I´ve done a lot of complaining lately...things have been a bit rough...so today I´ve decided to only blog about the great/interesting things that have happened over the last two weeks here are the highlights:
*The man who runs the Pulperia next to the colegio spoke to me in English! He said, ¨Hi, how are you?¨ and then tried to give me my snacks for free, but I didn´t let him
*The cutest little girl passed me in the street-she was probably 6years old-and said, ¨bye, bye.¨ It was so adorable! In Costa Rica when people pass each other in the street a lot of times instead of saying ¨hola¨ they say ¨adios¨so it made sense to the little girl for her to say ¨bye bye¨instead of ¨hello¨
*I went to Liberia last week for a memorial service for my host mom´s mother who died a month ago. They made a little shrine to her and then did this entire service for her. They prayed the Rosary and sang a lot of songs. It was pretty neat to experience.
*One of my students threw a frog threw the classroom window, I got very stern with him in English, because I didn´t know what to say in Spanish. He had no idea what I said, but he got the point. He and I are buddies now.
*I´ve gotten pretty close to my oldest host sister, she is like the little sister I never had. She´s adorable. She asked me to help her write a love note to her boyfriend in English, this is what it said, ¨I love you. You are the best boyfriend in the world. I am so glad we are together.¨ Her and her sister kept going around the house practicing the line ¨you are the best boyfriend in the world.¨they said it over and over again. It was so cute!
*Space Shuttle was a vocab word when we were learning modes of transportation. One of the students raised her hand and said, ¨Scientists don´t believe in God and that´s bad.¨
*There was a parade in my town last weekend and the kids were all dressed up in beautiful gowns and little boys were in nice shirts and slacks. They were all from the elementary school. My host sisters performed a dance number at the celebration and did a great job!
*I went to a baby shower at a HUGE house in Liberia last weekend! The family was obviously loaded! We were there for 4 hours and they fed us something different every hour on the hour and they hired clowns for entertainment. It was hilarious. I WON LIMBO :) I was definitely the tallest person there by at least 6 inches. My host sister and I technically tied...but since I¨m a foot taller than her...I just claim that I won. My prize was these beautiful yellow bracelts and matching earings. She got some body spray and lotion.
*I´ve attend several soccer games --during enligh class time--but have learned to go with the flow...and I´m getting a nice tan LOL
*The other day I had a really bad day and these three 11 th graders who are super sweet could tell....so, they invited me to walk around town with them after class and they helped me with my Spanish and we talked about their families and where they live in the town...etc. They also showed me the cemetary where all of their family members are buried. It was really interesting.
*A seventh grader named Sharon took me to her mother´s work after school on Wednesday. She works at a women´s cooperative. They grow plants and flowers and sell them in the town. I told them that I´m going to start working with them on Tuesdays when I don´t teach English. I can´t wait to get started!
*I went to Liberia yesterday with the 10th graders to watch them perform at a Music Festival in the town center. They did a great job! They sang folk songs of Guanacaste. The bus didn´t show up to the school to take us....so they called a taxi...one taxi for all 15 of us. It was hilarious! But some how we made it in one piece.
*I´ve decided to fill my down time with exercise. I´ve started walking around the Plaza everyday with my iPod for about an hour. It´s a great way to enjoy the town and get out of the house.
*I´m back in Liberia today and can´t wait to eat Papa John´s pizza with Rosalia and Josh!
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Tranquilo--my new moto
Life in Costa Rica has certainly been like a rollercoaster ride....super highs and super lows. One minute I´m having the time of my life, having a blast with the kids or my family... and the next minute I´m so lonely, miss home, and realize just how far away I am.
Life in Costa Rica is a lot more chill than I ever expected...there are no time schedules...no such thing as being on time or late, school gets cancelled at the drop of a hat for soccer tournaments or festivals or whatever else is going on, the internet NEVER works when I want it to, and there is literally nothing to do in my town except for go to school, walk around the plaza, buy snacks at the pupleria or watch Spanish soap operas...For example...after class yesterday three of the 9th grade girls walked me to the cemetary and showed me all of their relative who had passed away and told me what happened to them....why? because class was over and there´s nothing else to do :) and they´re super sweet girls, who I think could tell I was having a rough day.
