I Am Alive

  Hey y'all! Sorry I haven't been blogging lately. Turns out there is an AT&T equivalent of an internet company here in Costa Rica. In other words, the Wifi company that my host family uses is bad and unreliable. When it rains, the Wifi cuts out. When the dog next door barks, the Wifi cuts out. When I have an INCREDIBLY important presentation to give the next day, the Wifi cuts out. You get my point. Also, having internet access is my way of communicating with people back home. So hello everybody! I'm alive! Another reason I haven't been blogging is I have been CRAZY busy. My classes are incredibly demanding. Every week I have two 10 minute presentations to give in Spanish and a test. (lots of homework too). So this blog will be short...
  Even though my classes are rough, I am kicking butt and taking names. I got A's on all of my stuff last week. Just to give you an idea of how quickly these classes are moving, I have already received around 30% of my total grade in both of the classes... IN THE FIRST WEEK. My Intermediate 2 class is going very well. The teacher is nice and the material is not awful. However, Conversation is torture. I THOUGHT I was going to like this class. I hate it. I feel every minute of  the two and a half hours I am in this class. The teacher picks favorites. Annoying. The routine is the same everyday. Boring. Her presentations suck. HOW MUCH LONGER IS THIS CLASS? You get the point. This class is like pulling teeth.
  Everything is fantastic with my host family! They are just great. The mom and dad are nice. The kids are hilarious. The food is good. Life is good. When I have more time I will fill y'all in on my recent adventures and what I have been up to! Until next time...

The Country Without An Army

   Classes are going well! Today was my second day and I am starting to get the hang of things. Above is a picture of my view from class! Pretty nice isn't it? It's really cool to watch the rain clouds move in and see the massive volcanoes disappear into the clouds in just a few minutes. After class I went to get some lunch at a cafeteria on campus. A sweet guy who knew English helped me out. Thanks man! However, the lunch was horrible. So bad that I just threw it away and bought some cookies, a coffee, and a water. Note to self? Don't go back or get something very different from there. After this horrid lunch, I met with other students and went to "El Museo Nacional." Check it out!

The museum was pretty interesting and I learned a lot about the natives of Costa Rica. One of the most interesting things that I learned was that Costa Rica abolished it's army in the 1940's- 1950's. There is NO army! This is sort of strange considering that the United States has the strongest army in the world. So, I am going from a country with a strong military presence to a country with none. However, it works for Costa Rica. The "Museo Nacional" is in what used to be the country's military fortress. The president at the time decided that the money that was going towards the army should go towards education instead. Therefore, he marched to the tower of the fortress with a sledge hammer and tore it down himself. Talk about ruling with an iron fist... literally.
  After I went through the museum, I stopped by the small market that was in the plaza near the museum. It was really cool to see all the stuff that was for sale. However, this was a small market compared to the one I am planing to go to tomorrow. The market that I will visit after class with some fellow students is called "El Mercado Central de San Jose." I'll be bringing gifts home! Make sure to read the blog tomorrow! I'll have pictures of the market! Until tomorrow...

