Me falta sola una semana

Exactly 7 days from now, at this very time, I will be arriving at XNA. I can't even believe it. Time has gone so fast! I feel like it was yesterday when I was saying, "exactly 7 days from now I will be in Costa Rica." What an amazing journey I've had!! This ending is so bittersweet. I am SO excited to come home and see people, hug my wonderful family, and do things I miss like driving a car or going to Wal-Mart (you may not think you would miss it, but believe me, being without one for three months has made me very grateful for those Low Prices). :-) At the same time, I don't want this to end...these experiences, discoveries, this life. I know this isn't real life-no one lives like this-but at the same time, it's beyond real life. This culture is real life for those who are here. And I LOVE it. I know I cannot hang onto every moment of this trip, but what I can hang onto are the relationships I've built, the lessons I've learned, and the language I have spoken for the past three months. It is time to move on, time to come home. So, even though my emotions are a whirlwind in my head and heart, I can honestly say that I am ready to come home.

This past weekend was my last weekend trip to take. We decided to go big, so we went to Bocas del Toro, an island off the Caribbean coast in Panama. We were so excited to go to this sunny, Caribbean island and soak up the sun all weekend...until we got there. It was overcast all weekend and poured buckets on Saturday for half the day. We were disappointed but tried to make the most of it. Friday while taking a walk we stumbled across a Smithsonian Reasearch Institute, and we happened to find it during the window when they give tours. It was really cool-they study frogs, birds, and sea animals and we got to see all of that.

Saturday, since it was raining, we decided to go on a boat tour that took us to four different places around the island. I thought by "boat tour" they meant some sort of speed boat or something. After being here for three months, I should have known better! It was a tiny lancha that bounced around on the rough waves. I was pretty sure it was just going to crack in half at any point! It didn't help that the driver was drinking a beer and lighting a cigarette when we could smell gasoline. I began fearing for my life at one point, but we lived through it and I'll know better next time!

The tour was pretty cool-we went to Dolphin Bay and got to watch wild dolphins ride the waves of our boat! That was fun-they were cute and were definitely putting on a show for us. We tried to get pictures, but never could catch them when they were in the air. We also went to a beach and it was very pretty, although it would have been prettier with sun. The water is so clear there, though, and the beach was among the best I've been to since I've been here. So, even though it didn't turn out the way we expected, we had a good time!

Panama's culutre is different from Costa Rica's, but they both have American influence. It is strange to see the different areas of influence-Costa Rica's is more day-to-day cultural things, whereas Panama has more rules and regulations like the US does (except for on tiny tour boats, apparently). Panama's food also has more US influence, and they use American money for their currency. That was so strange to see American money!! I never realized how tiny quarters are, but they really are small in comparison to Costa Rican coins. It was also weird to go to the ATM and type in a withdrawal of $100. We laughed at ourselves because here, the equivalent of $100 is 50,000 colones. So the first time I took money out of the ATM, I had to mentally get over the fact that the number was so big. Now, when I went to take out $100 in Panama, I had to think about it because the number looked so small on the screen! I was afraid it would spit out 100 colones, which is the equivalent of 20 cents. We also got to eat American food in Panama-chili dogs, pizza, donuts, etc. It was nice not to have fried platanos and arroz y frijoles for the whole weekend, even though I love those things, too! Overall it was a fun trip and even though it rained, I'm glad we went! Here's a few pictures...

The veiw of the island from the water taxi...the beaches are on the other side. :-)

A starfish at the Smithsonian...you can't tell but his hand is underwater.

The group I went with, minus one of the guys. This is at the Smithsonian.

The spot our tour stopped for people to snorkel, which I did not take part in. I prefer looking at fish from behind glass!

Standing on the border of Panama and Costa Rica, which was smack in the middle of an old railroad bridge

El Caribe es bellisimo

Well, this weekend I headed to the Caribbean for the first time since I've been here!! My friend Kendra and I took a trip Friday afternoon to Puerto Viejo. It's about four hours from San Jose, so we got there late Friday night, found a place to stay, and crashed. Saturday morning we went to the beach, but it was so hot and humid that we ended up only being there for a few hours. That afternoon we walked around to some of the fun, unique stores and we napped. So relaxing!! That night, we randomly ran into some friends we had made in Manuel Antonio a few weeks earlier, so we hung out with them.
This morning we went white water rafting...SO much fun! I am definitely going to rate that among my favorite trips so far. We went on the Pacuare river with Class III and IV rapids. We had a great time!
Last weekend I stayed in San Jose for the first time since I've been here. It was really nice and relaxing...I got to sleep in, which was awesome! I haven't slept past 7:00 since I've been here. I also got to just rest, which was good because I had been pretty sick, and it definitely helped me recover.

