Good bye friends of Wartburg!

Today, all of my friends from our group left Costa Rica to travel back home to the states. It was a day a little bit difficult for me. Although I am very excited to continue studying spanish in Costa Rica for the next 3 weeks, it was hard to accept that I wasn't able to see all my family and friends back home like they all were. I knew that I was going to miss the group very much while I am still here. We all had so much fun together and the first 3 weeks were an awesome experience. But nonetheless, I woke up and got myself ready for my 15 day of class with Intercultura. All of the professors were rather surprised to see me still in Costa Rica without the rest of the group. But their enthusiasm made me very excited to study and learn more from them. After class, I moved in with my new mama tica and worked on my powerpoint presentation and reflections that I had put off the entire trip. It was a very long day of homework. But all day long, I was thinking about all the cool things I was going to have the opportunity to experience in the next 3 weeks. I am very excited!

¡Pura Vida!

Pura Vida- Loc. adj. [jergal] Bueno, que gusta.// 2. Con salud.// 3. Loc. adv. Bien o muy bien.// 4. De acuerdo, conforme, satisfecho.// 5. Expresión usada como saludo y despedida (¿Todo bien?, Si, ¡pura vida! / Hasta luego, ¡Pura vida!).  

El lema en Costa Rica es “Pura Vida” porque es la vida de la gente. Los ticos viven una vida muy relajada, tranquila, y lenta, sin mucho estrés. Es muy diferente que la vida en los Estados Unidos. Personalmente, me gusta la idea de pura vida, pero no a la extensión de los ticos. Pienso que hay demasiado estrés in los Estados, y no bastante estrés in Costa Rica. Para algunas personas, “pura vida” es la vida perfecta, pero para otras personas no es perfecta. Para mí, necesito planes y un poco estrés esta bueno. Me gusta un horario ocupado. Pero también, me gusta vivir “pura vida” para un poco tiempo durante el año, una semana o menos, porque es muy bien para desestresarse. Creo que otras personas en los Estados con vidas estresadas deben vivir “pura vida” por un poco tiempo. Aunque tres días sin un horario, haciendo lo que quiere hacer cuando quiere hacerlo es relajado y buenísimo para salud. Para los americanos es muy difícil, y imposible vivir “pura vida” todo el tiempo, pero pienso que es posible.

Las tres semanas en Costa Rica fueron increíbles. Costa Rica es un país con un cultura fascinada, una manera de vida muy relajada, y las mejoras frutas. Estoy muy agradecido para esta oportunidad estudiar en Costa Rica.

Our trip back to Waverly was an interesting and tiring experience. With Heredia winning the finals of their tournament a couple days earlier, the streets were still filled with confetti when we woke up at four in the morning. We met at Intercultura at 5:00 AM to begin our long journey home. Our first flight was from San Jose to Dallas, TX. It was interesting on the plane when the instructions were read in both Spanish and English. On the way to Costa Rica I ignored the Spanish because I did not understand it, but on the way back I was able to understand both the Spanish and the English. It is amazing how much my Spanish has improved over the course of the trip. After we landed in Dallas we went through an intense security screening and by the time that we got through it was time to board the next plane. From Dallas to Chicago the flight attendants were really nice. One of them snuck some cookies from first class to a few people from our group. Right when we got off the flight in Chicago we begun our six hour bus ride back to Wartburg. Throughout this trip we all made new friends and memories that will last forever, along with the improved Spanish and knowledge of Costa Rican culture of course!

Final Day in Samara

Today is our last day in Samara as well as our last full day in the beautiful country of Costa Rica. A large group of us started our day off trying to soak up as much sun as we could, but with our luck, the sky was full of clouds and it began to rain on us! Another group participated in a local nonprofit fundraising event. The nonprofit is CREAR (to create in Spanish) and gives kids of the local area an opportunity to play and create. The fundraising event was a relay race where one person biked, another ran, the third swam, and the last surfed.
We boarded the bus to leave Samara at 11:30 and made our five hour trip back to Heredia. We arrived at Intercultura in Heredia and returned to our original houses to stay the final night. Many of us were looking forward to reconnecting with our families in Heredia after a week away from them! We had one last meal with our family and got ready to leave tomorrow morning bright and early at 5 a.m. These past three weeks flew by and we will miss Costa Rica and all of our friends and family we have met very much, but it is time to go home and share our memories with our loved ones. Pura Vida :)

Ultimo dia en Samara

Hoy es el ultimo dia en Samara. Esta semana nos pasó muy muy rápido. Estoy triste para salir de mi familia. Nuestra mama tica fue mi favorita de este viaje. También, esta semana fue como un sueno. Salimos en bus a 11:30 para regresar a Heredia. Fue un viaje de 5 horas. Muchas personas dormieron en este viaje a Heredia. En Samara, había mucha lluvia y no sol. Que lastima. Yo estuve triste que en el ultimo día, no había sol en el cielo; solamente nubes. Mañana, regresamos a los Estados Unidos, y Wartburg. Vamos a regresar a medianoche. Sería un día muy largo viajando. Este viaje fue muy rápido en total. Durante este viaje, a veces fue muy lento. Pero, al fin, yo realice que fue muy rápido. Voy a pensar todos los días en las memorias que nos hacemos durante este viaje. Fue días cuando yo quise regresar a casa pronto, y fue días cuando yo quise vivir en Costa Rica. Las experiencias yo encontré estés 3 semanas me haceria mayor a español. Y, este viaje mejore mi español mucho. Este viaje me enseño que hay mucho en la cultura de Costa Rica, y Costa Rica es un país pequeño, pero muy diverso. Es un país muy lindo, y las personas aquí son muy genuinos y simpáticos. Cuando yo regreso a los Estados Unidos, yo voy a continuar mis estudias de español para siempre.

Sabado en Samara

Hola! Ahora fuimos a playa Buena vista pero no habia un Buena vista. Aqui esta el invierno y en el invierno hay muchos cocodrillos en los rios. Anoche habia un gran tormento y el rio fue rojo en playa Buena Vista. No nadamos en este playa porque fue muy peligroso. Durante el dia habia mucho lluvia y playa samra tuvo mucho madera y basura. Muchas personas en nuestro groupo pasamos tiempo en la escuela. Estoy triste que este noche es uno de los ultimo dias aqui. Fue un experencia increíble. Muchas personas de nuestro groupo conocieron nuevas personas y hoy tienen amistades que serian para siempre. No quiero regresear a mi casa pero se que un dia en el futuro regresaré. Pura vida

For my blog I am going to talk about graduation and some of the things that have been learned the past three weeks. The graduation ceremony took place in the garden, and all of the teachers and students attended. Each student had the opportunity to say a few words in Spanish and thank the teachers and Intercultura. The ceremony lasted about 45 minutes, and after the ceremony I had a chance to think about what I have learned.  
We obviously came to Costa Rica to develop our Spanish language, but I think one of the aspects often overlooked is the cultural perspective. I have learned a lot about the Costa Rican culture, for example, the food is a lot different. We have rice and beans for every single meal, along with a different type of meat. Dancing is also important in their culture. The most important part of the culture is friends and family. This experience has been great because of the culture, and I will definately return in the future. Pura Vida!

