The Fieldtrip from Hell

The trip from Hell

            Imagine a field trip where everything that could possibly go wrong goes wrong, and every chance your professor gets to tell the truth, he tells a lie. That was the story of this weekend. We had to meet at the school at 8 for the bus to come. And as the first of many disappointments, there was no bus, and instead there were two vans with no AC and the rows were so close together that your knees were touching the seat in front of you. Such a lovely way to spend a few hours, driving through the countryside on narrow winding roads, barely swerving in time to get out of the way of oncoming semi-trucks.

            Before our trip began, our professor gave us some information about what to expect. He said that we would be driven to a small store where we could buy snacks and  then to the gate of the biological reserve where we would be met by a truck. We would then but our luggage in the back of the truck, and hike about 6 kilometers through beautiful rainforest until we reached the reserve. We would have to wear long sleeves, long pants, and tennis shoes/hiking shoes. We were also given a bug lesson before leaving. We learned about all the different insects we might encounter on our short trip, including one that crawls out from under your bed, bites your face, poops in you face, and gives you a disease that eventually makes you die of what seem to be natural causes. Lovely. Teacher Carlos (as we like to call our ecology professor) also informed us about the large quantity of snakes in that would be in this area. He told us about how he never takes a group into the forest without closed toed shoes because of snakes and insects. But of course he reassures us that as long as you get to a hospital within 3 hours of being bit by a snake, you will be fine. Oh and that he is certified in first aid for whatever that is worth. And the wonderful news? He tells us that farthest we would ever be away from the hospital is 3 hours. Great, so at least we know there is a pretty good chance we will make it to the hospital if we get bit. So of course, this heightens my interest, so I asked what the circumstances of said snake bite would be. If I go off the path and provoke a snake it will bite me? Or I’ll be walking down the path minding my own business and a snake will just jump out and bite me? Unfortunately, he said the latter.

            When we arrived at the “small store” there was nothing to buy; but rather, it was a restaurant. Lie number 1. Unfortunately, our van drivers told us they would not drive us up to the gate of the reserve because it was “too muddy.” Lie number 2. So we were going to have to carry our luggage and hike about 5 kilometers “or so” to the gate where we would have trucks to take our bags.

            And so the hike began. It started off not so bad, I enjoyed looking around at the rainforest for the first time, something I had been dreaming of practically all my life. I had wanted to go to the rainforest ever since we did a “rainforest unit” in second grade. But it was hard to enjoy nature with a heavy backpack weighing you down while wearing long sleeves, long pants, in the heat of the day, hotter than hot weather, up a mountain in the rainforest while sweating more than I had ever sweat in my life from walking. When the trail was flat, the hike was no big deal. But when we started hitting the steep hills it was like walking up a wall. I actually had to bend my head over my knees to keep from toppling over backwards. We were really lucky we didn’t have any incredibly large or out of shape people in our group, because if we did they would never have made it.

            We hiked all the way to the gate of the reserve to find no truck waiting for us. Lie number 3. Our professor said it was all basically flat from that point on, and we only had to hike about 6 more kilometers… Lie number 4. So we hiked, and we hiked, and we hiked hiked hiked. Eventually, I started to fall to the back of the group to make sure the three girls at the caboose didn’t get left behind. Like the rest of us, they were not too happy about our circumstances. I believe there was lots of talk about dying, and giving up, or something like that. When we had about 2 kilometers left to go, we heard a truck coming. We threw our hands up in the air and started shouting. The guy waved us over, and we didn’t even hesitate. We literally just hopped in the truck with him (sorry dad). But who else would have been driving on that road? It was the director from the reserve. He had waited for us for 2 hours, but since the vans didn’t take us, we didn’t show up on time. So a bunch of us got a free ride to the reserve while the other half had to finish the hike, sorry guys! It was the best car ride of my life. I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy. The director kept stopping and showing us where the snakes were! That was a little creepy. But luckily they were all sleeping.

            When we got to the biological reserve, it was literally just a big building. There were several rooms with bunks, a large kitchen, classroom, and bathrooms. It was right on a small stream. They even pumped their water right out of the stream and didn’t have to filter it. We all got settled into our rooms and took some time to rest after the hike. We ate some interesting food at the reserve, but what else is new. It wasn’t horrible, but it was a little worse than cafeteria food. After resting our teacher took us out just a little bit in the rainforest. It started pouring, and we really learned why they call it a rainforest. It rained so much that the little stream turned into a raging brown river. We couldn’t shower or drink the water because of all the sediment. That night, we went to observe all the bugs on the bug screen. It was amazing how many bugs come out at night. But a lot of them were extremely creepy. Our lovely professor told us about all the horrible life threatening diseases that certain bugs here in Costa Rica spread. But he reassured us that we had nothing to worry about. He also told us to check our beds for cockroaches and scorpians, and that he had woken up with a cockroach in his mouth before. And this made Chandler cry. She soon rediscovered that she is a resort girl. Not a reserve girl.

            That night we found several cockroaches and SCORPIANS in our beds! Let’s just say we did not get much sleep that night. The next day we went on what our teacher Carlos called, a “short nature walk.” I actually really enjoyed this hike. We got to go deep into the forest, on an unmarked trail surrounded by green. It was absolutely beautiful. We climbed over tree trunks, under fallen trees, through mud. Not to mention we had to cross the river 28 times. That was great fun. After about an hour and a half, we made it to this serene spot with a clear waterfall and little pool of water for us to swim in. We spent an hour swimming in the cold water and relaxing. It was pretty awesome.

            When we got back to camp and packed up, Carlos told us that he had talked the one of the workers into driving us all back down to the “small restaurant.” The only thing was, we were going to have to fit 17 people into one truck. Sounds impossible right? Well it’s not. We put to girls up front with the driver, three of us in the back seat, and 11 people STANDING in the bed of the truck. Don’t worry dad, I sat in the cab of the truck. What a wild ride. It felt just like the Indian Jones ride at Disneyland. Except for the fact that we weren’t on a track and anyone could have gone flying from the truck at any moment. To add on to that, the driver was getting a kick out speeding up as we went downhill and splashing through the puddles from the previous night’s rain. As we sped up at one point, we heard this awful hissing sound. I thought for sure a giant snake was jumping out of the forest to kill us all. But I was wrong. We had a flat tire. Great. But we had a jack! Perfect! But it was rusted and didn’t work. Ah poop. So we were already about halfway down. Luckily, the one boy in our group (who just happens to be a native Spanish speaker) volunteered to run back to camp, explain what happened, and get another jack.