There are two things I´ve heard constantly...at least 10 times a day since I´ve been here ¨tranquilo¨which means exactly what it sounds like ¨chill out, everything´s ok, no problem, etc.¨and ¨pura vida!¨ which means the good life, or excellent! Everyone is so laid back. Nothing is ever a BIG deal. It´s so different from the states, where we live and die by a clock, and we´re so busy all the time. We´re always doing something and everything seems soooo extremely critical while we´re doing it. Here´s it a totally different world. So, now that I´ve been here for a a couple weeks and see how things go, I´ve decided I just need to go with the flow...I´m no longer going to worry about why class is cancelled for a soccer game or a festival...or why the internet won´t connect...or why it seems so impossible to use a phone to call home, or why there´s no such thing as a hot shower...I´m here for the experience and whatever happens...happens ¨Pura Vida!¨ No need for a ¨schedule¨ because there isn´t enough going on to need a schedule. A small example... going to the gym in the states seems like somthing I have to squeeze in....get to the gym, exercise exactly 40 minutes, get home and showered and then on to the next thing. Yesterday, I decided to get some excersice and walk around the plaza...it was awesome! I had nothing else to do, no where else to go....so I just walked and walked and walked and listened to my iPod the whole time. Next thing I knew I´d run out of water, and I´d been gone for over an hour.
Today class is cancelled because of elections....Friday it´s cancelled for a music festival in Liberia where the 10th graders are singing. I´m going on a field trip with them :) Pura Vida!
Life in Costa Rica is a lot more chill than I ever expected...there are no time schedules...no such thing as being on time or late, school gets cancelled at the drop of a hat for soccer tournaments or festivals or whatever else is going on, the internet NEVER works when I want it to, and there is literally nothing to do in my town except for go to school, walk around the plaza, buy snacks at the pupleria or watch Spanish soap operas...For example...after class yesterday three of the 9th grade girls walked me to the cemetary and showed me all of their relative who had passed away and told me what happened to them....why? because class was over and there´s nothing else to do :) and they´re super sweet girls, who I think could tell I was having a rough day.
There are two things I´ve heard constantly...at least 10 times a day since I´ve been here ¨tranquilo¨which means exactly what it sounds like ¨chill out, everything´s ok, no problem, etc.¨and ¨pura vida!¨ which means the good life, or excellent! Everyone is so laid back. Nothing is ever a BIG deal. It´s so different from the states, where we live and die by a clock, and we´re so busy all the time. We´re always doing something and everything seems soooo extremely critical while we´re doing it. Here´s it a totally different world. So, now that I´ve been here for a a couple weeks and see how things go, I´ve decided I just need to go with the flow...I´m no longer going to worry about why class is cancelled for a soccer game or a festival...or why the internet won´t connect...or why it seems so impossible to use a phone to call home, or why there´s no such thing as a hot shower...I´m here for the experience and whatever happens...happens ¨Pura Vida!¨ No need for a ¨schedule¨ because there isn´t enough going on to need a schedule. A small example... going to the gym in the states seems like somthing I have to squeeze in....get to the gym, exercise exactly 40 minutes, get home and showered and then on to the next thing. Yesterday, I decided to get some excersice and walk around the plaza...it was awesome! I had nothing else to do, no where else to go....so I just walked and walked and walked and listened to my iPod the whole time. Next thing I knew I´d run out of water, and I´d been gone for over an hour.
Today class is cancelled because of elections....Friday it´s cancelled for a music festival in Liberia where the 10th graders are singing. I´m going on a field trip with them :) Pura Vida!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Trip to Quebrada Grande...the highlights
It took me a 45 minute phone call to my dad and 11 pages in my journal to fully explain the craziness that ensued on my trip from San Jose to Quebrada Grande...I´ll just give you the highlights.
-
- left the hostel at 8:30 to catch taxi to bus stop
-tried to pay the taxi driver 20,000 colones ($40), it only cost 2,000 colones ($4) good thing he was honest.
- Me and my travel buddy Rosalia unload our 70 lbs suitcases, backpacks and purses and everyone in the terminal stares at us like we´re crazy.
-We load our luggage onto bus...driver looks at us and in Spanish says, ¨You both look like tourists...people steal all the time on this bus. Keep your belongings with you and don´t let them out of your site!¨ I´m scared to death.