Saturday in Samara

Today, we had a day planned for the beach, but of course, with the unpredictable weather of Samara, it was a little easier said than done. Last night there was a massive thunderstorm; lots of rain, wind, thunder, and lightning. When we arrived at the beach today, it definitely didn’t have an inviting look to it as it was covered in debris from the storm and the ocean consistently washed up debris as well. Our neighbor, who has been cooking us breakfast because our host mother is gone, told us that this storm was actually very rare for Costa Rica. I would definitely hope so! Even though the plan to enjoy the stay at the beach didn’t really work out, our group had a nice time relaxing and taking in the “Pura Vida” lifestyle during the day. At night, we had a good-bye dinner at a great restaurant and the realization that we were about to leave the beautiful country of Costa Rica came to mind. Tomorrow, we are beginning our trek back towards the United States, making a quick stop in Heredia, and it is definitely a bittersweet feeling. I have enjoyed my time in Costa Rica so much, and I will definitely miss my host families and the relationships I have formed. I definitely feel as if my Spanish has improved through this experience and look forward to the possibility of returning to Costa Rica in the future.

Las dias en Samara han sido como un sueño. Hay tanta belleza en Costa Rica. Me gusta que las playas son limpias y no hay piedras tan como en las cataratas. El agua es fresco y las olas son grandes. Es buenisimo. Una cosa que yo aprendi es que la gente en Costa Rica tiene carino por su pais. Por ejemplo, miercoles algunas personas de nuestro grupo ayudaron los ticos limpiando la playa. Tambien casi todas las personas reciclan en sus casas aqui. Reciclar es muy importante. Hay cajas de reciclaje en todos los lugares: restaurantes, tiendas, casas, y escuelas. Ayer tuvimos el ultimo dia de clases. Eran clases culturales. Aprendi malas palabras de Costa Rica en mi clase. Mi profesor nos enseño estas palabras para que podriamos entender personas en Costa Rica y no tendriamos problemas. Despues de clases nos graduamos y recibimos nuestros diplomas. Entonces fuimos a otra playa para relejarnos. Jugamos en el mar y comimos empanandas y enchiladas. Es casi tiempo para regresar.

Thursday 5\17

Today our classes were in the morning, from 8am to 12pm. My teacher, Ilsen, played ALTO with us. This game is our class favorite. Each round a letter is chosen by one player and all of the players must think of a spanish word that starts with this letter in 5 or more different categories. For example, when the letter "B" was used, in the categories of fruit names I thought of the word "bananos." Also we had an oral exam in class, given by Profe. Each student spoke in spanish for five or so minutes about a topic given. I spoke of my experiences with my host families in Heredia and Sámara. My mamá tica in Heredia was a familial, kind, religious women who loved to cook and to talk about her experiences with her grandchildren. We had many discussions over religion and politics over dinner. Her home was in the center of the bustling city, and she lived a city lifestyle. My family in Sámara is larger, with a papá tico as well as a brother. This family talks less and lives a very simple lifestyle. Both my families were very kind and helpful.

After class today our group had the option to go horseback riding or to work with the crear program making friendship bracelets with the local children. I chose to go horseback riding, along with several other students. We rode horses for two hours in the hot sun, along the roads and in the mountain trails. The horse that I was given had a month old foal in tow. This foal proved to be a great distraction and made the trip a bit more difficult than necessary. However, by the end of the ride, I had learned a great deal about how to stay on the horse going up and down narrow trails, along with the random cantering spurred by the foal. Along the way, our group saw howler monkeys and a beautiful view high above the two beaches near Sámara. It was interesting that the horses were used to the cars and dogs in the streets. One major difference that I noticed was that these horses were accustomed to roaming free. We had a couple of younger horses without riders that just followed along as they pleased and never wandered far. In the streets many cows, horses, and dogs walk around during the day and return to their homes at night.

After we returned from horseback riding, I went to the cooking class at the school. Along with several other students, I learned how to make tortas de yuca. This is a type of yucca pancake, made with eggs, yucca, butter, salt, and milk in a griddle over the stove. The most difficult part of the class was grating the yucca. Yucca is a vegetable similar to potatoes, yet sweeter. Grating the yucca took half the time because it needed to be grated into very small pieces. After making the batter, our teacher showed us how to cook them. Everyone tried a slice of a torta de yuca with sour cream or queso blanco, a cheese that tastes like mozzarella.

¡El Sol Es Peligroso!

¡Hoy fue el dia que estuvimos quemados! Tuvimos dos opciones para pasar nuestra mañana antes de clase: ir a kayaking y snorklear o ir a surfear. El grupo se dividió mas o menos igualmente. Muchas personas y yo estuvimos quemados. Sin embargo, pienso que hay mas personas que estuvieron quemados que fueron a kayaking y snorklear  que las personas que fueron a surfear. Es posible que el surf no sea tan largo como kayaking y snorklear. Entonces, esas personas no tomaron el sol tan largo como nosotros. Hay muchas caras rojos aldrededor de la escuela. Un consejo que yo aprendi de una chica de Canada: ponga su aloe en el refrigerador. ¡Se siente como cielo!

16-Mayo-2012

Today was another great day at the beach in Samará! A few students chose to get up early and kayak to a nearby island where they snorkeled. Others waited until 9 and took surf lessons from two local ticos. What a great start to the day! After our time at the beach we had class from 1-5 where the theme was cell phones and their impact on society. When class was over some students stayed at the beach and played volleyball, while others returned home tired from a sun-filled day. Tomorrow will be yet another busy day with class in the morning (including our oral exam), and various activities and cultural classes in the afternoon. ¡Pura vida!

¡Pudemos Surfiar!

Ayer era otra día en la playa. Tenemos clase a las una entonces tenemos mucho tiempo para disfrutar la playa. o en este caso, un parte de la clase fueron a bucear, pero yo fui a aprender como surfiar. Después de una clase  corta estamos en el mar con nuestras tablas de surf. Pienso que casi todas las personas puedan levantarse. Cuando me levante, pude cruzar una cosa de mi lista de cosas quiero hacer antes de me murio. ¡Y ahora, puedo surfiar para gratis cada dia! Ojala que haya olas como el mar pacifico en Michigan porque quiero surfiar mas que una semana.

Después de el mar, tenemos clase por cuatro horas hablamos sobre teléfonos celulares y otros electrónicos y la impacta les tienen en nosotros. A mi me gusta los clases aquí en Sámara pero quiero tener clases con Merilyn y Jesús de Heredia en Sámara.Después de clase fui a jugar fútbol en la playa con los ticos. Ellos estan muy bueno al fútbol. Me gusta jugar con los ticos mas que los gringos porque ellos solo quieren jugar y no quieren gritar con nosotros. Las differencias entre futbol y "soccer" son muy interesante. Pero ahora ¡nesicito ir a surfiar mas! 

¡Pura Vida!

Today was our second day of classes in Samara and so far everything has gone quite smoothly. We had classes in the morning from 8am-12pm. The theme of the day was traffic and we had many interesting conversations. After classes, many of us spent time on the beach soaking up the sun and swimming in the ocean. At 4pm, half of the group attended latin dance class while the other half went to cooking class. I attended the cooking class (I was really hungry!) and we made tortillas from yuca with cheese and sour cream. They were delicious! After class, my roommate Alison and I returned to our host home for a lovely dinner, consisting of chicken alfredo, garlic bread and some sort of fruit juice. We then met up with some other students at the school just to hang out. Afterwards we went to our respective homes to get much needed rest for kayaking, snorkeling and surfing in the morning!

