Through a recent change in plans, my friend will no longer be able to come to Costa Rica, and I will be headed home tomorrow. So... I guess this will be my last blog post!
Four months ago today, I stepped off the plane and into a country I had never been to before and knew almost nothing about. And now, getting ready to leave for good, I feel that I know it so well it's become a second home. No matter how much planning I've done, nothing ever seems to turn out the way I thought it would, but I've started to actually look forward to being surprised. I've made friends from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Cuba, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Portugal, Italy, France, England, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and Taiwan, and I won't forget a single one of those people.
I have a pretty big couple of weeks coming up as I move out to Chicago and start college. It's going to be pretty weird not being here anymore! But I feel that I've grown as a person, and these past four months have definitely had a huge impact on my life. I know that I will take these experiences with me and that they will change how I experience things in my future.
On a final note, I'd like to thank everyone who's been reading this; as cheesy as it sounds, this blog has been my only grip on reality at times. I was watching Yes Man last night on TV, which I hadn't seen in forever and had completely forgotten about. For those of you who haven't seen it, you should, because it's a great movie about learning how to live, something I've definitely experienced this year. The best quote from the movie: "You say no to life, and therefore you're not living." I challenge all of you to try living for the next year, to say yes, and to experience things you never would have in the past. You never know what will happen.
Pura vida!
Lisa
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Santo Tomás
Back in Costa Rica... despite the difficulty with which I forced myself to get on the boat leaving Bocas del Toro, I was once again surprised at how happy I was to be back in San Jose. For all the crap it gets about its trash, traffic, and architecture (or lack thereof), it's really a fun city if you know where you're going.
Sleeping in a room by myself for the first time since I got back has been great, especially since I still seem to be fighting something. I've tried to lay pretty low for the last couple of days, since my oldest friend Dylan and his mom will be flying in tomorrow to spend my last eight days here with me. However, I did manage to get out for about an hour on Monday night and went to San Pedro with the usual gang: Silvia, Lisa, Eeva, and Mikkel. Then, I met up with Eeva yesterday afternoon, and we went to the mall and then saw The Town.
I got a pretty good shock about half an hour ago... I was walking down the street when who did I see coming towards me but Jeannette. For all the time I spent looking for her in Bocas, running into her in a city I didn't even know she was in was just too good. We only talked for a couple minutes but it was good to see her, since who knows if I ever will again!
Sleeping in a room by myself for the first time since I got back has been great, especially since I still seem to be fighting something. I've tried to lay pretty low for the last couple of days, since my oldest friend Dylan and his mom will be flying in tomorrow to spend my last eight days here with me. However, I did manage to get out for about an hour on Monday night and went to San Pedro with the usual gang: Silvia, Lisa, Eeva, and Mikkel. Then, I met up with Eeva yesterday afternoon, and we went to the mall and then saw The Town.
I got a pretty good shock about half an hour ago... I was walking down the street when who did I see coming towards me but Jeannette. For all the time I spent looking for her in Bocas, running into her in a city I didn't even know she was in was just too good. We only talked for a couple minutes but it was good to see her, since who knows if I ever will again!
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Drago
Last night in Panama! I've had so much fun here and I'll be really sad to leave... hopefully I'll be able to come back soon.
I spent most of Friday afternoon walking around and looking for Jeannette, but still haven't found her. I finally gave up around 8 and went around to all of the various parties that were going on, but since there were so many, nobody ever ended up in the same place and it was hard to find anyone. It was a pretty uneventful night.
Yesterday was very relaxing, I got a couple books at the used book store I found nearby and spent most of the day reading. Around dinner time I headed over to the Natural Mystic Cafe, which is probably my favorite place to eat here, and ran into Jason, one of the guys I see around town a lot. We met three guys in the Coast Guard whose ship had stopped here for a couple days (if y'all are reading this.... Ready? Okay!!) and hung out there for a while, then took a boat to Aqua Lounge, a hostel / bar / dance club on a nearby island. They had a techno party going on, and it was all fun and games until one of the Coast Guard guys decided to get funny and throw me into the ocean. I didn't last too much longer in my wet clothes and headed back to the Gran Kahuna, only to find that the battery on the fire alarm was low and it was beeping so loudly that no one could sleep. The fire alarm box was locked and we couldn't turn it off. By the time I finally fell asleep it was very late and I managed to sleep until after noon today.
After I woke up, I headed over to one of the local beaches with Jason for the afternoon. Then, we went to a restaurant for dinner that gave away a free kayak rental with every $10 spent, so we kayaked around the island until it got dark. We came back to the Natural Mystic again, but it was too hot and they were out of almost everything so I came back to the hostel.
I have to get up early tomorrow to catch the bus to San Jose, so I'd better be getting to bed...
I spent most of Friday afternoon walking around and looking for Jeannette, but still haven't found her. I finally gave up around 8 and went around to all of the various parties that were going on, but since there were so many, nobody ever ended up in the same place and it was hard to find anyone. It was a pretty uneventful night.
Yesterday was very relaxing, I got a couple books at the used book store I found nearby and spent most of the day reading. Around dinner time I headed over to the Natural Mystic Cafe, which is probably my favorite place to eat here, and ran into Jason, one of the guys I see around town a lot. We met three guys in the Coast Guard whose ship had stopped here for a couple days (if y'all are reading this.... Ready? Okay!!) and hung out there for a while, then took a boat to Aqua Lounge, a hostel / bar / dance club on a nearby island. They had a techno party going on, and it was all fun and games until one of the Coast Guard guys decided to get funny and throw me into the ocean. I didn't last too much longer in my wet clothes and headed back to the Gran Kahuna, only to find that the battery on the fire alarm was low and it was beeping so loudly that no one could sleep. The fire alarm box was locked and we couldn't turn it off. By the time I finally fell asleep it was very late and I managed to sleep until after noon today.
After I woke up, I headed over to one of the local beaches with Jason for the afternoon. Then, we went to a restaurant for dinner that gave away a free kayak rental with every $10 spent, so we kayaked around the island until it got dark. We came back to the Natural Mystic again, but it was too hot and they were out of almost everything so I came back to the hostel.
I have to get up early tomorrow to catch the bus to San Jose, so I'd better be getting to bed...
Friday, December 10, 2010
Salio el Sol
The sun is finally out!!!!!!!
It's an absolutely gorgeous day on the island, which would be really great if I wasn't really sick, and even better if I had a clean bathing suit - I brought all my clothes to the lavandería this morning to be washed since, I'm embarrassed to admit, they hadn't been washed since my parents left to go back home two weeks ago.
Last night was ladies' night at La Iguana, a bar across the street, so I went with a group of girls from the hostel. It was really fun, and we all wore our bathing suits so that we could jump off the edge of the dance floor and go swimming. We saw a ton of starfish, too!
I found out this morning that Jeannette, who I worked with at FUDEBIOL, is in Bocas del Toro! I haven't seen her yet, but I'm sure we'll run into each other at some point.
It's an absolutely gorgeous day on the island, which would be really great if I wasn't really sick, and even better if I had a clean bathing suit - I brought all my clothes to the lavandería this morning to be washed since, I'm embarrassed to admit, they hadn't been washed since my parents left to go back home two weeks ago.
Last night was ladies' night at La Iguana, a bar across the street, so I went with a group of girls from the hostel. It was really fun, and we all wore our bathing suits so that we could jump off the edge of the dance floor and go swimming. We saw a ton of starfish, too!
I found out this morning that Jeannette, who I worked with at FUDEBIOL, is in Bocas del Toro! I haven't seen her yet, but I'm sure we'll run into each other at some point.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
"So I see you've met my sister..."
Another day on Isla de Bocas... Martin left earlier this morning to go back to Uvita, and I decided to stay here for another 4 or 5 nights. I switched hostels because there was another one close by called Gran Kahuna that was in a better location, was $2.50 less per night, and seemed to be better for people traveling alone.
Last night, there was live music at Casa Verde, and a pretty good reggae band played. After it was over, a few people from the hostel said that they were going to a nearby island to a "clown party" and asked me if I wanted to go. We took a water taxi to an island about 5 minutes away where, sure enough, there was a party where everyone was dressed as clowns.
This morning after Martin left, I walked around for a while, had some really good coffee, and talked to a few locals. I had been wondering recently how so many people seemed to know ahead of time that I had been in Costa Rica. Finally, I was talking to the owner of a craft shop, and he asked me if I was living in Costa Rica. I asked him how he knew, and he said, "Your accent is very Costa Rican." I'm taking this as good news, because I hadn't realized I spoke Spanish well enough to have any accent other than an American one.
Finally... I have pictures!!!! Here it goes.
Last night, there was live music at Casa Verde, and a pretty good reggae band played. After it was over, a few people from the hostel said that they were going to a nearby island to a "clown party" and asked me if I wanted to go. We took a water taxi to an island about 5 minutes away where, sure enough, there was a party where everyone was dressed as clowns.
This morning after Martin left, I walked around for a while, had some really good coffee, and talked to a few locals. I had been wondering recently how so many people seemed to know ahead of time that I had been in Costa Rica. Finally, I was talking to the owner of a craft shop, and he asked me if I was living in Costa Rica. I asked him how he knew, and he said, "Your accent is very Costa Rican." I'm taking this as good news, because I hadn't realized I spoke Spanish well enough to have any accent other than an American one.
Finally... I have pictures!!!! Here it goes.
Sunset in David
Dominos delivery bikes in David!
The street the hostel was on, also in David
On the boat from Almirantes out to the island
The reggae band that played at Casa Verde... and a guy trying to get out of the picture
The park in Isla de Bocas
Isla de Bocas
The hostel I'm staying at
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
La Mama Loca
Hello again!
