El Mercado Central

Kayla, Tammy and I walked down random side streets and stumbled upon this area that looked really sketchy. It was a building opening with a large orange sign that read "mercado central" and led into a dark alley boardered with duffle bags and lights from butchery shops. Of course, the sketchiest shops here are the cheapest so I convinced Tammy to go inside. Walking in all you could see were hoards of people packed together and weaving in and out of the maze of side alleys. We had reached an indoor city. There were buildings inside of this building and shops that had barely any room to move. From one to the other the walls were covered in duffle bags from Nike, Puma, and Quicksilver for about $6 each. The smell of food, flowers and spices dominates the air in this old and rusty ¿warehouse? in the middle of the city. Stores sold bags, souvenirs, shoes or food. The food ones were either selling spices which hung fromt the walls, in large bowls and piled to form a pyramid shape, or random butcher shops that sat a row of people that made the area resemble a Moroccan Medina. Near each shop with the hanging greens and fresh spices was usually a flower shops or a mini-farmacy. Of course it started downpoaring within the first five minutes there, but we were inside. The metal roof was old and rusting so the sound of the rain was loud and dominated the mercado while every-so-often the rain would leak through some of the holes in the roof. Walking down the winding alleys of butcher shops, food stores, and close walls of duffle-bags we stumbled upon a large statue of Jesus in a glass box. People here are extremely religious and it kind of surprised me to see something so big in a crowded market lake that. But after about a half an hour of dodging men, women, indigenous women, and police officers, we left the mercado happy and a little bit more satisfied with our experience level in San José. Oh, and by the way. As a side note with nothing relating to the market; I had rice and black beans for breakfast, lunch and dinner today...that makes 5 meals in a row hahahaha.

Cake Run

After class Kayla, Tammy, and I walked down to the Automercado in San Pedro and took the bus to Cartago: the old capital of Costa Rica. It is about a 45 minute bus ride for 410 colones (you should kind of get the currency conversion by now haha). Through the city to the country side, and to a new city we got off at a church and I remembered the way to the ruins. I can't remember if I wrote about this the last time because there was so much I did last weekend, but if I didn't it was the place that is considered damned because an earthquake destroys the church right before opening to the public. From some photo opportunities, we walked to the Basilica in downtown Cartago (Cartago is not apart of San José). and was able to go inside and make our way around the church. It was really beautiful today and I kind of joked that we were actually in Heaven. The sun was shining behind this white basilica giving it a type of halo, the clouds were low and actually at city level so we were in the clouds but without the fog, and since this is a Latin American country there must be a guy named Jesús there. From the basilica we walked down and blessed ourselves with and drank holy water from the fountain and headed off to a bakery. There was one that we went to last week with AMAZING cakes so that was the main reason for returning to Cartago: buying a cake. Really, that was the only reason for going. We were able to find the place and the cake for 7100 colones or about $12 We returned to school at about 5h30 and Kayla went home while Tammy and I went to the Hipermás in Guadaloupe (San José). Hipermás is run by the same owners as Walmart and looks almost exactly the same. There we bought Disney princess plates, princess cups, a question-mark candle, and soccer party hats...it is an "under-1000-colones-per-party-item" themed unbirthday party hahaha. It's pretty ridiculous. From the Hipermás we dodged traffic and stood on the dotted white lines in the middle of the street sometimes getting passed by two buses in both lanes at once (which is super scary btw) to get to our bus stop 5 lanes of traffic across the street. I got home and ate chickpeas and rice!!!! (I love chickpeas!) and am on my computer now facebooking and blogging. Kind of can't wait to leave in less than 3 days, but then again I don't really want to leave. It is so amazing here and I feel right at home. I just miss the people that aren't here.

San José 10K

The protest got moved back to a different date so this morning was very uneventful. I walked down to Moravia and did my homework in the park and soaked up the hot morning sun. I then took the bus and got to school about an hour early so I walked around for a bit. class was as boring as ever. I do not really like my teacher and I have a feeling he doesn't really like me. He makes little jabs at me during class during the excercises but smiles while doing which usually means friendly sarcasm but it feels a little more colder than that. Today I asked 3 times to learn the "vos" form of speaking and he said all three times that we would get to it, and in the end we didn't. He went on a 15 minute tangent on animal sounds, repeated 3 lessons that we did last week, and (I guess) because of those more important things we didn't have enough time to learn the less formal way of speaking in Costa Rica and the Americas. It sucks because a big portion of my grade is attidude and he just bores me to death and makes me feel neglected/angry. After class I had my 2000 colones casado and then went shopping in the mall san pedro while Kayla and Tammy went to the salon. I bought new headphones there because mine are 80% totally unusable and then walked down to the automercado to buy some cookies for my returning gift to the softlines staff at target. I then walked down to San José and bought some new shoes! It's a Costa Rican brand that takes after the Gola Style (big name british brand). Best part was that they were 10000 colones with tax which is $17!! That was one of the best prices I have seen in San José so far for shoes. I was thinking about some puma's but they're about 45000 colones or $78 which is just too much. I only mention them to compare prices haha. Of course I bought some other things too but not as exciting as my Navy and Red shoes lol. I like 'em different =P After I returned to school and took a cooking class. We made gallos! Picadilla I think: potatoes, hamburg, and spices in a small tortilla. It was pretty good. Then Tammy, Kayla and I went to the movies to see UP. It was better than I thought it would be and also a lot sader than I thought it would be. It was honestly a tear jerker (lol). I didn't think a Disney film could be that depressing. But now I'm home and ready for bed...it's 11pm =(

¡¡¡Escandalo!!!

My day started off amazing with my absolute favorite costan rican food of all time: gallos! It was salchicón grilled and wrapped in a mini tortilla...the only thing to make them better would be pineapple slices, but you can't ask for everything...Oh and chocolate milk which we have a lot. that would be the best breakfast ever =) But after breakfast I walked up to the bus stop in Moravia because the San Rafael/Moravia to San José was all sorts of messed up today and wasn't running. So I did my normal route to school and found out am I back with my old spanish teacher, Pablo again, sigh. But he still is a good teacher...just not as good as this last one was =( Kayla and I walked down to the Center of town for some McDonalds today...it was pretty much the same as in the States only a girl walks around with a wifi enabled PDA and takes your order in line and then you pay when you get to the front of the line with your food there. It is a lot more efficient when it is packed with people and it was like that all day. We then walked outside to the plaza and sat down to eat and was greated by swarms of pigeons...the most I have ever seen in my life. The lady's were yelling Corn! Corn! Get your corn! at both ends of the plaza and a family decided to sit right next to us and feed the pigeons...I love people. From there we walked back to school, picked up Tammy, and then headed back to the same spot to visit the Museo de Niños. Let me tell you, this place is in a sketchy place. It was obviously closed and it obviously started raining, and there were obviously the stray dogs out that look sickly and dangerous. One guy got attacked on our way back. He used his umbrella to keep the dog away and it worked very well. On the same street we saw a man on the sidewalk with police over him and some onlookers. He might have been dead, but I'm not 100% sure...I didn't see blood but he was not even close to moving and seemed almost like a frozen statue. I didn't want to find out so we kept on walking past the hobos in their soaked raggy clothes and cardboard boxes. Some boy tried to sell me pencils and the rain gradually got harder. We did a little shopping while we were there. I am saving my shopping until tomorrow for when Kayla and Tammy are getting their haircuts and I can shop without worrying about other people. It's better that way. When I got home I cut out foam board corsettes for one of Jenny's neices parties and was taken to a town meeting in Moravia. It was intense. There were people lined up down the stairs, where I was, and every type of person: old, young, and nuns. It got extremely out of hand and noisey so the police were called in to monitor. It got so intense that there is a protest/ riot scheduled for tomorrow at 6h30am in the center of Moravia. Maybe you will hear about it on the news lol. William tells me it shouldn't be as bad as other colonias that burn cars and stuff. All I kept on hearing was "¡escandalo!", "¡ladrones!", "¡corruptos!", and "¡Mañana, vamos por las calles!" We will see how things turn out =)