Hoy tuvimos clase a las ocho hasta doce. Despues de clase tuvimos cuatro horas libres. Con estas horas muchos estudiantes fueron a restaurantes para almuerzo. Después de comimos nosotros fuimos a la playa en frente de la escuela para nadar y tomar el sol. Fue muy divertida! A las cuatro tuvimos clase de baile y clase de cocina. Algunas estudiantes fueron a la clase de baile y algunas fueron a la clase de cocina. Estas clases estuvieron a las cuatro hasta a las cinco. Después de los clases muchos de los estudiantes fueron a sus casas para la cena y para hacer tarea para mañana. Fue una día bueno para todos los estudiantes!

Our first taste of Sámara

        Our first official day in Sámara was a great success full of many new sights and experiences.  Unlike Heredia, classes started at one o'clock.  Therefore, there was a lot of free time in the morning.  Although it would be nice to catch up on some sleep, Kristen and I along with many other students decided to get up early and hit the beach.  Since it is so hot and humid here compared to Heredia, the ocean was a great way to cool off.  At ten o'clock, we had a quick orientation followed by a tour of the town.  Sámara is the perfect example of a small town full of surfers- or at least people who look like they surf.  The town does not have much to it but is very quaint!
        At school, we received our new teachers.  My new teacher is from Spain, which means she has a Spanish accent.  The accent is much like a lisp.  At times, it becomes difficult to understand what she is saying.  However, I am very thankful to have the experience to be taugh by someone who can provide the perspectives and knowledge of both Costa Rica and Spain.  After school, many students waited for the rain to die down.  Kristen and I unfortunately did not wait long enough.  Our 15 minute walk home was a bit wet to say the least.  Cannot wait to see what tomorrow has in store.  PURA VIDA!

-Anne Epley Birtwistle

Hola!! En lunes, tuvimos el primer dia con nuestras familias ticas de Samara. Las familias son muy simpaticas pero todo es diferente. Las casas son muy diferentes porque algunas casas son como hoteles. Hay muchos insectos y no hay agua caliente pero es bueno porque hace mucho calor!

Muchas personas pasaron a la escuela por la playa. La playa es muy linda y divertida para nadar y buscar cosas diferentes del mar. Samara es mas pequeno que Heredia pero es muy lindo. Tuvimos clase a la una en la tarde. Los profesores son muy simpaticos, y las clases son divertidas, pero son muy largas.

Despues de la clase, llovió mucho y para toda la noche. La lluvia es muy relajado y hace mas fresca mientras que esta lluviendo.  Muchas personas toman el sol despues de la clase y comen tambien. El primer dia en Samara me pasó muy bien!

Domingo el 13 de mayo

Hoy fuimos a un lugar para canopy. Era muy divertida y podemos canopy como Superman y tambien Tarzan. Me encanta canopy! Especialmente Superman porque pude tomar un video de mi viaje y estaba 1 km. larga. Tambien en 2 canopies, fuimos de canopy en parejas. La vista era muy bonita y en un lugar podemos ver la Ocean Pacifica. Estuve nerviosa para el Tarzan canopy, porque las trabajadores empujaron la gente en el aire para hacer una columpia. Fue una buena experiencia! Tambien fuimos a Samara y conocemos nuestras familias nuevas. Mi familia es muy graciosa y me gusta mucho! Tenemos un chico de Sur Africa en nuestro casa tambien. Es un ambiente diferente, pero muy interesante y divertido.

Costa Rica es un paiz muy bonita, pero la cultura es diferente.  Yo tuve la oportunidad para tener una cita con una amiga de Costa Rica la semana pasada.  Ella me dijo sobre su experencia viviendo en Costa Rica.  La cultura es mas relajado que los Estados Unidos.  Generalmente, la gente de los Estados Unidos son mas puntual.
Por la cena, las mujeres prepararon la comida y miran los hombres comiendo.  Despues de cena a los hombres, las mujeres van a cenar.  ¡Que diferente que la cultura de los Estados Unidos!  Las mujeres controlan las casas, especialmente la Mama Tica.

Sunday, May 13th: Zip Lining!!

Today was one of the most thrilling days of my life.  We spend the entire morning flying above Monteverde on zip lines and ropes.  The "extreme canopy tour" had many different types of activities from normal zip lining, to partner zip lining, a Tarzan swing, rappelling, and a Superman zip line.  The normal zip lines had an amazing view from above the trees.  Some were fairly short, while others lasted about 30 to 45 seconds.  The partner zip lines, which happened to be some of the longer lines, were incredibly fun because you were able to share a wonderful experience live with someone.  On the second doubled zip line, I went with Justin, and the worker at the start of this particular zip line told us not to brake at all, even at the finish.  Since the worker at the finish of this zip line told our friends who were waiting for us at the bottom that he was going to bring us in really fast, that is exactly how we came in.  The worker had to catch us, and in the process, cut his finger open and it bled everywhere.  Since we had come in so fast, we were shot back about a quarter of the way back this very long zip line.  The worker then got himself into the gear and had to crawl out to pull us back.  Later during the zip line course, we saw the same worker a few more times, so we came to know him a little better because I felt so bad he had cut his finger trying to stop us.  The Tarzan swing was insane.  90 meters across, and a drop from a high up platform, and lots of screaming.  After the fright of the initial drop, the rest of the swing was actually quite relaxing.  The final zip line was called the Superman because we were attached by our backs and had our hands and feet spread out like Superman for a 1 kilometer ride.  With this zip line came an absolutely beautiful view of the Costa Rican landscape.  During the whole ride I took a video of the view, but it is too large to upload to this blog unfortunately.  After all this excitement, the final stop was meeting our new families in Samara.

The Beauty of Costa Rica

Today after eating breakfast at our hotel from yesterday, we went to a nearby river to try out the Tarzan swing! It was a very beautiful spot with some small waterfalls and almost everyone got in on the action, even Profe! After enjoying the swing for a while we went to a nearby river which was heated by Arenal (a volcano) and enjoyed the natural hot tub and the jungle scenery. We even saw some monkeys! After leaving here we took a boat ride across a large lake from which we could see Arenal and the surrounding Costa Rican landscape. The boat ride was followed by a very bumpy journey in a smaller bus to our new hotel (with a stop for lunch). Overall, today´s activities showcased the natrual beauty that the country of Costa Rica has to offer and which I have grown to love in the time that we have been here.

un día inolvidable

        Hoy fue un día llena de cosas hermosas y experiencias inolvidables. En la mañana fuimos a un río para un tarzan swing. Casi todo el grupo tenía miedo pero después de hacerlo, estábamos muy feliz. Nunca he hecho esto pero era un gran experiencia para mí. Estoy seguro de mis gritas eran unas de las más ruidosas con muchas otras chicas también.  Después, fuimos a aguas termales que, para mí, fue lo mejor visto en todo el mundo. No puedo creer que haya agua caliente en la naturaleza y que todo de eso agua venga de un volcán. Cuando estaba sentado en el agua, me sentí muy afortunada. Hay muchas personas en el mundo que nunca ha visto algo el mismo de este. Estaba pensando sobre cual diré mis padres cuando regresaré a los estados unidos y no sé cuales palabras son apropiadas para describirlo. Hoy fue un día que nunca me olvidaré. Debajo es una foto de nuestra guía con el tarzan swing al lado del río. 

