The Bethel University volleyball team is traveling together in Costa Rica from May 25-June 1. While there, the team will be playing top level club teams on three different dates and serving the community in three different cities. In addition, they'll enjoy several group activities that showcase the beauty and culture of Costa Rica. Each day the group plans to compose a blog post from different members of the team, answering the questions "What was good?", "What was hard?", "What'd we learn?", and "What's next?" To see more photos follow the team on Facebook or @BethelRoyalVolleyball on Instagram.

May 26 | 10:15 p.m. | We have been in Costa Rica now about 33 hours. Tonight is our first time to really sit down and write!

What was good?
This morning we went surfing in Tamarindo. It was the first time for a lot of people but all of us had fantastic attitudes which made the experience very fun. The food we have eaten so far has been easy to adapt to as well as very delicious! We also ran into some bumps at the airport, but everyone took that time as a chance to turn it into a bonding experience through various group games. For me one super cool experience so far has been meeting new people who speak very little English. It is much easier to create relationships with others who speak the same language. In my opinion this creates an illusion that we are a separate world from those who do not speak our given language. Therefore it has been extremely fun to connect with people who mainly speak Spanish instead of English. -Macie Gavic

We had a chance yesterday, after traveling all of the way from Minnesota to Costa Rica, to cap off our day running a youth clinic in Liberia. Our Spanish speakers did an excellent job organizing skills, stations, and games, and all of our players worked hard to connect individually with the athletes, even if they couldn't speak Spanish. It was an amazing way to kick off the trip, as the athletes were so eager to learn. We are grateful for the welcome they gave us! – Coach Hunt

What was hard? What did we learn?
The hardest part for me personally was dealing with my lost suit case. It is really frustrating and upsetting that I do not have any of my stuff and I am only living on a little bit of clothes. Thankfully, my coaches and teammates are helping me out by taking me shopping and lending me stuff.

I am someone who is very specific and is comforted by knowing that I have all of my stuff. The airline does not know where my suitcase is and I think this is a test of my faith. Before we left for this trip, I asked God what ways he could use me in Costa Rica. Through this situation, He is teaching me that I all I need is Him. I don't need a suitcase full of nice clothes and favorite pair of Chaco shoes; I just need to be fully dependent on God and His love. That's all we need in any of our lives. During our team devotional tonight, we talked about gratitude. My goal for the rest of the trip is to be thankful for everything, even if I am living on hardly any clothes. God has used this situation to remind me of gratitude and being fully dependent on Him.  -Emily Sammon

What's next?
Tomorrow we leave our delightful hotel (Hotel Pasatiempo) and the beach town of Tamarindo, where several of us became surfing experts, for La Fortuna. Apparently our next hotel has a view of a volcano! We play our first match! Maria focused us on gratitude with her devotion tonight, and our prayer is that gratitude runs both deep and wide in our team. We want to be grateful, not just on a surface level, but deep in our spirit, and not just for the things that are convenient and fun in our experience, but for the breadth of it all. – Coach Hunt