Vamos a Limon

From Friday to Sunday I am off to Limon with the entire LASP group. I will update when I get back! Have a great weekend :)

My First Futbol (Soccer) Experience in Costa Rica!

At LASP, we have a guy named, Andres who is the activities coordinator for us. Andres sets up many outings for us including bull fights, dancing lessons, and soccer games. Last week, he put up a sign up sheet for soccer and today was our first "practice". We met at the Mall San Pedro at 9:00am this morning. We walked about 10 minutes to this field that was already taken so we had to relocate. But to do this meant walking with almost 30 Americans throughout the streets of the city. We got a lot of looks and whistles thats for sure. Andres took us to this field basically right in the middle of the hustle and bustle of everything. We put our stuff down and he numbered us off into three teams. We ended up playing for almost 2.5 hours! It was a blast. We switched the teams up a lot and I must have played five or six different games. It was such a stress relief to run around and exercise. Andres told us that on Sunday, February 8th he has a tournament set up with a local town of Costa Ricans. We are going to go to their town, explore and play soccer. Just in case you didn't know the Ticos are REALLY good at soccer. I think we may need to practice a little bit more!

Happy Birthday to Brenda!

Hey everyone! Sorry it has been a couple of days since I have responded but my internet has been down! Monday was Brenda's 26th birthday. We had the best dinner in the world - filet mignon and mashed potatoes!!! Anyone who knows me probably knows that I am a bit obsessed with mashed potatoes and when Mami told me she made them I hugged her and told her that I was really excited. (I think she thought I was kind of weird). Anyway, the dinner was great andit was a comfort to eat food that I know. We had a total of eight people over for her birthday dinner and we really enjoyed ourselves. Brenda got a new cell phone for her birthday-it's pink! After dinner we sang Happy Birthday to her and we couldn't find any candles so we used that HUGE one that is in the picture now. The picture on this post is of me and Brenda (my sister) and her husband, Mike! Can you guess what I had for lunch on Tuesday? MASHED POTATOES!!!

Good Days :)

I finished up my first week of classes this week. It felt good to get into a good routine and hopefully things will continue to get better! This weekend was pretty good and less overwhelming than the last one! On Friday night, I was able to relax and I helped my sister-in-law (Karen) cook dinner. We had fun and I helped to teach her some English because she is starting English classes on Tuesday. She told me some things that confused her which I thought were very interesting: "Kiss" and "keys" and "Welcome!" and "You're welcome!".

On Saturday, I got up early went for a run with my friend, Peter! We went to a local park which is owned by the University of Costa Rica. It is about a mile to the park and there are trails all over the park. It is really safe and there were tons of people swimming, playing soccer, playing squash, riding bikes, and there was even archery! We ended up running for just about 30 minutes but while we were there we saw four people we knew from LASP-talk about a small city!

After the run, I relaxed a little and then Mami and I and Mancho (another family member) went to downtown San Jose. We walked around and there were TONS of people. Finally, after an hour or two of walking around we went to a local coffee shop and shared a piece of cake!

This morning, I went to church again with my family. It is always interesting to see a different style of church and I actually understood a little bit more than I did last week. We stayed after the service and ate lunch and then we went shopping at Price Smart which is basically like Costa Rica's "Sam's Club"

All in all, I am doing well. I am less overwhelmed by the newness of things and more overwhelmed by the amount of schoolwork that I have. Don't worry that alone will keep me out of trouble!

Ten Things I Have Learned While In Costa Rica

1) When it is in the low 70's and high 60's it is considered freezing! Everyone comments on how cold it is! Yesterday I saw a woman wearing gloves and a scarf!
2) Rice and beans are eaten at literally EVERY meal. But at least, they taste good!
3) My Mami is the best cook in Costa Rica. Everything she has made I have devoured in a matter of minutes.
4) Look out for potholes in the sidewalks. Random holes in the ground and in the road are not uncommon.
5) Take the time to look up. Costa Rica is surrounded by mountains and the sky is beautiful!
6) It takes less than 3 minutes for the water in my shower to turn cold. I better hurry up!
7) Take advantage of every opportunity to speak English. You never know when you will get to again! It could be a very long time!
8) I can get to and from my Spanish classes in three different ways: walking, a bus, and a taxi. I successfully know how to do each!
9) Take charge when crossing the streets. If you run across the street it is a clear sign that you are a Gringa!
10) Hug and kiss on the cheek everyone you meet. Handshakes are not acceptable here!