I cannot even believe that I only have two weeks left...it's crazy! It flies by so fast. I only have one weekend left to travel!! Which I am taking full advantage of by going to Bocas del Torro, an island off the Caribbean cost in Panama. I won't get to see the Panama canal, but at least I will get to go to the country!!
I am getting excited about coming home and seeing people!! Up until a few weeks ago, I was really sad about leaving, but I can feel the excitement creeping in. I will definitely leave a part of my heart here, but I will be glad to come home!! I have learned a ton and my prayer now is that God will show me how to take what I've learned back to the States and use it...apply it to my life to glorify Him. I really pray that my transition back home is smooth...they say that reverse culture shock can hit hard sometimes especially when you've had such a good time and love the country so much.

School has been really busy lately...I have a presentation in my Spanish class each week that requires online research and a Powerpoint. I am also working on a 10-page final for my Communication class, which also requires online research and Word to type it out. Since my computer broke, I have really limited computer access (usually only 2-3 hours a day). It makes it hard to prioritize which project is more important, and I end up having a ton of work and no time to do it all!! Hopefully after this Wednesday that will calm down a little bit, but it's been kind of frustrating the past two weeks because this is my last month and I want to have a good time, but I spend all of my free time working like crazy in front of a computer.

Well, that's all for now...here are some pictures of the Caribbean!!

OK, I don't know why they came out small, but I've been trying to fix these for a while and it's not working. So...they're just going to have to be small. :-(

A view of the part with rocks up on the beach.

Kendra and me on the beach right before the sun set...it was gorgeous!!

This is one of my favorite pictures...it looks so perfect and tranquil!!

That's awkward...

Here's something really strange about Spanish. It has no word for the English word "awkward." This is frustrating, because I find myself creating many awkward situations either because I don't know a word, or I say something wrong, or by the sheer fact that I am a Gringa. Anyways, I have had the need to use the word "awkward" in Spanish on several occasions, but it doesn't exist. Instead, they tell us to say, "que extraño," which means, "how strange." Not the same connotation or denotation, if you ask me!
The other word they don't have, which is also strange and creates awkwardness, is the word, "cute." So when someone shows you a picture of their baby and you want to say it's cute, you can't. So then it's awkward, because I have nothing to say. The only thing that comes remotely close to "cute" is to gasp, clasp your hands together, and say, "AYYYYY, que Liiiiiiindo!" in a gushy, overexaggerated voice. But that gets annoying after the first time, and its literal translation is, "how beautiful," which is still just not the same. So now, when people show me something that is cute, I just smile and nod and it's...awkward!!

Nicaragua

This weekend a friend and I took a trip to Nicaragua...we had so much fun!! Nicaragua is very different from Costa Rica. It is a whole lot poorer, so it looks WAY more like a Third World Country (that's not a hard feat...Costa Rica is not very Third World at all). Anyways, we stayed in Granada, which is one of the more touristy towns. There were tons of vendors on the streets and everything was way cheaper, which was nice!! I somehow managed not to buy anything, though-mainly because I don't need most of it. El Centro, or downtown, had a big park in it, which was pretty, and, of course, a Catholic church that was uniquely beautiful, as they all are down here. One sad thing was the kids-they come up and ask for money relentlessly. It's hard to not give them some, but you can't give money to every single child or you would go broke. The dogs are also very sad...I will not go into detail about them.

Saturday we went to a lagoon that is in the crater of a volcano. It was beautiful!! The hostel that we were staying at has a sister hostel on the lagoon, and we were able to go for the day and hang out there. The water is perfectly clear and so calm, and rather cool, which was refreshing. We kayaked out to the middle of the lagoon and stayed there for a while, then came back in and I took a nap while Juliane went and took a ton of pictures (she's a photographer). It was so wonderfully relaxing to not have to go anywhere or do anything, just sleep or look out at the beauty of the lagoon!!
Sunday we got up early and took a chicken bus (public bus) into Rivas, which is about an hour and a half away. That was an experience!! The chicken buses there are old school buses that are painted with bright colors. Everyone comes and gets on with their gunny sacks, big baskets full of food, bicycles, 5-gallon buckets...I wouldn't have been surprised if someone got on with an animal!! Anyways, it's crazy because there's no set stops, people just sit on the side of the road and flag the bus down. So you never know how many stops will be made. And the payment system is ridiculous-every once in a while someone just comes down the aisles and collects money from the people that have gotten on since the last collection. I have no idea how they keep track of this-it makes much more sense to pay at the door, like they do it here (in Costa Rica). Anyways, once in Rivas, we took a ferry across Lake Nicaragua to Isla Ometepe, an island with two volcanoes on it. The two islands used to not be connected, but lava from the eruptions fused them together. It is beautiful over there, too!! We stayed in a nice hostel and basically did the same things we did Saturday-kayak, sleep, and read. It was just so nice!!
Monday we had to get up and start the looooong journey home...excruciating chicken bus ride to to the ferry (2 hours long), ferry to Rivas, barter with a taxi driver to get us to our bus stop. There are 3 bus lines that go to other countries, and we were using TicaBus. Basically you buy a round-trip ticket but your seat on the way back is open, and you have to reserve it when you get to your destination. We had reserved seats for 1:30, but the woman told us it would be coming at 2. So around 2, we went to sit in the sun and wait for the bus. 45 minutes later, we saw a bus coming and stood up, but it flew right by us! I was so sure we had just been left in Nicaragua and wouldn't make it home for another day, but it turned out it was the wrong bus and ours came shortly after. Thank goodness...I was very ready to leave!!
Border crossing was horrible...probably 2 hours long. They have a double border-you exit Nicaragua and get your exit stamp, get back on the bus, and go to the Costa Rica station. Get back off the bus, get your entrance stamp, then go back to the bus, get your luggage, and wait and wait and wait for them to come by and decide whether they want to check it or not. They usually don't. So FINALLY, you get back on the bus and leave. Mind you, this is in sweltering, humid weather. Anyways, after the Costa Rica border, it is 5 hours to San Jose. Once we were back in the city, I was strangely relieved and excited to be in the "safety of home." I never thought I would think that, but it really did feel like I was coming home!!