Craziest/Most eventful weekend of my life

I have no idea where to even start. This weekend was ridiculous. I mean RIDICULOUS! From School we packed 6 people into a car that could only fit 5 and drove down to Central San José to pick up a car that we rented. We ended up with a Hyundai Tuscon 4X4 for Tammy, Kayla and I. After battling our way through Tican Traffic, we made it to the country roads of Costa Rica. If you look on my facebook you will be able to see said-pictures (lol). The view is AMAZING here in Costa Rica. It is mountainous, green, and full of cows. It was about a 6 hour drive up to Santa Elena in the upper part of the Central Valley on the boarder with Guanacaste (a very historic and cultural region of Costa Rica). We drove through sketchy small towns of scrap tin houses, barbed wire (for cows instead of people), and of course cows. It gets dark by about 6pm here so we drove up the mountains at night. It was so beautiful though. Costa Rica is so mountainous that the roads cork-screw up and around the mountains CONSTANTLY. Because of that we actually drove above the clouds during the later portion of the ride. It was breathtaking. We got out a few times to look DOWN on the clouds and it was just awe-inspiring. I've never seen anything like it before in my life. We drove through the clouds a lot too, which was just like fog, only sometimes you could see the bottom of the clouds or where you're going to drive into one. But anyway we made it to Sta Elena and to our Hostel...that's right. HoStel. It was run by young people with dred-locks, or even the guy with the red pony-tails, make-up and women's clothes with a nordic accent. This was European central of the town. We met girls from Germany, a guy from Poland, French, Americans, and others who spoke English but with accents. We got some Salchicharon and tortillas to make Gallos with a bag of tortilla chips and Margarita mix for Tammy. We cooked the Salchicharon but burnt half of it on the pan while doing it causing plumes of smoke to fill the kitchen...yes...we were THOSE people. Washing it just added to the smoke, by the way. But anyway, we enjoyed our wonderful gallos outside with the cutest dog and spent our wonderful night in a Hostel with European youth. Best part: I paid $10 for the night. We made our way up to Monteverde after to go to the cloud forest. It was very beautiful and the whole tour was in Spanish since it was just Tammy, Kayla and me. I can comprehend fluently now which REALLY makes me happy. It feels kind of weird because I am learning all of this new information but in Spanish. After the cloud forest we took a ride down to the bat exhibit which was kind of cool, but overpriced. Not going to go into it. And finally we headed off to La Fortuna to Arenal again. Now the problem this time was that the hotel was not what we were thinking at all. We thought this was a repeat of last week's accommodations at the volcano...instead we were in the city with no view. So because of this I called up the old cabins and reserved us a spot while canceling our reservations at the new place in the city. We paid $2 for the most beautiful view in all of Costa Rica (and I got to practice my Spanish on the phone and breaking some poor hotel lady's heart lol). The view at these cabins is spectacular. Each one is facing the volcano and is almost at the base. What makes it even better is that this place is also a fica (or ranch) so there are cows, horses, chickens, and dogs running all over the place. You can hear the Howler monkeys in the background mixing with the exotic bird songs and the dinosaur-esque grunting of the cows. Absolutely beautiful. And the room was HUGE! For $20 a person with breakfast. Plus the lady that owns it is overly nice. This place is legit ridiculous and you need to see pictures on my facebook. That night we watched the volcano let out smoke while drinking Margarita mix with sprite (cause I needed it to be watered down...too much tequila) and sangria while listening to the monkeys, cows and night-bugs. The morning was also amazing because I explored the field with the animals. I sat there for 2 hours watching the cows and horses and didn't realize until last minute that they let a bull in...and I was wearing my new red sweatshirt. It stared me straight in the face and I just bent down behind a tree and had to sneak out of the pen. The cows seemed pretty timid too. They stared at me and almost began to charge, but then I would step back, fearing my life hahaha. From Arenal Volcano we headed out on a TREACHEROUS trip to the Vernado Caves. The roads are unpaved and wrap around mountains. We were tossed around and heard scary clunky noises that made us wonder if we were going to blow up a tire or pop a hole in something. Worst roads I have ever been on in my life and lasted for Kilometers. We got lost, constantly, because each map has different roads and different towns. but we finally got to the caves and I finally had one of the freakiest experiences of my life. I put on my galoshes and entered to pure blackness of the cave. Water came flowing out from the underground river filled with no-eyed fish and sometimes scorpions. We entered a large cabin in total darkness...nothing. Then looking up I saw tons of bats moving and flying around mixed with stalagmites...then the worst part came when he looked at the wall and picked up a spider...the grossest spider I have seen in my life. We continued along the slippery rocks guided only by the light of our flashlights to a tiny opening that we had to squeeze through that was no bigger than 2 of my heads...it was really, really freaky and claustrophobic. Once through, all 3 of us fit in like sardines in this enclosed space and had to scale up the cave into a more open space. Still not open enough to stand in, we made our way to the upper level surround by water and less desirable creatures. I could not shine my flash-light on the walls and the best advise I would give would be not to look at the walls or touch them, because every time all I would see were long legged spiders and crickets larger than your hand...I only know this because he would pick them up off his legs and clothes and show us. I don't want to think about what was on me, so I will continue. So we made our way in darkness; Kayla, Tammy, me and the guide through the cave looking at stalagmites, bats, poo, and spiders and swam through spaces twice the size of me and scaled up and down slippery rocks spotted with bat droppings, spiders, and monster crickets...they had legs like spiders too. I actually thought they were spiders during the trip. Soaked, dirty, blind, and freaked out I was able to make the best out of this experience and enjoy some of what the cave had to offer...I appreciate it more now than when I was actually in it haha. Scary, but worth it...would I do it again? No. but worth it. Then from there we got lost going back to San José. We pulled over and I asked for directions. The lady said she was going the same way and said she could show us so we said yes. We pulled over and the car she was next to drove away and she opened the door to our car...we had a hitch-hiker...we all just stared in shock as the other car drove away and she said that she needed a ride there anyway. Thinking it was around the corner we left...with a hitch-hiker, freaked out...but she was an older woman and constantly smiled so we just drove. We dropped her off in Toque and tried to find our way back to San José...again the maps are all different and many roads are not marked so we were constantly lost on never-ending-un-paved-roads. We finally made it back to the car rental place by the airport in Alajuela and took a bus to San José. From San José we took a bus to San Pedro. We were going to get off at the mall and take a taxi back to Kayla's house and then to Tammy's and my houses in Moravia but the bus never stopped at the mall...instead it ended up in Europa: a random district in San José in the suburbs. Thank God when we were forced to get off (thinking it would loop back around) there was a taxi letting out people because this was not a place for taxis. We then were able to head back home for 5000 colones. A ridiculous week of stress, adventure, stories, and new experiences...there's probably more, but it's all too much to remember.

