Later, they visit the home of a family that livs nearby and survives off the meager earnings of the dump.

Alanna Beitner a third year child and youth worker student is on the bus feeling uncomfortable with the surroundings, but taking it all in.

"I didn't know if I could get off the bus, but I wanted to be there and hear their story," she says in a post trip interview. "I told them how inspirational and resilient they were. I shook their hands and gave them a hug and I started crying and they started crying. She said, 'you make me feel like a human being.' and I said, 'you are a human being'."

Beitner was among a group of 15 child and youth worker students and two program graduates who returned April 2 from a service project trip to Nicaragua, creating memories that will last a lifetime.

The trip was not without its setbacks. Every student experienced some sort of illness or discomfort, ranging from infections, to stomach problems. But they persevered and were able to learn from the experience.

While there, child and youth workers were able to do what they do best: work with kids.

"We were in the grade five class and it was during an English lesson," Beitner says. "We taught them songs (We're Going on a Bear Hunt) and they taught us songs. They were a lot more attentive [than kids in Canada]. We walked in and immediately it was all eyes on us. I don't know if you can find that here. Kids are a lot more distracted. I don't know if you can find that level of engagement here."

"The kids in Haulover [had] no boundaries," third year student Angela Hamilton adds. "It partially made me feel really uncomfortable because we could have been bad people. I guess I just have a very Americanized mindset where you don't trust anybody you don't know. They didn't have that at all."

Many were upset when leaving Haulover, breaking connections they'd spent the past week making.

"I felt terrible leaving. Part of me didn't want to form relationships with them because I knew we'd be leaving and we'd be just another inconsistency in their life," Hamilton says.

The trip was scattered with long days of travel. The expedition led Algonquin students from the west coast of Nicaragua and the Pacific Ocean, to the east coast and the Atlantic.

"I'm someone who loves to look out the window and observe things so [it] really allowed me to see Nicaragua as a whole country," Hamilton says.

On one of the final days, the students were able to enjoy some recreation time.

Second year student Jessica Sigouin nervously approached the edge of the zip-line platform suspended 30 feet in the air. She tentatively wrapped her legs around the employee behind her. "Let go!" Another employee shouted from behind her. Suddenly, arms outstretched, she was flying through the air.

She had just pulled off the zip-lining maneuver known as the "super-chicka".

"It felt like I was flying and free."