First Day of Class

   Well the title of this blog gives it all away. Today was my first day of class and I am beat. I am taking Intermediate Spanish II and Conversation. Both classes are taught in Spanish and we start at 8 in the morning and dismiss at 1. We only get a 20 minute break and we FLY through the material. So far it's nothing that I don't understand and I am able to keep up. However, I have to look at the person to fully understand what they are saying. Facial expression and body language give away so much as to what the person is saying. So, I am looking at my professor for over 4 hours and continually translating what they are saying in my head. It's one thing just to translate. It's another to translate, understand, and apply. Sounds easy but mentally it's exhausting. Then when I return to the house my host family doesn't speak any English. It's like another Spanish class. So today I took a nap after class and gave my poor brain a rest. This was because I was exhausted and I needed to prepare for conversation class number two with my host family. My mama tica is very good at explaining words or phrases that we don't understand. Her husband, Carlos, jokes a lot so that is where watching the person and seeing what their facial expressions give away comes in handy. Her oldest daughter Carla speaks very softly and very rapidly so I am generally looking at her really confused like. I'm trying Carla. Young Carlos, her son, is hilarious. I think he knows more English than he lets on. He is just very jovial and laughs through half of his sentences. So, there is deciphering Spanish through laughter. Then Valeria, her youngest daughter, I have given up trying to understand her. She is super animated, but she speaks so quickly and loudly that I am usually looking at her with my hands on either side of my head trying to keep up. So, I stick with my mama tica. She understands me. I understand her. It's fantastic.
   I am taking a break from my homework to write this blog. So, it will be a short one. Overall, today was a success. My Intermediate II professor is really sweet and talks VERY slowly. Thank you!!! My Conversation professor is incredibly animated. She reminds me of a small child that just sort of bounces around the room. I can already tell I will like her. She is sarcastic, funny, and very easy to talk to. We always have to remind her to slow down because she gets so caught up in what she is doing that she just runs off and leaves us. However, she does retrace her steps and all is well.
   Today I discovered what it is like to feel like the minority. Not a fan of that feeling. I am a big fan of blending in. Like fly on the wall blending in. I went to Subway and was wondering just why I was getting more looks that I normally do. Well, after a quick glimpse around the room I realized I was an albino compared to everyone. Do you remember those I-Spy books we had as children? Where you would look at a page and find a cat or a hammer in a picture. Yea, that's what I keep thinking this is like. Put all the Costa Rican people together and put me somewhere. I guarantee you that you will find me. Therefore, I rank this I-Spy game as beginner level. Everyone is really nice to me, but they stare. It's sort of unnerving and I am always asked if my hair is natural ("Tu pelo es natural?"). I have seen a few bad dye jobs of locals trying to be blonde but it just does not work. For them my hair is fascinating. Oh well, at least the answer to "Tu pelo es natural?" is "Si." Simple enough.
   Today marks my fifth day in Costa Rica. Sort of crazy, but I am here for only 27 more days. I know that once classes really start up these 27 days are going to fly by. Well, time for dinner. The plan was to lose weight during this trip. Not happening. My mama tica is a fantastic cook. A plate of food? Sure. Another plate of food? Go for it. More plantains? HELL YES.

Poas, Cloud Forests, and Waterfalls

   Today was a really fun day! We went on an excursion and finally got outside of the city. San Jose is great but it's not very pretty. Costa Rica is a newly emerging country and they are having issues with keeping up their buildings because they are growing SO quickly. Therefore, things look run down. I have been anxiously wanting to venture out of the city and see the country side. Today, I saw the country side, hiked the country side, got rained on by the country side, and much more. However, I loved every minute of it. We got up at the fantastic hour of five o'clock this morning hiked to the bus stop and arrived on campus at 6:20. Once we loaded the buses we took off for Poas! Poas is an active volcano that erupted in the fifties. While it is still active, it poses no threat to the people in Costa Rica. Poas has a beautiful crater that contains a highly acidic lake in the center of it and steam billows out from the inner parts of the volcano. Fun fact... the lake in the center of the crater is one of the most acidic lakes in the world. Therefore, the water is a very odd color. It's almost a bright blue/ turquoise. It's pretty but you wouldn't want to swim in it though... that would be bad. Very. Bad. It was necessary to hike to the top of the volcano to see the crater early in the morning because it is located in a cloud forest. You know what that means? Clouds. Which means VERY limited visibility. So, early in the morning there are less clouds so we could see the crater really well today! Check it out!