Overall, the trip was a lot of fun. It was nice to travel with only one other person, and she is very laid back. We never felt like we had to have plans or spend a lot of money on some tour, it was more just a time to experience a different culture and the beauty of another country, and to just relax. I am glad I had that opportunity!! I would post pictures, but since my computer is broken I can't download them off my camera. :-(
That's all for now-thanks for your prayers-I know God was definitely involved in keeping me safe this weekend!! Until next time, adios!!

My epiphany

So, I was talking with my dad on the phone on Monday, talking about what an awesome time I am having here. I told him I love it so much and don't want to leave, yet I still long for home. I long to hug my family for an indefinite amount of time, I long to drive a car, to go an entire day without eating rice and beans, to have long talks in English with old friends, to go outside at night and not be afraid of being mugged, to be able to say something smart or funny without thinking about it for 5 minutes and then messing it up when I finally say it. At the same time, I love it so much here-part of me even loves all those things I just mentioned (except for being afraid of getting mugged). I have loved learning to and adapting to this culture, and truthfully, I'm kind of scared to go back to the States. I know I have changed and my view of the world has changed, while everyone back home is expecting the same old me. Not that I'm a completely different person, but there is no one back home who will ever be able to fully understand the experience I've had. I love it here and want to stay!!
After I got off the phone with my dad, I was journaling my thoughts about this. I wrote this sentence: "I know that, although I love it here, this is not my home and I long for my 'real' home. I need to accept the amount of time God has given me here, be thankful for it, then go where He leads me." Then it hit me: this is such a great picture of life on Earth! This is not our home, and although we love it, we know we will be going to our true home someday. We need to accept the amount of time God has given us here, then when He calls us Home, joyfully run into His arms to embrace Him forever.
It is also a picture of being in the world but not of it. I came here with my entire life's experience in the American culture. I had to learn a lot about the way they do things here, and I had to adapt a lot. Some things, I have been able to adapt to, while others are still very strange for me. As I have learned everything, I have filtered it through the knowledge that I have of life in the States. I have adapted to some things, like the Greeting Kiss, rice and beans, and the relaxed time schedule, while still keeping the same mindset I had in the States. I don't have to become a Tica-I will actually never be a true Tica (which makes me kind of sad)-but I can still live here in harmony with the people here. Just like, as a believer, I am in this culture but should always be mindful of the place I am from-and adapt to the things I can while remembering my values and beliefs.
I'm sure all of this sounds so basic and elementary, but when it clicked in my head I was so excited. I knew all of this before, but the comparison to what I am experiencing now was just what I needed!! I love it when God uses things like this to teach me-or reteach me-new things!! He is so good, isn't He??

New experiences

Well, another week has absolutely flown by!! I am getting ready for the end of the month, as my Spanish class will be over and I will start a new one next month. I have had several projects and presentations due, so I've mainly stayed busy with that. This weekend I went to Manuel Antonio again, which was OK. We took a sailboat tour on Saturday, and almost all of us got really seasick. So it wasn't as enjoyable as I would have hoped, but the part where I wasn't sick was fun!! :-) We stayed in a hostel, which we have done before, but this weekend we didn't have our own room. We were in a dormitory with 13 beds. It was a unique experience...I'm pretty sure there was never a time at night when everyone was alseep or even in the room. Someone was always coming or going. But everyone was very friendly and the atmosphere was so relaxed. We were kind of worried about our stuff getting stolen, but they had a safe to put it in, and I think everyone there was pretty nice and didn't have an interest in stealing other people's stuff.