Still on Isla de Bocas. The weather wasn't much better today, but the sun sort of poked its head through the clouds for a couple hours so we were able to sit outside for a couple hours. We didn't get up early enough for the snorkel tour that left at 9:30 this morning. Tomorrow, Martin's 72 hours out of Costa Rica will be over, so he'll be heading back in the morning. But I'm enjoying the island so much that I think I'm going to stay for a while longer! I'm thinking about renting a bike for a few days and biking around the island, I've heard there are a lot of beautiful beaches - or maybe even getting SCUBA certified!
Also, I know I say this a lot, but I'm going to TRY to put up some pictures!!!!!!!! Tomorrow?
Still on Isla de Bocas. The weather wasn't much better today, but the sun sort of poked its head through the clouds for a couple hours so we were able to sit outside for a couple hours. We didn't get up early enough for the snorkel tour that left at 9:30 this morning. Tomorrow, Martin's 72 hours out of Costa Rica will be over, so he'll be heading back in the morning. But I'm enjoying the island so much that I think I'm going to stay for a while longer! I'm thinking about renting a bike for a few days and biking around the island, I've heard there are a lot of beautiful beaches - or maybe even getting SCUBA certified!
Also, I know I say this a lot, but I'm going to TRY to put up some pictures!!!!!!!! Tomorrow?
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Waka Waka
It's another crazy adventure! But at this point, I've learned to expect nothing less.
We finished out our time in David. My predictions were right, and we ran out of things to do after the first day. We went to go see Harry Potter 7 Part 1 and another movie called Devil in one night, and pretty much spent the rest of the time hanging out at the hostel.
Yesterday morning we tried to go back to Costa Rica, only to find out at the border that when we went through customs the first time, we didn't get a stamp into Panama, just a stamp out of Costa Rica. Anyone else find it funny that the official who checked our passports didn't say anything about this? So we couldn't go back to Panama, because we were there illegally, but we couldn't go to Costa Rica either because they wouldn't let us back in. We had to go hire a lawyer to write letters to the customs officials telling them to cancel our exit stamp, which basically means that we never went to Panama. Which is great, except that Martin still had to renew his visa for Costa Rica by leaving the country for 72 hours.
Back to Panama.
We got back on the bus to David, but couldn't really stand the thought of another 3 days there, so we walked around the bus terminal and eventually decided to go to Bocas del Toro. This, as we found out a little bit too late, involved a 5 hour ride to Almirantes. It was 11 PM and pouring rain by the time we got there, and there were no water taxis leaving, so we had to stay there overnight. Then we got up first thing this morning and got on a boat to Isla Bocas! The weather isn't great still, but so far it's been awesome, and really beautiful. The hostel we're staying at, Casa Verde, is on stilts just above the water, and if you sit on the edge of the porch you can look right down and see fish. We're thinking about taking a snorkel tour tomorrow if it's nice. But for now, we're happy to just sit back and relax.
We finished out our time in David. My predictions were right, and we ran out of things to do after the first day. We went to go see Harry Potter 7 Part 1 and another movie called Devil in one night, and pretty much spent the rest of the time hanging out at the hostel.
Yesterday morning we tried to go back to Costa Rica, only to find out at the border that when we went through customs the first time, we didn't get a stamp into Panama, just a stamp out of Costa Rica. Anyone else find it funny that the official who checked our passports didn't say anything about this? So we couldn't go back to Panama, because we were there illegally, but we couldn't go to Costa Rica either because they wouldn't let us back in. We had to go hire a lawyer to write letters to the customs officials telling them to cancel our exit stamp, which basically means that we never went to Panama. Which is great, except that Martin still had to renew his visa for Costa Rica by leaving the country for 72 hours.
Back to Panama.
We got back on the bus to David, but couldn't really stand the thought of another 3 days there, so we walked around the bus terminal and eventually decided to go to Bocas del Toro. This, as we found out a little bit too late, involved a 5 hour ride to Almirantes. It was 11 PM and pouring rain by the time we got there, and there were no water taxis leaving, so we had to stay there overnight. Then we got up first thing this morning and got on a boat to Isla Bocas! The weather isn't great still, but so far it's been awesome, and really beautiful. The hostel we're staying at, Casa Verde, is on stilts just above the water, and if you sit on the edge of the porch you can look right down and see fish. We're thinking about taking a snorkel tour tomorrow if it's nice. But for now, we're happy to just sit back and relax.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
David
I made it to Panama!
Yesterday was a pretty long day. Martin and I got up and left the Flutterby House in time to catch the 8 AM bus out of Uvita, but accidentally went to the wrong stop and weren't able to get on another until 11. The bus took us down to Ciudad Neily, where we then had to get on another bus to Paso Canoas, the Panama border. By the time we got there, it was around 4. Customs took almost an hour after we went through the line once, only to find out that there were forms we needed to fill out before we got into line. Take two. After we got our stamps, we walked across the border where we took the first bus we could find, which happened to be going to a city named David. The bus crossed a border checkpoint and had to stop. An officer got on the bus and looked at each row. Then he walked to the back of the bus and checked my passport. He checked Martin's too. Without checking any of the other 30 people on the bus, he got off and we continued on. Racial profiling!
We had no idea where we were going, so we stayed on the bus until the last stop and ended up in a large bus terminal in what we could only assume was David. It was around 6 and we were very hungry, so we walked across the street to a restaurant where we were served huge plates of some of the best food I've ever had, all at $3 each. Martin managed to completely demolish his in under 4 minutes before eating half of mine, all between sips of beer that I could hardly choke down but he insisted "tastes like vater".
Germans.
After this, we found an internet cafe where we looked up hostels in David and found out that there were only two, both on the same block. We spent about 10 minutes comparing the two websites and decided to go to the one with the pool which, at $8.80 a night, was 95 cents more expensive than the other. We wrote down the address and got in a taxi. 20 minutes and only $1.50 later we were at the Bambu Hostel. The owner, a guy from New York City, was pretty cool. He showed us around the hostel, introducing us to his two dogs who he rescued off the street but are some of the friendliest and sweetest dogs I've ever known. We told him we had just come from Costa Rica. "Oh, cool," he said, "There was a guy here a couple weeks ago who had just come from there, too. Said he volunteered at some place called... the Flutterby House, I think?" So Ryan's been here! We also ran into a German family who had stayed there as well, with two little boys who Martin had given surf lessons too. At least now he has someone to talk to, he's been forgetting that I don't understand any of it and keeps starting conversations with me in German.
Once we were settled in, we went across the street to a bar where I watched in amazement as Martin ate ANOTHER huge plate of food, this one for only $2, after which he said that he was maybe only a little bit hungry now. I have come to a conclusion: either Martin is a tank, or he's pregnant.
We went out to the pool but were disappointed to see that the surface was covered in dead bugs and hair, so ended up just sticking our feet in and then going to bed early. I hadn't even realized how exhausted I was until my head hit the pillow and I passed out for a solid 10 hours.
This morning, we got up and walked to a nearby grocery store. Huge, shiny, and filled with more amazing food than I've seen in my entire life. We spent half an hour running around the store happily like children and got a ton of food for less than $10. Since then, we've been hanging out at the hostel, enjoying the nice weather. Now we're going to lunch, and then we'll go see a movie because they're in English and only $3. After that, I think we'll have done pretty much everything there is to do here, so we might have to get creative!
Yesterday was a pretty long day. Martin and I got up and left the Flutterby House in time to catch the 8 AM bus out of Uvita, but accidentally went to the wrong stop and weren't able to get on another until 11. The bus took us down to Ciudad Neily, where we then had to get on another bus to Paso Canoas, the Panama border. By the time we got there, it was around 4. Customs took almost an hour after we went through the line once, only to find out that there were forms we needed to fill out before we got into line. Take two. After we got our stamps, we walked across the border where we took the first bus we could find, which happened to be going to a city named David. The bus crossed a border checkpoint and had to stop. An officer got on the bus and looked at each row. Then he walked to the back of the bus and checked my passport. He checked Martin's too. Without checking any of the other 30 people on the bus, he got off and we continued on. Racial profiling!
We had no idea where we were going, so we stayed on the bus until the last stop and ended up in a large bus terminal in what we could only assume was David. It was around 6 and we were very hungry, so we walked across the street to a restaurant where we were served huge plates of some of the best food I've ever had, all at $3 each. Martin managed to completely demolish his in under 4 minutes before eating half of mine, all between sips of beer that I could hardly choke down but he insisted "tastes like vater".
Germans.
After this, we found an internet cafe where we looked up hostels in David and found out that there were only two, both on the same block. We spent about 10 minutes comparing the two websites and decided to go to the one with the pool which, at $8.80 a night, was 95 cents more expensive than the other. We wrote down the address and got in a taxi. 20 minutes and only $1.50 later we were at the Bambu Hostel. The owner, a guy from New York City, was pretty cool. He showed us around the hostel, introducing us to his two dogs who he rescued off the street but are some of the friendliest and sweetest dogs I've ever known. We told him we had just come from Costa Rica. "Oh, cool," he said, "There was a guy here a couple weeks ago who had just come from there, too. Said he volunteered at some place called... the Flutterby House, I think?" So Ryan's been here! We also ran into a German family who had stayed there as well, with two little boys who Martin had given surf lessons too. At least now he has someone to talk to, he's been forgetting that I don't understand any of it and keeps starting conversations with me in German.
Once we were settled in, we went across the street to a bar where I watched in amazement as Martin ate ANOTHER huge plate of food, this one for only $2, after which he said that he was maybe only a little bit hungry now. I have come to a conclusion: either Martin is a tank, or he's pregnant.