- After two hours we stop at what looks like an outdoor convenience store with outdoor restrooms. I pee...there´s no toilet paper. I´m sweating and gross from being on the bus for 2 hours and now...you get the picture.
-back on the bus another two hours. Finally pull into Liberia bus stop.
-We´re told our next bus stop is across from an abandonded field.
-Rosalia and I both take our 70 lbs. roller bags, our backpacks and purses and start lugging them across this abandoned field.
-Rosalia´s stuff keeps falling...we have to stop every few feet. keep in mind it´s 90 degrees, humid and gross...people every where are starring.
-Dozen of sketchy men offer to give us ¨a ride¨ to where ever we need to go. We do not accept.
-Finally at the next bus stop. We´re told the bus leaves at 3. It´s 1:30.
-We decided to ask several people when the next bus to Quebrada Grande leaves just to be sure--no one´s heard of Quebrada Grande...not good.
-we decide to use the bathroom one at a time so someone can watch the luggage. It costs 200 colones to use the restroom. So...we´re cheap and don´t use it.
-We watch buses come and go for 2 hours and none of them say Quebrada Grande. It´s now 3:30
-By some miracle, Rosalia´s host sister (who has never met us before) spots the 2 Americans in the crowd and asks us if we´re from worldteach!! YAY! we´re saved! She tells us the next bus leaves at 4.
-The bus pulls in...it doesn´t say Quebrada Grande because it´s a rickety old, falling apart SCHOOL BUS! this can´t be right...
-We drag our luggage over to the bus and the driver looks at us like we´re nuts. He tries lifting the suitcases through the emergency door and can´t....the suitcases are bigger than he is.
-Finally, luggage gets loaded and we´re off.
-There are no shocks on the bus! We´re bouncing all over the place...the luggage is about to fall out the door and the windows keep falling down with every big BUMP!
-The sky darkens and it starts to thunder and lightening! My worse nightmare. Rickety bus, middle of no where, dirt road, thunder storm, no idea where I am, don´t speak spanish. I´m scared to death.
-Next thing I know...we´re pulling into Quebrada Grande and I have no idea who my host family is or where they live. Luckily a boy on the bus new them and showed me to their house.
-They´re not home! I´m in the middle of NO WHERE, on a dirt road, with 70 lbs of luggage, and no where to go.
-Word spreads through town there´s a white girl (gringa) stading in the dirt road. My host dad comes and saves the day :)
-I drop off my stuff and go with him to the school. They´re holding primary elections for president and my host family is SUPER politically active. They´re all wearing Laura for President shirts. We stay there until the election is over.
-Laura wins the primaries.
-We go to grandma´s house next. It´s her birthday!
-We go home, they give me a Laura shirt and tell me to put it on. I do.
-We get back in the car and they start driving around Quebrada Grande honking the horn and flashing their lights and shouting LAURA! LAURA! LAURA!
-People are running out of their houses and into the streets!
-we start a line of cars honking and flashing their lights! People keep jumping in the backs of trucks and into cars....apparently we´re headed to Liberia (where I just spent a hellish 4 hours) to celebrate....
-This doesn´t seem to be a good idea to me....so, I tell them i´ve had a very loooong day and ask if I can go home....they say yes....seemed disappointed but took me home.
-Wrote about the crazy day in my journal and went to bed at 11 p.m.
That was my first day in Quebrada Grande!
-
- left the hostel at 8:30 to catch taxi to bus stop
-tried to pay the taxi driver 20,000 colones ($40), it only cost 2,000 colones ($4) good thing he was honest.
- Me and my travel buddy Rosalia unload our 70 lbs suitcases, backpacks and purses and everyone in the terminal stares at us like we´re crazy.
-We load our luggage onto bus...driver looks at us and in Spanish says, ¨You both look like tourists...people steal all the time on this bus. Keep your belongings with you and don´t let them out of your site!¨ I´m scared to death.
- After two hours we stop at what looks like an outdoor convenience store with outdoor restrooms. I pee...there´s no toilet paper. I´m sweating and gross from being on the bus for 2 hours and now...you get the picture.
