Student Reflections: Piper

On the last day of our trip, after white water rafting and relaxing with our families, there was a fiesta held at the teachers' homestay for all of the homestay families and us. Each homestay family walked to the party together and each family arrived at different times. When arriving, there was loud Spanish music playing, the smell of food cooking, and everyone laughing and having a great time. Everyone at the party was conversing and laughing, really showing the closeness of the community. Even though everyone arrived at different times, I noticed how once they got to the party, they jumped right into the dancing and conversing. After a bit of dancing and talking, and once everyone had arrived, we sat down for a great dinner of chicken and rice, beans, and other side dishes. Once everyone had finished eating, they turned the music back up and everyone got up and started dancing. This was when a group of Costa Rican girls (one of which was my homestay sister) preformed a dance for everyone at the party. This led to most of the Berkeley Carroll students to form a group in front of the whole party and start dancing. It was great because everyone was together in a small little circle dancing and singing and just having fun with each other. It was amazing how close everyone had gotten because of the trip, and this moment, when everyone was together and having fun with each other, really showed it. - Piper