            So we waited and waited. It was hot and the sun of pounding down on our faces. We decided to play the game signs, and that was pretty fun. Eventually Jose came back with a jack and some oil. He saved the day! Poor guy was dripping sweat from head to toe. But us girls sure were glad to see him. Teacher Carlos and the driver changed the tire, and then we loaded everybody back into the truck and made it all the way down! I was just glad we didn’t have walk all that way again. So, it was a pretty memorable first fieldtrip to say the least.

Sorry this is so old! But I’ve really just been living it up here J I’ll try to find more time to write before I leave soon!

Kristin 

Earthquake +

Day 6

            On the 2nd, I went to the Bull Parade with Chandler and her family. Of course, we met more sisters. Luckily we were able to sit for this parade, so that was nice. As we sat there waiting for it to start, more and more of Chandler’s family kept coming over and greeting each other. It’s weird, you never know who is going to give you the customary kiss on the right cheek and who is not. Lets just say we got a lot of kisses that day. Chandler’s cousin (?) lady kept coming over to us with strange foods that we felt we couldn’t refused, even though we weren’t sure exactly what they were. We had chichirones, which are basically what is between the layer of fat and skin on a pig. Apparently there are two different kinds, one that is really good with lots of meat, and one that is really crunchy. Of course, that’s the one we tried. Chandler couldn’t quite get through hers, so I ate it. There was something a little iffy about it, but it was fried and I was craving KFC, so I just went with it.

            The bulls were really awesomely huge. But the hand painted carts they were pulling were amazing. There was so much detail, and all the designs were geometrical and symmetrical. Unfortunately, several of the bulls decided to drop huge nasty and also runny number twos right in front of our spot. Soon after it started to rain, which only made to poop situation worse. I don’t know how many people went slipping through the brown mud that just happened to be placed in the middle of the road.

            After the parade, we had lunch at Chandler’s aunt’s(?). We had lots of funny conversations, as usual. And Chandler’s uncle was the only male. He started telling us all about the differences between Spanish and English. It was quite the lesson. Later that day, I splurged and bought white chocolate covered coffee beans and Pepsi which have been helping get through all the cravings I’ve been having for foods from back home. They made everything so much better.

           

Day 7

            On the 3^rd we had our first day of school! Finally, right? It is almost like we are back in high school. We have Spanish from 8:30 to 11, go home for lunch and have history from 1:30 to 3:15. Class was pretty boring the first day, but school is school, wherever you are.

            After class Chandler and I finally got cell phones! It was so simple. We went to this store called Claro with some of our classmates. It was right across the street from the museum where we go to school… We just walked in, and asked for their cheap phone. It was about 30 dollars for the phone and the chip, which really means that we got screwed on the other chips we bought. But at this point we didn’t care. Yay cell phones!

Day 8

           

            On the 4^th, we had service learning and ecology. I found out that I get to be partners with Chandler for our community service, so that was a relief. I was pretty worried that about Chandler getting lost if she had to get there on her own ;) We found out we are working at the CEN San Juan, which is an educational/nutrition center for underprivileged kids between about 3 and 6. BUT it is in San Juan, which sounds far away, but it actually isn’t that bad. We have to either take the public bus or take a 35 minute walk (which doesn’t sound very pleasant).

            Our ecology teacher is really young and speaks perfect English. He is from Costa Rica but studied in the US for a long time, and actually married a woman from the US. He basically spoke English the whole time which was aaaaamazing, but kind of defeats the whole purpose. He told us about our up coming field trip and his plan to take us to a waterfall. The bad news was that he said we would see a minumum of 5 snakes! Ahhhh! And they are all poisonous, and we have to wear all long sleeves because we don’t want to get bit. I was really looking forward to the trip after that.

Day 9

            The 5^th, the big day! We were sitting in Spanish in the morning listening to our teacher. I started to feel the table shake a tiny bit, and I turned to look at Chandler. She asked me if I was shaking me leg, which I often am, but I wasn’t. We looked at each other in horror, both of our eyes getting huge, as the room really started to shake. Everyone was looking around at each other in shock, not sure exactly what was going on. Eventually, when the room was rocking back and forth we realized it was an earth quake. Our teacher, who is only two years older than us, got off her desk and nonchalantly basically said, ok let’s get out of here. So we are all laughing (not sure why) and joking around about each others reactions. The building is still rocking by the way. And so we walk out of the class room, about to go down the stairs, and we peek into the other class room and see all of our classmates, under their desks. For some reason this makes all of us laugh. I don’t know if it was being in a foreign country or being so far removed from elementary school, but all my years of earthquake drill training went right out the window.

Finally the earthquake stopped. It lasted probably about 45 seconds. It started off pretty soft but ended up shaking pretty hard. It was tough to get back to class after that. We found out it was a 7.6 earthquake. None of our phones were working, the power was out, there was no internet,  and there was no water. My first thought was, oh no, my dad is going to be FREAKING out. He probably thinks I’m dead. Oh how I know him so well.

            So not only did I have no way to contact my family but I had nothing to do when I went home for lunch. I don’t mean this in a bad way, but the normal routine that I have here is I come home, I check my email/facebook, I watch a little Friends on TV, I go to the kitchen, get a plate of food and sit down at the kitchen table and watch either the news or telenovelas with my family haha. I don’t know how they did such a great job placing us in our families. How did they know I always watch TV with my family at home while we eat? It really is crazy. BUT there was no internet or cable or power at the house. So what do you do when there is nothing to do? I guess that is when you talk! So it was great not having access to anything because I really got to talk and get to know my host brother, Guillermo. Granted, we finally had a full on conversation in English, but it was nice to finally be able to actually express myself.

            So I got to hear all about my families experiences from the earth quake. Apparently (if I heard correctly) my mom and tita started screaming and running out of the house into the street, and my mom was jumping up and down (because apparently it makes you not feel the earthquake). Then Guillermo starts to tell me about his experience, and I can’t stop laughing. (Hopefully you aren’t reading this, but if you are sorry if I embarrass you! I told you I may use your life for my stories and benefit) I guess he was naked when the earthquake started (haha). Not exactly sure why, but I’m going to go ahead and assume he was about to shower? Anyways, the power went out, and he had not clothes and had to find pants in the dark while the earth was shaking. As you can imagine, I’m sure it was a pretty funny scene.

            So since we had nothing better to do, we got to talking and that was really nice. He told me some very funny stories, which to spare his embarrassment, I will not share at this time. Of course we went through the whole, “what are you studying?” “Creative writing” “Oh, what does that even mean? What are you going to do with that? How are you going to make money?” hardy har stuff. And so I informed him of my plan to live in my parent’s basement until I come up with something brilliant. (Thanks mom and dad!)