Quick entry from finicky internet

Internet was down last night so I had to get up a little early to do some stuff =/ I've got to get ready soon so this is gonna be short, lol. Yesterday I ate cauliflour...and...it was actually not that bad. I am finally accustomed to fried plantains too, which I have everyday (because a "casado" comes with it, and a casado only costs 1800-2000 colones which is a little over $3 for rice, beans, plantain, some type of meat, salad (but I get more rice and beans), juice, tax, and tip). It's kind of weird because there are somethings that cost nothing here, like that, and most of the other prices are the same as in the US. After lunch Kayla, Tammy and I went back to the school to make the final reservations on our trip today. I am going to Cartago today with my class, and then after that we rented a car that we are going to take up to Monteverde tonight. I'll keep it a surprise, what we are doing, but I should be back by Sunday night...Not looking forward to the bugs up there...Last time I was up there I can't remember if I mentioned it but there were bugs EVERYWHERE. In the morning I remember waking up, taking a shower, and then seeing little bugs crawling over the sheets (not the bed cover) and all over my bag and stuff. I mean they were little (like the size of those microscopic ants) so it didn't bother me as much. After lunch Kayla and I went for a walk while Tammy had dance lessons sponsered by Intensa. We walked to the grafittid part of town (not that there is a specific section hahaha). I should say super-graffitied part of town. It was beautiful! We did basically an art walk and it was so interesting. I really like grafiti and would conscider it art as long as it is a picture and time went into it. These pictures were pretty elaborate too. Of course there were A LOT of stenciled things (which is kind of fun) but it was amazing. Ok, need to shower and take the bus to school. Excited for fieldtrip/vacation...should have some amazing pics when I get back =)

Cocinando and a partido de fútbol

The past two days I have been doing something that I have been looking forward to doing since before I got here. Cooking. It turns out that my host mom went to cooking school and keeps a couple of handwritten journals of recipes. So yesterday and today I sat down with her and wrote some of them down to bring back home. The rice here is pretty amazing, so I am going to have to get a big bag of it when I come back. Today I helped her cook. We made mashed potatoes and chicken. It was pretty good. And after that I went over to Tammy’s house and then went to a Soccer game in Guadalupe (still apart of San José). It was their son’s game and it was kind of interesting and a cool thing to do. I’m writing this at 10h43 but I’m already tired. I have been waking up at around 5h30 every morning which probably explains it. Yesterday Tammy, Kayla and I took a walk downtown and bought ourselves some Costa Rican Soccer Jerseys for around $11 each. They are pretty cool and a nice novelty to have, and plus I think there is a game coming up soon. We walked back to Intensa after and then took another cooking class where I learned how to make tortillas. It was pretty fun to do, but really simple. They also didn’t taste that good but we took the class with the people we went to Arenal with which made it fun. I played Jin Rummy with them after the class while Kayla and Tammy used the computers. I am really liking the classes now that I have a new teacher. She is extremely interesting and teaches us a lot of history about Costa Rica. One day she just broke out in Japanese and told us that she used to teach it in Japan. She also told us this story today about how she used to be a volunteer that would bring supplies to Nicaragua during the cold war. One day she wasn’t let through and had to wait at a checkpoint in “no-man’s-land” until security would let her through. She stayed there until before night fall and had to flee back to Costa Rica before dark. Since this was no-man’s-land, she had to walk and was caught in gun fire and had to hide out in an abandoned restaurant where she was found by arms smugglers and taken to their camp. It was really interesting. Friday she is taking us to Cartago which is just outside of San José and the old capital of Costa Rica. She’s pretty awesome!

Ángeles y Demonios: When sitting in the dark is the most exciting part of the day

I woke up at around six o’clock this morning and got done kind of early so I decided to take a walk down to the bank to take out some money and then meet up with Tammy to catch the bus down to San José. I am beginning to recognize the bus routes by heart and know when traffic will be good or bad. I am settling into a routine and I’m liking it. I only have 12 nights more here which is kind of depressing, but I’ve learned to deal with it. I got a new teacher today for my class, and got a new student (an older man) in place of the two girls that left. I really like my new teacher because she is more concerned with conversation than with grammar exercises. Instead of doing the questions in the book we have to come up with examples on our own. I like this technique because it makes me actually understand what I am saying rather than reformatting a sentence based on a formula and predetermined answers. I think that she is going to bring us to Cartago on Friday. She seems more interested and more gung-ho with teacheing by volunteering to look up some movies for us or go on fieldtrips. After class Tammy, Kayla, Zach, Jennifer, Jordan and I went down to my new favorite cheap café where I got the Monday Casado: a big plate of pork chop, rice, black beans, fried plantains, drink, tax, and tip for 2000 colones or $3.45. After eating, Kayla, Tammy and I walked down to the mall and got tickets to see Ángeles y Demonios (Angels and Demons) for 1600 colones ($2.75). It was a really good movie and I guess it was worth all that money. We walked Kayla back home and then took the bus back to Moravia: an hour long commute from the mall today. When I got home we had fettuccini alfredo, I think, with broccoli with my almost favorite refresco Zuko. I’ve been really tired lately, most likely because of the altitude, so I’m half falling asleep while writing this at 9h30. I do honestly think that my Spanish is improving. I was talking with some of my family members today a lot faster and clearer than normal and I kind of surprised myself. I think that the emersion part is just to bring out a confidence in people and understanding accents. I can understand the mother now and don’t know how I didn’t in the beginning. My teachers only speak Spanish and I can understand every word they say which is also kind of surprising. I am enjoying it. Only two little weeks more =( But then I’ll be home soon! Looking forward to my Dad’s party with family, Star Wars, seeing friends, and New York!