Que Linda

Que Linda! (That means how pretty!) This is basically what I see everyday, here in Costa Rica! Yesterday (Monday) was a very interesting day. I started out the day with an upset stomach and a dog bite (yes, my dog bit me on my finger-ouch!). A couple of my friends and I took a taxi to our first day of Spanish class! We successfully found our way home too by walking! It is about a 45 minute walk, which isn't too bad! My Spanish class has a total of five super nice girls from my program in it with a really nice teacher! I think these classes won't be too hard! Today I had my first "Core" Seminar class at the LASP office! It was kind of long but I think it will be very interesting! I am excited to learn more and more! I haven't been doing much the past two nights, just some homework and relaxing! Tomorrow I am going to the mall after classes with some friends (If I can find it!)

Here is my schedule:

Monday, Wednesday, Friday:
1:00-4:30: Spanish Classes

Tuesday, Thursday:
8:00-12:00?: Core Seminar
1:30-4:30: Spanish Class

Keep the e-mails coming!

Pictures!

The first picture is the kitchen in my house! Not what you expected? Me either!

The other is a picture of my room in my house! I have a double bed and a desk and nightstand! I even had my own bathroom and internet in my room. I am so blessed :)

No entiendo nada (I don't understand anything!)

That was the saying of my day today! Today was a really tough day. I woke up early because I had nightmares, which I rarely have! Anyway, then it was time for church with my family. As soon as we pulled up to the building, I took a deep breath because I knew that I was going in WAY over my head. I was greeted by so many kisses and strange Spanish sentences. I just followed that with a blank stare because everyone talks so fast! The church service was like three hours long and honestly, I couldn't tell you one thing that happened. After church, we went to a HUGE gathering of people from the church. It was at a finca which is a farm and it was way out in the mountains. The view was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. We were there for like four hours and the entire time I hardly said anything.

We got home and I took some time for myself and I thought and talked in English to my mom! Then, Brenda had some of her friends come over to watch a movie. Brenda rented The Mist (I have never heard of it). I had to explain to everyone what mist was. It was pretty funny. The movie was suspenseful and had a horrible ending! Throughout the whole thing, one of Brenda's friends and I were speaking a little bit of English. It was hilarious hearing her say some things. I tried to teach her to say, See ya later alligator and After while Crocodile but I think we might have to save that lesson for another day!

The highlight of my day came next when I got to talk to Beau from Skype to his cell phone! It was the first time I have heard his voice in a long time and I am happy to report that he is doing well too! He is just beginning his day full of classes while I am ending mine by writing on this blog! Hope you are doing well. Wish me luck on my first day of Spanish Classes tomorrow :)

The Neverending Game of Uno!

Tonight was a really great night. This afternoon I got to talk to some of my family online. It made me so happy to hear their voices! After that, Mami came home and I interviewed her for my Spanish class. It was really interesting to hear about her life in Costa Rica. We are more similar than we might think!

Much later, Mami and I walked to my brother Jovel's house. He and his wife cooked us sopa con mariscos which is soup with seafood. We even had crab in it! It was really good. After dinner, (I brought Uno with me), Brenda said Let's play Uno! So at about 9:20 we began our game of Uno! It was still going at 11:00!! We were all getting so tired but it was so much fun. Once again, it was fun to be able to understand the same thing. You should have seen Papi, (He is kind of a goofy older man) He would get so excited about putting down a Draw Two or Draw Four! We left at about 11:00 after the game finally ended! It was a great way to spend the evening. I am feeling more and more comfortable with my family each day!

Internet!

My family set up internet in my room! I am really excited and so grateful that they set this up for me! I only wish I could express my appreciation in Spanish haha!

I guess I will be able to update more now!

Whew!

Yesterday was our last day of orientation. We had to go to LASP headquarters which is about a 20 sec walk for me! We learned all about health and our classes. They seem kind of hard. I am a little bit worried but at least i dont have to write my papers in Spanish. I got home around four o clock yesterday and mami was waiting for me. I ate a snack and then read for like two hours. Then, a woman came over i think she was a family member and we looked at pictures from Brenda and Michaels wedding. They were so beautiful. It was such a fancy wedding and i was so surprised. I

started to feel really homesick and exhausted because I can never understand what is going on. Its so exhausting to speak Spanish all of the time! I think I am getting better which is good but I am starting to really miss home. Anyway the night kind of turned around, and I am attributing that totally to God, when Brenda, my sister came home, she came and sat with me on the couch and we played Uno. She speaks English all day as her job so she is extra patient with me and I appreciate that so much! We then ate dinner and I actually understood most of what was going on. We talked about music and church and I found out a lot about the music here in Costa. I also found out that Brenda and Mike are the leaders of the worship band at their church so I am excited to see that on Sunday. Then we did the dishes and Brenda told me that we were going to watch a movie but I could only watch it if I put my pajamas on. So I went and put my pajamas on and we watched a movie! They even have surround sound which is awesome! We watched the movie August Rush and it was actually in English with Spanish subtitles. It was really cool that we could all understand the same thing. After that I went to bed it was like eleven o clock. Today Mami told me to sleep in so I slept until ten. Then i took a shower and ate some cereal for breakfast. After that I read and did some homework and then ate lunch with Mami and Papi. We had salsichitos which are hot dogs. MAmi put them in some special sauce or something and cut them up and they were really good! Speaking of food, Mami is the best cook! Everything I have eaten has been really good and she always tells me to tell her if I dont like something. And I actually do feel comfortable doing that.Tonight we are going over to Mamis sons house to eat dinner. I think that will be a little bit overwhelming because I am going to have no idea what is going on. Tomorrow we are going to church and then I dont know what else.