We went out to the pool but were disappointed to see that the surface was covered in dead bugs and hair, so ended up just sticking our feet in and then going to bed early. I hadn't even realized how exhausted I was until my head hit the pillow and I passed out for a solid 10 hours.
This morning, we got up and walked to a nearby grocery store. Huge, shiny, and filled with more amazing food than I've seen in my entire life. We spent half an hour running around the store happily like children and got a ton of food for less than $10. Since then, we've been hanging out at the hostel, enjoying the nice weather. Now we're going to lunch, and then we'll go see a movie because they're in English and only $3. After that, I think we'll have done pretty much everything there is to do here, so we might have to get creative!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
I'm back!
It's been over a month since my last post. I didn't think I would be back on here, but then I remembered all the people I've met during my travels whose only contact with me is through this blog and realized that I left off in a pretty bad place. Plus, the adventure has begun again, so I guess I have something more to write about!
I managed to get on a bus to San Jose the next day, Sunday, with the help of a group of students who were staying at the hostel. It was a 10-hour trip in total, from leaving the Flutterby to getting to the San Jose hostel, partially because on a walking speed scale of bag lady to 10, I was slower than the bag lady. By the time I got there, I was completely exhausted and in a lot of pain. To make a very long story short, 24 hours later I was landing at Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C. I'd had a meeting at the ACI office that morning and because of certain reasons decided to leave the program.
Being home was really, really, really weird. Everyone was speaking English. The streets were way too organized. And I kept dropping coins between my fingers because they're so much smaller. I got to see a couple friends and visit my old cheerleading team, but still, after a couple days, I was bored. One night, my mom had the idea that I should try to start college in January instead of waiting until May. I didn't think they would let me, and I wasn't sure if I wanted to, but out of curiosity I called the admissions office the next morning and asked if it would be possible. The man there asked me to wait while he checked and came back a minute later. "That's fine. We'll see you in January, Ms Bernardi." And he hung up.
The next morning I got up early and flew to Chicago to look for apartments. I only ended up seeing three, because I completely fell in love with the second one, but felt bad about canceling my last appointment for the day only half an hour ahead of time so I went. After I got back to Virginia, it was a weeklong rush of Ikea trips and a lot of packing before I left with my family to come back to Costa Rica. I only slept 3 nights that week. Which, in retrospect, was a really good idea because I was out cold for the entire plane trip and it made it seem really, really short.
I spent all of last week here with my family. We stayed the first 2 nights in Uvita at a nice hotel on a mountain with an ocean view. My dad and I drove out to San Isidro one day to get my backpack from my 2nd host family, who was very nice and said that next time I wanted to volunteer in Costa Rica I should skip the program, save $5,500 and come straight to them. I asked my host sister to come visit me in the United States. I hope she will. After that, we went up to a huge resort just north of Jaco for 4 nights, where I found a pretty solid group of people to hang out with and spent almost the entire time playing volleyball and soccer.
My parents left, and I went back down to the Flutterby House, where I'm staying now. I've been here for 3 nights and am on my 5th book. The weather has been pretty bad the last couple days so all I've done is read, but I'm hoping it gets nicer today so that I can at least go to the beach. But with all the craziness that's happened in the last few weeks it certainly feels like life has reached some sort of normal: Keith is singing reggae in the shower, Ryan rearranged the kitchen (again), and Max the dog keeps getting stuck in my treehouse. I'm going to Panama with Martin sometime in the next couple of days, who knows when and who knows for how long - we're great at planning. I go home on Christmas Eve... 23 days may seem like a lot of time to have left, but after 3 months here, I know it's going to be too short!
I managed to get on a bus to San Jose the next day, Sunday, with the help of a group of students who were staying at the hostel. It was a 10-hour trip in total, from leaving the Flutterby to getting to the San Jose hostel, partially because on a walking speed scale of bag lady to 10, I was slower than the bag lady. By the time I got there, I was completely exhausted and in a lot of pain. To make a very long story short, 24 hours later I was landing at Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C. I'd had a meeting at the ACI office that morning and because of certain reasons decided to leave the program.
Being home was really, really, really weird. Everyone was speaking English. The streets were way too organized. And I kept dropping coins between my fingers because they're so much smaller. I got to see a couple friends and visit my old cheerleading team, but still, after a couple days, I was bored. One night, my mom had the idea that I should try to start college in January instead of waiting until May. I didn't think they would let me, and I wasn't sure if I wanted to, but out of curiosity I called the admissions office the next morning and asked if it would be possible. The man there asked me to wait while he checked and came back a minute later. "That's fine. We'll see you in January, Ms Bernardi." And he hung up.
The next morning I got up early and flew to Chicago to look for apartments. I only ended up seeing three, because I completely fell in love with the second one, but felt bad about canceling my last appointment for the day only half an hour ahead of time so I went. After I got back to Virginia, it was a weeklong rush of Ikea trips and a lot of packing before I left with my family to come back to Costa Rica. I only slept 3 nights that week. Which, in retrospect, was a really good idea because I was out cold for the entire plane trip and it made it seem really, really short.
I spent all of last week here with my family. We stayed the first 2 nights in Uvita at a nice hotel on a mountain with an ocean view. My dad and I drove out to San Isidro one day to get my backpack from my 2nd host family, who was very nice and said that next time I wanted to volunteer in Costa Rica I should skip the program, save $5,500 and come straight to them. I asked my host sister to come visit me in the United States. I hope she will. After that, we went up to a huge resort just north of Jaco for 4 nights, where I found a pretty solid group of people to hang out with and spent almost the entire time playing volleyball and soccer.
My parents left, and I went back down to the Flutterby House, where I'm staying now. I've been here for 3 nights and am on my 5th book. The weather has been pretty bad the last couple days so all I've done is read, but I'm hoping it gets nicer today so that I can at least go to the beach. But with all the craziness that's happened in the last few weeks it certainly feels like life has reached some sort of normal: Keith is singing reggae in the shower, Ryan rearranged the kitchen (again), and Max the dog keeps getting stuck in my treehouse. I'm going to Panama with Martin sometime in the next couple of days, who knows when and who knows for how long - we're great at planning. I go home on Christmas Eve... 23 days may seem like a lot of time to have left, but after 3 months here, I know it's going to be too short!
Saturday, October 30, 2010
The Adventure Continues
There are a lot of things I love about Costa Rica. I love the plants and animals, the people I meet, and how ridiculously cheap everything is. But what I love most is that when you ask, Costa Rica delivers. I wanted an adventure, and an adventure is surely what I have gotten.
On Thursday morning, I went to the bus station with Jacki as planned, but found out that for whatever reason we couldn't get tickets for the morning bus - either it wasn't running or it was sold out, we're not sure. So I decided to take the 4:00 PM one and go by myself, stay overnight at the Flutterby House in Uvita, then go back in the morning.
I got on the 4:00 bus, getting to my old house in Coronado just before 7. I packed my suitcase, and at 7:30 a taxi came to pick me up and take me to Uvita. The rain was coming down pretty hard, and by the time we got to Uvita, the roads were starting to flood. Finally, the taxi driver said that he couldn't go any farther. I explained that I needed to get to the hostel because I had nowhere else to say, and he said that I could come sleep at his house. Of course, my common sense said not to go home with a strange man I had just met, and we were only about a 5 minute walk from the hostel, so I said that I would walk the rest of the way. I only had clothes and books in my suitcase, so I asked if I could come pick it up from him in the morning - he owns a fish market on the way to the bus stop. He said that would be fine, and I went on my way.
When I got out of the taxi, the water was just above my ankles. But as I kept walking, it got pregressively deeper until it was above my knees. Then, the ground under me gave out without warning and before I knew it I was completely underwater, being pulled away by a current. I grabbed onto the first thing I could find, I think it was a big rock, and pulled myself out of the current and back onto my feet. At that point I realized that going any farther would be a death wish - I hadn't crossed the bridge over the river yet.
I started backtracking until I passed a house with lights on and a lady standing in the doorway waving at me, and I waded up to the front door. I explained that I was from the United States but couldn't get to the place where I was staying because of the water. She handed me a towel and brought me into her bedroom, telling me that I could stay the night there and she would sleep in her children's bedroom. (Costa Rican hospitality - amazing.) It wasn't until she had left that I looked down and realized several things: 1) I was wet and filthy. My previously white shorts and tank top were now dark brown. I had no change of clothes. 2) My cell phone, iPod, and camera (yeah, my big Canon Rebel T1i) were waterlogged and most likely kaputt. 3) The last person to see me was the taxi driver, who had dropped me off on a dark, flooded street. The Flutterby House was expecting me, and had given me the phone number of the taxi, so would probably call him when I didn't show up. I had no way of calling anyone to tell them where I was and that I was okay. 4) There was blood all over the floor. I lifted up my feet and saw that the bottoms were completely cut up. I vaguely remembered stepping on something sharp but couldn't really remember. But I was so exhausted that I didn't even care, so I laid down and fell right asleep.
I woke up a few hours later. It was still dark and my feet were hurting very badly, and I knew that I needed to do something to clean them up. I looked outside and saw that the rain had stopped and the streets were all clear. I left some money for the family on my pillow, and set off in the direction of the Flutterby House. Ten minutes and a lot of limping later, I was outside the gate. I rang the bell, and the dogs took care of the rest - a very groggy Neil showed up two minutes later. He took one look at me and asked what had happened. I told him, and he called for Pam, who got me a clean towel and sheets and some disinfectant. I took a hot shower and went right up to bed... it was 2:30.
