Questions

=Questions & Answers= Post your questions here; if you can answer a question, feel free to do so! Questions from our Jan.11 meeting: - cell phone for students? Caitlin brought hers, but never turned it on - parent contact? Teachers will e-mail parents, but none of the students did - internet connection at lodge? - community service hours? yes; complete a form; counts as a residential trip for Duke of Ed - electricity at lodge? yes, you can plug in your chargers - spending money? yes, for coffee and souvenirs from Manuel Antonio

Hi guys Flo and I can't be here on friday since we have intramurals. So, here's my research done on history. Hopefully one of you will have seen this before tomorrow, and can present for me. Thanks!

- the first European explorer to find Costa Rica was Christopher Columbus - civilization existed in Costa Rica for thousands of years before the arrival of Columbus - archeological sites in the central highlands and Nicoya peninsula have shown evidence of influence from Mexicans - By the time Columbus arrived, there were four major indigenous tribes living in Costa Rica. The east coast was the realm of the Caribs, while the Borucas, Chibchas, and Diquis resided in the southwest. - the Spaniards soon attacked and won; Spanish followed a common policy and brought in African slaves to work the land - first successful establishment of a colonial city was not until 1562, when Juan Vasquez de Coronado founded Cartago, because Spain was more interested in their holdings in Mexico and Peru - The first head of state was Juan Mora Fernandez, elected in 1824 - They later overthrew the nation's first president, Jose Maria Castro, who was succeeded by Juan Rafael Mora. It was under Mora's leadership that Costa Rican volunteers managed to repulse a would-be conqueror, the North American William Walker. - In 1870, when General Tomas Guardia seized control of the government, he made some of the country's most progressive reforms in education, military policy, and taxation. - The Costa Rican civil war erupted in 1948, after incumbent Dr. Rafael Angel Calderon and the United Social Christian Party refused to relinquish power after losing the presidential election. An exile named Jose Maria (Don Pepe) Figueres Ferrer managed to defeat Calderon in about a month - Under Ferrer's leadership, the Junta made vast reforms in policy and civil rights. Women and blacks gained the vote, the communist party was banned, banks were nationalized, and presidential term limits established. Ferrer was immensely popular, creating a political legacy that firmly cemented Costa Rica's liberal democratic values. - Once a largely agricultural country, the twin pillars of Costa Rica's current economy are technology and eco-tourism. Costa Rica's major source of export income is technology based. - On December 1, 1948, President José Figueres Ferrer abolished the military of Costa Rica after victory in the civil war that year.

This is Flo here reporting on weather. Since March is pretty far away, the weather network unfortunately cannot tell the exact temperatures BUT I found this pretty cool website that tells a little bit of weather and what not. Here is the link: http://costa-rica-guide.com/travel/index.php?Itemid=694&id=490&option=com_content&task=view and if you click around the site, you can learn more about Costa Rica like food, festivals and holidays, money, safety, etc... all sorts of cool stuff. Thanks guys! Have a good meeting.