Hawthorne School Puerto Rico 2026
May 26, 2026
It’s been a long day! We got to school at 5:30am this morning and were driven to JFK by Roman and Roy (Thank you so much).
Our plane departed New York around 12:30pm and we landed in Puerto Rico around 4:00pm. Randall from Global Works met us at the airport and led us to the guaguas (vans) that would take us to the big yellow house, which will be our home for the next several days. Once we arrived, we settled in and hung out for a bit before eating a delicious dinner of roast chicken, plantains, tostones, salad and rolls. After dinner, we talked about rules for the trip and developed a community contract. Then some of us played soccer in the rain while others relaxed around the big table outside. Tomorrow we head into Old San Juan for the day.
By Oliver
May 27, 2026
Hello dear parents, today’s blog is brought to you by Lee-Roy and Mike.
It was a warm sunny and humid day in San Juan. We started our day with a lovely breakfast which included sausages, scrambled eggs, and french toast. After we drove over to Old San Juan and had an educational enriched tour by a wonderful lady named Sara. We learned about the history of Puerto Rico and how it was founded and how it ended up becoming a US territory. After we went and visited the San Fernando del Morro which had a beautiful view which encapsulated both the Atlantic and Caribbean. After a long day of meaningful and academic exploration, we went to an authentic and traditional Puerto Rican restaurant and finished our day in Old San Juan with some shopping. After our drive back to the Big Yellow House, we had some downtime at the beach while learning some more about Puerto Rico because the best way to learn is to experience.
We want to end this blog by saying we appreciate all the work that you’ve put into getting us this far and making this experience possible.
Regards, Lee-Roy and Mike.
May 28, 2026
Good morning parents, from Ada and Dani.
We fortunately got to sleep in a little longer today. We had a wonderful breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and lots of fruit.
We then headed to Villa del Rio, Vega Alta. We met Angel and his lovely family and friends at the site, where we spent the morning and early afternoon. We had lunch at Maria’s house; they were all so welcoming and sweet. We got to meet so many of their pets (p.s. There were at least 10 dogs and cats together in their house.)
After a hot, humid, and hard work day, we went back to the Big Yellow House and had lots of beach time. Once we got home we got some downtime, had dinner, and chilled for the rest of the evening 🙂
It was so much fun and we’re really excited for the next couple of days!!
Best regards, Ada and Dani
May 29, 2026
Good evening class of 2026 parents, After an exhausting day yesterday, we all slept quite late leading to a hectic and fast rush to get to the work place on time. We then had another hard, but fulfilling work day interrupted by a quick break for lunch and petting kittens! We then headed back to the Big Yellow house where most of us enjoyed a relaxing swim/tan at the beach and a few individuals went to the market to grab some things. We then all got ready for a delicious dinner and dance class lead by the one and only Randall!! We learned Salsa, Merengue and Bachata and finished off the evening with a normal meeting.
Best wishes from Puerto Rico, Emery and Selma 🙂
May 30, 2026
Good evening parents from Finley and Emma! This morning we prepared for another work day a little sleepier than before, in a frenzy of doing laundry and eating a very tasty breakfast. The drive to the worksite was twisty as usual and our time there was shorter due to the fact that we were working with cement. To pass the time of running buckets back and forth there were frequent dance breaks as music blasted over the sound of the cement mixer. Chimelo, the morale booster dog kept everyone’s spirits up with little visits throughout this time. We had our final lunch at Maria’s house and headed to the beach where lots of sea shell collecting took place. It was very crowded but there was still enough room to play football and only mildly drown each other. Finally we headed back around 5 to clean up for a group dinner with the family and community members we had connected with through Global Works. Dinner was very delicious and was followed by lots of soccer, hide and seek and volleyball. At the end of this we all exchanged bracelets and final thoughts on the past three days that were very inspiring. The hard work and friendliness of all the people in the community was like a hug helping everyone along. We ended the day with ice cream to sweeten the goodbyes.
-Emma, & Finley
May 31, 2026
Happy Sunday to you all back home. Our morning was early, we started by packing up our belongings, to head to Charco Azul. On our drive we passed Bad Bunny’s house and saw where he grew up while singing along to his music. We made it to Vegas Baja where we would be tubing. Tubing was very beautiful and most of us ended up jumping into the water. After that we took an hour long nap on our way to San Juan for a tasty but exhausted lunch right on the ocean. We then went to our house in Luquillo to settle in for a much needed rest. This evening we packed up the van again to journey to El Yunque Rainforest. Little did we know the ride there would be the most memorable part of the evening. The road was so full of tight and winding curves going at almost 90 degrees up the mountain. We were severely nauseous before we even started our hike. Once we made it there we had a very chill walk in the forest looking at all sorts of cool insects. After that we had to face another treacherous journey back down the mountain before a pizza dinner at home. Wishing you all the best 💙💙
By Katary and Estrella
June 1, 2026
We started off the morning with an amazing breakfast and after that, we went to play in some insane waves that were very strong because of the tide. Being very wet and sandy, we all got ready to do some eating and shopping at a strip near the restaurant. Then we drove 45 minutes to do Bomba dancing which was very fun. All the people were super welcoming. After that, we came home and walked to dinner. The day definitely had some social bumps, but none we couldn’t overcome so we ended the night with a class walk on the beach and cards of humanity see you soon, family.♥️
-Justin
June 2, 2026
Hey everyone hope you’re all doing well. This is Harvey writing about our final full day of our senior trip to Puerto Rico. We began with a relaxing morning and breakfast around 8am. Some people got up earlier for yoga, which is cool. After breakfast, we set out on an adventurous paddle boarding expedition through the mandrake river reserve. We learned about the wildlife that inhabits these areas. Afterwards we had a nice lunch at a nearby café in town overlooking the ocean. I had a really good chicken wrap. The rest of the day was very chill and we all went to the beach and had a great time in the waves and enjoyed the sun. The water was very warm, nice and enjoyable. We came back to the house for a bit to play Yahtzee and chess etc. We had a nice dinner of steak and rice and finished the night off with a final group meeting with Randall. We all shared highlights of the trip. It was a really nice send off and a great way to leave this place in the best spirits and with the greatest memories. Though we are sad to leave this beautiful place, everyone misses their family and we look forward to coming back home. Lots of gratitude to Randall, Global Works, our chaperones and all of you for this wonderful experience!
By Harvey