Since then, I have been staying at the Flutterby House. It turns out that Thursday night was one of the worst rainfalls they've had all year. The supports for the bridge up to Dominical were washed away, and between all the landslides and fallen trees we can't leave Uvita. They're hoping that there will be a way to get to San Jose by tomorrow, if it doesn't rain too much more, and even then it's just a maybe. There's a slight chance that if it keeps raining too badly I'll be stuck here for days or even weeks. We bandaged up my feet pretty well but it's very difficult to walk, and the less I do so the faster it will heal. If I can get to San Jose tomorrow, I will take the opportunity... and then from there will be able to get back home to San Isidro.
Time will tell.......
On Thursday morning, I went to the bus station with Jacki as planned, but found out that for whatever reason we couldn't get tickets for the morning bus - either it wasn't running or it was sold out, we're not sure. So I decided to take the 4:00 PM one and go by myself, stay overnight at the Flutterby House in Uvita, then go back in the morning.
I got on the 4:00 bus, getting to my old house in Coronado just before 7. I packed my suitcase, and at 7:30 a taxi came to pick me up and take me to Uvita. The rain was coming down pretty hard, and by the time we got to Uvita, the roads were starting to flood. Finally, the taxi driver said that he couldn't go any farther. I explained that I needed to get to the hostel because I had nowhere else to say, and he said that I could come sleep at his house. Of course, my common sense said not to go home with a strange man I had just met, and we were only about a 5 minute walk from the hostel, so I said that I would walk the rest of the way. I only had clothes and books in my suitcase, so I asked if I could come pick it up from him in the morning - he owns a fish market on the way to the bus stop. He said that would be fine, and I went on my way.
When I got out of the taxi, the water was just above my ankles. But as I kept walking, it got pregressively deeper until it was above my knees. Then, the ground under me gave out without warning and before I knew it I was completely underwater, being pulled away by a current. I grabbed onto the first thing I could find, I think it was a big rock, and pulled myself out of the current and back onto my feet. At that point I realized that going any farther would be a death wish - I hadn't crossed the bridge over the river yet.
I started backtracking until I passed a house with lights on and a lady standing in the doorway waving at me, and I waded up to the front door. I explained that I was from the United States but couldn't get to the place where I was staying because of the water. She handed me a towel and brought me into her bedroom, telling me that I could stay the night there and she would sleep in her children's bedroom. (Costa Rican hospitality - amazing.) It wasn't until she had left that I looked down and realized several things: 1) I was wet and filthy. My previously white shorts and tank top were now dark brown. I had no change of clothes. 2) My cell phone, iPod, and camera (yeah, my big Canon Rebel T1i) were waterlogged and most likely kaputt. 3) The last person to see me was the taxi driver, who had dropped me off on a dark, flooded street. The Flutterby House was expecting me, and had given me the phone number of the taxi, so would probably call him when I didn't show up. I had no way of calling anyone to tell them where I was and that I was okay. 4) There was blood all over the floor. I lifted up my feet and saw that the bottoms were completely cut up. I vaguely remembered stepping on something sharp but couldn't really remember. But I was so exhausted that I didn't even care, so I laid down and fell right asleep.
I woke up a few hours later. It was still dark and my feet were hurting very badly, and I knew that I needed to do something to clean them up. I looked outside and saw that the rain had stopped and the streets were all clear. I left some money for the family on my pillow, and set off in the direction of the Flutterby House. Ten minutes and a lot of limping later, I was outside the gate. I rang the bell, and the dogs took care of the rest - a very groggy Neil showed up two minutes later. He took one look at me and asked what had happened. I told him, and he called for Pam, who got me a clean towel and sheets and some disinfectant. I took a hot shower and went right up to bed... it was 2:30.
Since then, I have been staying at the Flutterby House. It turns out that Thursday night was one of the worst rainfalls they've had all year. The supports for the bridge up to Dominical were washed away, and between all the landslides and fallen trees we can't leave Uvita. They're hoping that there will be a way to get to San Jose by tomorrow, if it doesn't rain too much more, and even then it's just a maybe. There's a slight chance that if it keeps raining too badly I'll be stuck here for days or even weeks. We bandaged up my feet pretty well but it's very difficult to walk, and the less I do so the faster it will heal. If I can get to San Jose tomorrow, I will take the opportunity... and then from there will be able to get back home to San Isidro.
Time will tell.......
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
La India Dormida
Hola hola hola hola! Phew.
I've pretty much been in continuous motion since I got to Quebradas on Sunday evening. It's amazing how much more I have to do than I did before, so the move from Coronado de Osa has definitely been a positive change.
Monday night I stayed in with my host family. My host sister has exams right now at the high school, so she needed to use the computer which is in my bedroom, but we ended up just playing music and dancing around the house so I'm pretty sure she didn't get any studying done. The rest of the family laughed at us for about an hour, and then the grandmother tried to join in. She's very old, uses a walker, is blind in one eye, only comes up to about my shoulder, and with her flower dresses and aprons is probably the cutest thing I've ever seen.
Yesterday morning was my first day working at FUDEBIOL, since we work from Tuesday to Saturday and get Sunday and Monday off. I woke up at 4:45 to go power walking with my host mom and two other ladies in the neighborhood. They were actually pretty hard to keep up with! We walked for about half an hour up the mountain, then I ran back down ahead of them so that I could shower and get dressed before breakfast.
At 7, Jeannette met me in front of my house and we started up to the biological center. Jacki and Katie work at the local school on Tuesdays, so it was just the two of us. Neither of us had been before and had absolutely no idea what we were in for until we had collapsed half an hour later on a steep incline that showed no signs of flattening out anytime soon. Finally, we reached a gate that looked like it was the biological reserve and excitedly ran down the driveway where we met two very nice farmers who seemed happy to see us but had absolutely no idea who we were or what we were doing there. After we explained that we were exchange volunteers from ACI, they laughed and pointed up the mountain to the REAL biological center. We climbed for about five or ten more minutes and then were finally there. We were given a tour of the central area by Don Jesus, who I think will pretty much be in charge of us, and met the four high school boys who are living and working at the center for four weeks as a project for school. We decided to pull weeds in the garden until lunchtime when it started raining. After that, we were allowed to use the computer room to go on the internet until 2 PM when we made the journey back down the hill.
After we got home (and took very long showers) Jeannette and I took the bus into San Isidro and went to the supermarket to buy ingredients for chocolate chip cookies. We got back to my host family's house only to realize that the oven was broken. They have a smaller oven as well, but only the bottom part was working, so our cookies cooked from the bottom up and we had to flip them over in order to get them fully cooked. They weren't the best we'd ever had, but I guess my host family liked them because when I got back from work today they were gone.
I overslept this morning until about 5:30 (am I really calling that oversleeping?) and missed power walking, but I'm not sure how well I would have done because once I left for work with Jeannette and Jacki I realized how sore certain parts of my body were (e.g. my butt) and by the time we finally reached FUDEBIOL Jeannette and I could barely stand up. Jacki has been doing this for about two months so she's an expert at it by now. Just for kicks, we stopped to say hello to our friends at the farm ten minutes below the center and spent some time playing with the puppies there.
Now I'm at an internet cafe only about a 5 minute walk from my house in Quebradas. In the morning, I have to go back to Coronado to pick up the rest of my things there, but Jacki has been nice enough to offer to go with me. In the evening, I'm going with her to dance class in San Isidro, which I'm really excited about!
It's been a really long time since I put up any pictures, and I really want to... I have to get back home for dinner now but I'm really hoping that I'll be able to soon!
I've pretty much been in continuous motion since I got to Quebradas on Sunday evening. It's amazing how much more I have to do than I did before, so the move from Coronado de Osa has definitely been a positive change.
Monday night I stayed in with my host family. My host sister has exams right now at the high school, so she needed to use the computer which is in my bedroom, but we ended up just playing music and dancing around the house so I'm pretty sure she didn't get any studying done. The rest of the family laughed at us for about an hour, and then the grandmother tried to join in. She's very old, uses a walker, is blind in one eye, only comes up to about my shoulder, and with her flower dresses and aprons is probably the cutest thing I've ever seen.
Yesterday morning was my first day working at FUDEBIOL, since we work from Tuesday to Saturday and get Sunday and Monday off. I woke up at 4:45 to go power walking with my host mom and two other ladies in the neighborhood. They were actually pretty hard to keep up with! We walked for about half an hour up the mountain, then I ran back down ahead of them so that I could shower and get dressed before breakfast.
At 7, Jeannette met me in front of my house and we started up to the biological center. Jacki and Katie work at the local school on Tuesdays, so it was just the two of us. Neither of us had been before and had absolutely no idea what we were in for until we had collapsed half an hour later on a steep incline that showed no signs of flattening out anytime soon. Finally, we reached a gate that looked like it was the biological reserve and excitedly ran down the driveway where we met two very nice farmers who seemed happy to see us but had absolutely no idea who we were or what we were doing there. After we explained that we were exchange volunteers from ACI, they laughed and pointed up the mountain to the REAL biological center. We climbed for about five or ten more minutes and then were finally there. We were given a tour of the central area by Don Jesus, who I think will pretty much be in charge of us, and met the four high school boys who are living and working at the center for four weeks as a project for school. We decided to pull weeds in the garden until lunchtime when it started raining. After that, we were allowed to use the computer room to go on the internet until 2 PM when we made the journey back down the hill.
After we got home (and took very long showers) Jeannette and I took the bus into San Isidro and went to the supermarket to buy ingredients for chocolate chip cookies. We got back to my host family's house only to realize that the oven was broken. They have a smaller oven as well, but only the bottom part was working, so our cookies cooked from the bottom up and we had to flip them over in order to get them fully cooked. They weren't the best we'd ever had, but I guess my host family liked them because when I got back from work today they were gone.
