I am very excited about this itinerary and this trip that I have been dreaming about and planning for several years! I can’t wait to share this place with you that has been a big part of my life. This itinerary gives you a really good idea of the trip. However, because of nature and because of travel some parts might need to be adjusted. Especially anything having to do with the sea turtles.
- Day One: December 3rd
- Arrival Day Fly into the Liberia Airport and get transported to Hotel Playa Negra. We will enjoy dinner together and do introductions and a team-building game.
- Day Two:
- Wake up to the sound of the ocean at Playa Negra. Enjoy coffee and an optional quick pre-breakfast nature journaling session. Watch the ocean while we have breakfast. First class: Capturing the essence of tropical landscapes on your pages. Rest of the morning spent practicing painting watercolor landscapes from the beach. After lunch and siesta we will have an optional beach exploration walk. You can stay behind and relax in the hammocks by the pool. Meet for cocktails and sunset painting before dinner.
- Day Three:
- Wake up to the sound of the ocean. Optional pre-breakfast nature journaling session with coffee in hand (Marley’s favorite!). Group breakfast. Today’s class: Botanical sketching and nature journaling plants. Rest of morning spent nature journaling the tropical beach plants. We will do a citizen science component using iNaturalist and surveying the beach plants which are crucial for the health of beaches around the world. Choose your specimens for afternoon. Lunch and siesta. Afternoon session: work on your own plant illustration from the comfort of the hotel. Meet for cocktails and sunset painting before dinner.
- Day Four:
- Wake up to the sound of the ocean. Pre-breakfast session. Group breakfast. Today’s class: Landscape painting level two. Marley will help you make your landscapes even better. Lots of one-on-one instruction. Rest of the morning spent practicing painting watercolor landscapes from the beach. We might hike up the beach a ways to look for more landscape options with white beaches contrasting against dramatic black volcanic rock stretching out into the waves and tropical green vegetation dangling off the seaside cliffs. Lunch and siesta. Afternoon session: choose your own adventure or relax. Meet for cocktails and sunset painting before dinner. Optional night time nature journaling TBD.
- Day Five:
- Wake up to the sound of the ocean. Pre-breakfast session. Group breakfast. Today’s class: Amphibious nature journaling in the tide pools. Marley will instruct on different approaches to nature journaling the biodiversity and beauty of the intertidal zone. There will be various options depending on your ability. From snorkeling and waterproof paper, to sitting in “jacuzzi” tidepools sketching shells, to sketching collected specimens from the comfort of the hotel restaurant with a cappuccino at your side. Once again, we will go beyond nature journaling just for our own enjoyment. We will do a survey of the organisms we find and contribute to citizen science by uploading the survey to iNaturalist. Lunch and siesta. Afternoon session: choose your own adventure or relax. Meet for cocktails and sunset painting before dinner. Optional night time nature journaling TBD.
- Day Six:
- Wake up to the sound of the ocean. Pre-breakfast session. Group breakfast. Today’s class: All about sea turtles! We will visit a sea turtle conservation project and learn about how they have helped thousands of turtles. If we are lucky we could see a hatching day or adult turtles laying at night. We will also try to snorkel at a spot known to have turtles swimming. Night time hike looking for sea turtles coming in to lay???
- Day Seven:
- Wake up to the sound of the ocean. We might be recovering from a late night looking for nesting turtles. Group breakfast. Today’s class: Botanical sketching and illustration level two! Are you ready to go more in-depth with a polished plant illustration? Now is your chance. Marley will provide one-on-one instruction and we will have all morning to work on our specimen. Lunch and siesta. Afternoon session: Marley will provide tips for wrapping up your pages, adding maps, more detailed illustrations, and even some scrap-booking techniques. The idea is to get the most out of your journal pages from the trip. If you are feeling adventurous Marley might lead a few people to nature journal crabs in the nearby mangrove. Meet for cocktails and sunset painting before dinner. This is our last dinner together so we will de something special to honor the time we have spent together.
- Day Eight:
- Departure Day. This is your last day waking up in your cozy beach-side cabin. Say goodbye to Playa Negras beautiful waters. Our driver will take us all to the Liberia airport at the time that works for most people. If your flight is much earlier or much later you can decide to take your own transportation directly to the airport which will usually only cost between $30-$50.