This morning the group split up. A couple members of the group woke up early and headed on a 4 hour drive to a water project. The rest of the group decided to stay in Santa Cruz and enjoy the experience of being immersed in the culture around us. We travelled around the town using the bus system. We went to the center of town and experienced the marketplace, the center plaza, as well as a nice cathedral. We ate at a buffet for lunch, then went to the zoo. There were lots of amazing South American animals: parrots, jaguars, monkeys, ostriches, snakes, as well as many others. We then ventured out to find a place for supper after which we returned to the hotel to pack up our things for tomorrow morning. The group from the water project got back late. We had a debrief meeting and headed to bed.