            After all the earthquake talk, I had history class and then dance class. Oh how embarrassing that was. We learned “salsa” but how can you really learn a complicated dance in an hour and half? I really do not enjoy dancing in room full of mirrors in front of 16 other people. Now if it was just me and some crazy friends from back home I know, that would be another story. But salsa was hard for me, and I believe the majority us from what I saw. And since there is only one boy in our group it was very confusing dancing and not knowing who was the man who was the woman.

            After salsa, I went to Chandler’s to try to call my family because her family has free calling to the US. So I called my dad and he didn’t realize it was me. When he finally did he started freaking out. I had nailed it. He was so worried. I guess he didn’t find out until 2 PM and I’m sure he immediately thought the worst. But he was glad to hear from me, and probably very angry that no one ELSE had called him to let him know I was ok. For his sake, I decided to call him first, since I knew he would be the most worried. (You’re welcome Dad). After talking with my family back home, I got a call on my cell from my tica mom. I started to panic! I thought, omg! She’s calling me! I can hardly understand what she tells me in person, there is no way I’m gonna be able to have a conversation on the phone! So I answer and basically get that the power is still off and that they are going out for food, or I should go out for food, or something along these lines. I wasn’t entirely sure. So when we are done I call Guillermo, and I ask him what she said. He just happens to be standing right next to her, so of course he leans over and asks her. And I’m saying no, no, no, don’t ask her! Haha You were standing right there, can’t you tell me? I told her I understood! So that was embarrassing.

            So after all the confusion, I found out that I should go out to eat, because we couldn’t cook at the house. So Chan and I went on a search for food. We passed by this little hole in the wall pizza place. Oooo pizzzzzaaaaa… It sounded so amazing! So we went to circus pizza and ordered an Americano (which was pepperoni). We drank coke and fanta and talked and ate great pizza. It was so great. The worker was really nice and even turned on country music for us! It instantly became our new favorite place. We felt so at home. Hadn’t seen Chandler smile so wide the entire trip. It was a crazy day, and a great night 

I realize that this is day 9, and I’ve been here over a month! Going to start focusing on specific events and not days soon! More to come.

Kristin 

Las Musas

Day 5 9/1/12

            This was quite a day! So much happened. We took our first taxi to Las Musas Water Park! Driving through the country we thought we were going to die! The roads were narrow and the cars were driving so fast. We kept swerving and there was an endless supply of bumps. But the further we drove the more beautiful it became. Now this is what I thought of when I imagined Costa Rica. Vast rainforests with green that goes on for miles. Muy bonita. Blue skies and lush trees and greenery.

            When we arrived at the “park” the Maria (the taxi meter) didn’t stop! It just kept adding on and on as we sat there trying to collect our money! It was taking forever for us to add it up so Hillary just ended up paying for it so we wouldn’t end up paying a fortune. I’m pretty sure that they are not allowed to do that, but of course, us gringas didn’t know what to say.

            We could see the whole park from up on the hill and it was so pretty! There was a giant pool with a big slide in the middle of the rainforest and we could see a breathtaking waterfall in the distance.

        

    So the group headed straight for the waterfall. The water was flowing off the cliff like sand in an hourglass, so smooth and weightless. It was splashing and sending mist in every direction.

            We had to cross this tiny rickety bridge that would have been SO much scarier if it were more than four feet off the ground. I got right into the water when we made it to the waterfall. After swimming in the Green River on a not so hot day this summer, I’m pretty sure nothing is cold to me. A bunch of the girls were screaming and freaking out saying how freezing it was. The bottom was a little gross with lots of mud and leaves. But we swam across and a few of us went behind the waterfall and jumped through! It sucked because of course I was wearing my glasses because of all these stupid eye issues I’ve been having, but I won’t get into that. The mist made it impossible to see. I was in some major need of some glasses shield wipers. When I would take my glasses off, I was basically blind. Therefore, it was a lose lose situation. But I managed. When I jumped through I was a little scared because I didn’t know where the rocks were, but I just went for it (almost scraping my knees on the rocks, whoops).

  When we were done there, we went in the pool and Syd and I went on the slide. It was fun but was kind of painful at the same time. It hurt your back all the way down. And Chandler sucked at taking our pictures…

            After swimming around we ate lunch at the restaurant. The worker guy was a little creepy. He was just a little too nice. He kept asking this one girl in our group questions and bringing us free samples, and taking our pictures. He kept winking and touching and telling this girl how beautiful she was. It was a little weird haha.

            The food wasn’t all that great, but what can you expect at a water park I guess. As we are all eating, this drunk guy comes out of nowhere behind me and starts whispering in my ear. It freaked me out! He was crouched down and I thought he was a worker asking me a question at first. I couldn’t really understand him, but he smelled like straight up alcohol. I thought I understood what he was saying, but I was just so confused about the situation. We were all just staring at him, scared and confused. He asked if we spoke Spanish we said a little. Then he asked his question again, if I/we wanted to leave with him and his friend or something! I’m just like hold on! WTH!? Drunk guy, slurring words, 12 in the afternoon, 13 gringas eating lunch, whyyyy is this happening? I was beyond creeped out. I looked up at my friends with terrified eyes and then said, “no gracias, lo siento,” for everyone. And he said ok and left. Few, thank God! We all just started laughing so hard.

            Later, as we were waiting for the bus that never came to pick us up, two, somewhat nicer or more normal looking guys started talking to us. Although they seemed cool, I think they may still be stocking some of the girls from our group, so they might have been a little strange after all. We ended up taking 3 taxis home and ours of course took an alternate route. Our driver took a different turn away from the others and we were all freaking out! He kept saying “la calle, la calle?” And we were just like, the street? “No, el centro, el centro, la iglesia!” And he says “San Jose?” And we are all just like “no! San Ramón!” haha He couldn’t understand what we we meant and had to radio the other taxis to figure out where we were going. “El parque,” he said. Oh… right you know where the park is, but not the church or el centro where this is all located. But finally we ended up making it back.

            My family wasn’t going to get home until late, so Chandler and I walked from my house to hers after dark. These creeper guys started walking behind us. Of course everything is scarier at night. So we grabbed onto each other which I’m sure made us look even more vulnerable. Chan was freaking out and started fumbling for her pepper spray. My heart was thumping and I started to think, “omg, this is it. This is how we are going to go. That or I am about to stab someone, that is if only I could find my damn pocket knife!” But we crossed the street and they went a different direction. So plan avert death was a success.

