spanish within the cultural context of those to whom Spanish is their native language. The richness of the language is embodied in the warmth of the people who speak it. "
---Bill B.
"There is a saying that 'the traveler sees what he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see.' If that is true, the Lengua Rica trip to Costa Rica is not for tourists. The Lengua Rica trip is for people with a traveler's mindset looking for an authentic experience; for a cultural and language exchange. My thoughts and emotions were always active when I was in Costa Rica. I never felt like a passive outsider watching ‘others’, even while on bus rides through the countryside. Instead, for a week, I was a participant in Costa Rican life."
---Kathleen O.
"I'd been studying Spanish with Lengua Rica for several sessions and was looking for a way to really intensely immerse myself in the language. The trip to Costa Rica was just the thing. Ethan and Isa designed the trip to maximize the amount of interaction we had with Ticos. We stayed in a wonderful farm community in the mountains, welcomed with friendship, fresh and delicious food, and nonstop conversations in Spanish. By the end of this stay we were even making up puns and jokes in Spanish. We also had the opportunity to see much of the northern part of the countryside, traveling by bus through beautiful scenery, conversing with our seatmates in Spanish all the way. And our beach stay was a place where Costa Rican tourists go. Foreign tourism is a big part of the Costa Rican economy now and it is possible to take a trip there without ever speaking Spanish or really talking with Ticos. But with Lengua Rica, we were immersed in the culture, the language and the land. It was a great week."
---Linda R.
"Thanks for a fantastic trip. Loved the conversations with Jose Manuel [the owner of Hotel Pacandé]—very charming—that man could get a sack of rocks to talk. He was sincerely enjoyable company and very patient with my rusty grammar. The couple of days in Alajuela—loved the market scavenger hunt... could have done more of that. The market workers were the most friendly ever. Thank you for the opportunity to step up with a task and get local with the locals. I adored the days we spent in San Vicente... Having to speak in Spanish with [the] entire family was a true treasure—they were so patient and helpful... I loved every minute of it. I treasured the gift the folks in San Vicente offered to welcome our group with open arms and tons of patience (the welcoming karaoke, tours, etc).... There's nothing to compare to living in someone's house, sharing their space, conversing in their language, and coming to a common respect and caring. "
---Kara S.
“I liked the variety (not staying in one place the whole time). I liked not being a tourist..., I liked the time spent in San Vicente with regular families..., I liked traveling in a small group because of the fun, positive interactions among ourselves, the hot springs was super nice, I liked being pushed to speak Spanish more... and more. I also really liked riding the bus. "
---Ruth M.
"I have really been struck by what a nice balance it was to have had a few days in the city, a few days in the mountains and a few days at the beach. I am so pleased to have been able to experience several different Costa Rican environments, particularly given our short time in country. Extending the visit by staying at the beach for a few extra days was very, very, nice. When I got back I looked at a bunch of companies who do tours of Costa Rica, and almost all of them have a trip with roughly the same sorts of territory and itinerary. Every one of them is WAY more expensive. I really think we got a terrific bargain."
---Midge P.
"For me, the trip was perfect. Absolutely the best educational-adventure-vacation I've ever had. I was looking for something that gave me a sense of the real day-to-day Costa Rica (that is, as much of a sense as could be given in a week), and the design of the trip mirrored the pace of the country, and that worked for me. The design (i.e., the schedule of events, the structure of the experience) of the trip had a certain improvisational quality: things will come together when they come together, the bus will get here when it gets here, the fiesta will start when it starts.... a certain time-less quality that worked for me, because it fit the lifestyle of Costa Rica somehow. But the reason it worked for me is because my agenda was to experience what it would be like to live in Costa Rica because I've been thinking about moving there for awhile now. There was enough structure for me to know when we were going to start each day, and a general sense of what we were going to do. The rest was improv, and that was great. I loved Alajuela, and the Pacandé hotel. Loved the people at the Pacandé. I loved the walking through the mercado and asking about different foods. I loved eating as a group together and talking about the day and what we had discovered. I loved catching the buses to various places. I really liked my host family. They were wonderful. They were very nice to me, and the accommodations were perfect. Also, I really liked the hot springs and also the Hotel Huetares at Playa Hermosa. I think that was the perfect way to end the trip, at the beach resort. So basically, I am your most satisfied customer. It was a great, perhaps life-changing, experience for me."
---Frank L.
"I absolutely loved my trip to Costa Rica for Spanish language immersion as part of my educational experience with Lengua Rica. I had only just started studying Spanish a few months prior to the trip, but that did not detract from the value of the experience for me. There is so much that was great about the trip, from hanging out with Ethan, Isa and their daughters, having the opportunity to experience Costa Rica from a hands-on, real life perspective and not as a tourist, getting to know my wonderful host family in San Vicente and getting so many opportunities to meet new people, see the beautiful country and practice Spanish. It was without a doubt the best introduction to a country and language one could ever get. I fell in love with Costa Rica, am very motivated to continue to study Spanish, and certainly hope I can return again on another trip with Lengua Rica."
---Val A.
“Highlights: 1) San Vicente! Our time with the community of lovely people was very special. 2) Talking to Costa Ricans in the park and on the bus. 3) Playa Hermosa was a gem.”
---Luci K.
“The trip was great! I especially enjoyed having Spanish in my head all the time. It was really challenging for me as an introvert to do all the interacting that we did, but I know it was good for my language skills. I think the market scavenger hunt, talking with people in the park, talking to people on the bus, and the home stays were all great things to do.”
---Joy B.
“This was such an amazing, valuable, and fulfilling trip. The kind of trip that makes you think about what’s important in life and how to spend more time doing it. I could not have asked for a better plan—a few days in the city, engaging in semi-structured opportunities to engage with locals and the culture; taking public transportation to our next location, with more relaxed and natural opportunities to interact with locals and experience the culture; spending time in the welcoming homes of the people of San Vicente, the most beautiful community you just might ever have the pleasure of experiencing, and topping it off with a few days at the beach, but at a beach and in a hotel where many Costa Ricans go, so much less touristy than many other beach locations. But wait—there’s more. Daily Spanish lessons, and you get to experience all of this with a teacher who is sincerely passionate and knowledgable about this country and the language, which is truly priceless. Who else gets this kind of inside look, all-the-while having your Spanish gently corrected throughout the day so that you can continue to form good habits and respect the language and the culture? I really appreciated all of the work and planning that went in to this before and during the trip, and I would, without hesitation, recommend it to anyone that wants to experience and appreciate the Costa Rican culture. This trip gave me the extra motivation I needed to dive back into lessons and continue to work towards a level of fluidity that will allow for even more meaningful engagement in the future.”
---Alicia Y.