A river, hot springs and a boat

Today we went to a river and many people used the Tarzan swing to jump into the river. It was very interesting seeing peoples faces before, during and after. We spent some time there and had fun taking pictures, swimming, and exploring. Even some Ticos joined us. We then went to some hot water springs. People were relaxing and exploring. Some were even sliding down some water like a waterslide. Everyone was having fun! After that we got on the bus to go somewhere to get on a boat. The boat ride took about 45 minutes and then we got spereated into two groups. Nine people went into a van and the rest in a bus. The ride was very bumpy and not very comfortable. We then got to eat and once again got into the van or bus and on our way to Monte Verde. We got comfortable in our hotel rooms after the bus had gotten there with our stuff and then went out to eat. We went to the bar Amigos and watched the Heredia v. Santos game. Heredia won! I wish we were still in Heredia to experience that moment but it was cool to watch it on tv also. We then went to the hotel room and relaxed for the big day ahead of us tomorrow! Zip linning!

So Much Water!!

Today Friday, May 11 was our last day of school in Heredia :( it was a sad morning, having to say bye to Mama Tica and heading for the Road. After classes we took a bus ride to the the new volcano and hot springs resort. It was a fun evening just chilling in the hotsprings and going down the water slides. After the hotsprings we had dinner at the restaurant in the same resort, then we left for our new hotel for the night where we all just gathered and hung out, fun fun!!!!!

10 jueves
La clase empezó a las 8:30 en la mañana. Después de clase hoy nosotros pudímos elegir ir a la clase de baile o la clase de cocina, pero todos los personas en el grupo fueron para ir a la clase de cocina. En clase hoy aprendíamos cocinar los plántanos maduros al hornos. En este artículo de comida hay plátanos maduros, queso, margarina, vainilla, y canela en polvo; ellos son dulce, pero no muy dulce. Después de clase de cocina podríamos ir a San José para mirar un recital de piano, y ir a San Pedro para ver la Universidad de Costa Rica.

Learning how to fly

Today was a wonderful day! I expected to learn spanish in costa rica, but I didn´t think I would also learn how to fly! Today, we zip lined in Monteverdi, and it was a once-in-a lifetime experience. There were about 20 different zip lines, some fairly short, some unbelievably long! We crossed what seemed like multiple different forests of extremely lush trees, but in reality it was all part of the explosion of rainforst that is Monteverdi! Two highlights of the zip line couse included a "Tarzan Swing" that began with a terrifying free-fall drop of a few feet, and also the "Superman" zip line where you go for a whole kilometer with your feet stretched out behind you, feeling like you are flying! What a unique experience! After the zip lining, we piled into the bus for a 4 hour trip to Samara. A long bus ride, but it was worth it! Samara is going to be a gorgeous place to spend a week!!

5-12
Ayer fue un dia con mucha agua, baches, y vistas.  Despues de comer desayuno fuimos a un rio frio con una cuerda columpio.  El rio fue muy linda y todos los estudiantes disfrutaban este rio.  Entonces fuimos a un otro rio pero este fue caliente.  Los corientes fueron muy fuertes pero el agua fue muy relajando. Entonces fuimos por bote en un lago grande en las montañas.  Despues haciamos el mejor parte del dia.  Montabamos por autobus pequeño a traves de las montañas.  El ritmo de los baches grandisimos ponian muchos estudiantes dormir.  Las vistas durante el viaje fueron increible.  No podrìa parar de pensar de las vidas de la gente que en realidad vive en los pueblos pequeños y trabaja en los lugares donde las vistas son grandisimos.  Me pregunte si la gente comprende cuanta suerte tienen.  Fue este momento que daba cuenta de que tengo mucha suerte  de poder venir a Costa Rica.  Estoy teniendo el tiempo de mi vida.

Hot Springs :)

Today was such a fun day! After having our last class at Intercultura in Heredia, we left for the hot springs in near Arenal.  A lot of classes got to do some fun things in class today.  After the delicious fruit that was offered at the school, my class got to go to Pops for ice cream.  When we got back we got to watch some interesting YouTube videos (in Spanish of course).  We watched one video about a man with no arms and no legs.  After class, we left for the hot springs near Arenal.  On the way, we stopped at a restaurant to eat lunch.  When we got to Arenal, we checked into the hotel and then left for the hot springs.  The hot springs were great!  My favorite part was going on all of the different water slides.  I also really liked going to all of the different pools.  Some of them were really hot but most of them were great.  After about 2 hours in the hot springs, we got to eat dinner at the resort.  I think everyone really liked the dinner because there was so much to choose from and everything was really good.  The fruit and chocolate fountain were popular with everyone.  After leaving the hot spirngs, we returned to the hotel to relax.

Aguas termales

Hoy nosotros fuimos a los aguas termales Baldi en La Fortuna de San Carlos.  En las aguas termales hay muchas plantas y piscinas caliente.  Había 26 piscinas caliente es una lugar muy grande y muy hermosa.  Después de las aguas termales nosotros cenamos en una buffet en la hotel de las aguas termales.  Nosotros tenemos muchas suerte de que hemos llegando a ver a estos junto con la todas otras cosas en Costa Rica.  Costa Rica es un país muy hermosa y diferente de Los Estados Unidos en Costa Rica por ejemplo tienen aguas termales y no lo hacemos.  En Costa Rica la gente es diferente pero también simular.  La gente es diferente porque es común por las personas viven en la casa con sus padres hasta que terminan con universidad o posiblemente hasta que se casan. Pero en Los Estados Unidos es más común que las personas vayan la universidad y volver solamente para las vacaciones.

Una día de cambio

Está mañana, sea una día final para las clases en Heredia. Todos estudiantes trajeron las maletas a la escuela. Despúes de la clase fuimos al Arenal Hotel en un autobús por tres horas. Paremos para almorzar en un restuarante con un buffet. Llegamos al hotel, y después salimos por Baldi Hot Springs. La noche pasamos teimpo en hot springs diferentes. Baldi tiene muchos picinas con agua tiempos diferentes y una pisicina con tres tobogónes. Muchas personas les gustan los tobogónes. Todos exploran lot hot spings y visitaron la suna. Comimos cena en la restaurante de Baldi. Por postre probemos tipos nuevos de pasteles. Despúes de Baldi, regresemos Arenal y tuvimos un noche tranquila.

Hola desde Costa Rica! Ayer, jueves, 10 de Mayo, era nuestro final noche en Heredia. Me sentía muy emocionado . Era un poco triste pero también muy emocionada. Para cenar, comí ensalada y burritos con frijoles y carne. Me gustó la comida porque es mas como la comida en los estados unidos. Después de las dos semanas en Costa Rica, extrañé la comida de los estados unidos. También, mi cumpañero de cuarto y yo fuimos al salón de mi mamatica. Nos arreglamos los pies y me lo encanta! El salón era muy bonita. Cuando regresamos a la casa, le dé el regalo de gracias a mi mamatica y hermano. Era chocolate muy rico y delicioso. Comieron todos los chocolates antes de acostarse. Estaba nerviosa que ellos no le gustarían chocolate o dulces, pero no fue el caso! Era el día mas bueno y relajante en Heredia.

Adios Heredia!

¡Hola de Costa Rica! We have spent two weeks now in Heredia, Costa Rica, and have learned a lot about the culture of Costa Rica. Today we are packing our bags and heading to Sámara, Costa Rica, where we will be enjoying 93 degree weather each day and hopefully getting some sun. Sámara is a little different than Heredia in the aspect of size and economic status. Although we have not experienced it for ourselves yet, we have heard and been prepared about crabs in showers, bugs everywhere, and hot, hot days. But, we are ready for the challenge! It will be exciting to see the different sides of Costa Rica and learn even more about the wonderful and rich culture here.