            At Chandler’s house we chatted with her mom and the Tías as we call them. I told them my major and they said that if I write a book I can dedicate it to my second family in Costa Rica. Chandler’s niece, Valentina was running through the house like a crazy animal, eating hot chocolate powder and screaming and laughing at the top of her lungs for a little attention. Of course, I indulged, and laughed every time, only enticing her.

            We ended up playing cards with Valezca and Valentina. It was so much fun. We tried to play Go Fish, but we couldn’t remember exactly what all the rules were. (Sorry Grandma Dorothy!) It was crazy to think that a 6 and 9 year old were teaching us how to play card games in Spanish. It was really interesting and we learned new words. It was really fun.

            Isa, one of the Tías, made us fresco, something really good she whipped up in the blender. She placed a plate of cookies on the table, and I thought Chandler was going to die as she saw a tiny ant scuttle across the plate. So I instinctively started trying to kill the ants with my fingers so that all would stay calm haha.

            Overall, it was all just another great adventure in Costa Rica J

More to come!

Chau! 

Day 3

Day 3  8/30/12

            Oh another adventure! We didn’t have to meet for class, so it was strange having nothing set that we had to do. I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to go the fiesta with my family or with my friends. So I asked my tica mom and she said no! no! Go with your friends! So I went to my friend Chandler’s house to go with her and her family.

            I absolutely love Chandler’s family. Every time I go over it feels like a sitcom. They are so hilarious. She literally lives with 7 women. Now imagine 4  women, 2 little girls, 1 man, and one bathroom. Now imagine how much women tend to talk. Then multiply it and translate it into Spanish! Basically we only understand about half of what they say because they talk so much and so fast, but oh how we laugh. Laughter is the same in every language. Thank goodness. So Chandler’s tica mom is an older woman who lives with either 2 or 3 of her something like 15 sisters/siblings! They all look very similar and talk very fast to one another. But they are a hoot. Somehow, Chandler didn’t actually get introduced formally to the sisters so she doesn’t know their names. But we have slowly been learning them through paying attention to conversations. And more and more sisters and family members keep appearing! It’s really entertaining to watch. Especially when Chandler comes running over to my house to tell me she met another sister (she’s running over because she has no Internet AND no phone. It’s like the olden days or something). Ania’s (Chanlder’s tica mom) daughter May also lives at the house with her two daughters Valezca (9) and Valentina (6) and her husband, but he is almost always working.

            One of the sisters (who we recently found out is Isa) said that their house is pura  mujeres (pure women). She is soooo funny. Ania said that I like to go over there because I live with all men and I need to be around them haha. I really do love going over to Chandler’s house though. It’s like having two families here in Costa Rica. It is crowded and everyone is always saying something, but they are so caring and so good to us.

            So once everyone was ready (which takes a long time with so many ladies) we walked to el centro and found a spot to stand for the parade or the entering of the saints. We waited for a while, but eventually the parade started. In Costa Rica they have what people call Tico Time. People don’t get as worked up about time like they do in the US. So nothing ever really starts at its designated time. (Dad I don’t know what you would do if you lived here. At least we would be early to events.) When the parade started, the priest and others dressed in traditional clothes welcomed everyone. There were tons of floats, but they were different from floats here. I’m not even sure if that is what you would call them. Basically groups of people carried decorated wooden frames over their shoulders that held up all the saints that were returning to San Ramón. Some people drove cars and even tractors decorated with beautiful flowers. Many people wore red and white for the entering of the saints, and all of the floats were meticulously decorated. There was great music during the parade as well. Some high school students played modern music and the older groups played more traditional music. It was really fun to watch.

            It was crazy how many people were there. I think school was out for all of the kids. It was really interesting how the parade went. There were people just walking within the parade who weren’t a part of it. Chandler and I found this really weird. It was like instead of standing behind the barrier, some people walked through the parade to get wherever they were trying to go. We laughed to ourselves thinking about how that would never happen in the US. Police or security would make everyone stay behind the barrier. Things are much more laid back here. Chandler and I ate some cotton candy and it was oh so amazing. Thank goodness for universal foods.

            When I walked home after the parade I walked into the house and found a funny scene. My whole family was sitting down for lunch. This was surprising because it was only the second or third time I’d seen my youngest host brother. My tico dad was sitting at the table shirtless and my older host brother was wearing an Italian t-shirt as my mom calls it (a wife-beater to anyone else). The reason it was so comical is that our director told us we shouldn’t even to walk around our house in our pajamas. So seeing everyone else so laid back was surprising.

            After lunch, Chandler and I went with her tica mom to try and get sim cards for our phones! Phone adventure round 3! It was QUITE the adventure and very overwhelming. We showed up and Chandler’s mom starts to talk to the people. We went to this store called Gollo with a giant chicken on top of the sign. It was kind of an odd place. They had phones, electronics, furniture and appliances. So this guy with the most beautiful eyes was talking to us wayyy to fast and we had NO idea what he is saying. He just kept smiling at us as we stared back at him with confused eyes. So every time he spoke we looked from him to each other to Chandler’s mom, and she repeated it slower so that we could somewhat understand. So we bought these damn chips and had the hardest time paying. For some reason we had to use cash. Not sure what this was about. We hope we didn’t do anything illegal. But we have no idea how much it cost in colones or how much our bills are worth! It was so confusing. All the dollars are different colors but they are by the thousand and coins are even more confusing. So we bought the chips and I put mine in my phone. I was so excited! Yay! Finally I have a phone… and all of a sudden a screen pops up asking for a pin to unlock the phone. Great. What the hell. I was so beyond pissed. And the woman who put the chip in my phone was just so utterly confused on why it wasn’t working. Eventually she told me that it wouldn’t work and that I would have to have someone in the US call T-Mobile to unlock my phone. Well that was just lovely.

Unfortunately, Chandler didn’t have much luck either. They cut her sim card to fit it in her iphone and then the woman told us it was incompatible. Whatever that means. But really? She couldn’t have realized it wouldn’t work BEFORE we bought the stupid chips!? So Chandler looked at phones to buy from the shop but they were all extremely expensive because they were smart phones that use internet, and we paid for internet on the chips that we bought!

            So, eventually, we walked out of the store flustered, laughing, upset, and maybe even about to cry. Chandler’s mom, Ania, laughed and said, tienen chips pero no teléfonos! (you have chips but no phones!) It cheered us up to laugh. Well, just a little bit. When we got back to Chan’s we told the tías about the story and they laughed and laughed. Apparently our sad lives and lack of Spanish speaking abilities are quite entertaining. Ania said that it was all ok because the guy who was working with us was muy guapo :P.