Bacardi and lava: Volcán Arenal

Saturday morning was the worst morning I have experienced here so far. I fell asleep at two in the morning and woke up periodically every fifteen minutes until three thirty because of anxiety mixed with food poisoning that made me want to vomit. I couldn’t lie down and standing up and walking around only helped for a couple of seconds until I would have to sit again. And even the thought of chewing a pepto bismal tablet seemed daunting. But I took my shower and made my way downstairs. I watched the French news with William until Tammy came over to catch the bus with me. The bus was running late so we walked around the “feria” in front of my house with William. I started to feel better with the fresh and warm air so we stayed out for a little and then the bus finally came at around seven. The ride up actually wasn’t that bad. After some more waking up, mixed with fresh air and iPod I felt fine. The road north out of San José is nothing compared to the road south out of San José so this ride was extremely enjoyable. It was also day time so I could see the mountains and the Costa Rican. The ride was just as long though, it lasted about four hours. All that I passed were mountains, cows, horses, and random small towns. It was an amazing ride. On getting there I was put in a cabin with the two other guys that Kayla, Tammy, and I have been hanging out with and I start unpacking. The view was beautiful. There were separate cabins that fit three people and outside you could see the volcán Arenal. In back of the cabins was also a field with ducks, chickens, horses and cows which were very photogenic. We had to leave soon, though, so we had a quick beer (Imperial of course) and then headed down to the thermal springs. We spent four hours in this “water-park” swimming around, and best of all, going on the water slides. The water slides were pretty cool. There were three in total. The second one was my favorite because half way through the ride you would be lifted off the waterslide and tossed at full speed into the “pool” below. It was hilarious watching people come down. After doing that and going to each of the thermal pools, we had supper and then headed back to the cabins. On the way back we picked up a couple bottles of Bacardi and Coca-cola and that night we played drinking games with cards. It was pretty fun, but scary at the same time. It was the first time I had ever gotten drunk. Everything seemed slower and my eyes wouldn’t catch up. I’d stumble around when walking and strangely almost everything was funny. Of course, I knew my limit, so I switched to water after I had my fill of rum and cokes. It was a bonding experience that I enjoyed but at the same time I feel funny about it. It was a weird feeling and the last thing I wanted was to get sick and I could definitely see how peer pressure could put someone over the edge. At around midnight the volcano started erupting while we were playing “asshole” and soon later we stumbled into bed. The next morning I woke up with a headache and felt a little woozy, but nothing that bad. The night before I felt like I was going to vomit, but this morning was nothing compared to that. Nurse/mom Tammy (as we call her now) gave me her pill cocktail of Dramamine and Advil at breakfast (she’s really a nurse by the way) and we headed off to the river. We had a raft tour which we thought was supposed to be a canoeing expedition. It was kind of a let-down, but at the same time we saw a lot of howler monkeys so it made up for it. By the time we came back we had to pack up and leave. Overall I think that this place was just as, if not slightly more, beautiful than Manuel Antonio. It was a lot more expensive…over twice as much, but it was still an unforgettable experience. Hopefully I’m feeling alright tonight. My stomach has been all sorts of messed up. I have found a new spot in my heart for fruit; especially pineapple. And also beans and yucca. But all of this foreign food and rice is making my stomach turn. The high altitude is also making me sleepy which isn’t a good combination since I can’t get sleep when my stomach hurts. Still enjoying Costa Rica though. I think we might be going to Limón next weekend (on the Caribbean Sea), or at least I hope so. School tomorrow at eight. Back to the grindstone.

A Quick Nap: 3rd and 4th of June

So you’re probably wondering why I haven’t been keeping a regular blog, and if there is a time stamp, why I am up at 4h30 in the morning. Well, the time difference is only 2 hours behind RI, so it must be sleep deprivation, so I have to make up for yesterday and the day before that (3rd and 4th of June). If you didn’t know the 3rd was a Wednesday. The biggest Wednesday of soccer fanaticism I have seen so far. The game was between the US and Costa Rica. The US has the money to practice all over the world and pay top dollar for their players and are actually really good. Costa Ricans pay way less (some even have second jobs from what I hear) and do it more for the passion of soccer. The odds were in the favor of the US winning, while the Costa Rican sentiment made it obvious that they were going to lose. Walking around the school, or home, or other homes, I repeatedly heard the fact that the US has never once won a game in Costa Rica. Probably because of the lack of tourism in the city not a lot of Americans show up for the game. The stadium is also very compact so the whole thing trembles under the force of the crazed spectators making the roofs of the lock rooms look like they will collapse on the players and the windows vibrate so much that they look like they are going to break. At first, I didn’t believe this…until I saw the game. The camera kept on bouncing around and the stadium was packed to what seemed like over-capacity with the red and blue jersey wearing Ticos and Costa Rican flags. But I was somewhere else. I was on a sofa eating cheese and crackers, Coca-Cola chicken wings, and tortillas de gallo while drinking Sangria and some really tasty peach wine with good friends and “family.” Oh, yeah, and brownies a la glass which Tammy made hahaha. Within the first minute and thirty seconds I heard the wretched “oooh-aayyyy-oh-ay-oh-ay-oh-aaaayyy tiiicoooos tiicoooos” after the Costa Ricans scored their first goal against the U.S. It was terrible. The scare tactic must have worked because even with the help from referee (who OBVIOUSLY favored the US) Costa Rica won with a score of three to one. Now, you might say that it wasn’t that bad because we got a goal. But you’d be wrong. Because that goal was scored after the ninety minute mark of a normal ending game, and it was only from a penalty kick without the line of men guarding the goal. But after the game we had a shot glass of “Parfait Amour” which was some liqueur that Tammy’s “papa tico” gave us. It was intense. A drop on the tongue made it tingle and it burned going down. It tasted super sweet, but was intense and an experience. On leaving I had my French accent in Spanish ready to go in case I got confronted by any boorish Costa Ricans walking through the park. To be honest I am not having many problems fitting in. I wear my local soccer bracelet, wear my hair styled, and got a tan down in Manuel Antonio so people do think I am “Tico” sometimes. I sometimes get asked when I am around Tammy or Kayla if I am “Tico” when I walk with them into souvenir shops…They tell me some people even ask THEM if I am, which is kind of cool. It’s not really the color of the skin that matters because there are all shades here (mostly a café au lait or a little darker). The main difference is the face which has a more indigenous look, the hair, and the clothes. The hair is very European. The faux-hawk with perfectly gelled hair sometimes accompanied by a Star Wars curl/almost braid in the back is most popular followed by the perfectly gelled “messy” style. The clothing is also amazing. The usual look is dressy but sporty. Puma here is the New Balance of the States. Everyone wears Puma shoes and clothing. Next popular is Hollister which they sell in almost every store I’ve been too at about the same price if not a little higher. But most likely you will see someone in dressy pants (not really black), with a button up shirt, sweater, or puma track jacket. It is a very business oriented city and everyone looks nice. Well off my little rant about the Tico-look, yesterday was pretty un-eventful. I got home at around five, had an AMAZING supper of chicken wings, rice and beans and fried yucca (which is like French fries only a little harder and super good) with an even better fruit drink that I am bringing back home with me. I fell asleep on the coach after watching the News-at-7-on-7 and decided to take a quick nap because I was drained. I went up a little before 8h00 and that is why I am up at…5h05 right now. I finally got my sleep! It might be the altitude, but who knows. Two more hours until I have to catch my bus. The bus ride is about a half an hour to forty five minutes, and the walk to school is about ten. I enjoy that the most I think: Time alone to blend into San José. No one to make me stand out. Time when I am no longer a tourist. That’s the emersion program I look forward to the most.