I still feel like God is working on me in ways I don't know yet, but I am just trying to really listen to Him. This weekend I was reminded of who I am-a Daughter of the Most High God (this phrase is copyright of the wonderful Windy Hall and has stuck with me since the 9th grade) -and no matter where I go, this is my identity. It was very freeing to remember this, although I'm not sure why...I don't feel like I was struggling with identity in my faith. However, just to realize that although my faith is being tested, I am still His and have been made clean and pure was so reassuring. I think something happens to me when I see the ocean...I am reminded of how absolutely amazing and big God is. Anyways, it was so wonderful, it made me want to run around with my hands flung out! I didn't do that, though, don't worry.

This weekend is a long weekend so I am going to Nicaragua! I'm really excited about it-it will be fun to go to a different country and see what it has to offer. I've heard Nicaragua is beautiful! Please pray for safety and for an easy stop at the borders. Nicaragua is poorer than Costa Rica and is not as touristy, so this will be good in some ways but could create a disadvantage in others. Thanks so much-until next time!

Encouragement and Accountability

It has been six weeks since I left home. I have been doing really well, not being homesick at all and being able to communicate with my friends and family a lot. But lately I have felt a bit like I am lacking in the area of accountability. I was talking to my mom about this in email. I am so thankful for her-she is so full of wisdom and always has the right thing to say. Here’s what she had to say: “We are spiritually warm, safe, comfortable, well fed and well loved. Then there does come that time when we need to break out, dry our wings. Then try those wings. Where we are to completely embrace who we have become in Christ on our own…in other words, “show us what you’re made of” kinda stuff. It’s not easy. And you might make some wrong turns-or not make any turns because you just need to stay straight.” This totally makes sense to me-I feel like this is a true test of my faith. No one is here to tell me what they think, and no one is here to influence my decision. I can’t worry about what other people think about me, like I so often do. I have to figure out how to exercise my own faith-how to make it my own faith. I have been praying a lot about this and spending time in the Word, although probably not enough time. But I still crave the accountability I have back in the States and I haven’t known what to do about that.

Before I left, a bunch of you all wrote in a journal for me. It’s pink and has a big, sparkly flower on it. :-) My parents gave it to me at the airport and I read it on the plane and sobbed the entire time, completely blessed that I have such a great group of people praying for me. After that, though, I didn’t dare look at it because I didn’t want it to make me homesick. It is propped up on my desk and when I see it I remember you all, but I haven’t read it since then. Last night, I decided that I’m probably safe with not being homesick since it’s been so long. I had some spare time, so I went through the little photo album I brought, just looking at pictures of my family and friends. Then I opened the journal and read each of the entries people wrote. I didn’t cry until I got to my parents’ entries at the end (they’re all mushy and absolutely wonderful). But I was all of a sudden struck again with the fact that I DO have accountability here. It may not be face-to-face, but I have it. You are my accountability. The words you wrote encouraged me all over again and gave me fuel. Remembering that I have people back home who are praying for me and share in the joy I have in Jesus, is such a wonderful thought. So thank you to those of you who wrote in that journal. And thank you to everyone else who reads this who is praying for me and keeping me accountable. I know I haven’t learned everything God has for me on this trip-I still have 6 weeks left to learn a ton more! But I feel like this small thing-the encouragement of other believers written months ago-is so relevant to where I am now and is part of something God is teaching me. Thank you a million times over for your prayers-I can’t wait to see what He does in the next six weeks!

Random thoughts from Costa Rica

Wow, it's been a while sinc I posted!! It has been a very busy few weeks. First off, the power outages continued until last week when they finally stopped! It's really nice that they're over because you never knew when they'd go out or if you could be on the Internet or study at night, which got pretty frustrating after about a week.

Last weekend I took my first "independent" trip-that is, not sponsored through ISA. We went to Montezuma, which is a beach on the Nicoya Peninsula. It was fun, but different from what we expected! I went with 4 other girls and one guy. It ended up being slightly more expensive than we anticipated, because Montezuma is pretty tourist-oriented. We did stay in a hostel for pretty cheap, which was a new experience!! Before going to bed, I remember thinking that there was a high chance that a cockroach would crawl over me while I was sleeping, but I don't think it happened. If it did, I'm happy not knowing about it. :-) We did have a good time, though, and met some fun people that we ended up eating with and travelling back with. This weekend we went to yet another beach, called Jaco. It's a surf town and definitely has more of a party atmosphere than Montezuma. It was OK, but it rained a little, as the rainy season is just beginning here. It's funny how I took about a gazillion pictures my first couple of weeks here, and I think I took maybe 15 this weekend. I need to get on the ball of that! I guess it's because I've been to the beach the last 3 weekends, and how many pictures of beaches can you take before they all look the same? This weekend I think we're either going to tour a coffee plantation or possibly hike through a rain forest. We're not sure, we just don't want to go to another beach! :-)