            Later we went to the fiesta again and there was a concert. They played some American songs like “Shake Your Booty” and then something called Chicky Chicky? Everyone was dancing in the street. We wanted to dance but didn’t really know how. Then I reminded myself I usually only dance in the comfort of my home surrounded by my oh so talented best friends.

            Later on we saw our friends Hillary, Sydney, Mariah, and Alysa. We bought these weird things called Chorreadas Ducles. It was like a flat grilled corn type food with natilla on it. I knew I didn’t like Natilla but everyone was buying it so Chan and I shared one and with a Coke. I ordered for the first time and gave the right amount of money. SCORE! I was so proud of myself. The woman next to me asked me something and I thought I heard something about sugar. So she put some sugar that’s in a bowl on her food and then a guy gave her some packets. SO I decided to put some on ours too and then I joined our friends in the park.

            Most of them didn’t like the chorreada too much. Without the natilla it wasn’t too bad. Chandler tried it and made a horrible face. I was laughing at her and I mixed the sugar in and told everyone how WE put sugar on ours. Then I tried it and instantly my face scrunched up and it was the most horrible horrible taste. I almost threw up. Then I shouted, “It’s not sugar! It’s SALT!” and everyone busted out laughing. It was very unpleasant.

            After, we walked Alysa home and it was really far away. It started to get dark and rain and everyone laughed at me because I still had the tag on my umbrella and it was semi broken. (Thanks a lot mom! Just kidding, but really!) It started raining harder and harder. We were all getting soaked and it was completely dark. I could feel blisters forming on my feet and I was wearing a stupid dress. Chandler came over and I felt so bad because we were soaking wet. We dried off a bit and watched PLL which was so good! We used headphones because my host mom was watching her Telenovelas, but we kept screaming and gasping! I think she might have been laughing at us as we were glued to the computer.

            Later on a skyped my parents which was so great. They met my host dad and it was very funny. It was really hard to flip back and forth between Spanish and English though. My host dad said my dad looked good and like he lifts weights. Haha just what he needs to hear :P. Anyways it was great to see them!

I know this is way overdue! I’ll try to write more soon! This is old!

Hasta luego,

Kristin 

            Today we went on a tour of San Ramón. We broke up into small groups of 5 so there wouldn’t be 15 gringos walking all together. However, people did still stare. It was very strange being the other, something most of us have never experienced before. People just stare at us like we are  from another planet. It is somewhat entertaining, but weird at the same time. We saw the gym, las tiendas (stores) the bank, Doña Mayra’s office, and more. A few of us went to El Ray and made our first purchases! It was scary when we checked out because we couldn’t understand how much it cost. Luckily we could use our debit cards. I bought shampoo/conditioner and folders for school.

            Chandler and I got lost AGAIN before lunch. We thought for sure we knew where we were. We had been using the Church as our safe/home spot. As long as we can see the church we know relatively where we are and if we get confused, it’s where we return to so we can get home. I guess you could say God is calling us back! It has been very useful so far. But landmarks are not always that useful if you get turned around and think they are something different… Somehow we got on the wrong side of the park and church and we thought it was a different park. I don’t know how this happened. I think in the back of my mind I must have known that this had to be the park. There wouldn’t be two parks that look the same next to a church in one city. But somehow we convinced ourselves that this was the wrong church. We could see another church way off in the distance and decided to walk there. AGAIN, we saw someone from Chandler’s family and she asked if we were lost. We told her no, thinking we were on the right track. Oh how wrong we were. We walked ten blocks in the wrong direction, only to realize it was in deed not the right church. It looked nothing like the correct church, and the more we stared at it the more the previous church started to seem familiar. We looked through the pictures on my camera (something we should have done before but weren’t smart enough to think of) and realized that the last church was the correct spot.

            So we walked back the 10 blocks, sweating all the way. I remembered that the park needed to be on our right so we walked back to the church and museo where we go to school and I followed the directions my host mom had told me the first day and we managed to make it home safely- thank God.

            After lunch we went back to class. We met our history professor and he was very nice and funny too. He was asking everyone their names and repeating them and he couldn’t even try to say Chandler. It was very entertaining. It started raining for the first time while we were in class and it was like nothing I have experienced before. It rains hard in Seattle, but I don’t think it can compare to this. I understand why they call it a rainforest. It was so incredibly loud nd hard that everyones’s eyes got huge and we couldn’t concentrate on the teacher. It sounded like the roof was going to cave in and it was hailing giant blocks of ice or something. We were all laughing in amazement and our professor told us to go look. So we ran out to see and it was so cool. The raindrops were bigger than marbles and they were warm too. It was so different than back home.

            After class I walked around with Sydney, Chanlder, and Hillary. They are all super nice and not too outgoing or too shy (which is good for me!) Chandler and I attemped buyging sim cards or “chips” for our phones. Boyyyy was that a trip. We went to an electronics store that had really nice phones. I don’t know why, but I guess we didn’t want to go into a shop that sold shoes and phones… I’m not sure why we had that instinct. Chandler showed the guys her phone and explained what she wanted. He explained that her phone was locked. So we showed him mine and asked if it would work and he said yes!  We were SO proud of ourselves. Well, I basically coppied what Chandler said, but still, the guys understood me! So that’s a plus. He told us the guy that sells the chips would be back in about ten minutes. But of course when we returned, no one was there, and then no one came back to help us. So that was a major downer.

            After our first try, we decided to give it another go. We went to another little shop on the way home that said they sold the sim cards. We walked into the incredibly small and cluttered store with looks of confusion on our faces. There was stuff everywhere. Purses hanging from the ceiling, shoe boxes all over the ground, and not a cell phone in sight. We said something about phones loudly and a man who worked in the shop overheard. He directed us toward this squatty woman looked rather unhappy to be working. We tried to tell the woman what we needed. I decided to take the lead this time. Bad idea. I probably said something like, necesito un chip o sim card para mi telefono. Which probably came out something like need chip card telephone for me. Haha, no not really, but it’s possible. She started talking so fast that no one could understand a word she was saying. She was hitting the counter with her hand and I think my eyes enlarged two sizes as I looked worriedly from Chandler to Sydney, lost and confused. (I think many ticos have seen me make this face. When I don’t understand my eyes just seem to get bigger and bigger. For some reason it doesn’t actually help. I wonder why?) She wanted or rather demanded to see my passport, which eventually I understood and I showed her. Then she wanted to know which company I wanted. But I didn’t know which was which so we tried to ask what the difference was but she couldn’t or wouldn’t tell us, I’m not sure. Sydney tried to help and started speaking to me in English but then I think the woman thought she was a translator and started talking to her. So then Chandler tried to explain that she was speaking in English because I couldn’t understand her. And the woman started shouting I know! I know! And then she was just speaking louder and louder but never slower! (Why do people think we can’t hear them? We are not deaf, we just can’t understand a single word they are saying! Slower is much better than louder).