In Moravia with limes: 2 June

I woke up this morning at six in the morning so I could catch my bus at seven. The shower was hot, I had my favorite breakfast of taquitos that were stuffed with eggs, ham and cheese, some pineapple, and juice. I was locking the door outside as the bus pulled away so I had to walk up to Downtown Moravia to catch the next bus. I like the short walk, and it turns out that the route was changed half way to school on the one that I missed, so I guess this worked out for the best. School was boring, as usual, but it is even more complicated with two new girls in the class. I got moved up to level twelve from ten with Kayla because of scheduling problems with the teachers. It has been pretty OK so far, but I struggle with the class because one of the girls is a show off and speaks kind of fast and doesn’t respect the pace of everyone else. Another girl is just not at our level at all, which is kind of good for me because I am not good at the grammar section of Spanish. We left class and then Tammy and I went to downtown San José to get some things at the automercado. It is a long walk…about six miles round trip, but it is nice to walk around the city. There are hobos, and streets packed like sardines. The driving is terrible and there is trash everywhere. But some sections could almost look like European cities, and that makes me happy. The rain has drastically let up which has led to god day trips to San José. We got back to the school at around 3h00 and stayed for cooking lessons. It was kind of interesting, but our empanadas came out simply OK and not fantastic. It was still a better experience than just staying at home. When I got home Johanna, the daughter of the house, asked if I wanted to go to the Jumbo Supermercado with her. I said yes and we walked down to pick up some limes for the fish for supper. We got the limes and ended up walking around Moravia for about an hour and got to know each other a little more. Overall it was a pretty good day, but my face has really been getting me down. I have this rash/splotch on my face that won’t go away and it looks terrible! I am very self-conscious and am embarrassed to meet new people. My mouth is also ripped at the end which is also very bothersome. It’s gotten me down lately. The big soccer game between the US and Costa Rica is on tomorrow and everything is shutting down in the city. I am going over Tammy’s for her family’s party…it should be a pretty cool experience.

Photos: Manuel Antonio

Quepos: The Jungle Beach

Today I am writing this in my bathing suit on this hot and humid winter morning in Quepos' famous Manuel Antonio beach. The tropical birds are noisily chattering while the diesel engines of the buses blend with the crushing sounds of the ocean waves. I am sitting on the balcony of my room writing and watching the ocean while Tammy and Kayla sleep of their terrible experiences last night. The ride to the beach was traitorous to be honest. We rode out of mountainous San José at the Coca-Cola; a sketchy bus stop in the sketchiest part of San José where there is garbage everywhere, paint peeling off the buildings and barbed wire on top of scrap-metal-houses. Dirty convenience stores clash with the arcades and packed roads. When the bus came I volunteered to be the odd-man-out and sit with a total stranger. It worked out pretty nice actually. I sat with Monica Ortega Materisa who often took the bus on the four hour trek between the cities. At first, talking was kind of awkward and I was more concentrating on the unique ride outside. From mountainous San José we took the bus on non-stop dangerously curvy roads around the mountains. The roads were small and only consisted of sharp turns on a deep incline...so sharp that the branches of the trees sometimes hit the windows. Unfortunately the ride turned out to be a five hour drive because of a nasty accident. This is when Monica and I bonded. She spoke no English but we got along great when we started talking about the boys behind us...and the man who's cell phone range once every 30 seconds for the whole 5 hour trip, and then just stupid stuff. We got along pretty well and laughed basically half of the time but Tammy and Kayla didn't fare as well. I am not giving the roads justice. They were so bad that Kayla puked twice and Tammy was on the verge. Monica told me a story of who one girl puked out the window and it splashed into the face of someone with the window down behind her. But we finally arrived at Hotel Manuel Antonio. Before that was school and before school was a walk down to el Museo Numismática and el museo de oro in downtown San José. It was small but kind of interesting...but even more boring, to be honest. So we left early to wonder the dreaded souvenir shops and tourist traps. Amazingly Costa Ricans don't bargain as much as the Mexicans or Moroccans. They have their price and no matter how much you bargain, charm, or just walk away, they will only go down about a dollar. So we left and went to lunch at a fancy place near the school. I got eggplant lasagna that came in its own ceramic dish with 4 garlic bread slices artfully put on the plate and decorated with spices. My meal, drink, tip, and tax ended up being about 9000 colones ($17)... I am kind of afraid to see the prices here, in Manuel Antonio, but I don't care. It's hot, the clouds are clearing, and I can see the Pacific...I'm one happy guy!


31 May 2009
Before leaving Manuel Antonio we went on a zip line and canopy tour in Quepos that blew my mind! I got strapped up in all my gear and was sent into the wilds of Costa Rica to swing from, free falling from, and zip line through trees sometimes hundreds of meters from the ground. It was scary, amazing, and hot all at the same time. It was definitely worth the $60 and I got some cool memories to bring back home. The drive there looked like I was in Jurassic park...which I heard they filmed in Costa Rica...and the zip lines were better than I thought they would be. When we got back we went back to the beach, walked around, searched for shells, and swam in the warm Pacific. When I say warm, I am not exaggerating in the least bit. It is actually somewhere between 79º and 85º. The waves get pretty big at night and there are a couple of islands that you can see from off shore that just add to the beach. It is bordered by jungle and looks like something out of Survivor. It was one of the prettiest beaches I've been to in my life. Of course, like in EVERY town I have seen in Costa Rica there is barbed wire and trash EVERYWHERE. But I've learned to deal with it and look past that. Prices are kind of high, but we found a nice Italian Gelateria where there is good gelato, panini, and pizza for a pretty decent price. All-in-all an AMAZING trip!!

