During this time they have seen wildlife in natural habitats, enjoyed the scenic beauty of both cloud-covered mountains and paradisiacal beaches, practiced Latin dances, and eaten the specialties of the local cuisine. Most importantly, as time passes the personality of this recently manufactured perfume (using a recipe that mixes students, faculty, and staff members in the right quantities) permeates the air that we all breathe on campus and gives it a scent that might compete with the best fragrances in the market. The aroma: a mixture of friendship and commitment for the future.

It seems that the visits to the Monteverde Mountains, the coastal forests of Manuel Antonio National Park, the tree planting project with the community in Atenas, and the first two field laboratories are doing their job. When you wake up in the mornings, everybody smiles, anxious to know what is coming next.
- PhD. Candidate Carlos Rojas, Temporary Lecture Tropical Ecology

Student Reflections
What impresses me the most about this program is the sheer volume of content that the staff here in Atenas have managed to pack into our short time in Costa Rica. Though I've only been in the country for a week (and that time has flown by faster than I could have imagined), we've done so much that it makes a week of school back home look pitifully uneventful. In addition to the lectures and class discussions, we've had the opportunity to participate in the community (from a soccer match at dusk to planting trees around town with the help of generous locals), take in some Costa Rican culture (enjoying the national dish of rice and beans, and learning to dance like a Tico), and even find time to relax on the dark, sand beaches at Jaco.

The experience that has served as the apex of this week was hiking in the national park at Monteverde. Imagine traveling through a cloud forest (dark green foliage everywhere separated only by patches of white-gray cloud) with four professors, eager to pass on their knowledge on the hundreds of plant and animal species, explain ecosystem dynamics, or discuss the local climate and its unstable state in the human age. You're then dozens of meters in the air, suspended on a canopy bridge, looking at the mist-covered jungle through a strange new vantage point. This is sensory overload that you can't find anywhere else! At the end of each day, you just have to crawl into bed, totally worn out but glowing with anticipation of the next day.    
-Brian Burnley, The Citadel

There are so many things about this experience that I have encountered that I didn’t even imagine possible when I applied to this program. One would be the professors, who are not only encouraging, but extremely knowledgeable, not only in their area of expertise but many aspects of the scientific community. I truly feel like I am learning from some of the best in the field. We not only get to learn from the professors in the classroom but beyond the classroom as well because they take their free time to do activities with us like play soccer, take us bird watching, and even teach us how to dance.

The atmosphere here at the center is another aspect that is truly rewarding as well. The fact that the professors and their families live here on campus gives us a sense of community, which goes along with the responsibility of having to take care of not only ourselves but others as well. We do this by cleaning, taking turns helping the cook, and doing our own dishes along with other various jobs so that we continue to keep the center a sustainable place. It has been truly rewarding to be apart each and every one of these aspects here at La Presa Universidad.
-Katie Minter, Wittenberg University

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