  

   After this we hiked through the rain/cloud forest. By hiked I mean trekked. By trekked I mean today marks the day that I can tell my children that I walked both ways uphill in the rain and cold on a slippery slope up and down a volcano. So future children, be ready to hear me complain to you about this. This was tough stuff. You would think that to head DOWN a volcano you would walk DOWNHILL. Oh no. This volcano told gravity a thing or two. I would say that out of an hour of hiking that a solid 55 minutes of it was up a very steep slope. Thigh work out for the day? Check. Despite the fact that I was heaving like an 80 year old smoker, this hike was beautiful. It was like something out of a Disney movie. Even though part of it looked like the dark forest, most of it looked like a fairy or Peter Pan was going to hop out at any moment. 

  Next on our list of things to do was visit the Waterfall Gardens. Our tour guide described this place as the closest thing to the Garden of Eden. Man was she right. The Waterfall Gardens is a sanctuary for different birds, butterflies, frogs, wildcats, and snakes. Our first stop in the gardens was the bird sanctuary. I have learned that Toucans like to poop and parrots are brats. However, the most important lesson I learned was that no matter how small a hummingbird is, they resemble and sound like small torpedoes flying through the air at the height of my face. I was in the hummingbird sanctuary for about 30 seconds before I was making my way for the exit dodging hummingbird torpedoes. One hummingbird? Sure. HUNDREDS of hummingbirds? Take cover. Here are a few photos from the bird sanctuary.

We then went to the butterfly sanctuary. This was SO beautiful and the butterflies were really friendly. You just walked in and they would land right on you! Check it out!

After this we walked to the waterfalls. There are three total near the gardens and they were magnificent. You can hear them before you see them and you still aren't prepared for the power and beauty. The largest one was close to 300 feet high. Water is flying down the side of the mountain and giving off enough mist to dampen you from more than 50 yards away.

After this we returned to the lodge to relax for a bit, drink some delicious Costa Rican coffee, and to enjoy our beautiful view of the cloud forest over the waterfalls.

Not too shabby huh? After our descent back down the volcano in our bus we returned to the university and hopped on the public bus to take us home. We had a nice dinner with the family and I am about to go to sleep. Tomorrow starts my first day of class at the University of Costa Rica and I will need to be on campus by 7:45 tomorrow morning! Eeeek! Lots of early mornings here. Gotta do what you gotta do. Wish me luck and send some prayers my way!

 

Placement Tests, Sloths, and Outlet Malls

   Today was my first day to wake up pretty early and head to campus. I arrived at the campus around 8:00 and had an academic orientation (don't cheat, if you fail there is no hope, come to class... blah blah blah). Then, we went on a small tour of the campus. It's a pretty big place and imagine that it is a tropical forest that they built a campus in the middle of it. So, it's absolutely beautiful. I'm talking huge trees, tropical flowers, a waterfall, a small creek, and SLOTHS! These cute little creatures are so important that they are even featured on the money of Costa Rica. Sloths are precious. I mean when have you ever seen a sad sloth? Never. They are completely content with moving at a snails pace and just hanging out in their tree of choice. Anyway here are two pictures from our campus tour.

After the tour we went to a place on campus called the "Casa de Idiomas" to take our placement test. It's sort of pointless though because you are really placed in whatever you want to take. I think it's just a precautionary measure that the school takes so they can say "look we told you that you were not ready to take a high level Spanish and we have your test to prove it." Oh well, I will still be taking Intermediate Spanish II and Composition I starting Monday. After the placement test we went to a different place on campus and had a very delicious lunch provided to us by the MLSA program. Because our day ended early, some fellow study abroad students and I decided to hit up the outlet malls. At first I was really pumped about it. However, once inside I wanted to cry. This place was super closed in, sort of dark, and there were four floors of packed in stores. So, been there done that and don't want to do it again. I know where the food court is in the mall so that's about all I will use it for. After our adventure through hell... I mean the mall... we returned to campus and waited while the rest of the girls went to go see the baby sloth on the opposite end of campus. During our waiting time, we enjoyed the luxury of swinging! Yes. Swinging on a college campus. Take notes colleges of the United States. Swinging is fun no matter what age you are and it's a great way to relax! So here is a picture of me swinging on the beautiful campus of the University of Costa Rica!