My Spanish classes start on Monday and I think they will be really great! We are in a class with super nice teachers and like five other students. Me and some people who live around me are taking a taxi to get there. By bus, it would take like 1.5 hours and by taxi it takes about 10 minutes! eventually we are going to get there by walking which will take about 40 minutes or so!

I hope you all are doing well. I miss you and I miss life at home. I am so blessed to have such a great family here! Hopefully I will update sometime soon and with some pictures!

Hola Costa Rica!

Wow, I can´t believe I am finally here! The travel to Costa Rica went very smoothly. No problems at all. There are 47 people in our group and when we go anywhere we definitely make a scene. Everyone in the group is so nice and friendly!

We arrived in Costa Rica really late on Tuesday night. We stayed at a retreat center, where there were three people to a room. I woke up to the bright sunshine, birds chirping, and dogs barking early on Wednesday morning. The center provided us with HUGE meals of rice, beans, and even some chicken. The portions are so big that my stomach usually hurts after I finish a meal. For the entire day on Wednesday, we had orientation. LASP (Latin American Studies Program) doesn´t give us a lot of details. If someone asks a question, they say, Oh good question! and then they move on. So basically we knew nothing as we picked our host families randomly.

After lunch, we had a short orientation session where they herded us into a room where they called us one by one to meet our families. Finally after what seemed like forever, my name was called and a small older woman stood up and we kissed on the cheek and she took me to get my luggage. We went outside and met her husband who is a taxi driver. By the way, people drive crazy here and it is really scary!They took me back to our house which is really close to where my classes are. It is great because I will hardly have to take a bus anywhere! It is a cute little house with gates all around it. I have my own room and my own bathroom with hot water. I live with my Mami, Papi, sister named Brenda who is 25 and her husband Mike. We also have two dogs, Kathy and Molly, who are very cute and like to cuddle.

Yesterday, Mami and I watched Lake Placid 2 (with the big crocodiles) on television. It was in English and there was Spanish subtitles. It was cool to be able to understand the same thing. Mami and Papi told me that my Spanish was better than any of the other students that they had before. That makes me feel really good but I still usually have no idea what is going on!

Mami is a school teacher but Costa Rica is in their summer now so she is off of work. Last night we waited until Brenda got home and then we went shopping to a supermercado, or as they call it the ´super´ Mami said to me, Como (like) Walmart! I was completely overwhelmed in the store. I followed Mami around and I bought shampoo and toothpaste, my first Costa Rican purchase. After the super we went out to dinner. I had absolutely no idea what was going on Brenda helped me and I ordered fetticini alfredo with shrimp. It was the biggest plate I have ever seen. Mami also gave me some of her fish and I have never eaten so much food in my life.

When we got home, it was almost ten at night so I told them I was going to bed!

I got up this morning at 5:30am, (yes, mom, I got up early!) and I ate another huge breakfast and Mami and I went to the busstop. She helped me and we rode the crowded bus all the way into San Jose to meet the group. Today all day I have been with a group of 5 students and we were given a type of scavenger hunt all around the city of San Jose. We were given about 15 tasks to complete and some of them involve asking people questions. I know that we probably don´t make any sense to them but fortunately we haven´t gotten lost yet. Right now I am sitting in an internet cafe in the Mall in San Pedro. After this we have to take a taxi all the way to where our Spanish Classes are. We don´t really know where that is except for that it is near the Indoor Club (I don´t know what that is!)

I am liking it here so far and I am less homesick than I thought. I am exhausted though. Trying to figure out what people are saying ALL day is really hard and this morning I was ready to meet the group again and speak English. Thanks so much for all of your emails! I really appreciate them and I will update again when I have time! Miss you all :)

So soon!

Unfortunately, I am starting to say my goodbyes to some friends and family (Just for the record, I am REALLY bad at saying goodbye!). Yesterday, I said goodbye to Beau and his family (the picture is of Beau and I and two of Beau's siblings) and as I sit here and write this he is sitting in the airport waiting for his plane to Uganda! It is crazy to think that after all this planning, he is off to Uganda and I am only FOUR days away from my trip to Costa Rica! I am really starting to focus on my trip and get excited! I have so much to pack and I only need to buy a few more things like medicines and other odd's and end's! More to come as the preparations begin to end!