I overslept this morning until about 5:30 (am I really calling that oversleeping?) and missed power walking, but I'm not sure how well I would have done because once I left for work with Jeannette and Jacki I realized how sore certain parts of my body were (e.g. my butt) and by the time we finally reached FUDEBIOL Jeannette and I could barely stand up. Jacki has been doing this for about two months so she's an expert at it by now. Just for kicks, we stopped to say hello to our friends at the farm ten minutes below the center and spent some time playing with the puppies there.
Now I'm at an internet cafe only about a 5 minute walk from my house in Quebradas. In the morning, I have to go back to Coronado to pick up the rest of my things there, but Jacki has been nice enough to offer to go with me. In the evening, I'm going with her to dance class in San Isidro, which I'm really excited about!
It's been a really long time since I put up any pictures, and I really want to... I have to get back home for dinner now but I'm really hoping that I'll be able to soon!
Monday, October 25, 2010
Quebradas
Quite a lot has happened in the past week. I feel that it would be somewhat unprofessional of me to go into too much detail, but for certain finacial reasons my host family found themselves unable to have me stay with them any longer. I found this out after returning to Coronado on Sunday, and Wednesday morning got on a bus and went to San Jose to meet with ACI and find a new location.
My new project is called FUDEBIOL, and is a biological center located in the mountains near San Isidro del General in a town called Quebradas (the website is www.fudebiol.org). And I love my new host family. I moved in with them last night, and they are so much fun! There is a mom and dad, a daughter who is 16, two sons who are in their mid twenties, and also a grandmother all living in the house. As of right now, I will be working with three other girls at the center. One, Jackie, is from England, she has been here for around a month and will be staying until after I leave. Another, Jeannette, is also 18 and from the United States, she got here the day before I did and is staying for six weeks. The third I have not met yet, but I know that her name is Katie and she is here with the Peace Corps, so she's been around for a while. There will probably be several more short-term volunteers who come and go during my time here. The town is very volunteer-friendly, and there are 18 families who take turns hosting exchangees as the FUDEBIOL protects the town's water supply and therefore is very important to the community.
Other than that, I've spent most of the last week hanging out with my friends from the program in San Jose. ACI is having a Halloween party this weekend, so we're making plans to get on a bus right after work on Saturday and hopefully be there in time. Costa Rica doesn't really celebrate Halloween and costumes are hard to come by, but I managed to find a tiara and some silver fabric and will be going as a princess.
Should be spending the rest of the day with the other volunteers in San Isidro, and then going back to Quebradas and having dinner with my host family!
My new project is called FUDEBIOL, and is a biological center located in the mountains near San Isidro del General in a town called Quebradas (the website is www.fudebiol.org). And I love my new host family. I moved in with them last night, and they are so much fun! There is a mom and dad, a daughter who is 16, two sons who are in their mid twenties, and also a grandmother all living in the house. As of right now, I will be working with three other girls at the center. One, Jackie, is from England, she has been here for around a month and will be staying until after I leave. Another, Jeannette, is also 18 and from the United States, she got here the day before I did and is staying for six weeks. The third I have not met yet, but I know that her name is Katie and she is here with the Peace Corps, so she's been around for a while. There will probably be several more short-term volunteers who come and go during my time here. The town is very volunteer-friendly, and there are 18 families who take turns hosting exchangees as the FUDEBIOL protects the town's water supply and therefore is very important to the community.
Other than that, I've spent most of the last week hanging out with my friends from the program in San Jose. ACI is having a Halloween party this weekend, so we're making plans to get on a bus right after work on Saturday and hopefully be there in time. Costa Rica doesn't really celebrate Halloween and costumes are hard to come by, but I managed to find a tiara and some silver fabric and will be going as a princess.
Should be spending the rest of the day with the other volunteers in San Isidro, and then going back to Quebradas and having dinner with my host family!
Friday, October 15, 2010
El Mar.....
I received many complaints for not posting while I was in San Jose last weekend... my apologies.
Last weekend I took the bus up to San Jose for the first time, a very long trip that began at 4:30 AM and didn't get me into the city until just after noon. I went to an event with my program called country presentations, where volunteers who are here from around the world give a small presentation on their home country to the group of Costa Ricans who are considering going abroad in the next few months, in order to help them choose a country to travel to. The countries presented last weekend were Germany, Switzerland, and Austria; I will have to go back this coming week to give the presentation on the United States next Saturday.
Right now, I am in a small beach town called Uvita, only about half an hour's bus ride north of my own house. I found out yesterday that I didn't have to be at work today, so decided last minute to take the long weekend and go somewhere. I got on the bus at 4:30 this morning, not entirely sure where I'd end up (although I did have a pretty good idea), and at 6:15 was walking through the gate at the Flutterby House, a hostel in Uvita. I was completely amazed. While I (very unfortunately) don't have the cord for my camera to post pictures, the hostel's website is www.flutterbyhouse.com and they have several pictures there... I'm staying in a tree house. Right now, it's just me, the lady who owns and runs the hostel, and a handful of guys from around the world who are there to surf. We're right on the beach, where I spent the entire day today, and you can hear the waves from the hostel.
Well, that's about it! Hopefully I'll be able to get some more pictures up in about a week when I'm back in San Jose.
Last weekend I took the bus up to San Jose for the first time, a very long trip that began at 4:30 AM and didn't get me into the city until just after noon. I went to an event with my program called country presentations, where volunteers who are here from around the world give a small presentation on their home country to the group of Costa Ricans who are considering going abroad in the next few months, in order to help them choose a country to travel to. The countries presented last weekend were Germany, Switzerland, and Austria; I will have to go back this coming week to give the presentation on the United States next Saturday.
Right now, I am in a small beach town called Uvita, only about half an hour's bus ride north of my own house. I found out yesterday that I didn't have to be at work today, so decided last minute to take the long weekend and go somewhere. I got on the bus at 4:30 this morning, not entirely sure where I'd end up (although I did have a pretty good idea), and at 6:15 was walking through the gate at the Flutterby House, a hostel in Uvita. I was completely amazed. While I (very unfortunately) don't have the cord for my camera to post pictures, the hostel's website is www.flutterbyhouse.com and they have several pictures there... I'm staying in a tree house. Right now, it's just me, the lady who owns and runs the hostel, and a handful of guys from around the world who are there to surf. We're right on the beach, where I spent the entire day today, and you can hear the waves from the hostel.
Well, that's about it! Hopefully I'll be able to get some more pictures up in about a week when I'm back in San Jose.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Perez
So, I know it´s been a while...
As of today, I have been working at CEN CINAI in Coronado for exactly one month. I can´t believe all this time has gone by! There isn´t a whole lot to say about my job, host family, etc. apart from what I said in my last post, but I do have some pictures to post.
As of today, I have been working at CEN CINAI in Coronado for exactly one month. I can´t believe all this time has gone by! There isn´t a whole lot to say about my job, host family, etc. apart from what I said in my last post, but I do have some pictures to post.
My host dog (and best friend!) Bombón
One of the girls in the kindergarten painting a picture
A group of students from our older afternoon class
The piñata on El Día de los Niños, or Children´s Day
Our completed project on United Planet Day
Independence Day ceremony: schools all over the country pass along a torch, which the children carry by running from their school to the next one down the road and then passing it along to the next school as the national anthem is played. The children on the left are from the town to the south, and the ones on the right are from Coronado.
The small children with their paper torch, because they´re too young to run all the way to the next school.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Coronado de Osa
HEY everyone!! I'm standing on a street in San Isidro waiting for my host sister to finish up at the bank right now, so I'll try to type fast enough to fit in everything I have to say...
Wow! After my last post, my host sister, her two year old son, and my host mom all came to pick me up. It was raining pretty hard, though, so we stayed at one of their relative's houses in Alajuela, not too far from San Jose. In the morning we stopped by a market to get fresh fruits and vegetables and then made the long drive out to Coronado de Osa.
Coronado de Osa isn't really a town. It isn't big enough. I'm not the only one who thinks this - even the national government hasn't created a post office there yet, and my host family once laughed and corrected me: it is a village. It consists of a pulpería, a bar, two restaurants, a clothes store, which my host mom owns, and a school, where I work. But it's all located right on the main road that runs down the Pacific coast.
I work at the kindergarden and nutritional center in Coronado de Osa. It is a one-room schoolhouse where I have about 25 students, all age 5, in the mornings from 7 to 10:30. Across the street is a bigger building with about 4 or 5 classrooms where the older children go, but the only kitchen is in the kindergarden so between 10:30 and 12 they all come across for lunch. Then, from 12 to 2, a group of about a dozen students ranging in age from about 7 to 10 come for a sort of after-school academic enrichment where they learn about nutrition and receive help with their homework. I assist the teacher, Jacqueline, who doesn't speak a word of English, and my Spanish has been so bad that we've been playing a lot of charades.
That's all I have time for now, more later!
Wow! After my last post, my host sister, her two year old son, and my host mom all came to pick me up. It was raining pretty hard, though, so we stayed at one of their relative's houses in Alajuela, not too far from San Jose. In the morning we stopped by a market to get fresh fruits and vegetables and then made the long drive out to Coronado de Osa.
Coronado de Osa isn't really a town. It isn't big enough. I'm not the only one who thinks this - even the national government hasn't created a post office there yet, and my host family once laughed and corrected me: it is a village. It consists of a pulpería, a bar, two restaurants, a clothes store, which my host mom owns, and a school, where I work. But it's all located right on the main road that runs down the Pacific coast.