-back on the bus another two hours. Finally pull into Liberia bus stop.
-We´re told our next bus stop is across from an abandonded field.
-Rosalia and I both take our 70 lbs. roller bags, our backpacks and purses and start lugging them across this abandoned field.
-Rosalia´s stuff keeps falling...we have to stop every few feet. keep in mind it´s 90 degrees, humid and gross...people every where are starring.
-Dozen of sketchy men offer to give us ¨a ride¨ to where ever we need to go. We do not accept.
-Finally at the next bus stop. We´re told the bus leaves at 3. It´s 1:30.
-We decided to ask several people when the next bus to Quebrada Grande leaves just to be sure--no one´s heard of Quebrada Grande...not good.
-we decide to use the bathroom one at a time so someone can watch the luggage. It costs 200 colones to use the restroom. So...we´re cheap and don´t use it.
-We watch buses come and go for 2 hours and none of them say Quebrada Grande. It´s now 3:30
-By some miracle, Rosalia´s host sister (who has never met us before) spots the 2 Americans in the crowd and asks us if we´re from worldteach!! YAY! we´re saved! She tells us the next bus leaves at 4.
-The bus pulls in...it doesn´t say Quebrada Grande because it´s a rickety old, falling apart SCHOOL BUS! this can´t be right...
-We drag our luggage over to the bus and the driver looks at us like we´re nuts. He tries lifting the suitcases through the emergency door and can´t....the suitcases are bigger than he is.
-Finally, luggage gets loaded and we´re off.
-There are no shocks on the bus! We´re bouncing all over the place...the luggage is about to fall out the door and the windows keep falling down with every big BUMP!
-The sky darkens and it starts to thunder and lightening! My worse nightmare. Rickety bus, middle of no where, dirt road, thunder storm, no idea where I am, don´t speak spanish. I´m scared to death.
-Next thing I know...we´re pulling into Quebrada Grande and I have no idea who my host family is or where they live. Luckily a boy on the bus new them and showed me to their house.
-They´re not home! I´m in the middle of NO WHERE, on a dirt road, with 70 lbs of luggage, and no where to go.
-Word spreads through town there´s a white girl (gringa) stading in the dirt road. My host dad comes and saves the day :)
-I drop off my stuff and go with him to the school. They´re holding primary elections for president and my host family is SUPER politically active. They´re all wearing Laura for President shirts. We stay there until the election is over.
-Laura wins the primaries.
-We go to grandma´s house next. It´s her birthday!
-We go home, they give me a Laura shirt and tell me to put it on. I do.
-We get back in the car and they start driving around Quebrada Grande honking the horn and flashing their lights and shouting LAURA! LAURA! LAURA!
-People are running out of their houses and into the streets!
-we start a line of cars honking and flashing their lights! People keep jumping in the backs of trucks and into cars....apparently we´re headed to Liberia (where I just spent a hellish 4 hours) to celebrate....
-This doesn´t seem to be a good idea to me....so, I tell them i´ve had a very loooong day and ask if I can go home....they say yes....seemed disappointed but took me home.
-Wrote about the crazy day in my journal and went to bed at 11 p.m.
That was my first day in Quebrada Grande!
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Bye, Bye Orosi
I can´t believe our week of training is actually over! It felt like the longest week of my life, but I LOVED it! Right now I´m in a hostel in San Jose with all of the other volunteers. We all leave for our different sites in the morning. The bus trip from Orosi to San Jose was uneventful, but it was long...and tiring. The first bus was about half an hour to Cartago then we had to drag our luggage (mine weighing 80 LBS of course) 8 blocks to the main bus terminal in Cartago. We then took another bus to San Jose...which was about an hour. Once in San Jose we dragged our luggage about 4 blocks to Casa Yoses. I know for next time to PACK LESS! San Jose is much nicer and bigger than I thought it would be. The city is SUPER busy and btw...the cars here are FEARLESS! Pedestrians NEVER have the right of way...even in a crosswalk...and I´m telling you...there have been several times when I was afraid for my life. SCARY! So after 3 hours of traveling all I wanted was a shower and it was the best thing in the world! I got to shave my legs for the first time in 8 days...I washed my hair and actually got to blow dry it! AWESOME! I found the little things make me happy here :) We all went out to dinner tonight at a place called Antonjitos and it was pretty good. My group is awesome and we all had a blast. People are talking about going out dancing tonight, but I´m not sure if I¨m up for it...it´s getting late and tomorrow´s going to be a LONG day!