Last week I also started volunteering at a daycare that's run through the Salvation Army. It is for underpriveleged kids and I am working with the 5-year-olds. They are really cute! They're a little difficult to understand, so I'm definitely going to get some great practice with my Spanish comprehension. I am also practicing commands ("Don't jump off the table!" "No, stop eating crayons and come sit down") and a different set of vocabulary words with these kids. It has been pretty hectic in the classroom the past couple of times I went, and sometimes the teacher just leaves and I have no idea where she went, when she'll be back, or what to do with the kids. But I'm starting to realize that it is so laid back and kind of doesn't matter, as long as I make sure the kids aren't killing each other or hurting themselves. It's also fun to talk to them and give them positive attention, which they really beg for.

This month a new group of students has come in, so there are a few more people around the ISA office and in our classes. It's really nice, but it stinks because they'll only be here for a month so it's going to be hard to build really great relationships with them. Also, those of us who have already been here and will be here longer have already grown very close. It's more like we're the "mentors" because they always ask us our opinion or what to do. Then again, I don't know everything because I haven't been here that long, and a lot of it is basically what I think and not solid truth about stuff. It's still fun getting to know them and helping them out, though!

That's enough for now-I'll post more picutres as soon as I get some good ones! Maybe of this coming weekend, or maybe I'll take some of my kids at the daycare. ¡Ciao!

My week in a nutshell

Another week has gone by...wow! Last week was pretty uneventful, just school and...actually that's it. The power outages have continued, but now we know why. Costa Rica's electricity is powered by water, and the largest dam is in Arenal. Since it has not rained in so long, the water is down very far, and this is what caused the nationwide power outage. Now, to conserve power, the government is shutting off the power in different parts of the country every day for three hours a day. That means that, at some point during the day, we lose power. And, to make it more frustrating, it's different every day, so you never know when you will lose power. This will continue until the rainy season starts, which is in about two weeks, more or less.

This weekend we went to Manuel Antonio, a national park on the beach. It was absolutely beautiful and so relaxing! We just got up Saturday, ate breakfast, and walked to the national park, then sat on the beach all day. As a typical gringa, I forgot how close we were to the sun and, even though I used sunscreen, I am thoroughly burnt and in pain. I should have stayed in the shade a little more. But we did have so much fun! There are a lot of artisan stands outside of the park, so we got to walk up and down the street looking at their cool jewelry and clothes. The most fun thing about this is bartering with the vendors and getting something really cool for ridiculously cheap. Yesterday I went ocean kayaking, which was so fun but hard work! We kayaked to a beach, stayed there for a while, then kayaked back. On the way back I got seasick from the waves so it was definitely a long trip back, having to row through waves while feeling sick. But I'm still glad I did it!! I've posted some pictures of the beach below...

This is the view from the beach in the national park. I like the palm tree shadow.

A monkey stealing trash from the trashcan on the beach. There were four or five of them and they weren't scared of us at all...I'm sure they're used to it!

A crocodile we saw in a river on the way to the beach...there were a ton of them but this was the only one out of the water.

This is not from the beach, this is me and my host brother stuyding in the dark after we lost power on Thursday night. They had all the Christmas candles out and we had enough light to sit at the dining room table and do our homework...it was pretty funny. We had to order takeout for dinner, and as we were cleaning up, my Tico dad opened the refridgerator to put something away, and the fridge was on, which means we had power. I'm not sure how long we had sat there with candles while having power, but we thought it was pretty funny that we'd been using candles when we had electricity!

Volcán Arenal

This weekend was awesome!! So fun...so pretty...and I learned a ton. We went to Arenal and La Fortuna Waterfalls, about 4 or 5 hours away from San Jose. It's funny because San Jose is about the size of North Carolina, but it takes forever to get anywhere because it's all mountains and virtually all of the roads are one lane each way. So you get stuck behind a semi truck or in a construction zone, and you can just go ahead and add an extra hour or two to your trip. Anyhow, it was amazing!! We got to swim in the pool below the waterfall (it was freezing, but really fun!), and Saturday night we went to some hot springs and got to be there for quite some time. That was really nice. Sunday morning we took a tour up to the volcano. First of all, we were staying in a resort that was practically at the base of the volcano and we had a perfect view of it. Also, we had the fortune to be able to see all the way to the top-there are almost always clouds covering it, but we had a clear view the whole time we were there!! So Sunday we went to the other side, where most of the activity is happening right now. We hiked about half an hour until we reached the spot where lava flowed about 15 years ago. We actually stood on the lava and took pictures of the small eruptions on the volcano! Our guide said that there are always eruptions happening and it was actually pretty dangerous to be where we were. We thought that was pretty cool. :-) During the day, all you see is white smoke, and we were really pulling to see an eruption at night, but when it got dark the top was covered by a cloud. Oh, well-we still got to see more than most people do!! It was a great experience!!!