Pics

An uneventful day on the 28th of May

Today was a pretty dry day where nothing really happened. It was kind of boring, but at the same time, not the worst day. I was able to make some phone calls, and get to school early. The bus ride is becoming a lot more relaxed and I’m not constantly looking out the window for my bus stop. The walk to school is getting a lot more enjoyable and seeing the city is becoming a lot more pleasant. I am noticing the mountains and the clouds, and how the buildings contrast with the background and create almost a storybook picture. I never thought that I would say this when I first got here, but this is a pretty beautiful city…Even with all of the poverty and decay, it is still very beautiful. When we got to school we paid off the bus ticket for Manuel Antonio and headed off to the calle central to find a restaurant to have lunch at. After walking for about ten minutes, we decided to go to calle 2 and walk our way back up to the school. We ended up at the “Sultan” which was extremely weird. First walking in, there was no one there but the owner at a table. We sat down and he gave us a menu that looked more like a drink menu than anything else. He stood over us like a creeper while we looked at the menu and didn’t say a word. Kayla ordered the Batido fresa (strawberry smoothie) but they didn’t have any. So I decided to get a diet Coke, which again they didn’t have. So then I decided on Coca Cola, which they still didn’t have. Finally I settled on a Pepsi…in a glass bottle. I ordered the spaghetti volagnaise which was not at all like I expected. The spaghetti was sautéed so it was kind of crunchy and the sauce was extremely weird tasting as well. I can’t even explain it but I can tell you that I was given 2 pieces of white wonder bread to soak it up…The meal was a bad choice. We got caught in the rain again, but it wasn’t as bad as it usually is. By Costa Rican standards, it didn’t even rain at all (hahaha). The class was long and kind of dragged on today but we ended the hard studying kind of early and just talked about going to the beach and the class. We got assigned homework that requires us to see el Museo de Oro Precolombiano and el Museo Numismática in downtown San José. That should be pretty fun. I am meeting up with Kayla at the school at 9h00am and then we will walk down to the museum from Intensa. Then we will have lunch with Tammy, have class, meet up with Tammy, take a taxi to la Coca-Cola, and then take a bus down to el Parque Manuel Antonio! It’ll be nice to have a vacation (haha). Going to be at the beach/in the rainforest from Friday to late Sunday night (Monday in Rhode Island) so I won’t have my computer or internet…going to need to write my journal entry on paper for once =P

Los Hombres Equis and the Restaurante Hamburgo: 27 May

After waking up, and studying a little, I made my way down stairs to a breakfast of cornflakes with Hershey’s chocolate syrup, watermelon and orange juice. I have eaten more fruit than I think I have before this trip combined. The school called the house today and told me to come in early for a forum between all of the students in Intensa. I walked up to the city center and then took a bus down to San José and got to Intensa just in time to buy a newspaper and read a little. It started to rain early today, around eleven, but not hard until like two o’clock (luckily while I was in class). I was paired up with two girls from San José and from the Mountains surrounding the city. They spoke English extremely well with almost perfect grammar…I was kind of jealous. We only spoke for about thirty minutes about the beach, driving, their periods, and where we lived, but it was an interesting experience. Then Kayla, Tammy and I met up and walked down to the bar down the street that Kayla and I visited yesterday called the Restaurante Hamburgo. It is extremely bright and clean there with a nice bar tender and is covered in German memorabilia. They had a chicken curry special with a side salad (which I replaced with “German potatoes”), a drink, and a little ice cream with fresh fruit on top for 3400 colones (about $6). I tried the other national beer called Pilsen, but it was really bitter and kind of gross. We then went to class. After we reserved a bus trip to Miguel Antonio (I think) for the weekend (Friday night to Sunday night). It is a very popular beach about 4 hours south of San José and with the bus and hotel for two nights it will cost a little less than $60 per person for 3 people! Even though it was still raining when class ended, we walked down to the mall San Pedro. I grabbed some Szechwan chicken and headed off to the movies to see X-men. Today was 2-for-1 miércoles so my ticket only cost 1000 colones (a little less than $2). The movie was pretty good and we left at about nine. Kayla and her roommate walked back home while Tammy and I took a taxi back to Moravia…I am used to giving directions now and kind of proud of it. Then William (the father) and I walked her back home and for the rest of the night I went upstairs and watched tv/facebooked for the rest of the night with William Jr…who I’m going to call Willy from now on. Only two more days until my vacation!!!

Pizza, Beer, and Rain: 26 May

26 mayo 2009
I woke up at around seven this morning to the man who shouts over the megaphone about his fresh eggs. I reviewed last class’s notes, took a shower and then headed downstairs for breakfast. I was given a banana about half the size of the ones I am used to and Jenny (the mother) cooked me four tortillas filled with different stuff: two with the smashed up black beans, one with the tasteless cheese, and one with the potatoes I ate on the first night. I tried Costa Rican coffee but it was too bitter for me so I stuck with my orange juice and cookies (sweet, dry, tasteless cookies). At around 11 I left the house and walked up the street, past the bank and supermercado, and around the church to get to the central bus stop of Moravia, alone. After waiting about ten minutes a big green Daewoo bus pulled up with San José permanently written in huge letters at the top and a black Moravia sign by the entrance. I gave my 245 colones and looked out the window onto the city that I am starting to recognize. The mountains and volcano bordering the city looked amazing even though the city itself does not. I am getting used to this dystopia and decrepit city and what first shocked me and made me never want to step outside of the school and house has turned into something less scary, more approachable and even normal. After hearing the buzz from someone pressing the stop button, I noticed the white church and got off the bus and crossed four lanes of traffic. I walked up and around a yellow building onto a new street and followed the train tracks and the walls filled with graffiti and topped with barbed wire to my school. I found Tammy in the café and Kayla found me as I found her. We took a walk down the train tracks even farther to end up in downtown San José and went to Pizza Hut for Lunch. We split a Pizza Brasileña and had three drinks for 10900 colones (about 19 dollars INCLUDING tip and tax for all three of us). The pizza was topped with cheese, tomato sauce, hamburger, jam, “Brazilian spices,” fresh and spiced tomatoes chunks with three pieces of lime on top to squirt on the pizza. It was amazing! One of the best pizza’s I’ve had! We left and was hit with the afternoon downpour…even with my umbrella I was soaked to the bone after just 2 minutes of walking. My shoes were filled with water even though they are waterproofed, my pants got really heavy, and my sleeves were soaked. Ten minutes later we arrived at Intensa in our uncomfortable wet clothes, struggled with tedious memorizing exercises and dealt with black outs and the deafening rapid booms of the thunder outside. Our first break was at 2h30. Still soaked, and still raining, Kayla and I were feeling pretty crappy so we headed over to the bar for our 15 minutes. I ordered “Imperial” the local beer that is advertised on every street corner, and we drank it outside since there was no power in the bar. We returned to class, and by 5 we left…in the rain. I walked back to the bus stop in San José, and took the bus back to the center of Moravia and got home by 6…in the rain. The two kids were over again and we had fried plantains, fried green beans, white rice, and mashed black beans. Like always the food was great.