Teaching on Thursday went much better than expected! The kids were great and the time flew by. I´m a lot less nervous about teaching now...but, I´m still really axious to get to Quebrada Grande and meet the kids! On our last night night in Orosi they threw a baile (dance) for us at the Spanish school called Otiac. We got to bring our host families and we learned how to salsa! The families of Orosi were so amazing and welcoming. I´m really going to miss it there. I don´t speak a lot of Spanish, but my host family and I got really good at charades! It´s been great!
Teaching on Thursday went much better than expected! The kids were great and the time flew by. I´m a lot less nervous about teaching now...but, I´m still really axious to get to Quebrada Grande and meet the kids! On our last night night in Orosi they threw a baile (dance) for us at the Spanish school called Otiac. We got to bring our host families and we learned how to salsa! The families of Orosi were so amazing and welcoming. I´m really going to miss it there. I don´t speak a lot of Spanish, but my host family and I got really good at charades! It´s been great!
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
I am soooo nervous!!
My stomach is in knots! I´m teaching my first class in English tomorrow, and I can´t even begin to explain how nervous I am. I´m not at my ¨summer teaching site¨ yet...this is just a practicum at the local high school in Orosi. The students take Spanish for 120 minutes!! Can you believe it?! Me and two other people have been working on the lesson plan together and we´ve divided it up in 40 minute blocks. I´m going first and laying the foundation for the entire 120 minutes...NO PRESSURE! We´re teaching ¨simple present tense¨ to 9th graders using ¨daily routine¨vocabulary. It sounds simple enough, but until I started lesson planning, I had NO IDEA how complicated English could be to teach as a second language. We have sooo many exceptions to EVERY rule!
Earlier today I had my final Spanish class at Otiac. It´s amazing how much Spanish I´ve learned in the last few days. My listening skills are definitely improving and so is my vocabulary. I´m still struggling with speaking Spanish, but I know it will come with more practice. I just have to make myself speak it all the time...even if I mess up constantly!
For our ¨field trip¨today, we went to the oldest functioning church in all of Costa Rica and it´s right here in Orosi! It was amazing to take a tour and learn about the history of the church.
I have to say, sometimes I´ll be walking down the street and it´ll just hit me, that I´m walking around in Costa Rica. It´s just amazing. The people here are so friendly. The mountains are soooo green and beautiful, and the weather is just perfect! I´m so glad I´m here.
I definitely miss everyone back home. It feels like I haven´t seen my friends and family in months and it´s only been 5 days! I can´t believe it. It´s especially hard because I can´t call and talk to people. It costs $1.99-per minute to use my phone internationally, and in these last 5 days, I´ve probably already spent $100. A 10 minute phone call home costs $20. I can use phone cards to call home, but the public phone is near the soccer field and I usually don´t have free time until after dark. I really don´t like the idea of standing by a pay phone in the middle of the town after dark. I don´t really go anywhere by myself....even during the day.
Tonight we´re going to a local bar to watch the USA vs. Costa Rica soccer match. It starts tonight at 8! They´re playing in Costa Rica! What are the odds I´d be here for that?! I don´t really like soccer and I´ve never watched it on TV, but I can´t wait to see what the atmosphere is like tonight! Everyone in the country will be watching. I think it´ll be awesome! GO USA!
Earlier today I had my final Spanish class at Otiac. It´s amazing how much Spanish I´ve learned in the last few days. My listening skills are definitely improving and so is my vocabulary. I´m still struggling with speaking Spanish, but I know it will come with more practice. I just have to make myself speak it all the time...even if I mess up constantly!
For our ¨field trip¨today, we went to the oldest functioning church in all of Costa Rica and it´s right here in Orosi! It was amazing to take a tour and learn about the history of the church.
I have to say, sometimes I´ll be walking down the street and it´ll just hit me, that I´m walking around in Costa Rica. It´s just amazing. The people here are so friendly. The mountains are soooo green and beautiful, and the weather is just perfect! I´m so glad I´m here.