This is on the way there. Some of the hills and drop-offs look like they could have been the place where they filmed the scene in Princess Bride where Buttercup pushes Westley down the hill. This one, for example. :-)

OK...the one above this one is La Fortuna Waterfall from far away...before the vertical hike down to the pool. The one directly above is a picture of the waterfall up close. Notice the clear water around it!


View of the volcano from our resort-the smaller cone is not as active as the one with smoke coming out of it
View of the volcano from the North side (I think)-where you can only see one cone. It looks like a kid's science project!
The lava from the flow in the 90's and the vegetation that is beginning to grow through it

Us on the lava-these are some of the people from my program. Behind us is el Lago Arenal, an artificial lake. There used to be a town under it, but when the volcano blew up for the first time in 1968, it destroyed the village. They built this lake over it and it's one of the main energy suppliers for the country. It's very low right now because it hasn't rained in a long time, and that's what was causing the power outages last week.

Una Cuidad Oscura

Last night there was a nation-wide power outage in Costa Rica. Apparently some huge generator or something blew in Limón, and it knocked everything out, but not all at once. The ISA office was out in the afternoon, but came back on. So I went up there to call my mom, and when I was leaving, one of the directors said to wait and she'd drive me home because the power was out in my neighborhood, and it had just gotten dark. She drove me home, and sure enough, everything around my neighborhood was pitch black.
Side note: I am sitting on the patio so I can get wireless, and this huge black and orange bug just crawled out from behind me and scared me half to death. I'm moving off the ground.
Anyhow, back to my story. I went to the Teatro Nacional last night with a friend to see a dance, and it's downtown. The power was on when we got there, but went out right before the dance started. The Teatro has a generator so we were able to see the dance. When we left, though, the entire downtown area was pitch black, along with the rest of the city. It was pretty scary! Kind of cool though, because we could see stars. It didn't come back on until 11 or so last night and has caused numerous problems today, i.e. cell phones not working, the Internet is down at a lot of places-including the ISA office and my university, and traffic lights are out everywhere, which does nothing for the already ridiculous driving habits of Ticos.
This weekend I'm off to an active volcano, which should be fun and interesting! Pictures will follow...hope everyone has a good weekend!

Misunderstandings

More observations, mostly good:

*I have figured out why I get frustrated with Tico time. Many times someone will say “we’re going to go do such-and-such ahora.” Now, traditionally, the word “ahora” translates into “right now.” However, in Costa Rica, this is not the same. “Ahora” means in a little while. “Ahorita” means later on. And, as my profesora says, “Ahoritica” means it’s probably not happening, you might as well forget about it. So, the problem for me has not been Tico time, it’s been my interpretation of the word “ahora.” Here’s my new problem: If “ahora” means later, then what word do they use for “right now?” I have determined they probably don’t use this phrase very often, because nothing is hurried or has to be done right away.

*The señora que limpia la casa (the cleaning lady) comes twice a week with her daughter, and it’s not like they clean the bathrooms and floors and then leave. It’s an all-day process where they deep clean the entire house-dusting, washing floors, cleaning the showers out, doing dishes, washing all of the laundry, even cleaning off my desk, etc…I wouldn’t be surprised to open my dresser one day and find my clothes re-organized!! This morning I was running late and didn’t make my bed and when I got home, it was all made up for me. At lunch time, they sit down and eat with us and talk, then get up and clear the table and do our dishes. They are really sweet…but I can’t understand the señora for the life of me-usually I just end up nodding and smiling when she talks to me. The first three times she was here she asked me if I had any “ropa sucia,” or dirty clothes. I had to ask her every time what she was saying. So now, whenever she talks to me before school, I’m assuming she’s asking about my laundry and I just say, “Si.”

*Here’s one thing I love: The Kiss. Every time you greet someone, rather than saying “Hi” or shaking hands, you grasp their left hand, lean to the left of their face, and kiss the air in the general direction of their ear, brushing cheeks as you go. It’s a little awkward the first few times, but I am growing fond of it. It can be between two women or a woman and a man, but never happens between two men. It is very well practiced, and I’m beginning to miss it if it doesn’t happen! Only with Ticos, though-I haven’t given The Kiss to any of my US friends here yet. J I think The Kiss has to do with their friendliness and acceptance, as well as the fact that they feel no need to rush anything.

