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.