The time is flying here, as we are already 2/3 done with the trip. We have seen volcanoes, waterfalls, wonderful and unique fruits, and we still have yet to see hot springs, go zip lining, and snorkel in the ocean. I can say from this entire experience that we are all learning a lot from this opportunity to travel and study in a different country, and that we will all carry the things we are learning with us for the rest of our lives. It is truly a blessing to learn about other cultures and definitely makes us all appreciate not only the Costa Rican culture, but our own culture as well. We are all looking forward to coming back to the United States with amazing stories to share and experience we will hold dear to us for a lifetime. ¡Chau!

The Difference of Money in Two Cultures

Hey everyone!

Wednesday was a big day of shopping. Our main attraction of the day, Cafe Britt, was primarily a tour of the plantation, but we also had the chance to browse the gift shop to buy coffee, chocolate, souveneirs, and anything else we wanted. After Cafe Britt we had the option of going to San Jose or waiting and going Thursday. Many of us took advantage of the opportunity and went shopping again. Some friends and I decided to go shopping here in Heredia at the Mercado Central and various other small shops. It was a lot of fun and we bought some really neat knick-knacks and souvineirs. But, that's not what I wanted to focus on in this blog. We went shopping. But it's the money we spent that I want to focus on.

In Costa Rica I've found that there is an immense gap between the local currency, colones, and our U.S. dollar. The food is cheaper and the clothes are cheaper (if you're shopping in the right place), but another thing I found out in talking to my host family and from our visits to the National University is that college is also cheaper. Before we'd even walked over to the university and had our tour, my host mother had told Ronni and I at dinner that her daughter was attending college for $30 per semester. $30!! I was surprised at how cheap it was to get an education here in Costa Rica. Given, our host sister has a 70% scholarship. But still. $100 per semester sounds good to me! Later, the tour confirmed that $100 is the price per semester at the National University. The private universities are far more expensive, but that's the way it is in the States, too.

I value the education Wartburg is giving me, providing me opportunity to come here among other things. However, my mind keeps returning to that tiny little price tag for a college education---$100 per semester. Our tour guide said that students normally graduate in 4-5 years, so the total cost of a college education for Ticos and Ticas comes out to $800 to $1000. That would bearly pay for books for a year or two at Wartburg. I think this is very interesting and thought I'd share.

Yesterday we only had 2 hours of class because we had the opportunity to tour Cafe Britt, a coffee plantation. Our tour guides were great and put on quite a show for us complete with costumes and videos. They showed us how the coffee is grown, processed, roasted,and packaged. All of the coffee Cafe Britt is organic. They take great care in making the coffee and it is the best in Costa Rica. During the tour, we were shown how they test the coffee before it is sold. Bailey and Kelsey F. went on stage and demonstrated for the audience. After the tour, we ate at Cafe Britt and drank the coffee. At the gift shop we could sample all the different kinds of coffee and chocolates. Anne was the lucky winner of the raffle so she got one free package of coffee and one free bag of chocolates.

PURA VIDA! Hoy salimos clase temprano para una excursion. Nosotros fuimos a Cafe Britt para un tour del cafe. Aprendimos sobre la vida de la planta cafe, desde la semilla a su vaso.  Cafe Britt esta en Heredia cerca de nuestra escuela Intercultura. El cafe es mas fuerte cuando Cafe Britt cocina las semillas por un tiempo mas largo. La compania tiene muchos procesos para tener el mejor cafe y es una tienda bien conocido. Probamos el cafe y granules de cafe con chocolate (muy ricos). Es el cafe mejor del mundo. Almorzamos con comidas tipicas de Costa Rica como arroz con frijoles, platanos y fresco de frutas.

Yesterday we had class in the morning and in the afternoon we had two options. We could either take a dance class at Intercultural or go watch a dance presentation at UN (universtiy national). I decided that I wanted to take the dance class because it would have been a very long walk in the rain. So far I do not think I have encountered a complete day without rain.

The instructor's name is Enrique and he is exactly what anyone would expect of a Costa Rican man. Passionate. I somehow managed to get lucky and I got to have Enrique as my dance partner for the class. Learning the Salsa with someone who knows how to do it is so much easier. When I return to Wartburg I hope to take more of the dance classes.

After dance class a small group of us went gift shopping and bought Trits. Trits is a type of ice cream sandwich that is to die for. After that small adventure we went our seperate ways. Sammy, Aaron and myself decided that it would be a good idea to see one of the free concerts at UN. This week is U week. U week is compareable to any college's homecoming week.

When we arrived at the concert we were not expecting it to be a rock concert. We also were not expecting to be searched or have our bags searched to enter. The last thing we were not expecting was that everyone there would be completely dressed in black. We felt 100% out of place. Sammy, Aaron, and I were all dressed in either white or red. As anyone could imagine all eyes were on us. It was such a strange feeling being there. We felt like we were unwanted so we stayed for a total of five minutes.

All in all it was another interesting day in Costa Rica. Today our group will be going to Cafe Britt.

¡Pura Vida!

Madison Stumbo

Hola! Hoy es miéricoles 9 de mayo. Hoy tuvimos clase por solamente dos horas porque tuvimos un tour de Cafe Britt. A las diez y media salimos a Cafe Britt pre un tour, almuerzo y para comprar cafe y chocolate.
Cafe Britt esta en Heredia muy cerca de la escuela de Intercultura. Fuimos el su ''coffee tour clasico'' pero hay un otro tour para personas que le encanta cafe se llama ''tour parar amantes del cafe.'' En nuestro tour apredimos sobre el processo para hacer cafe y el proceso que converte las rojas cerezas en la bebida que disfrutamos cada manana. Tambien nostoros visitamos al almacio de cafe, aprendimos la historia y cultura del cafe en Costa Rica y probamos muchos cafes y chocolates.
El tema de Cafe Britt es para compartir ''la pasion y la experiencia que compartimos diariamente con todos los visitantes en nuestra planta tostadora.'' Aprendemos que hay siete cosas a buscar cuando comprado cafe: la aroma, el acidez, el cuerpo, el sabor, la amargura, el reposado, y el delgado.
Estuvimos un buen almuerzo con comidas tipicas de Costa Rica como arroz, frijoles, pollo, plantains y por supuesto cafe! Despues regresamos a Intercultura y un grupo de estudiantes fueron a San Jose para comprar y otros se quedaron en Heredia.
PURA VIDA :)

Baile En Costa Rica

Muchos ticos utilizan el baile como un modo de expresión de la personalidad y ticos encantan muchos tipos de baile. La mayoría de la población le gusta bailar (pero no incluyendo a mi mama tica, HA!). La salsa, merengue y otros tipos de bailar son más populares en Costa Rica que los Estados Unidos. Es común para ticos salir durante la semana y bailar en los salones de baile, discotecas o bares. Un salón de baile en Heredia que es muy popular se llama el Típico Latino.  Hoy, fuimos a una presentación de baile a la universidad UNA en Heredia. Fue una buena experiencia y me gustaban los bailes mucho. Era interesante para ver los diferentes bailes de Costa Rica. La presentación incluyo bailes tradicionales y bailes más contempérales. ¡Los estudiantes de la universidad bailan a música latina y música de los Estados Unidos también! Me sorprendía para ver los bailes con las canciones que yo conozco. Yo no sabía que en Costa Rica ticos bailan a la música electrónica como la canción “Party Rock Anthem”, música de Nikki Minaj, y música country. Los bailes contempérales era como “pop”  bailes coreografiados en los Estados Unidos pero un poco diferente. Era una buena experiencia.