Observations about a new culture

Here are some things that will take some getting used to:
*Honking. Here's what it doesn't mean: "What are you thinking, you just cut me off," or any other unkind thing you may or may not have used your car horn for.
Here's what it does mean: "Hey, friend!!", or "Hey, you look nice today!" or "Thanks for letting me in!" or "Go ahead" or anything else generally nice. So, when I hear a billion honks a day, my instinct is to tense up...but usually it's people being friendly. What I don't get about this is that Ticos are such terrible, agressive drivers. So it would make sense for a honk to be meant as a bad thing. But it doesn't.

*I have 5 keys to get into-and out of-my house. This is very annoying. I guess it comes from paranoia that someone is going to break into their house, which rarely happens. I don't always use all 5. Sometimes it's 2, sometimes it's 3. But it's still time consuming. Occasionally I cheat and only re-lock one if I know I'm going to be leaving soon. But that's a secret I'm choosing to keep from my Tico family.

*There are no real policemen, only the Fuerza Publica. They walk down the streets at night armed with a long stick and a whistle, which they blow every hour to let you know they're there.

*Some crosswalks are not at intersections and have their own light. So when a pedestrian pushes the button, all traffic stops for about 3 mintues until the light changes. This is very annoying when there is one pedestrian. Most cars just run the light after the person passes, or don't stop at all. Pedestrians have virtually no right of way no matter where they cross. So I wonder why anyone bothers to push the button and stop traffic in the first place.

*Car alarms: I have not gone one day without hearing at least 3 car alarms go off. I don't know why they go off here and not in the States, but it's very annoying when there's one going off outside of our classroom for a good 15 minutes. Monday a couple of us were walking around downtown, and we walked by a car going off. Two hours later, we had made a loop, and the car alarm was still going off. I don't know why they're so much more sensitive here, but it's kind of funny!

These are not meant to be complaining, they are observations I have made about this city. They will definitely take some getting used to, but I am enjoying learning about their culture and way of life!!! Tomorrow I will post good things about the city because there are so many awesome things I've learned!!!

3x5's

I had so much fun this weekend in Monteverde! I got to know the girls in my group better, which was really fun, not to mention the awesome time we had exploring the mountain. Here are the pictures, as promised!! I'm sorry, but there's a ton...I couldn't pick which ones to show you all! It is hard to capture the beauty in a picture...I'm reminded of the John Mayer song 3x5 that says, "Didn't have a camera by my side this time/hoping I would see the world through both my eyes/maybe I will tell you all about it when I'm in the mood to lose my way with words...You should have seen that sunrise with your own eyes/brought me back to life/you'll be with me next time I go outside/no more 3x5's." I can now identify with him! Anyhow, hopefully you can see a little bit through this pictures. Oh, and if you ever have the chance to go to Monteverde, the veiw is definitely worth the two-hour winding drive up a mountain on a bumpy rock road! :-)

The group after the first cable
This is me ziplining through the air...if you're wondering where the jungle is, it's way under me.
This is the longest cable, and we had to go in groups of two so the weight would keep us going to the other side. I went with another girl, and we still got stuck about 20 feet before the platform!
We finally made it...we're waiting to be un-hooked from the cable.
this is at a private forest reserve-it's a mushroom.
They had a hummingbird viewing area-there were tons of them! I was trying to get pics where they were not on the feeder, but I couldn't get a good shot.
Some weird seed or flower, or maybe animal...I'm not sure but I thought they were cool
Just a cool-looking flower at the reserve-everything is green, with more green growing on that green, and more growing on top of that ("Monteverde" means green mountain). So when there's an occasional burst of color, it really stands out and is beautiful!The veiw on the drive home-notice how, if you look into the horizon, it flattens out. That is the ocean waaaaaayyyy back there! I loved how far we could see from the mountain we were on.



The group in front of a cool tree, which didn't show up as that cool in this picutre. :-)
Part of the private reserve we went to

This is a traditional Costa Rican ox cart. I don't think people really use them anymore, but they are one of the marks of the culture.

This is a banana tree outside my hotel room. The purple thing is a banana flower-you pull it off and re-plant it to grow another tree. It's kinda scary looking up close!

OK, that's all for now. There are so many things I want to say, so many observations I'd like to share. I think I am going to start posting more frequently about some things I love and some things that take getting used to (I'm trying to keep that side positive) :-). I will also try to keep it shorter, but knowing how I am, I can't promise that.

Thanks again for your prayers for my host family! Things are back to normal as far as routine goes, and now they are starting the process of healing.

Talk at you all later!