I definitely miss everyone back home. It feels like I haven´t seen my friends and family in months and it´s only been 5 days! I can´t believe it. It´s especially hard because I can´t call and talk to people. It costs $1.99-per minute to use my phone internationally, and in these last 5 days, I´ve probably already spent $100. A 10 minute phone call home costs $20. I can use phone cards to call home, but the public phone is near the soccer field and I usually don´t have free time until after dark. I really don´t like the idea of standing by a pay phone in the middle of the town after dark. I don´t really go anywhere by myself....even during the day.
Tonight we´re going to a local bar to watch the USA vs. Costa Rica soccer match. It starts tonight at 8! They´re playing in Costa Rica! What are the odds I´d be here for that?! I don´t really like soccer and I´ve never watched it on TV, but I can´t wait to see what the atmosphere is like tonight! Everyone in the country will be watching. I think it´ll be awesome! GO USA!
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
I'm still alive...luckily!
So...everyone who knows me knows I'm SUPER cautious and not really adventurous....but, when in Costa Rica...right? So, we went on a hike in the rainforest to the top of a mountain to see a BEAUTIFUL waterfall. The hike was fine...pretty strenuous...but fine. We got to a part where you needed to use a rope to scale the rock and get to the top where the water fall is. Well, everything in me told me not to do it...TO JUST STOP! But, everyone was at the top and I really really wanted to go....so I grabbed hold of the rope and pulled and maneuvered my way up to the waterfall. I slipped a few times, but nothing major. The waterfall was beautiful, but I knew now that I was at the top...I had to make my way back down. Keep in mind, this is the rainforest and it has already rained...the rocks are SUPER slipery and so is the "rope." As I started back down the side of the mountain the rope went slack, my footing slipped and I fell completely backwards! So imagine, I'm now perpendicular to the mountain! Everyone said I came soooo close to hitting my head my head on a rock! Luckily Donny was right there and literally caught me! Keep in mind he's standing on slippery rocks too...so I have no idea how he caught me or how we both didn't go into the river. It was all I heard about on the way back down the moutian. It honestly scared me to death. I can say without a doubt I will NEVER scale a mountain to see a waterfall ever again. I seriously almost killed myself.
As for the other parts of my day...I've been in classes ALL DAY long every day. IN the morning I take 3 hours of Spanish class, we take an hour for lunch, then we have classes the rest of the day on teaching TEFL until 6 p.m. everynight. Our host families expect us around 7 for dinner and by the time that's done, I do homework, call home, and go to bed.
Last night I went to my friend's house for dinner. We have "dinner" buddies and so we switch and go to each other's host family's homes for dinner. Last night I went to Rosalia's family's house. They have three kids and they are soooo cute!! We ate delicious food--rice and beans of course--salad and chicken. For dessert we had roz con leche. It's kind of like rice pudding...only not. We played dominoes with the kids and the parents and won once! It was so much fun :) I"m really starting to feel comfortable walking around Orosi. It's kind of amazing. I know I have more to write, but I'm trying to get home for dinner by 7 and I'm about 6 blocks away. Rosalia is coming to my family's house for dinner tonight--she speaks fluent Spanish so she'll be able to talk to my host family a lot more than I can!!!
As for the other parts of my day...I've been in classes ALL DAY long every day. IN the morning I take 3 hours of Spanish class, we take an hour for lunch, then we have classes the rest of the day on teaching TEFL until 6 p.m. everynight. Our host families expect us around 7 for dinner and by the time that's done, I do homework, call home, and go to bed.
Last night I went to my friend's house for dinner. We have "dinner" buddies and so we switch and go to each other's host family's homes for dinner. Last night I went to Rosalia's family's house. They have three kids and they are soooo cute!! We ate delicious food--rice and beans of course--salad and chicken. For dessert we had roz con leche. It's kind of like rice pudding...only not. We played dominoes with the kids and the parents and won once! It was so much fun :) I"m really starting to feel comfortable walking around Orosi. It's kind of amazing. I know I have more to write, but I'm trying to get home for dinner by 7 and I'm about 6 blocks away. Rosalia is coming to my family's house for dinner tonight--she speaks fluent Spanish so she'll be able to talk to my host family a lot more than I can!!!
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