Costa Rica Day 4
I want to start this post off by thanking all of you that are reading this everyday! It is exciting to know that people are following this journey with me and is willing to take a few minutes from their day to read about everything I’m doing. There are probably people reading that I don’t even know about, so keep up the good work my friends! Spread the word and hopefully I’ll gain more followers and prayers! All of the Facebook messages and comments make each day a little easier! So a BIG thank you to everyone that reads this everyday and that is committed to sharing this journey with me.
I finally got Skype to work last night!! I skyped with Lauren for a few minutes and it was AWESOME to see someone back home. She was beyond excited to actually see me and that kept a big smile on my face all day today. Hopefully my parents can get the webcam fixed and I can Skype with them soon! I slept great last night and I would like to credit the great shut eye to the purchase of my fan yesterday. It not only kept me WAY cooler, but also drowned out some of the sound of the streets. I feel like I’m starting to get a little repetitive… but blogging is something I look forward to everyday. The moment something happens, I try to remember so I can tell everyone about it. So I’ll apologize for today and the remaining 25 days for repetitive routines.
Today, started like every other day so far in Costa Rica. I took a quick shower and got ready for breakfast. No flat ironing my shorts today… I broke out the athletic shorts and a t-shirt today. I still looked very much like a tourist though… especially in my athletic shorts, sorority t-shirt, kavu watch, chacos, and north face backpack. Sorry to anyone on Panhellenic that is reading this right now. I figured disaffiliation didn’t apply if I wasn’t in the country… I shall begin wearing no letters when I return to the States. The landscape today was just beautiful. In the past days, clouds have set in over the mountains making them hard to see.. but today it was a clear beautiful sky. For the first time today, I saw the complete mountain setting… and it was amazing! I can’t wait to get out of the city and make my way to the mountains and see everything they have to offer. Zip-lines and canopy tours are definitely on the to do list before coming home. The weekend excursions to all the beautiful landmarks in Costa Rica are most definitely going to make the whole entire trip worthwhile.
Back on topic, breakfast was the usual… more delicious pineapple and mango complete with scrambled eggs, cheese, and ham. Also on the plate was two black pieces of bread. I’m guessing my mamatica [which is apparently what we are suppose to call our house mom] forgot she had put bread in the toaster.. and one of my biggest pet peeves is burnt bread…. So needless to say, I passed on the black and overly crispy toast. Christy and I walked to school together again this morning. I am going to miss her when she leaves on Friday. It is so nice to have another American [well not really because she is from Canada but that’s close enough] living here. I enjoy our conversations at night and talking about all the different things we do throughout the day. She also sits with me at night as we desperately try to gain internet signal on my computer. Sometimes we succeed, sometimes we don’t. I claim this as another one of life’s little games. Class today went as usual, except I did make a surprising change. I knew all but one of the vocabulary words in our “guessing game” we play every morning. That was a great start to my day because it’s usually a set back first thing in the morning when I don’t know any of them. We spent the majority of today doing my least favorite thing of all.. conversation. Funny right?! For someone like me that could talk to a brick wall, it’s hard to imagine not liking to talk [mom, you’re in this category too. I hear you talk to yourself sometimes]. It’s something I am steadily working on and slowly, very very slowly, getting better at. It just takes time. I guess that’s the whole reason I am here. To learn. I didn’t come here because I already know everything, I came to learn and earn course credits… so I’m trying my best.
After class, I went to eat lunch with another girl from West Georgia. We decided to try something new and ventured into a restaurant that I swear was no bigger than a closet. These little places called “Sodas” and are located on about every street. Their food is very authentic, good and cheap. After lunch it was dance time! Dance class was super fun today. We learned a new Salsa dance and some other dance that I couldn’t understand the name of. It was fun too though. I couldn’t tell if the heat was on in the dance room or if a bucket of water had been poured on me, but either way.. I left that room pouring sweat from head to toe. A great, fun workout! A cooking class was after dance today, but I decided not to go. Some students from UWG went yesterday and said that all the class consists of is standing around watching a lady cook. That didn’t seem like fun to me, especially if we weren’t allowed to do any of the cooking… so I decided against that idea and ventured out into the city again with 2 classmates. Since the scenery was so beautiful today, we decided to walk as far as we could towards the mountains… we almost made it to another city [no lie.. one on the outskirts of Heredia]. The farther we walked, the more beautiful the landscape became. The view today was exactly what I had planned for this trip.
We then made the hike back to the central park, which is some-what close to my house [only a few blocks away]. I came home and was greeted by my mamatica. Everyday I get back to the house and I tell her I have homework to do so that I can blog. It’s easier to call it “homework” because I have no idea how to even go about describing to her what a blog is. Or maybe she has heard of them, maybe I’ll give it a try one day. Speaking of homework, I haven’t been seriously overwhelmed yet. Some worksheets, book work, and defining vocab but nothing too too time consuming. If I understood my professor right, we have our first test on Friday. That may or may not be right… I should probably try to figure that out tomorrow when I get to school.
Tonight’s dinner consisted of grilled fish, mashed potatoes, and some vegetable that is similar to squash in the States. I’m not a big squash fan, but I told her it was delicious. The grilled fish, was very good though. It was topped with lemon juice and pico de gallo. Not my favorite meal so far, but the food definitely hasn’t been as bad as I thought. I even looked at a cookbook with my mamatica after dinner and pointed out a few things, so maybe she will surprise me one day!
I’m starting to realize that things aren’t that different from being back home. I pretty much have the same routine day to day.. so right now, I’m just kinda living for the adventurous weekends.. which also isn’t much different than the States.. haha! I hope my friends are planning a big reunion for the weekend after I get back [hint hint].
I blog about my friends and sisters a lot, but truth is… without them I wouldn’t be where I am today.. and I mean that in 2 ways:
1. I would never have gotten involved with as many different things as I have during college. It was so much easier in high school to make friends and be active in sports and organizations. But in college, it’s different. I didn’t know it at the time, but joining a sorority would pave the path for the rest of my college career… so in this sense, I wouldn’t be the person I am today without them.
2. I wouldn’t be in Costa Rica. I have never been one that is scared of trying new things. However, when thrown into a completely unchartered territory like college, a shyness came over me. I had no idea what direction my life would take. My sisters have encouraged me to try new things and also to embrace my free spirit for life. Without their love, support, and encouragement… I could possibly be at home, sitting in front of my computer, and taking classes online [which I know sounds like a great idea to you right now, mom. But trust me.. this is for the best and time is flying by].
That’s all I have for today. Pretty much just another routine day. I guess “hump days” exist even in other countries… nothing special or terrible about today. A typical Hump Day! So tonight, I’m staying true to my roots and listening to some good ole country music [just for you B Prince] and work on some homework! Hope everyone had a wonderful day and don’t forget to keep me updated on everything going on in the States! No matter where I am, Georgia is always on my mind… Much love sent to all of you tonight from the beautiful town of Heredia.
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