            Finally I just went ahead and chose a random brand. She called the company to set up a phone line but no one answered. So she simply told us, no one answered, you can’t buy it. I just stood there and stared at her for a moment. Seriously lady? After all that trouble we are going to get nothing? You can’t even call a different company? But I think our brains were mentally exhausted, and therefore, we decided to give up. As we left the store, more confused than ever, we noticed a woman behind us trying not to laugh after assessing the situation. I think we started busting out laughing before we reached the door. Needless to say, I’m pretty sure the woman hates us now, and I am never going back.

            After the “phone incident” we walked around to each other’s houses and found out we all live within 5 blocks! I brought my friends over to show them my house. I wasn’t sure if that was ok, because our instructor told us not to have people over without asking first. But Guillermo and Tita (my grandma) were watching a soccer came and told us all to come in. Tita told me to offer them “un fresco” and Guillermo told me that my friends are always welcome, which was really nice.

            Later we went to Hillary and Sydney’s houses and met their families. I just can’t believe how nice everyone’s families are. Every family makeup is so completely different, but they are all so kind and caring. Everyone here is super nice. Well, accept maybe the lady in the phone shop. We told Sydney’s family we were going out, and asked how to take a taxi. Her mom explained it to us and wrote down a bar nearby so the driver would know what area to take us to. Then her brother told us about going out at night (it gets dark at 6). He told us that it’s not dangerous, but you always need to be careful. Carry your purse or backpack in front, because otherwise, people can grab them. So hearing that was a little scary, but it was nice to get the advice! He said stay in groups! Don’t walk alone!

            So we decided to walk to el centro, next to the park, church, and las fiestas. Lightning lit up the sky all night. We were only a liiittle bit scared walking at night. We decided to eat in the small restaurant near el centro. We weren’t sure what to order, so we all just got the same as Sydney. Arroz con Pollo and passion frut fresca (chicken with rice). Of course, I was thinking, really guys? More rice? I mean isn’t it enough that we eat it at home for breakfast lunch and dinner? Haha But it was so good! Muy sabrosa!

            The rain started to pour while we were eating. As in buckets an buckets. The lightning got closer and closer as the thunder grew louder and louder. It cracked so loud and close that we all jumped and screamed. It sounded like a firecracker going off right in your ear. I’m sure everyone was staring. Then we started dying laughing. But lightning struck again and ALL the lights went out. All as in in the restaurant, in the street, in the houses, everywhere! We couldn’t see a thing. We all grabbed for each other and of course my first thought is, “Oh shit! I don’t have my flash light!” haha But a few seconds later the lights came back on. It was such a relief. But I’m guessing people would have paid money to see our faces. It would have been a great picture.

            After dinner we walked to the fiesta. There were all these men on horses doing some type of performance. The streets were bocked off and there were tons of people watching. The men made the horses do this sort of high knees like dance. They marched forward and backward, and a sort of side to side too. It was really entertaining.

            When we finished watching the horses we bout chocolate covered apples and churros. The walk home in the dark was a little scary, but we made it. We had to drop off Chandler first because she can’t find her way anywhere without me. She is even worse than me with directions, here at least. (I know, hard to believe, right?) I got home and everyone was either asleep or out. I’m not exactly sure. Everyone goes to bed early, or at least they go into their rooms fairly early. They go to bed early and get up very early. Which just happens to be the opposite of my sleeping pattern. Stay up late, sleep in late. But Doña Mayra says that there is no such thing as a night person in Costa Rica. Everyone is a morning person. It was hard to unlock my gat in the dark. I almost didn’t figure it out, but I  eventually succeed. Of course later  I found out there is a light…

            I gave my family their gifts earlier in the day. I think they really liked them. It was perfect because it was Tita’s birthday. I am looking forward to sleeping to the sound of rain. It reminds me of home.

More soon to come!

Kristin

Today I woke up around 7:45. I wasn’t sure what to do, and my brain was not in Spanish mode. My host mom, Gina, asked if I wanted to eat breakfast or shower. So I decided to shower. Apparently everyone in Costa Rica showers in the morning. I guess it is weird to shower at night, which is what I usually do. But it’s so humid here, I guess you want to shower all the time. The shower head is literally right above your head, which is kind of cool. There is only one knob, so at first I turned it quite a ways. The water was ice cold, but I didn’t want to waste it, so I endured the ice cold water. I thought to myself, oh my gosh, it’s going to be a long 3 months if this is what showers are going to be like. But I tried turning the knob back toward off, and the water got hot! Such a relief!

            For breakfast Gina made me bread with a butter type substance and jelly. She also cut up fruit for me. I had watermelon, cantaloupe, and I think papaya. It was kind of slimy and was a deep orange. It tasted… interesting. It was so different, I couldn’t decide if I liked it. But I think I figured out that it is not my favorite.

Gina walked me to the museum where we have class and where our class was meeting. The building is named after an important past president of Costa Rica. I learned about how he helped abolish the military use the money to better education. The literacy rate in Costa Rica is actually higher than it is in the US.

I walked home for lunch with Chandler and her host mom. We picked up her granddaughter from school. She was so adorable. Her name was Valentina. She made fart noises with her hands on the walk home trying to make Chandler and me laugh, and it worked. But I don’t think her grandma was too pleased with her. Chandler’s host mom taught me how to get home from her house and I soon saw Gina waving to me from the gate. I’m not sure if she was worried that I got lost because it took me a while to get home. I felt bad. But I think she was just happy I made it. We had beans, rice, and this yellowish food I can’t remember what the name was, but I liked it, and chicken and salad for lunch. In Costa Rica lunch is the biggest meal of the day and many people take a siesta or nap after eating and returning to work or whatever they have to do. I served myself, taking a little of everything so that I could try it and see if I liked it and I didn’t want to waste the food. But my family keeps telling me my plate is so little and I don’t eat that much. Which is a surprise for me haha. For those of you who know me well, you know I am not one to eat “a little”. I watched how Gina and Guillermo washed their dishes and things after eating and tried to emulate them as best I could. I hope I’m doing it right!