Tico Time

Let me introduce you to Tico time (Ticos are Costa Ricans):
The other night, I told my host mom that I needed to go to the supermarket. OK, she said, they were about to leave for the hospital to see her father, so I could go get in the car. The kids and I went out there, and 15 minutes later, Gleys came out. So, we go to the hospital. Wait here, she said, because the kids aren't allowed to come in. I'll be back in a few minutes. 45 minutes later, she and her mother came out of the hospital. They got in the car, and her mother began eating her dinner. Half an hour after that, she got out of the car and went back into the hospital, and we finally left. And this is "a few minutes" to a Tico. It is customary to be 15 minutes late to anything. That may take a little getting used to...although it's not so bad when it comes to my 8:00 am classes. :-)
Classes started yesterday. I got into the advanced level, which is good because it means I will get more credit at the UofA. The language modules are Monday-Friday, 8am-12pm. Each level lasts four weeks. So, I will be in Advanced 1 this month, and move up to Advanced 11 next month, then in June I will have Advanced Conversation. Basically, it's one semester of credit in one month. My elective, which runs for the whole three months and meets twice a week in the afternoons, is Intercultural Communication. I am really excited about it-I think it will be fun and I'll be able to apply a lot of what I learn.
There are only three US students in my program, but there are about 20-30 students total from other programs, mostly girls. It has been fun getting to know them!! The school has lots of extracurricular activities for study abroad students, so it's easy to meet new people from the US. They say it's harder to make Tico friends, since we're not in class with them and they know we're only here for a short while. That makes sense to me, though, because I thought about it, and I don't exactly make the effort to go up to a group of internationals and introduce myself when I'm at the UofA. Maybe I need to do that more.
If you have been praying for Gleys (my host moms) father, thank you! I found out that his name is Eric, so keep praying! He has improved today-they were able to do the dialysis and drain some fluid from his lungs. He has emphezyma, diabetes, and a failed kidney. Continue to pray, please!! And thank you.
On a final note, since this is getting long (why do I always do that?), I have to tell you something rather embarassing. I thought my host brother's name was Jose Antonio, and that's what I called him for about 4 days, until Monday, when he informed me it's actually Jose Andres. I feel like an idiot, and now he calls me Becky. :-)
Must go study-one thing I've learned is that they waste no time jumping right into presentations, papers, and exams here! Until next time-love and miss you all!!

¡Que Lindo!

First off, you have to know that because I am in Costa Rica, my Internet is in Spanish. Slightly difficult to figure out, considering I don't even know very many techie terms in English! I'm adding that to my list of adventures. :-)
This weekend has been an adventure, to say the least-so fun!! I have learned several new words and concepts-and forgotten most of them. My family is great-so welcoming and eager to make me at home.
Yesterday I met Samuel, a Korean who is friends with my family. We all went to the dam in the province of Cartega (about 1 ½ hours away) that supplies electricity for the whole country. We also went to Rio Orosi, a river, where we had lunch, and on the way back we stopped at their huge church. It is beautiful! Actually, all of it is gorgeous. I was sticking my camera out the window and snapping shots of everything on the way to Cartega-I was definitely a tourist yesterday! I probably said "que bonito" or "que lindo" about 100 times-it means, "How beautiful!" We also stopped at some old ruins of what used to be their church many years ago. We then went to the supermarket, Gleys’ parents’ home, and the video rental before FINALLY coming home. Needless to say, it was a long day and I was exhausted, but it was so fun!!
Side note about Gley’s father-he is very sick right now and continues to worsen. It is very hard for her to see him like this, as you can imagine. Please pray for comfort for her family and for her father’s health. Sorry, I didn't catch his name.
My Easter experience today was very different. I went to Centro Evangelico, a church right around the corner from my house. Gleys had told me it started at 8, but it’s actually 7:30, so I was late. The message was just starting. The pastor talked for about 45 minutes, but never once mentioned Easter or Jesus’ resurrection. The message was on obedience to God. It was good, but I was so looking forward to celebrating Easter with them. After the service, I came back to the house and had my own small celebration with God. Tonight I am going to the evening services at the Catholic church where my family goes. It will be another interesting and brand new exerience!
That's all for now-I am sitting outside to pick up a wireless signal and it's starting to rain so I need to go in. I will post some pictures of the land and my house, though.

This is my bathroom mirror. I just wanted you to see it, because I absolutely love it. It's not great for putting on makeup, but hey, it's awesome!

My host family and me at the dam in Cartega

A coffee tree-for Mom and Angela :-) The red ones are maduros-ripe

A view of Orosi, the town we visited-and the beautiful mountains behind it. I'm not a very good photographer...but you get the picture!

On the edge of a grand adventure

Well, I have two more nights left in the US, in my own bed. Actually, it's technically 1 1/2, since I am getting up at 3:30 on Friday to catch my flight. I am so excited about my adventure to Costa Rica, but I am nervous, too. I know I am going to miss my family and friends like crazy, but I also know that I'm going to have the time of my life, and this is a once in a lifetime experience. Over the next three months, I plan to use this to get my experiences and thoughts out to other people, as well as let people know how they can pray for me. Please do pray for me-for health, safety, good relationships, and of course, FUN! I'll see you in July!!