   After their sloth adventures we caught the bus home and made it back just before the rain. Tomorrow we will be hiking through the cloud forest on the volcano Poas and will see the top of the volcano and a beautiful waterfall that we can enjoy! I am very excited about it! I will tell you all about it tomorrow night! I am now sitting in my room listening to the rain hit the metal roof outside my window and thinking "Pura Vida." Until tomorrow...

Pura Vida

   You ready ladies? (and gentlemen because you need to learn how to cook too) I am about to teach you the key to a man's heart. Yea I'm single, but I am almost positive that all men like food. So let's talk about some Costa Rica cooking. Be ready. I am about to go Eat Pray Love on you. Plantains. Repeat it... plantains. Scratch all this nonsense about chocolate being the food of the gods. Clearly the Greek Gods didn't have plantains. Plantains are like large bananas but you need to cook them. But get this... they are like "slice-and-bake-cookies" easy to cook. You take the plantain and cut it long ways, put them in a frying pan with some olive oil, cook on both sides until it is light brown and bam you have something delicious. I am pretty sure I could eat these things for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Want to spice it up a little bit? Serve them with rice and black beans and some queso. Man... yum. Here's a picture of these fantastic gifts to man.

   This isn't a food blog so I am moving right along. Time to talk about Pray in this Eat Pray Love equation. Most people in Costa Rica are Catholics. In fact one of my landmarks for walking to the bus stop for school is a Catholic church and you better believe I am praying when I am crossing the street near it because there is no such thing as pedestrians having the right of way. I brought a book called "Jesus Calling" with me to read everyday during my trip. Don't have it? Go get it. It takes probably 20 seconds to read the devotion for each day and you get to keep that thought with you all day and for the rest of your life. For me this is helping me overcome culture shock, missing my family and friends, and is just keeping my spirits up in general.
   Lastly, Love... the people of Costa Rica are some of the most loving and caring people you will ever meet. A common question you ask someone in Spanish is "Cómo estás?" This means "How are you?" and the common response in most countries is "bien" or "mal" which means well or poorly. However, in Costa Rica the response is "pura vida." This literally means pure life. "Pura Vida" is used for everything. For you Auburn people, "pura vida" is like "War Eagle."
1. "How are you today?" -"Pura Vida"
2. "I am tired." - "Pura Vida"
3. "I'm heading to the Hooters across the street from the University of Costa Rica." - "Pura Vida"             (this is 100% true)
"Pura Vida" is not just a response or an answer. It's a way of life. These people LOVE their country and are so happy and blessed with what they have. They believe that the goodness in your heart and your faith and hard work is the key to being successful. Simply put, live your life purely. There is no reason in worrying or stressing. The United States need some "pura vida." Hell, we ALL need some "pura vida." So concludes my second day in Costa Rica. I have my first long day at the University of Costa Rica and I have to take a placement test at 8:30 in the morning. Wish me luck!
  

Huevos

This morning I rose to an intercom voice blaring "HUEVOS! HUEVOS! HUEVOS!" For those of you that don't speak Spanish huevos means eggs. Some people wake up to the sound of the ocean crashing against the shore. I wake up to a man selling eggs at 8:30 in the morning. It was at this time that I told myself "Beth... this is a cultural experience and you must enjoy it." However, what I was really thinking was that I really wished that said eggs had stayed inside whatever chicken they came from. I headed downstairs at that time and ate breakfast (a bowl of fruit (fruta) and bread (pan) with butter (mantequilla) and jelly (jalea). I read a daily devotional from Jesus Calling and it's food for thought today was to enjoy the goodness that God has given to us. So Mr. Huevos man... guess that means I need to enjoy you. Today I have an Orientation at the University of Costa Rica! Pretty excited about it and am ready to meet some more people! I'll let y'all know how it goes!