After class in the afternoon, Chandler and I walked with Mariah back to her house because we thought we lived somewhat close. We were pretty confused when we dropped her off. We had some idea about where we were, but everything sort of looks similar. We literally walked for an hour from house to house, so completely confused. We kept ending up on the same street that looked so familiar. We tried turning left, right, and going back from the street but we could NOT find our houses! We kept contemplating going back to the church to start over. But when we got back to this street, we still wouldn’t have known where to go. Finally, I said this is familiar! Let’s just keep going straight. So we did, and guess what we found? There was Chandler’s house. Pretty sure we had passed it… We got to Chandler’s house and they let us un. Her mom let me call my mom on their house phone. It was nice to hear her voice, but I think she was very surprised when it was me. Haha. Then I walked home and saw Gina and my host grandma, Tita, sitting on the porch. It was a little embarrassing to have to explain to them how I got lost within a 2 block radius of the house. What is even more embarrassing is the fact that Chandler’s host sister saw us about a block away from the house and started calling her name and waving. But we were so focused on finding our way and thinking that we did not hear or see a thing. It was so embarrassing.

After the long walk, I was sweating up a storm. It’s terrible how much you sweat when you stop walking! It’s not even that hot temperature wise here, but it is so humid that you can’t help but sweat all the time! Well I can’t at least. I decided I should probably unpack and not live out of my suitcase. Are you proud of me mom? So I started to unpack and put away my things. I have a wardrobe type closet in my room with two drawers and a place to hang clothes and then an area to stack clothes. When I opened the closet and found 5 hangers, I was a little concerned. What am a going to do with the shit ton (excuse my language) of clothes that I brought?! But I found a way to be resourceful. I put all my dresses on two hangers, my short sleeve shirts on another, tanks on another, long sleeves on another, and skirts on another. It was perfect.

            While I was unpacking I realized I have a TV! I turned it on and started flipping channels. I found out we get a bunch of American channels! I was so incredibly excited. I direct line to my world! Some of the channels from the states are in English with Spanish subtitles but others are voiced over with Spanish. I even found Pretty Little Liars on TV! I’m sure you can imagine my excitement and enthusiasm. But it was in SPANISH! I guess that will be a good way for me to learn though!

As I was unpacking I heard a knock on the door. I opened it and found two little girls, probably between 4 an 6. The older one started talking a hundred miles an our. She told me her whole (very long) name and the name of her sister. Their names are Amanda and Paula. They were adorable. But I don’t think they know how to speak slowly. They were very hard to understand haha. I’ve noticed when people don’t know how to speak slower they speak louder. That’s probably what we do in the US too now that I think about it. She asked me if I was from Los Estados Unidos, and I told her yes. I think she may have told me that they love gringas… but I’m not sure haha. I followed them out onto the porch and Tita patted the ground for me to sit by her. It was very interesting seeing the interaction between the family and the kids as well as the two neighbor kids who came over shortly. I met Gina’s Aunt, and I think those girls were her granddaughters and they live next to us. Then a little boy came over, probably about 6 years old. Tita kept yelling cuidado! Cuidado! (Careful) Because the drivers in Costa Rica are CRAZY. They do not stop. Doña Mayra told us that in Costa Rica pedestrians NEVER have the right of way. I think my dad may have a difficult time coping with the cars and driving when he comes to visit haha. The boy’s name was Andres and he was soooo cute. All of his words slurred together but I couldn’t stop watching him and how similar he was to kids back in the US that I know. He asked me how to say words in English. Some I knew and some I did not, which is kind of embarrassing. Haha. Then his sister Krystal came over and she was a few years older. They were quite the pair. She asked my lots of question but I couldn’t understand a word she was saying. I felt so bad. Eventually I just looked at her sadly and said in English, I have no idea what you are saying. She gave me a blank stare haha.

            For dinner we eat left overs whenever we get hungry. In Costa Rica no one really eats dinner. It is not a formal meal. People just eat a little something when they are hungry I think. So I had food heated up from lunch. I watched a few Telenovelas with Gina and Guillermo asked me if I liked them.  I said yes, and he laughed and rolled his eyes haha. Lo siento Guillermo.

            So far there have been two very different thing here than in the US. Apparently you don’t flush you toilet paper here? Wish someone would have told me that sooner so I could have been prepared! Haha I had to find out from other people at school. There is a small trash can by the toilet that you put the paper in. I’m not sure how that works in certain situations… but I guess I will have to get used to it. The other thing that is so different is all the stray dogs. It is literally breaking my heart. All I can see is my dog, Catcher, everywhere I go. They walk by you and look up at you with these sad eyes and I desperately want to bend down and pet and love them and take them home and save them but I know not to touch them. But really, it is killing me. Doña Mayra says people can’t decide on whether to kill them or leave them alone. I guess we take them to the pound and if people don’t want them we kill them in the US. But I don’t know what is worse. Because it is so hard to watch! I wish I could help the little perritos :(

            Well that is all I have for now! More to come later.

¡Hasta Luego!

Kristin 

Now that I have finally sat down to write I am exhausted. It is so humid here. I think it makes me ten times sweatier than normal and I sweat quite a bit as some of you may know. So, naturally, unpacking was quite the task. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me start with Monday.

            Saying goodbye to my parents at the airport at 5:30 in the morning was difficult, but seeing everyone else going through the same thing really helped. Having two giant roller suitcases, a duffle carry on, a jam packed backpack and giant tube (thanks Hannah Muller :P) made maneuvering through the airport a rather difficult task. The school wanted us all to check in together. I’m not sure if that meant at the same time or at the same kiosk. Unfortunately, we interpreted it as the kiosk. Therefore, checking in took much longer than it probably should have. Not to mention there were 15 of us clogging up the check in area and several people let us know (very rudely) that we were in their way. After check in we had a little less than 3 hrs to spare. Of course, that early in the morning I wasn’t in the mood for breakfast food. So I decided to have my “last” fastfood meal. Even though I am sure I will cave and visit one in Costa Rica. So I had Wendy’s chicken nuggets. The worker ladies were super nice and gave me extra nuggets. Don’t know why but I was so happy after! As we were waiting to board the plane, I was feeling prettttty darn good. I got that weird confidence you get when something goes wrong. Unfortunately it was short lived.

            Up until we landed in Costa Rica, the most exhilarating part of our trip was a girl in our group tracking down the guys that drive elderly people on carts through the airport and asked him to drive us to our gate since it had just been changed. The guy was a crazy driver and clipped a few people on the way. But it was great not to have to walk with all of our stuff.