Classes and Arkansas

I woke up at 5h30 this morning to take a shower and to get ready for my first day of classes in el barrio Escalante in San José. William made me a breakfast of warm date bread with four slices of papaya, the worst fruit I have ever tasted in my life. It had the texture of a rotten carrot with a very weak sugar water taste that was hard to swallow. I was able to manage all but half of the last piece so I wrapped up my date bread and threw out the rest of the fruit. William and I left for Tammy and walked down to the bus stop in front of my house. After five minutes it came down, I paid my 245 colones (about 50 cents) and rode the bus through the broken down sections of San José into the area near the school. After leaving the bus we walked along the train tracks for a while until we came onto the little side road with Intensa, my Spanish school. I was tested and put on the spot with an interview from the director and then placed back in the waiting room with Tammy, a guy from Canada, and Kayla from Arkansas. Both Kayla and me were pulled aside and told that our class did not start until 1pm since there were no teachers to teach our level. So we were given a map of the city and we went to explore. From hardware shops to a bank, to a side café and to the parque central we walked and walked around San José and really got to know the city. In the day time, on a weekday, minus the hobos on every street corner, homeless people sleeping on the sidewalks, trash on the ground, the barbed wire, crazy driving, pick pocketing, stealing, and the dirtiness of the buildings and streets, San José could somewhat be considered a nice city! Everything is cheap, everyone is hot and extremely well dressed and takes care of themselves, some buildings are impressive, and it’s a big city. After walking around for about 6 or more miles and about four hours later we ended up on our way back to the school to start our class. Of course the daily winter down pour didn’t decide to skip a day and we got caught in the “aguacero” but we were able to get to Intensa in time to avoid the lightning and flooding. The rain was so bad today that the power went out numerous times during class and even back in Moravia. I was put in the 10th and highest level of Spanish class with Kayla and that was it…our entire class. I was kind of disappointed but at the same time it makes you talk more and learn more. I really struggled with the grammar portion while she struggled with the speaking portion so we kind of balanced each other out. Four hours later I was on a bus back to el centro de Moravia, got home to chickpeas and pork with rice and avocado slices sprinkled with salt, and talked with my host parents about my day and where I should go on the weekend. I bonded with Johanna, the daughter, today and spoke to her in Spanish and then in English so she could practice too. The night ended on a conversation of UFO’s and Williams experience as a child seeing one in front of the moon. Hopefully tomorrow (if Kayla got my facebook message) we can take the bus to San José and go for lunch with Tammy when her class lets out. Then hopefully we can rent a room this weekend down by the beach! Who knows what’s next: Zip-lines, volcanoes, rainforests, the beach, more BEAUTIFUL San José (lol). Whatever it is I’m sure I’ll make the best of it.

Exploring Moravia: 24 may

The 24th of May marked my official independence in the Costa Rican area of Moravia. I woke up with a breakfast of eggs, bread and butter, and orange juice and walked over to Tammy’s house to go for a walk. I gave my obligatory hugs and kisses to her family and then both and Tammy and I went off to the center of Moravia: a quick walk around the park to my house, and up the steep street to el Banco de Moravia and el JUMBO supermercado. We stood in line for the ATM guarded by an older man with a reflecting hunting vest on with his dog who freely walked around the area (it seems like there are no leashes in Costa Rica or mean dogs for that matter). I took out 20,000 colones (about $38) and waited for Tammy who left her debit card at home. From the bank we crossed the street and entered the orange and red JUMBO supermercado filled with fruits, snacks, booze, a café and everything else in between. One water, Fanta Kolita, orange Fanta water, and Jack’s picaronas queso nacho picante tortillitas de maiz later we left and walked towards el centro to the parque de Moravia and the church. On the way a man from Texas stopped us who owned a small pizza shop with his Costa Rican wife. After talking about chess, his times in Alaska, and the upcoming soccer game we left Michael with an open invitation to eat pizza or just talk whenever we felt like it. We crossed the church and went up the street for two blocks and came across the internet café that Tammy’s host mother told us about and then walked about a block down to this building with a giant bird on the roof that her host father told us about. I entered it in total shock and disgust when realizing that it was a tourist trap. The walls were decorated in over-priced souvenirs and there were at least five older American women wearing their big hats, fanny packs, white shorts, and stereotypical tourist wear. We decided to keep on walking into the store and followed it all the way to the café which was just amazing. It lead outside to this secluded area with couches covered with pillows looking out onto a tropical garden filled with trees and birds that I would never expect to find in the city. It was only us two and the owners so we sat and enjoyed a small lunch while letting daily afternoon rain pass. We left the café and walked further down the street to the “Mega Super” which was almost like a K-Mart crossed with a CVS and Stop and Shop so I could look for a phone card to call home. I had no luck so we left and walked back outside to the half-raining weather and walked back to el parque robles (in front of my house) and we went our own ways. I entered my house and was greeted by the music of Tango, an old Spanish singer, and William who gave me some sweet bread with dates and some of that herb water that we always drink. I really liked sweetness and chewiness of the dates. We talked for a while and then we went to church with Tammy at four. To my surprise it was nothing like what I had seen in Latin American Catholic culture. There was no Meringue church music, no dancing, no overzealous offering of the peace, or anything exciting. It was the same as a white Catholic mass only in Spanish. After leaving disappointed, Tammy and I took a cab to el Mall San Pedro for around 2000 colones ($3.50) to go see Angels and Demons…unfortunately it was sold out by the time we got there so we got Subway and just walked around the crowded mall filled with three stories of food courts, shoe stores, and even sex shops. After a couple of hours we took a taxi back home which was a disaster. I argued with the guy because he didn’t start the meter. I had to say “ponga la maría” and he responded by saying that it was broken. I then tried to set a price for the trip of 1500 colones but he wouldn’t negotiate so I just gave up. He weaved in an out of traffic, passed through red lights, and drove on the wrong side of the road into oncoming traffic to pass by cars at the stop lights. I also had to tell him where to go when we got to the center of Moravia since there are no street addresses in Costa Rica. After the fast and dangerous ride Tammy and I went into my house and were served arroz con pollo y frijoles which is a chicken fried rice with mashed up black beans on the side. It was also followed with a homemade Tamarind juice which was also amazing. We watched Day of the Dead: the Extinction (I think that was the name) with William and his brother and then walked Tammy back home through the park with our night sticks on this warm winter (yes, winter has just begun in Costa Rica) night. And now I’m going to bed so I can pick up Tammy to go to school…at 6h45am!

