Back in Costa Rica

  Hello friends and family! So sorry for the long delay between blogs. I've been off doing what others come here to the School of the World to do... traveling, exploring, learning new things, and meeting great people. This time my travels took me to L.A., Sydney, Noosa, Paris, Avingon, New York, and Miami. I photographed wild dingos on a remote beach in Fraser Island, Australia, then a week later was doing magazine fashion editorial shoots on the streets of Paris during fashion week. It was a wild ride... but now it is nice to be back at home base in Costa Rica and enjoying sunsets, sushi, and surf with the gang at School of the World. As always, what I learned on the road will be incorporated into the school, helping to constantly evolve our photography program as well as other aspects of the learning vacation experience we offer.

I made it back here just in time for the Billabong ISA World Surf Games. Jaco is playing host to the international competition that has brought together teams representing over 30 countries. The town is filled with surf fans and the consistent surf conditions in playa hermosa have made for some enjoyable performances. The school is full and in peak summer season, and we have a lot of returning alumni this month... always good to see old friends come back for another visit. More news to come.

Dream Job

“I never wanted to be anyone else”. –Peter Fonda

  It seems like about once a year Outside magazine publishes a story about  dream jobs, and although I’ve admired many of them I’ve never seen one  that I would trade for my own. Everyone’s idea of the perfect job is a little  different, but the bottom line is that most people would rather spend their days doing something that they are passionate about than slaving away  for the weekends and a couple of weeks of vacation a year. As the creative  force behind School of the World, my job is to continually evolve the school  and its environment, making it the best learning vacation experience  possible. Everything from architectural design and course planning has gone  into it, but for the most part I just try to translate my love of travel, learning,  art, and design into an experience others can share. In other words, my job  is to do what I love, then inspire others to do the same.

  A lot of students have been impressed by the great vibe of our staff. We have a very low turnover rate (sorry for all of you who have sent us inquiries about jobs). Everyone here really enjoys what they do. When I first started the school I was really focusing on how to make my dream job a reality, but what I didn’t foresee was how that would create a ripple effect that would echo through the school and influence guests in their approach to their own lives after returning home. I’m no inspirational speaker, but I’ve been asked so many times about how I managed to set my life up this way that I thought maybe I’d post some tips for the dreamers out there. After all, I remember the moment when I saw someone else living their dream and I thought, “Hey, if they can do it I can too.” Sounds cheesy, but the initial decision wasn’t anything more than that. I didn’t have a clue about how to make it reality at the time… the School of the World started out as an idea written on a bar napkin!

Tips for Dreamers and Dream Job seekers:

“That’s why they call it work, it’s not supposed to be fun.” Steer clear of negative people that say stuff like this. There are plenty of wet blankets out there that will tell you your idea won’t work. There are a lot more people out there doing what they love and getting paid for it than you realize.

Sacrifice and be stubborn. Kris Kristofferson was a Rhodes scholar, Oxford graduate, and helicopter pilot that turned down an offer to teach at West Point in order to chase a dream of being a songwriter. He took a job as a janitor at the recording studio to be near the music. He went from janitor to songwriter to Hollywood icon because he wasn’t concerned with what anyone else thought.

The time you have between when you are born and when you die is infinitely more valuable than any sum of money you can acquire. Despite every device we buy that promises to save time, time cannot be saved. It goes by faster and faster every year of your life. Spend it wisely with people that matter to you and doing what makes you happy.

Get a handle on the difference between wants and needs. The reward of having a dream job isn’t usually financial; it’s more about quality of life. It certainly can have financial rewards, but that never seems to be the main drive of any of the passionate people I’ve met.

  Try to eat healthier and enjoy activities that double as exercise. Living your dream is about nurturing a healthy soul, but before you can get there you have to take care of your body and mind. Eating healthy and exercising increase your energy level and contribute to your overall happiness and outlook on life. You mind is like a muscle in the sense that it can atrophy if you aren’t giving it enough exercise. Learning doesn’t end on graduation day.

And finally, don’t wait. Potential, even great potential, has a shelf life. Even if there are obstacles, make a plan and start taking small steps towards your goal one day at a time. For some reason the process of making a plan in list form and then marking off steps as I complete them works as great encouragement to me. Find what works for you. 

Good luck and safe travels.

Green Initiative

Today we put into action a plan to reduce our environmental impact here at the School of the World. Our plan includes implementing a more thorough recycling program, switching from the community chemically treated water system to an in-house natural purified and ionized water system, reducing waste, and reducing energy usage. 

  Synonymous with life itself, water is the most precious resource we have, and this is where we are going to start to make our changes. In a country that receives over 116 inches of annual rainfall, I have to admit I took water for granted here until recently. It took the water bill jumping from $20 a month to $300, and also the eco-guilt of seeing mountains of plastic water bottles building up in our recycling bins and trashcans to nudge us into action. Averaging 20+ guests per week, all of which buy bottled water, you can imagine how many plastic bottles we are hauling to the curb each week. The city water is potable, but as with most municipal water systems it is heavily treated with chemicals, creating “dead” water. Our plan will include digging a well to tap into naturally filtered water and also installing an ionizing filtration system to provide the highest quality water possible for us and our guests.

  The next step will be to start using composters to help turn food waste into garden mulch. Food leftovers makes up as much as 40% of the waste in landfills, where it gives off harmful gases. During a recent visit to the States I learned more about how easy composting is now, thanks to new kitchen compost appliances. Check out this video to find out more about new compost solutions for your kitchen. www.naturemill.com/video_histChan.html

  The third step will be to address the conservation of energy. We plan to use heat reflecting paint and sun shading screens (like the ones used in landscape nurseries) to reduce the heat on the roof of the hotel. This will allow the air conditioners to run more efficiently and less frequently, reducing kilowatt hours. In addition to these big steps we have a lot of small improvements that we hope to implement over the next few months. 

Learning Vacations

“The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.” –St. Augustine

  One of the great things about life is that it can’t be explained in an article, learned from a book, sold in a store, or advertised on television. It has to be experienced first hand. Advertising is usually geared towards convincing you that buying products will improve your life, but life and its definition are still as unique and personal as each living individual. In my life I have come to realize that learning is essential to growth and change, and that travel is a critical part of my life education.

  “Learning Vacations” and “Learning Holidays” have become catch phrases in the last few years to describe a travel education genre that is not just geared towards university aged “study abroad” or “gap year” students. These experiences are for anyone of any age that wants to combine travel with learning a new skill, and take home more than just a sunburn and hangover. There are programs out there for learning just about every sport, hobby, language, and profession you can think of. Being an avid traveler with an insatiable thirst for new experiences, I have attended advanced photography, apnea diving, and sailing schools all within the last four months. My excuse is research for a book I’m planning to write on “learning vacations”, but mostly I’m busy ticking things off on my life/ dream list. One thing I have found in my research is that our school, School of the World, is still very unique in what it offers despite the recent growth of this travel genre.

  Studying and vacation are antonyms for many people, but the funny thing is that when you are enjoying a great hands-on experience you are learning by doing and having fun. Removed from their busy and often stressful home surroundings fellow students are happy to be there and the environment is more conducive to quick and enjoyable learning. Learning doesn’t hinder a relaxed vacation but rather adds another dimension to it. It is the moment, the people you share it with, and what you learned that stick with you.

It’s life education on vacation.