I work at the kindergarden and nutritional center in Coronado de Osa. It is a one-room schoolhouse where I have about 25 students, all age 5, in the mornings from 7 to 10:30. Across the street is a bigger building with about 4 or 5 classrooms where the older children go, but the only kitchen is in the kindergarden so between 10:30 and 12 they all come across for lunch. Then, from 12 to 2, a group of about a dozen students ranging in age from about 7 to 10 come for a sort of after-school academic enrichment where they learn about nutrition and receive help with their homework. I assist the teacher, Jacqueline, who doesn't speak a word of English, and my Spanish has been so bad that we've been playing a lot of charades.
That's all I have time for now, more later!
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Imperial
Last morning in the hostel! Although I'm sorry to say it wasn't my last night here, technically, since we didn't get back until around 4:30 and at that point there was really no point in going to bed, as two of us had to leave about 15 minutes later. Not that it was even an option for me in the first place - someone's sleeping in my bed, Goldilocks!
It hit us around Thursday that we only had a matter of hours left together and we haven't wasted any time since. I've gotten a solid three hours of sleep in the last two nights, which may be more than some of the others. While I've been a bit anxious to get out of the hostel and into my own bedroom at least, I hadn't really thought about how much I would miss everyone! But now it's 6:40 AM and within the next 5 hours and 20 minutes we'll all be gone, and even though I know we all made the most of our time together, I can't even imagine facing big bad Costa Rica without Silvia's British humor or Elke forgetting I'm American and starting conversations in German.
My host family should be here to get me between 10 and 11 and I still need to make a trip to the market to get them a housewarming gift, plus I'm freezing my butt off right now (who would have guessed?), so I'm going to sign off now. Thanks to everyone who's been following me so far! I know that from this point forward I won't be able to post as frequently as I have been, but at this point I have no idea what frequency that will be. So try to stick with me... and I'll talk to you all soon!
It hit us around Thursday that we only had a matter of hours left together and we haven't wasted any time since. I've gotten a solid three hours of sleep in the last two nights, which may be more than some of the others. While I've been a bit anxious to get out of the hostel and into my own bedroom at least, I hadn't really thought about how much I would miss everyone! But now it's 6:40 AM and within the next 5 hours and 20 minutes we'll all be gone, and even though I know we all made the most of our time together, I can't even imagine facing big bad Costa Rica without Silvia's British humor or Elke forgetting I'm American and starting conversations in German.
My host family should be here to get me between 10 and 11 and I still need to make a trip to the market to get them a housewarming gift, plus I'm freezing my butt off right now (who would have guessed?), so I'm going to sign off now. Thanks to everyone who's been following me so far! I know that from this point forward I won't be able to post as frequently as I have been, but at this point I have no idea what frequency that will be. So try to stick with me... and I'll talk to you all soon!
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Tenemos recuerdos, mi arbol y yo
Like I said, there's never a dull moment in Costa Rica.
I came down with a pretty bad cold Monday morning and was feeling miserable by the time I woke up yesterday so I stayed home from Spanish school and managed to sleep almost all day. A couple friends stopped by the the hostel after dinner so I sat out on the porch with them for a while. I was headed back to bed when a cat ran out from under my bed and into the bathroom.
For the past 3 days or so, we had been hearing a very loud meowing sound coming from the drain pipe in the common room, so we assumed that a cat had climbed into the gutter and gotten stuck in the pipe. I went out with a flashlight around 1:30 one morning when it was keeping me awake but couldn't do anything. So obviously the cat had found a way out of the pipe and was now free in our bedroom.
The next 45 minutes were spent trying to capture the cat. Finally, many scratches later, between myself, the cleaning lady (who doesn't speak a word of English), and Mikkel from Denmark, we were able to trap the cat in a trash can covered with Mikkel's coat and release it back onto the street.
Now I am sitting in the ACI office waiting for my meeting about my project. 3 more people have gotten sick, probably because of the close proximity in the hostel, but thankfully we only have a few more days left.
I came down with a pretty bad cold Monday morning and was feeling miserable by the time I woke up yesterday so I stayed home from Spanish school and managed to sleep almost all day. A couple friends stopped by the the hostel after dinner so I sat out on the porch with them for a while. I was headed back to bed when a cat ran out from under my bed and into the bathroom.
For the past 3 days or so, we had been hearing a very loud meowing sound coming from the drain pipe in the common room, so we assumed that a cat had climbed into the gutter and gotten stuck in the pipe. I went out with a flashlight around 1:30 one morning when it was keeping me awake but couldn't do anything. So obviously the cat had found a way out of the pipe and was now free in our bedroom.
The next 45 minutes were spent trying to capture the cat. Finally, many scratches later, between myself, the cleaning lady (who doesn't speak a word of English), and Mikkel from Denmark, we were able to trap the cat in a trash can covered with Mikkel's coat and release it back onto the street.
Now I am sitting in the ACI office waiting for my meeting about my project. 3 more people have gotten sick, probably because of the close proximity in the hostel, but thankfully we only have a few more days left.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Yo entiendo todo...
Well there certainly is never a dull moment in Costa Rica.
I had just settled down in a hammock for the night with a book, pajamas and everything, when tribal music started playing out of nowhere. It startled quite a few of us so naturally we went looking for the source, soon realizing that it was coming from the back door in our bedroom. We've known since we moved in that there was a shop on the other side of the door, and several people come in and out throughout the day, which we haven't really been able to come up with an explanation for but have rather learned to accept it as just another quirky way of life here.
So about 10 of us, some ACI volunteers and others travelers we have befriended at the hostel, were all crowded behind the door trying to see through the cracks and eventually decided to open the door slightly just to see what was going on. Someone must have seen because next thing I knew, we were being pulled into the room and handed leis, party horns, and beer.
It gets better.
Just past the crowd of people there was a group of tribal dancers - feathers, masks, drums, the whole set. We were pulled into their circle and spent the next hour dancing with them. Eventually they left, salsa music came on, and we proudly showed off our new dancing abilities with the remaining partygoers.
It wasn't until I headed back that I realized I was still in my pajamas.
Other than tonight, it had been a fairly relaxed day. We all slept very late after going to a local dance club, Rapsodia Lounge, last night; it was too crowded there and very exhausting. I spent most of the day with Silvia, walking around Avenida Central, going to lunch, and then stopping at Auto Mercado for some fruit. We came back and read for a few hours and then were cooked dinner by a girl and guy from Mexico who are staying at the hostel and we have been going out with pretty frequently.
Our classes start up again in the morning and I had planned on going to bed early but the party is still hopping on the other side of the wall, so I might as well go back.
I had just settled down in a hammock for the night with a book, pajamas and everything, when tribal music started playing out of nowhere. It startled quite a few of us so naturally we went looking for the source, soon realizing that it was coming from the back door in our bedroom. We've known since we moved in that there was a shop on the other side of the door, and several people come in and out throughout the day, which we haven't really been able to come up with an explanation for but have rather learned to accept it as just another quirky way of life here.
So about 10 of us, some ACI volunteers and others travelers we have befriended at the hostel, were all crowded behind the door trying to see through the cracks and eventually decided to open the door slightly just to see what was going on. Someone must have seen because next thing I knew, we were being pulled into the room and handed leis, party horns, and beer.
It gets better.
Just past the crowd of people there was a group of tribal dancers - feathers, masks, drums, the whole set. We were pulled into their circle and spent the next hour dancing with them. Eventually they left, salsa music came on, and we proudly showed off our new dancing abilities with the remaining partygoers.
It wasn't until I headed back that I realized I was still in my pajamas.
Other than tonight, it had been a fairly relaxed day. We all slept very late after going to a local dance club, Rapsodia Lounge, last night; it was too crowded there and very exhausting. I spent most of the day with Silvia, walking around Avenida Central, going to lunch, and then stopping at Auto Mercado for some fruit. We came back and read for a few hours and then were cooked dinner by a girl and guy from Mexico who are staying at the hostel and we have been going out with pretty frequently.
Our classes start up again in the morning and I had planned on going to bed early but the party is still hopping on the other side of the wall, so I might as well go back.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
You Make the Rain Fall
It's a lazy Saturday in Ticolandia, the first since I arrived that I haven't had to anything scheduled... and I've needed it! We got back to the hostel around 3:30 yesterday afternoon and I went straight to sleep, barely even waking up until 9 this morning. It must have been an even longer week than I thought.
Several volunteers headed off to the beach in Jaco very early this morning, and most of those remaining left to go see a nearby volcano shortly after. They woke me up several times begging me to come along, but I was partially comatose and only regained consciousness for long enough to tell them to shut up and let me go back to sleep. Therefore, I would like to take this opporunity to extend an apology to a certain Brit whose accent I may or may not have rudely imitated this morning. I love you, Silvia!
After I got up, I headed over to the cafe at el Teatro Nacional (the National Theater) for iced cappuccino. Then I took a taxi to the Multiplaza in Escazu, the Tysons Galleria of San Jose, and spent a few hours wandering around. I found an international bookstore and stocked up on enough reading material to last at least a month... I hope. Had lunch at an Italian restaurant there then headed back into San Jose, crossing the street to the hostel just as the first drops of the afternoon rain began to fall. Now I'm sitting on the front porch reading a book and watching the rain, waiting for the volcano crowd to get back.
That's pretty much it! Tomorrow should be more of the same before we start another week of classes on Monday, our last week before we move in with our host families. Can't wait!
Several volunteers headed off to the beach in Jaco very early this morning, and most of those remaining left to go see a nearby volcano shortly after. They woke me up several times begging me to come along, but I was partially comatose and only regained consciousness for long enough to tell them to shut up and let me go back to sleep. Therefore, I would like to take this opporunity to extend an apology to a certain Brit whose accent I may or may not have rudely imitated this morning. I love you, Silvia!