Settling in: 23 May

Today started with a quick breakfast of gallo pinto (a dark rice with black beans), bread with some type of tasteless soft cheese in the shape of a stick of butter, and chocolate milk made with milk out of a paper carton and Hershey’s chocolate syrup. Country Crocker margarine spread was also on the table for the bread if I liked but I figured I’d try the cheese. After breakfast I took a walk with William (the father) and his dog Ruffo. We walked around the park on the side of the house and showed me a bunch of weird trees and plants. I ate some reddish-purple berries that were sour and kind of like a super-bitter orange while Ruffo sniffed every tree. I learned a new word today “¡fíjase!” as in “¡fíjase la caca!” or “watch out for poo.” He also showed me banana plants and hallucinogens. There is a plant called “la reina de la noche” which is a type of datura and only blooms at night. He said they grow everywhere and could knock someone out for three days and that it is a heavy drug and a really pretty flower. After walking around the perimeter of the park and stopping to talk to various “regulars” we reached the feria de la agricultura which was a block of local fruit and vegetable vendors that set up their stands every Saturday. William bought me an enormous mango and we both had a piece of this wrinkly tiny green apple with the toughest “edible” seeds I’ve eaten in my life. The “apple” was terrible, but I walked with the mango to find Tammy, the other girl from RIC. We walked about a block and arrived at a large gate and William rang the doorbell while telling me he didn’t know which house she lived in. A woman shouted out the window and then sent for Tammy. William left and I went inside the house. The first thing I saw was a Chinese decoration on the wall. As I walked into the house I noticed that everything was Chinese. The pillows had designs of a phoenix and sat in front of a table with dragon and lion figurines. Then I met her host parents who seemed extremely nice. The father spoke extremely slow while the mother spoke normally. I later found out she speaks English very well. I felt kind of bad for Tammy because there was also a girl from Nicaragua living with them and Tammy isn’t as good at Spanish as she should be after 6 years of classes. Everyone tells me I speak Spanish very well but while the mother was talking to both of us in the kitchen she said right in the middle that Tammy didn’t understand anything that she was saying and just looked disgusted. I don’t think Tammy understood that. She seemed a bit off when I met up with her but still in good spirits. We then went for a drive into downtown San José which everyone tells me is ugly. I bought myself a pai de coco which was a mini coconut pie for 400 colones ($0.70) and realized that I was in huge trouble. As I walked down the streets and looked in the windows I noticed that everything was cheaper. I saw shoes for 9,000 colones ($15) and less and shirts for less than $3. I either can’t shop or I will need to send everything home in the mail! I got home and had a fever so I took a long nap in my room. I woke up for a snack of bread and that weird cheese with some type of Kool-Aid like drink. I watched bull-riding on the TV and then ate supper at 7h30. I think I insulted Jenny (the mother) because she served gallo pinto (the rice with beans that I like…thank God because that’s all they eat) and pasta salad which I didn’t eat. She remembered that I said that I liked pasta and didn’t understand why I wouldn’t like pasta salad. She kept on bringing it up but I couldn’t bring myself to eat something with mayonnaise and tuna so I only had a little of rice. I’m getting excited for school to start so I can meet new people and do stuff. It’s been kind of boring here since it is just a suburb and because I don’t have my bearings. Tomorrow I will make it a point to hang out with Tammy all day and do something interesting.

El Primer Día, 22 mayo 2009

May 22 2009
I sit here on this awkward feeling bed with even harder rectangular shaped pillows listening to the shrilly call of the birds in the park across the street this early morning. Yesterday was a long day of achy travel, meeting new people, and experiencing a city that had no resemblance to the one in my head. I woke up at 3am to catch my flight that boarded at 5h40. The flight to Washington DC was kind of long and dragged on. Of course Amanda, my travel buddy, did not show up and I had to travel alone but I am writing this now so everything went well, sort of. Washington was a disaster. I walked into the terminal and had to find my next flight without a boarding pass (from the change of United Airways to Taca). I walked down the long hallway and made it to the shuttle trains to each of the gates and where the flight screens are, luckily I didn’t have to take a shuttle. I walked up the stairs into the B section of the Airport and walked for what seemed like a half mile to my gate, B47, only to realize that my cell phone fell out of my pocket on the plane. After about an hour of backtracking and walking between A1 and B47 I was fruitless in my search and just accepted this as the bad thing that was going to happen to me on the trip.
The flight from Washington DC to El Salvador was the best flight of my life. I was towards the back of the plane and sat with an American, Kevin, and a girl from El Salvador, Sarai. Sarai spoke little to no English but we connected immediately. She was my age (our birthdays just eighteen days apart) and just came back from a Coldplay concert wearing her Viva la Vida t-shirt and playing her recorded video on her camera. Of course, as an icebreaker, I took out my laptop and we watched my bootleg “Reno 911: Miami!” together and we were both cracking-up for that hour and a half on the plane. The movie was hilarious and I think she laughed even more than I did. There were awkward sex scenes and many topless scenes, but overall the movie was a good choice. Right away she noticed “Ojos que no ven” by Alexis y Fido on my computer and we started talking about music. We both had a love for reggaetón, Bachata, and some American stuff. The flight then landed, we danced to the techno music playing over the speakers in the plane (or at least I did) and we walked into the airport together and said goodbye and promised to be Facebook friends.
The airport wasn’t that bad in El Salvador but had a weird mixture of trees, birds, and wii that seemed bizarre. One girl was wii bowling while another played Mario kart. We boarded the plane and this time I sat next to Gerardo Muyshondt, a native of El Salvador and the advertising director who created the Taca airlines commercials. By the end of the plane ride we were talking about Central American politics and walked together to the longest immigration line I had seen in my life. An hour of waiting and talking later I grabbed my bags and I met up with my driver who didn’t know the meaning of safe driving. It was drizzling out and the sky was a dark color while everything else looked damp. The streets were packed with 3 lanes of traffic while my driver did up to 130 kph on roads weaving in and out of traffic in a speed limit of 90. The constant wetness of Costa Rica rusts everything metal giving it that broken down look. The drive through the city made my heart drop when all I saw was shacks and pieces of metal creating “homes” the city looked like the rural portions of Mexico where homes were made of scrap metal but in Costa Rica they are placed back-to-back. The cars were basically the same as in the states with Toyota Corollas, Hondas, and even the French Peugeot. At one point there was a truck of cows that pooped in the middle of the street in front of us. I started to get worried, though, when the metal shacks and barbed wire and dirtiness of the city didn’t disappear. It just seemed to get worse as we drove farther down these potholed roads weaving dangerously between buses, motorcycles, and pedestrians at stressful speeds.
Finally I arrived in Moravia and walked into my new home. It literally took my breath away. I was greeted by William (the husband) and was glad to know that I understood his accent and almost one hundred percent of what he was telling me. He brought me inside to a beautiful home that seemed just like the ones we have back in the states. There is a big screen TV and a nice patio overlooking the park. I got along great with William but I didn’t seem to hit-it-off with Enrique. Later, his Señora showed up and I met her. Unfortunately I cannot understand her 80% of the time for some unknown reason and I feel helpless when she talks to me. But after a while I started getting used to it and her son William came home and said hello. She made some sort of potato and meat dish with plain white rice and black beans. It sounds tasteless but was actually pretty amazing. The rice, though plain, was kind of crispy which was weird but also so much better than what I was used to. The beans tasted vinegary and added some flavor to the rice while the potatoes were just amazing. I drank some type of iced tea or flavored water that was also pretty good. (The water in San José is 100 percent drinkable William kept on telling me). Then Johanna came in and she seemed pretty nice. They pulled out the American Atlas and roadmap and I showed them where I lived and William showed me the television and talked about the super and hyper markets. He seemed very interested in me and loved sharing things about his country. We connected the most, I think. Then we watched television and fixed my internet WiFi connection and now I can go on the internet when it’s not being temperamental. At around 9h30 I went upstairs to my room and saw William Jr. watching the WB with Harry Potter, he called me in and we sat and watched it together. I shared some chocolate rocks from Newport and a whoopee pie from a gas station and we bonded. Finally I fell asleep and here I am right now.