Tour of the University

Monday was not a day where we had a lot of activities planned. In the morning we had class from 8:30 to 12:30. Since this was a new week, we switched professors. After class, we had an hour to eat lunch, and then we walked from the school to the University here in Heredia. We split into two groups and then took a tour of the university. It was a lot bigger than Wartburg, thats for sure. It was optional to attend a concert, but the group I was with chose not to go. We had the rest of the night free to do whatever we wanted. I am finding that I am learning more and more about Costa Rica and the Spanish language with every passing day, and every student that is accompanying me on this trip has felt the same way. Every day brings new teachings about this culture and the people who live here. This group has already grown a lot and it has only been about a week here. I am confident that by the time these three weeks are up, we will be proficient in the Spanish language.

      Para mi blog, voy escribir sobre la universidad que vimos, y una actividad muy común en Costa Rica. Las vidas de los estudiantes son simliar en algunas aspectivas, y diferente en otras aspectivas a los estudiantes de los estados unidos. Es similar porque hay intramuros en el césped. Hay muchas actividades en el campus, y obvialmente ellos estan allí para estudiar. Sin embargo, hay diferencias en las vidas de los estudiantes en Costa Rica. Muchos estudiantes no viven en el campus, ellos viven en apartamentos de la ciudad. Si ellos no pagan por un apartamento, ellos viven con una familia cerca de la escuela.
      Hoy una actividad en el campus era un concierto. En Costa Rica, un baile con música es muy, muy común. Es un día mal en Costa Rica, si no hay un baile. En Costa Rica ellos bailan un baile real.  Salsa y merengue son los más comunes en Costa Rica. ¡Hasta luego y Pura Vida!

One of my favorite passions in life is watching sports.  Many countries share passion for soccer.  The United States also declares soccer a popular sport in the nation, but football is the most popular.  Even though the United States and Costa Rica are two different nations with different customs and cultures, both have a symbiotic relationship when it comes to sports.
Just two nights ago, the local club soccer team Heredia won a crucial game. The streets in Heredia were filled with people celebrating and dancing until four in the morning.  I closely monitored the festivities and tried to compare them to United States American culture.  I had to make a symbolic exchange with my host family.
I think it is a beautiful thing to show other other people of different cultures my own.  I am a passionate fan of the Green Bay Packers and I brought my jersey with me to Costa Rica.  My host family got to see my jersey and they were very much intrigued by it.  I then showed them pictures of famous football players, such as Aaron Rodgers and Bruce Smith, as well as pictures of NFL football stadiums.  My host family was appalled by the enormous size of Soldier Field and Bruce Smith.
I felt a connection with my host family when I showed them my jersey and the pictures.  Coming from two different cultures, we really were not that different.  The passion for our sports remains the same.

Sunday was a lot of fun. It started out a little rough since almost everyone was tired from going to the discoteca (dance club) the night before. But after a nap on the bus, we were at a park to go to the waterfalls! After a bit of a hike we were at a waterfall. We took a few pictures, then went in the water. The water was cold, but never more than 3 feet deep. It was a bit difficult to walk because it was rocky and there were lots of rapids, but that did not stop us from exploring a fairly large area. After spending some time at the first waterfall, people started exploring down one part of the river where we found the second waterfall. After a while, tired, wet, and hungry, we hiked back to the bus.
For lunch we stopped at a place that instead of using traditional plates, had a wooden plate with a banana leaf on top of it. None of us had seen that before, I thought it was a neat idea.
After lunch we drove to Grecia to see a church. The church was beautiful. There were several statues, depicting different scenes of Jesus life. After the church we got ice cream cones, then headed back to Heredia.
When we got to Heredia, there were a lot of people celebrating because Heredia won a soccer game. For the rest of the night people were driving through the streets, shouting and honking the horns, proudly wearing their red and gold.

Las Cataratas

         En este día libre, fuimos a las cataratas, se llaman los Chorros. Salimos de la escuela a las ocho y treinta, y andamos en bus por una hora. Jerry, nuestro guía de la escuela, compró una machete para cortar las cañas azucares cerca de las Cataratas. El sabór de las cañas azucares fue dulce y deliciosa. Llegamos a los Chorros, y caminamos en un bosque. La camina fue difícil pero bonita. Pudemos oír los Chorros antes de verlas. Fue grande y fuerte. El agua era frio porque es de las montañas, nos dijo Jerry. Bebí un poco agua, ¡que fresco! Exploramos mucho en el río y en las piedras. Me caí mucho porque las piedras eran muy resbalosas. Fue como un sueño, con muchos árboles verdes y el cielo bonito. Salimos para almorzar, estábamos sucios y cansados. Fuimos en bus a un restaurante se llama "Tropical la fruta, Delicias de mi tierra." Este restaurante tuvo comida deliciosa pero un poco caro. Fuimos a la ciudad de Grecia para ver una Iglesia Metalica. Estuvo lloviendo. La Iglesia fue muy grande y interesante. Mi grupo luego fue a "Pops," una restaurante de helado. Salimos a Grecia para ir a la escuela. El viaje fue largo y muchos estudiantes dormieron. Fue un día grande y tuvimos muy sueños con razón.

Saturday, May 5, 2011

Today there was a "ferreria" or large farmers market, in Heredia. Megan, Hailee, and I went there on our run and it was bigger than we expected! There were vendors lining the street for more than 10 blocks! We saw many different types of fruits and vegetables that we didn't recognize, but it was such a great experience and my favorite part of the day! We spent most of the day touring San Jose. We started off going to the national theater there and got a tour of it. It was really cool to see an old theater that was still preserved. After the tour of the theater, we went to Central Park. It was so busy! There were vendors everywhere and in the middle, they had games like hula hoop, jump rope, and chess for the people to play. I think it would be fun to live there and be able to do that all the time as a sort of community builder. We then went to a market there. It is so different than anything we have in the U.S. It is like a whole street that has a roof on it and vendors on each side selling different items. It is just like something you see on TV. The things they are selling are mostly homemade and it is fun to see them all. For lunch we ate at a pizzeria and the pizza was better than what we have in the US because their ingredients are fresher. After lunch we went to a museum and it had a butterfly garden in it, which was cool to see all the different colored butterflies here. We also saw an old jail area that was here and how Costa Ricans lived in older times. The museum showed some old gold jewelry which was all really big. One of my favorite things to see was how the ceilings in the theater and museum had painted ceilings and also some of the walls had really cool carvings in them. The pictures showed the Costa Rican culture and what is important to them. That night, we went to a discoteca in San Jose called Rumba. It was really fun to try out our new dance steps and experience the night life of Costa Rica. All in all it was a very good, but exhausting day!

San José

5 Mayo

            Hoy la clase fue a la capital, San Jose. Nosotros visitamos el teatro nacional, el museo nacional, y el centro mercado. Fue un día muy largo, pero muy bonito. El teatro nacional es muy precioso y muy  abundante de la cultura de Costa Rica. Hay muchas pinturas y estatuas que representan un día en la vida de un tico hace mucho años. El museo nacional es muy precioso también, es muy rico en la historia de Costa Rica. En el museo había muchos artefactos y fotos de hace muchos años. Un parte del museo era un cárcel con muchos cosas auténticos. Era muy interesante ver partes de la Costa Rican cultura específicos. En el centro mercado había muchos tiendas con muchas cosas diferentes. Por ejemplo, había muchos bolsos y cosas pequeñas de madera. Nosotros pudimos comprar artículos de Costa Rica para nuestras familias y para nosotros. Todos los vendedores querían vender cosas a nosotros. Durante el día nosotros anduvimos por ahí en San Jose, y en muchos parques. Cuando nosotros salimos a San Jose y regresamos a Heredia, estaba lloviendo a cántaros. Hoy era una experiencia única. Fue un día que nosotros recordaremos siempre. 