After I got up, I headed over to the cafe at el Teatro Nacional (the National Theater) for iced cappuccino. Then I took a taxi to the Multiplaza in Escazu, the Tysons Galleria of San Jose, and spent a few hours wandering around. I found an international bookstore and stocked up on enough reading material to last at least a month... I hope. Had lunch at an Italian restaurant there then headed back into San Jose, crossing the street to the hostel just as the first drops of the afternoon rain began to fall. Now I'm sitting on the front porch reading a book and watching the rain, waiting for the volcano crowd to get back.
That's pretty much it! Tomorrow should be more of the same before we start another week of classes on Monday, our last week before we move in with our host families. Can't wait!
Friday, August 27, 2010
Cansada.
Just finished my 15th hour of Spanish classes this week. My brain is dangerously close to losing its ability to function properly.
In the past few days, our schedule has become increasingly busy. We leave every morning around 8 to be at Spanish school by 9. Lessons go until noon, when we have a one hour lunch break. Then ACI talks to us about safety/host families/expectations etc. for an hour or two. After this we usually have a social event planned.
On Wednesday night, we had a dance class at the ACI office where we were taught the basic steps of salsa, merengue, and cumbia. Many a foot was stepped on due to space limitations and the dancing ability of most of the German boys... or lack thereof. Nevertheless, we're all looking forward to part 2 next week.
After dance class, I went with a few girls to el cine (the movie theater) to see El Origen, the Spanish version of Inception. The movie itself was in English with Spanish subtitles, which is how you will find most movies shown in Costa Rica. The real shock came when we only had to pay 1,000 colones per ticket - about $1.98 USD.
Yesterday after class, we took a trip to the police station to start our visa applications and got police reports so that they could make sure we hadn't committed crimes since we entered the country. Today we will go back to have our fingerprints taken. As Guillermo, one of the program coordinators for ACI, would say: This country is centered around stupid paperwork.
Last night, we went to a going away party for Isaac, a Costa Rican who is going abroad through ACI. It was held at a bar called Caccio on Calle de la Amargura in San Pedro. It was a pretty late night, so we're all going to a nearby cafe for cappuccino before the afternoon starts.
In the past few days, our schedule has become increasingly busy. We leave every morning around 8 to be at Spanish school by 9. Lessons go until noon, when we have a one hour lunch break. Then ACI talks to us about safety/host families/expectations etc. for an hour or two. After this we usually have a social event planned.
On Wednesday night, we had a dance class at the ACI office where we were taught the basic steps of salsa, merengue, and cumbia. Many a foot was stepped on due to space limitations and the dancing ability of most of the German boys... or lack thereof. Nevertheless, we're all looking forward to part 2 next week.
After dance class, I went with a few girls to el cine (the movie theater) to see El Origen, the Spanish version of Inception. The movie itself was in English with Spanish subtitles, which is how you will find most movies shown in Costa Rica. The real shock came when we only had to pay 1,000 colones per ticket - about $1.98 USD.
Yesterday after class, we took a trip to the police station to start our visa applications and got police reports so that they could make sure we hadn't committed crimes since we entered the country. Today we will go back to have our fingerprints taken. As Guillermo, one of the program coordinators for ACI, would say: This country is centered around stupid paperwork.
Last night, we went to a going away party for Isaac, a Costa Rican who is going abroad through ACI. It was held at a bar called Caccio on Calle de la Amargura in San Pedro. It was a pretty late night, so we're all going to a nearby cafe for cappuccino before the afternoon starts.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Los Hombres son Perros
I love my host family!!!!!
My host sister and her husband picked me up at the hostel around 9 last night and took me out for drinks at a local bar. I never would have known it was there; we had to walk through the first floor of what seemed to be a completely empty building and enter through a back staircase, but sure enough there it was, a very quirky bar called Retro. All around were displays of original retro American toys like G.I. Joe, Barbie, and Monopoly. My host-brother-in-law (is that what he is?) explained that he is opening a small bar with a similar vibe in the town where I will be living. We didn't stay for long but I can already tell that we will get along very well!
We had a long 3 hour Spanish class this morning followed by a short lecture from the ACI staff on our projects. Even though we finished early, the afternoon rain had already come so I opted to head back to the hostel alone rather than stay out with the other volunteers. This meant some hot water for my shower (HUGE smiley face goes here) and some quiet time, so now I am happily sitting in my bunk with the jar of Nutella I bought with Silvia yesterday, a spoon, and Spanish notes to study.
On second thought, maybe a nap would be better...
My host sister and her husband picked me up at the hostel around 9 last night and took me out for drinks at a local bar. I never would have known it was there; we had to walk through the first floor of what seemed to be a completely empty building and enter through a back staircase, but sure enough there it was, a very quirky bar called Retro. All around were displays of original retro American toys like G.I. Joe, Barbie, and Monopoly. My host-brother-in-law (is that what he is?) explained that he is opening a small bar with a similar vibe in the town where I will be living. We didn't stay for long but I can already tell that we will get along very well!
We had a long 3 hour Spanish class this morning followed by a short lecture from the ACI staff on our projects. Even though we finished early, the afternoon rain had already come so I opted to head back to the hostel alone rather than stay out with the other volunteers. This meant some hot water for my shower (HUGE smiley face goes here) and some quiet time, so now I am happily sitting in my bunk with the jar of Nutella I bought with Silvia yesterday, a spoon, and Spanish notes to study.
On second thought, maybe a nap would be better...
Monday, August 23, 2010
Panaderia
Today marks the end of my first week in Costa Rica. I was surprised to realize that this morning because to be completely honest it feels like it has been more like a month. Many of the other volunteers agree with me, as more and more we can't even remember how we spent our last few weeks in our home countries. Costa Rica has certainly become our way of life.
We had our first day of Spanish class today at the New Learning Academy in Guadalupe. This was a good thing, because I found I've been learning more German in the last week than Spanish (kaputt = broken, jawohl! = what you yell when you win at beer pong, and kater = the hangover you have the next morning) and I still can't get through a conversation with the hostel manager without using funny hand gestures. We took a placement test and were divided into classes. I was somehow not surprised to find that I was the only person in mine who doesn't speak fluent German. Our teacher was very nice and didn't assign us any homework so the next two weeks should be plenty of fun.
After class, we went to a local market that had mostly handmade things like leather sandals and wood carvings. I got a shoulder bag so that I don't have to carry my backpack everywhere and can maybe even make it to the bus stop without a local shouting "Gringo!" after me. After, we were completely exhausted so I went to a local panaderia (bakery) with Elke from Austria and Jasmin from Switzerland where we had some very good pastries.
When I returned to the hostel, I had a phone message from someone named Carlos. I called him back, and he turned out to be my host sister's husband; they were on their way with my host mom to San Jose and wanted to know if they could come meet me. I said of course! So in about an hour they will be here. I'm so excited! Everyone else staying in the hostel is very jealous because they still have to wait almost two weeks to meet their host families. But I've told them I'm willing to share for the time being.
We had our first day of Spanish class today at the New Learning Academy in Guadalupe. This was a good thing, because I found I've been learning more German in the last week than Spanish (kaputt = broken, jawohl! = what you yell when you win at beer pong, and kater = the hangover you have the next morning) and I still can't get through a conversation with the hostel manager without using funny hand gestures. We took a placement test and were divided into classes. I was somehow not surprised to find that I was the only person in mine who doesn't speak fluent German. Our teacher was very nice and didn't assign us any homework so the next two weeks should be plenty of fun.
After class, we went to a local market that had mostly handmade things like leather sandals and wood carvings. I got a shoulder bag so that I don't have to carry my backpack everywhere and can maybe even make it to the bus stop without a local shouting "Gringo!" after me. After, we were completely exhausted so I went to a local panaderia (bakery) with Elke from Austria and Jasmin from Switzerland where we had some very good pastries.
When I returned to the hostel, I had a phone message from someone named Carlos. I called him back, and he turned out to be my host sister's husband; they were on their way with my host mom to San Jose and wanted to know if they could come meet me. I said of course! So in about an hour they will be here. I'm so excited! Everyone else staying in the hostel is very jealous because they still have to wait almost two weeks to meet their host families. But I've told them I'm willing to share for the time being.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Where's Chad?
Just got back to the hostel a couple hours ago. We're all completely exhausted; training camp was almost too much fun!
We stayed in a small cabin-style hotel on the coast in Puntarenas. It was pretty cramped, but we're all so comfortable with each other at this point that no one really noticed. The ACI staff spent a good deal of time talking to us during the day, but at 7 PM the music went on and the entire camp became one big fiesta. Costa Ricans certainly know how to party, but factor in 25 Germans and things get pretty crazy... in a good way, of course.
Then there came the downside.
Every afternoon, without failure, the skies would open up and down came the rain. However, this was not just any rain that you would find in the United States. For hours upon hours, it would pour and pour until we were sitting on one giant lake. This was a ton of fun the first time it happened, and we all went dancing in the rain and jumped in the pool fully clothed. But the camp had terrible drainage problems, and the mud became so bad that by the end of the first night at least half of us had given up on shoes altogether. (As a result, my feet now seem to be permanently dyed a dark brownish black color... but at least I saved my shoes, right?) Almost everyone ended up running out of clean clothes, so after a long bus ride in damp shorts and muddy T shirts, we were all more than happy to be back in out cozy hostel.
Spanish lessons begin at 9 AM tomorrow, followed by ACI-led classes in the afternoon. We have started to learn our way around the city on foot and by bus and no longer need Jorge to get to and from our meeting points. Once we really do get the hang of it, though, we'll be on our way to new towns where we'll have to learn all over again...
