So I have yet to update my blog since I flew to Costa Rica at the end of August, and I've possibly done more things in the past 3 and 1/2 weeks than I usually do in 3 and 1/2 months. I don't think I can or want to cover everything, but here are a few significant/newsworthy things that constitutes my life as an abroad student so far:
+ I live in a homestay in San Luis, Costa Rica. I live on a farm, La Finca de Bella, with my host mom, Edith, my host dad, Milton, and 3 host siblings, Josette (17), Daniela (6) and Kevin (4). We have corn (maíz), coffee (café), chickens (gallinos), banana and plantain trees (bananos y plantanos), as well as many other fruits and vegetables that I haven't discovered yet, but they must be there because we always have oranges and chayote and lemons.
+ It is rainy season, which means it rains A LOT. I always have to be prepared, with my umbrella, rain pants, rain jacket, and rain cover for my backpack. Mornings are mostly sunny and clear, with the rain starting by noon or mid-afternoon (The last few days there has been almost no rain and all sun! Apparently it's December weather and really odd for this time of year... hello climate change!)
+ My computer broke on my first weekend here. My rain cover failed while walking home, and my backpack got wet and consequently so did my computer. It was in sleep mode and not fully off, so it got fried. That's another reason it has taken me so long to write something.
+ I live in San Luis, and go to school at the Monteverde Institute, which means I have to walk to school everyday. The is about an hour to an hour and 15 minutes, depending on how good I feel. The first 40 minutes is entirely uphill, on a part of the road called La Trocha. It's steep and brutal, on my calves on the way up and my knees on the way down. I shower at the Institute because the walk is so much more of a workout than a walk.
+ However, we have the prettiest view walking up La Trocha. Literally walking up a mountain everyday has its benefits, and the view is one of them. We can see the entire San Luis Valley, and all the way to the Gulf of Nicoya. The view is different every day depending on the clouds, but every day is pretty (unless you're in the middle of a thunderstorm, in which case it's absolutely terrifying).
+ The food is very different. The diet is very carb-oriented here, because many people are farm workers and need the calories. A lot of our food comes from our farm, but we eat a lot of bought and processed food too. Rice and beans are eaten pretty much every meal. If you're not eating rice and beans, then you're at least having tortillas.
+ The drinking habits are very different too. No one drinks water, there is always some sort of juice (fresca), and coffee. My family makes limón fresca a lot, and an oatmeal drink with oatmeal, sugar, and water (I'm more a fan of the fresca). I drink more coffee than I ever have, at least 3-4 cups a day! It's free at the Institute, so all of us take advantage of it.
+ Ever run out of hot water before? There is no hot water here! The showers are cold, and that has been quite an adjustment, considering my (bad) long-shower habit. I am in and outta there quick as I can. But actually taking cold showers isn't as bad as it sounds. They're actually kind of invigorating, and you're using less water. They're not so hard to get used to.
+ My bedtime is around 9 or 9:30 pm and waking up at 6:15 am is late! It's such a different schedule.
I've been here for almost a month so far, and it has been a hard adjustment. I felt like I didn't really get to say goodbye to anyone, and this is my first international experience in a different culture and way of life. But I really do have everything I need, and really great professors, and really great people in my program (there are 9 of us). We've become a really close community already, and are finally beginning to get used to being around each other 24/7.
This is our first week of really getting into our routine. The first week we were traveling a lot and didn't move in with our families until a week after we had been there. The second week was out first week of classes, so most of them were introductory and we had a lot of different things in our schedule. Last week was the week of the Costa Rican Independence Day, so our schedule was completely changed to accommodate the activities of the week. So this is our first "regular" week, so I can finally start to really manage my time and get a real sense of my routine.
Yesterday for our Community Service Learning class, we stayed down in San Luis and went to help a farmer, Jose Daniel, or as we called him: Don Pepe. We turned the soil up in two of his fields so that he can plant more crops. All the rain has compacted the soil so much, so it's easier to plant it and for the plants to grow after it's been turned up. Then we spread chicken manure as a fertilizer all over the soil. He was so thankful and very happy, what we did in about 3 hours he would've gotten done in a week! He gave us some oranges from some of his trees, and then played music for us after we were done. He attached a harmonica to his guitar, and had a maraca in his hand that played the guitar. He also sang, and it was awesome. That's the kind of things we're going to be doing every week in our field day for this class, and I'm really excited about it.
I would love to supplement this post with pictures, but it's a little hard without a computer. However, my parents are awesome and I'm getting a new computer to replace my broken one in about a week or so, so pictures will be posted soon, and I'm gonna do my best to keep this updated. Keep reading!
Much love to everyone back home -- I miss you all!
Kendall