Hoy fuimos a San Jose para explorar. Había mucha gente y hacía sol. Primero, fuimos al Teatro Nacional. El recorrido por el teatro era muy interesante y informativo. Después, formamos grupos y empezamos explorar la cuidad. En mi grupo, visitamos muchos lugares turísticos como La gorda, el parque, La plaza de la libertad electoral y algunos edificios históricos. Entonces, parte del grupo fue a una pizzeria para almorzar. (La pizza era deliciosa.) Después de almorzar, nosotros (todos) fuimos al Museo Nacional. Había una exhibición de mariposas muy bonitas y la que tenía las cerámicas antiguas. (Había otras pero estas eran mis favoritas.) Luego, regresamos a nuestras casas para cenar. En la noche fuimos a La Rumba para celebrar el cumpleaños de Ben (y otras fiestas también). Bailamos mucho y después, regresamos a nuestras casas para dormir y prepararnos para las cataratas mañana.

Viernes, El 4 de Mayo

Hoy era mí día último con Profe Giovanni, quien a mí me encanta por su energía y porque él era muy simpático.  Después de clase, tenemos una hora antes de salir para la Sabana cerca de San Jose.  Almorcé mi propio comida por almuerzo para no comprar comida.  Todos los días llueve mucho, pero hoy llueve con una tormenta grande, así no salimos de la escuela hasta una hora tarde.  Por la Sabana, vimos algún arte y caminamos por el parque.  Ibamos a correr, pero no había un lugar para aguardar nuestras cosas.  La naturaleza era muy hermosa por el parque.  Había árboles, palmas, un lago pequeño , caminos para caminar y mucho más.  Después del parque, fuimos a un café para jugo de varios tipos.   Todos de nosotros tomamos jugo y hablamos juntos.  Había que tomar un autobús a y del parque.  Era una manera buena para ver otros partes de la puebla.  Voy a acostarme temprano este noche porque necesito levantarme a las seis para correr y ir a la feria.

On Friday, we had class at 8:30. It was our final class of the week, and it was our last day with our first teacher. During one of the breaks, the school provided pineapple, mango, and watermelon for all of the students. We had class until 12:30 and then we all parted separate ways to eat lunch. We met back at the school at 1:30 to take a bus to San Jose, but the rain prevented us from leaving until 2:30. The rain finally let up, and we took a public bus to San Jose. When we arrived in San Jose we walked to an art museum and were able to see different statues. There was also a program going on where artists helped children create pictures. After we were finished walking though the museum we walked to the park, which was right by the museum. Unfortunately we were not able to go swimming in the pool because there was a competition going on, so we just walked through the park for a while, took pictures, and then went to a nearby restaurant to sit, rest, and drink smoothies and juice. We returned back to the school on a public bus, and each of us returned to our houses for supper. After that, we had free time for the rest of the night.

Yesterday was our fifth day in Costa Rica and was a little bit shorter and easier than the other days so far. We started class at 8:30 in the morning, and the first thing we did when we got to class was took a quiz over the readings from the night before. After the quiz we started right away with learning material from the book. After classes we all went to a cooking class and had the option of going to another dance class. In the cooking class we all made Empanadas. Empanadas are corn tortillas with cheese or cheese and refried beans on the inside. During the class we all had the opportunity to watch some being made and to make one. Another option that the group had today was to go to a church that was a look out over the city of Heredia. After all the classes and going to the look out the group had another option of going to a park in Heredia and playing papi football, which is like a small game of soccer. 

¡Gooaaalll!

¡Goal!

Eso gritaban el equipo de los ganadores ;) el mejor equipo que competió hoy (mi equipo).  ;)  Fue un gran, gran día. Casi 20 estudiantes estában jugando fútbol a un lugar aquí en Heredia. Los otros estában descansando despues de los otras actividades del día. Una de esas actividades fue una clase de cocina. Aprendimos como hacer empanadas con queso y frijoles. ¡Que sabrosas! Pienso que fue un día muy, muy buena. ¡Hasta Luego!

El día de una tica

¡Qué día! Hubo clase hoy no como ayer.  Por lo tanto, yo aprendí mucho.  Hoy en la Intercultura, mi clase revisó el vocabulario de lunes y también las diferencias entre el pretérito y el imperfecto.  Hoy, mi clase también aprendió sobre palabras para no repetir el mismo palabra.  Estos se llaman pronombres relativos.  Necesito practicarlos mucho.  Después de clase, cambiamos nuestro dinero al banco y almorzamos a Nacho's.  Las hamburguesas en Costa Rica son muy diferente que las hamburguesas en los E.U.  Cuando comí la hamburguesa, extrañe a los E.U. por un momento, pero sólo un poquito.  Hubo dos actividades durante el tarde hoy: la clase de baile y ir de compras.  ¡Me encantaba a los dos! Era una experiencia muy interesante para ir al centro comercial.  No hubo mucho espacio en el autobus, y yo pienso que la gente en el autobus estaban posiblemente enojados y molestos con nosotros. Yo pienso que no podemos mezclarse con los ticos.  ¡Ahhhh bueno! Pues, estamos aprendiendo.  ¡Pura vida!

-Anne Epley Birtwistle

5/2/12
      Wednesday wasn't the most exciting day, but when you're in Costa Rica every day must have some excitement. Before school my breakfast consisted of corn flakes, mangos strawberries that we bought at Volcon Poas, and bananas. After breakfast I walked about five blocks to school. When it was finally lunch time most of us went to a little restaurant where instead of serving chips and salsa before the meal they served popcorn! I had shrimp with rice that was served with french fries. After lunch, we went to dance class to learn a little Salsa. After dance class most of us went to a really nice mall. It was really interesting to see some of the store names like, "OOPS!", and the apple store's name was "ICon". When I finally got home, dinner was waiting for us, this time I had something like chicken soup with potatoes, rice, salad, and a pineapple drink.  After dinner I played with my host mom's grandson, Gabriel, who is four years old.  So far I have taught him how to say "ghost", "house", and "see ya" in Enlglish. When he went to bed I did my homework and watched TV with my host family. I'm really begining to see that many of the little things we Americans fret over don't even exist here, making the lives of the Cosa Ricans less stressful and ultimately happier.

La Pura Vida en Costa Rica

Es el tercer dia del viaje y he notado muchas differencias culturales. Algunas de las diferencias mas grandes es que la gente mayor de edad, las mujeres embarasadas, y la gente invalida tiene prioridad sobre la otra gente. Si estuviéramos en un lugar con una linea y un anciano, al anciano lo mandarían para al frente de la linea. Otro ejemplo es que si estuvieras en un autobus y esta lleno, las personas se paran para que se puedan sentar otros. Otra diferencia que estoy viendo es que hay mucha seguridad en todos lados. En todos los bancos hay una persona en la puerta con un detector de metales y no te puedes meter sin que te haya checado el cuerpo. Afuera del mall hay policias que estan parados afuera de las entradas por si hay algun problema. Otra cosa que es muy importante es que la gente no tiene el drecho de paso en las calles. Si un carro anda en la calle y una persona crusa la calle, el carro no baja la velocidad. Estas cosas son diferentes a las cosas que pasan en los Estados Unidos. En los Estados Unidos la gente no le da el lugar a los ancianos, a las embarasadas, y a veces a los invalidos en los autobuses. Seria una buena idea empezar a instituir una regla similar en los Estados Unidos. En Los Estados Unidos puedes entrar a muchos lugares sin tener que pasar por un escaner de metal. Y los carros tienen que cederles el paso a la gente que andan caminando por las calles.