We stayed in a small cabin-style hotel on the coast in Puntarenas. It was pretty cramped, but we're all so comfortable with each other at this point that no one really noticed. The ACI staff spent a good deal of time talking to us during the day, but at 7 PM the music went on and the entire camp became one big fiesta. Costa Ricans certainly know how to party, but factor in 25 Germans and things get pretty crazy... in a good way, of course.
Then there came the downside.
Every afternoon, without failure, the skies would open up and down came the rain. However, this was not just any rain that you would find in the United States. For hours upon hours, it would pour and pour until we were sitting on one giant lake. This was a ton of fun the first time it happened, and we all went dancing in the rain and jumped in the pool fully clothed. But the camp had terrible drainage problems, and the mud became so bad that by the end of the first night at least half of us had given up on shoes altogether. (As a result, my feet now seem to be permanently dyed a dark brownish black color... but at least I saved my shoes, right?) Almost everyone ended up running out of clean clothes, so after a long bus ride in damp shorts and muddy T shirts, we were all more than happy to be back in out cozy hostel.
Spanish lessons begin at 9 AM tomorrow, followed by ACI-led classes in the afternoon. We have started to learn our way around the city on foot and by bus and no longer need Jorge to get to and from our meeting points. Once we really do get the hang of it, though, we'll be on our way to new towns where we'll have to learn all over again...
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Pictures!
Finally got a chance to put a couple pictures up... the internet is pretty slow at the hostel so it took forever!
The hostel we are staying at
Inside the hostel
Down the street
City with the mountains in the background
View from a rooftop courtyard
Hasta luego!
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Avenida 14
Gooooood morning San Jose!
Had a great day yesterday exploring the city. Jorge showed us how to get to the National Theater, which will be our meeting point for the next couple weeks. San Jose, however, is not an easy city to navigate, and I can't quite find it by myself yet. Thankfully I do know that our hostel is on Avenida 14. Street signs are very rare here, but we are lucky enough to be located on a corner that has one.
Also yesterday, Jorge took me to the mall in Escazu, one of the more upscale parts of San Jose, to buy a cell phone. (I'm really starting to wonder what I would do without this kid.) This was a complicated process. First we went to a store and I picked out my phone, the cheapest one they had. Then we had to go to the bank, where we were heavily screened at a security checkpoint, and waited for about 10 minutes before being called into an office. I decided on a calling card for 10,000 colones (about $20), then was directed to another desk where I presented my passport and paid for the card. So I now have a Costa Rican cell phone number, which is 001 506 8784 2939 if you're calling internationally... which is very expensive so I wouldn't recommend it.
After we were done getting the phone, we came back to the hostel where Jasmin, another volunteer from Switzerland, was waiting. By then it was already dark, but she and I went for a short walk before coming back and getting ready for bed. Over the next 2 hours, 6 more volunteers came from Germany, Austria, England, France, the US, and another from Switzerland. Language hasn't been a problem; to my surprise, everyone here speaks fluent English.
Got up around 7 this morning and went running with Dakota, the other American, and then came back for an icy shower, which actually felt surprisingly good. We're expecting Jorge around 10 to take the entire group for a city tour and to show us how to use the public buses. This should be interesting.
Had a great day yesterday exploring the city. Jorge showed us how to get to the National Theater, which will be our meeting point for the next couple weeks. San Jose, however, is not an easy city to navigate, and I can't quite find it by myself yet. Thankfully I do know that our hostel is on Avenida 14. Street signs are very rare here, but we are lucky enough to be located on a corner that has one.
Also yesterday, Jorge took me to the mall in Escazu, one of the more upscale parts of San Jose, to buy a cell phone. (I'm really starting to wonder what I would do without this kid.) This was a complicated process. First we went to a store and I picked out my phone, the cheapest one they had. Then we had to go to the bank, where we were heavily screened at a security checkpoint, and waited for about 10 minutes before being called into an office. I decided on a calling card for 10,000 colones (about $20), then was directed to another desk where I presented my passport and paid for the card. So I now have a Costa Rican cell phone number, which is 001 506 8784 2939 if you're calling internationally... which is very expensive so I wouldn't recommend it.
After we were done getting the phone, we came back to the hostel where Jasmin, another volunteer from Switzerland, was waiting. By then it was already dark, but she and I went for a short walk before coming back and getting ready for bed. Over the next 2 hours, 6 more volunteers came from Germany, Austria, England, France, the US, and another from Switzerland. Language hasn't been a problem; to my surprise, everyone here speaks fluent English.
Got up around 7 this morning and went running with Dakota, the other American, and then came back for an icy shower, which actually felt surprisingly good. We're expecting Jorge around 10 to take the entire group for a city tour and to show us how to use the public buses. This should be interesting.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Pura vida!
Saludos de Costa Rica!
As I write this, I am laying in a hammock in the common room of our hostel in downtown San Jose. It's only 7 AM here, but I've already been up for a full hour, and with the exception of Chad, the only other ICYE volunteer who's arrived so far and a fellow American, I was the last person in our room of 12 to get out of bed. (As far as I know, he's still out cold.)
I arrived at Juan Santamaria airport yesterday around 1:30 and was met outside by two respresentatives from ACI, the local branch of ICYE. They drove me to the ACI office in San Jose, where Chad had already been waiting for a couple hours. All of the Americans who are traveling abroad through ICYE this year met in July at our training weekend in Boston, so we already knew each other; Katie and Dakota are the other two girls from the US coming to Costa Rica and both should be getting in tonight (yay!!).
After hanging out with the ACI staff for a while, we met with Jorge, a local university student who volunteers through ICYE and will be our guide for the next couple days. Jorge brought us back to the hostel in a cab, and then took us out for a short tour. We walked for a little while, and then hopped in a cab and drove across town to a bar, where I was able to drink because the legal age here is 18. Around 7, we headed back to the hostel for dinner and soon after I was ready to crash, since I had left my house at 4 AM Costa Rican time.
Now I'm just waiting for the manager to unlock the gates for the day so that I can go for a walk around the neighborhood. I'm sure that she would let me out if I asked, but I have no idea how to say that in Spanish and we already tried to have a conversation about coffee earlier this morning that didn't go too well language barrier-wise. But I still have plenty of time, because Jorge doesn't come to pick us up until 10 for our day of sightseeing.
I'm eyeing a computer over in the corner that looks like it may have been made in 1995, but may have a USB port for me to upload pictures. We'll see.
As I write this, I am laying in a hammock in the common room of our hostel in downtown San Jose. It's only 7 AM here, but I've already been up for a full hour, and with the exception of Chad, the only other ICYE volunteer who's arrived so far and a fellow American, I was the last person in our room of 12 to get out of bed. (As far as I know, he's still out cold.)
I arrived at Juan Santamaria airport yesterday around 1:30 and was met outside by two respresentatives from ACI, the local branch of ICYE. They drove me to the ACI office in San Jose, where Chad had already been waiting for a couple hours. All of the Americans who are traveling abroad through ICYE this year met in July at our training weekend in Boston, so we already knew each other; Katie and Dakota are the other two girls from the US coming to Costa Rica and both should be getting in tonight (yay!!).
After hanging out with the ACI staff for a while, we met with Jorge, a local university student who volunteers through ICYE and will be our guide for the next couple days. Jorge brought us back to the hostel in a cab, and then took us out for a short tour. We walked for a little while, and then hopped in a cab and drove across town to a bar, where I was able to drink because the legal age here is 18. Around 7, we headed back to the hostel for dinner and soon after I was ready to crash, since I had left my house at 4 AM Costa Rican time.
Now I'm just waiting for the manager to unlock the gates for the day so that I can go for a walk around the neighborhood. I'm sure that she would let me out if I asked, but I have no idea how to say that in Spanish and we already tried to have a conversation about coffee earlier this morning that didn't go too well language barrier-wise. But I still have plenty of time, because Jorge doesn't come to pick us up until 10 for our day of sightseeing.
I'm eyeing a computer over in the corner that looks like it may have been made in 1995, but may have a USB port for me to upload pictures. We'll see.
Monday, August 9, 2010
My Other Car is a Tank
Hey guys!
Until today, I hadn't planned or wanted to keep a blog while living abroad for the next 6 months, especially since I'm not bringing my laptop with me. However, I know that there are a lot of you who want to stay updated so I finally broke down and set this up... I'm not sure how often I'll have access to the internet but we'll see how it goes!
For everyone who doesn't know, I'm volunteering through a program called United Planet (www.unitedplanet.org) which sends volunteers from the US and Canada all over the world. I'll be living with a host family in Coronado de Osa, a town in the province of Puntarenas, and working at the local Centro de Nutrición y Desarrollo Infantil, a daycare center which provides food and preschool education to children from low-income families.
I leave one week from today! It's crazy how the summer has flown by but I'm far past excited to leave. Just crossing my fingers that the Costa Rican consulate sends my authenticated background check in time so that I can get my visa!
I still need to buy bug spray, too.
Until today, I hadn't planned or wanted to keep a blog while living abroad for the next 6 months, especially since I'm not bringing my laptop with me. However, I know that there are a lot of you who want to stay updated so I finally broke down and set this up... I'm not sure how often I'll have access to the internet but we'll see how it goes!
For everyone who doesn't know, I'm volunteering through a program called United Planet (www.unitedplanet.org) which sends volunteers from the US and Canada all over the world. I'll be living with a host family in Coronado de Osa, a town in the province of Puntarenas, and working at the local Centro de Nutrición y Desarrollo Infantil, a daycare center which provides food and preschool education to children from low-income families.
I leave one week from today! It's crazy how the summer has flown by but I'm far past excited to leave. Just crossing my fingers that the Costa Rican consulate sends my authenticated background check in time so that I can get my visa!
I still need to buy bug spray, too.
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