            It felt so weird when we were taking off from Texas. It was surreal knowing we were leaving the US, especially when the only place I have been outside the country is Canada. I hadn’t flown over the ocean I don’t think since I was 8 years old. It was so strange. Miles and miles of water and nothing else. It’s amazing how dark it really is when it’s only the moon shining in the sky and no lights. Watching to sun go down was so beautiful and the clouds were amazing. So immense and with colors I have never seen. I’m pretty sure we saw lightening on the way down into Costa Rica. That was a little scary, but not really a big deal. As we were approaching San Jose, the nerves started to set in. But I was still excited!

            After we got off the plane, we walked to immigration. A few girls and I somehow got behind the group. I think people must have been super anxious or something because they were speed walking. For some reason I was super nervous for this part. I wasn’t sure if they would speak to me in Spanish or English, and my brain definitely was not ready for Spanish. I got up to the glass and the man asked me if I spoke Spanish (en español). I told him a little, not wanting him to talk too fast or expect me to really understand. Then he says something a hundred miles an hour and I just stare at him, eyes wide, like a bush baby. I didn’t catch any of it. He gave me a snide look, probably tired and annoyed, or hating his job, who knows, and asked me how many days in English. So, I answered 3 and a half months, in English. He looked at me, annoyed again, and started saying other things in Spanish but I didn’t understand. I started to get realllllly hot and overwhelmed. He told me tres meses! But I was confused because I knew we were staying for 3 and half. So then I said 4 months? And he said no, solo 3 meses! (Only 3 months). So I said ok, and he said se habla español, huh? (you speak Spanish huh?) I was so mortified. When I got to my group I think they could see in my face that I was freaking out. I was so traumatized. I looked at my friend Chandler and my eyes were watering and my heart was pounding and I was sweating bullets, and I told her I don’t think I can do this, I couldn’t understand anything he said! Haha Then I was informed that you can only stay as a tourist for 90 days… or 3 months. And that we are going to Nicaragua for a week and then we can come back or something. So I really wished someone had told me, or reminded me I guess. But It was too late by then. From then on things were rough.

Grabbing our luggage and going through customs only made things worse. I was scooting along with all my bags going sooo slow. Fell behind the group (again) but Chandler waited for me. I managed to drop my passport putting us even farther behind. Luckily someone picked it up for me other wise I probably would have collapsed onto the ground when I bent over and just given up and stayed there. When we got outside and finally found the group waiting for our bus with Doña Mayra, my senses were going crazy. There were so many different people, all speaking a different language and waving signs with names and trying to help you get a taxi. Plus the air was so humid and there were all sorts of new smells. There was wayyyy too much stimulation. It was overwhelming.

            By the time the bus arrived I was almost in full panic mode. The bus was big enough for all of us with a few extra rows of seats. As we started to drive Doña Mayra was talking and explaining many things. I was in the back and couldn’t hear let alone understand anything that was coming out of her mouth. I just kept looking around at everyone with the look of “do you have any idea what is going on? I’m so lost.” I tried to listen as best I could, but I kept looking at the surroundings. There was tons of construction going on and it all looked really dangerous. There wasn’t much between the cars on the road and the workers on the street. Not to mention the roads were soooo bumpy. As in it was the bumpiest  bus ride of my life. Then there was on coming traffic flashing by us super fast and I don’t even know if I remember seeing much of any lane divisions, but we were definitely driving in two. I’m pretty sure our headlights only shined about 3 feet in front of us. So that was exciting. I just tried to pretend it was a ride. But as my nerves got worse and Doña Mayra continued to talk, I seriously thought to myself, oh my gosh, what have I done? I can’t do this. I can’t understand anything. I’m going to throw up. Not sure if it was the bumpy ride or the nerves or both.

            As we approached San Ramón, I was still freaking out. We pulled up at a house and my heart was in my throat. I recognized it from a photo and instantly knew it was mine. My first thought was oh shoot! (replace a few letters). This is my house!  I’m getting off first. All alone. I’m going to throw up. I’m going to throw up and then I’m going to die. But luckily, we were all just meeting at my house. Everyone got off the bus and all of our families were waiting anxiously. I recognized my host brother, Guillermo, in the doorway and he waved which instantly made me feel a little better. Few. A somewhat familiar face. As I walked toward the house, my host mom came right up and hugged me and said yo soy Gina. Who knows why, if it was just the hug or a mother’s touch that made everything feel ok. Thank God for that. I got my bags and my family helped me carry them inside. I hugged my friend Chandler goodbye and told her that we were only two blocks away from each other. I met my host dad and he gave me a big hug and kiss on the cheek and asked how I was. By that time I was feeling much better and couldn’t stop smiling.

My host mom, Gina, showed me the house, by room, how to use the shower etc. She asked if I was hungry, and my instinct was to say no, but I really was hungry, so I said yes. My other host brother, Dário, was already in bed because he had school at 7 the next morning. (WOW that’s early!)She made me a sandwich and Guillermo, Gina, and Guillermo Jr. and I sat in the kitchen and talked. Yes, finally I can somewhat understand people. Ok, so I HAVE actually been learning Spanish, good. They were so incredibly friendly and nice and funny. They told me to treat the house like it was my own, it made me feel so welcome.

            We talked for a while about family and jobs and what kinds of food I don’t like. It was hard being put on the spot, so I’m sure I forgot a few things. (Since I’m such a picky eater) It was nice having Guillermo there to ask how to say words I didn’t know. My host parents speak little English but Guillermo is very good. My host dad told me that everyday is a fiesta (party) in Costa Rica. If you lose a game, you celebrate, if you finish your hw, you celebrate, if you don’t have hw, you celebrate. Haha! They were all so funny and understanding.

            I tried this stuff, I can’t remember what it is called, I think its is natilla. But it looked kind of like mayo which kind of grossed me out. I guess its like milk/cheese or something. It looks like mayo and butter to me, texture wise. Gina put some on a plate for me to try. I think you put it on bread and what not. So I dipped my finger in it and tried it. Guillermo made a grossed out face, and soon so did I. It’s not really something you want to just eat on its own. Haha.

The house is so adorable. There is a big black gate that goes around in front and a small porch. Inside there is a living/tv room, kitchen/dining area, bathroom, and bedrooms. My bedroom is at the very end of the hall and it is very cute. I have a wardrobe, shelves, desk, and even a TV! Oh and while flipping through channels I managed to find an episode of Pretty Little Liars on. IN SPANISH. So weird. But I could really learn from watching TV now haha. I emailed my family and then it was off to bed. It was hard to fall asleep with all the commotion, but it was late and I had to be with the group at 9 the next morning. 

More to come later! 

Kristin