Tuesday was a day of adventures. We all arrived to Intercultura in the morning to board the bus to Volcan Poas. We weaved through the crazy streets of the city before heading out to the mountains. On the way we stopped at a coffee shop to get a snack or drink. Behind the coffee shop was an amazing view of the cities, along the roadside a few students, including myself, got to jump in a wagon being pulled by two longhorn cattle. After the quick stop it was back in the bus to continue up the mountain. Eventually we arrived. The first hike up to the volcano wasn't too bad and the views were spectacular, As for hike number two, not as easy. We had a steep climb up to the lagoon. Again spectacular views! But that was the end, the rest was downhill from there. It was just as steep going back down as it was going up, thankfully it wasn't too wet or slippery!

On our way back to the school we made three stops. The first was to buy fresh strawberries for our families. When we arrived we all were given one strawberry to try and it was by far the best strawberry I have ever had! The fruit here is amazing, nothing like the states. After purchasing the strawberries and a few souvenirs we were off to lunch. As a group we stopped at a restaurant to eat buffet style dinner with the usual rice, beans, and meat. They had the best strawberry juice too! Once lunch was complete it was back onto the bus. The final stop before the school was a shop that made many handcrafted souvenirs from Costa Rican woods. They had many different types of items from jewelry to clothing, picture frames, kitchen supplies and much much more!! Many students bought a lot of souvenirs here for their families.

Upon returning to the school the rest of the afternoon and evening was unplanned and we were free to choose. The group that I decided to go with went to two different clubs that evening. First things first though, we needed a nap before our first night out. After a good nap and some family time we met back at central park to go as a group to experience the Costa Rican night life. The first place that we went to was a 'chill' place. Some people played pool while others fuse ball. After that we wanted to go to a more traditional area with dancing, so we headed down the street to a club. This club was much different from the first. The crowd was a little older, but still very diverse. We sat down as some tables and just watched. After a few songs from the live band, we were out on the dance floor practicing the moves we learned in dance class on Monday. Eventually the night came to an end and taxis were called while others started walking home, and to bed we went.

Trip to Volcan Poas

May first in Costa Rica is considered a holiday! This day is called a free day. We were treated to no class and an excursion! Tuesday was a day full of walking, sightseeing, and trying new things! First we took an hour and 20 minute bus ride to the volcano! There was a lot of hiking on trails, but there was a lot to see! There were different trees that some of us had never seen before, new flowers, and many other plants that were new to us.

On the way to the volcano we stopped at a little shop where we could buy some souvenirs and coffee. We got to see a coffee field, and bulls pulling a wagon. This was a sight to see, because there aren't many of these in the United States.

The volcano was beautiful. At first we couldn´t see much because a lot of fog (or smoke from the volcano) was in the way. However, after the wind took some of that away we could see a lot more. There was water in the opening of the volcano with steam or fog coming out of it. It was definitely a sight to see! It was very interesting that around the volcano there were rocks that appeared to have some ashes on them.

After seeing the volcano, we hiked up to the lagoon. This hike was, to say the least, a little bit steep. However, it was worth the climb! The lagoon was magnificent and very beatiful. Even though the hike back down was downhill, it was still difficult. There was some water on the trails which made them slippery, and everyone knows what happens on steep hills that are slippery!

We finally made it back to the bus. On the way down the mountains, we bought fresh strawberries for our host families. We also got to try chocolate colored coffee beans that were delicious! After buying strawberries, we went to a souvenir shop. Here there were many different Costa Rican souvenirs where most of us bought gifts for friends and family back home. Then we finally got to eat lunch! By this time all of us were very hungry. We went to a restaurant that had a buffet filled with many different kinds of food. The food was delicious. The best part of the meal was the fresh strawberry juice! The dessert was also very tasty. It was a type of cake with chocolate and a strawberry on the side! After lunch, we went to our houses to relax and eat supper.

Tuesday was Chrisitan's birthday, so later that night we decided to go out and celebrate! We went to different clubs. One was called Tipico Latino. There was a live band, and many people that were dancing! This isn't the dancing like in the United States at the clubs! These dances are dances like the salsa and merengue. This was a fantastic way to see how people spend their free time here!

El Volcán Poás

Es el primer de mayo y no tuvimos la clase hoy porque en Costa Rica es un día feriado. También se llama "el día del trabajo" porque nadie trabaja en este día. En lugar de las clases, fuimos a una excursión del volcán poás. Tomamos un autobús al volcán y visitamos un café que se vende el café de Costa Rica. Ramey, Kristen, Kelsey y yo compramos café con leche y nos gustaba el café mucho. Después de llegar al volcán, caminamos un poco y vimos el cráter. Había mucho humo de azufre en el principo, pero se mueve y vimos el agua del volcán y la lava con el humo. Caminamos mucho durante el día pero vale la pena porque era la más bonita. Compré fresas del volcán también para mi familia porque las fresas en el volcán son muy dulces y largas. El día aún no ha terminado porque muchos de nosotros vamos a salir este noche para el cumpleaños de Christian. No puedo esperar para ver la cultura de la vida nocturna en Costa Rica. Hasta ahora, Wartburg está teniendo un gran viaje y estoy emocionada para las próximas semanas y eventos.

El Primer Día de Clases

¡Nuestra primer día de clases fue loca! Fue dificil para mi.  Me gusta que tenemos clases muy pequeños.  Todos los instructores son simpaticos.  Despúes de las clases, caminamos por Heredia.  Hay muchos lugares interesantes.  Cuando regresamos a la escuela, tuvimos clases de baile.  Los clases eran muy divertidos pero todos tenían mucho calor.  Nuestra instructor de baile se llama Enrique.  Despúes de las clases de baile, muchos caminaron por Heredia y muchos se perdieron.  Durante mi caminata, empezó a llover mucho.  ¡Me perdí otra vez en mi viaje a casa! Cuando regresé a mi casa, tenía mucho hambre y estaba cansada.  Nuestra cena no era muy grande.  Despúes, ví la tele y me duché.  ¡Me encanta Costa Rica!

The Second Day/First Day Of School

Yesterday was the first day of school, class was four hours long with two breaks in the middle which were fifteen minutes long.  After class we went on a tour of Heredia and ate lunch we saw the central park on Heredia and the market.  In the market there was a lot of fruit and a few other things, there were two restaurant type things which served good juice.  The juice is more like smoothies than the type of juice we are used to back home.  After the tour we all went back to school for a dance lesson we learned a traditional Costa Rican dance.  After the hour was up we had all danced a lot and were very sweaty and tired.  After the dance lesson we had free time to explore on our own before going back to our houses for dinner and spending time with our families.  So far Costa Rica is fun the money system is a bit difficult to figure out because it is 1 dollar to every 505 colones so everything seems so expensive but it is actually usually cheaper than the U.S.