Oh, the Costa Rican life

The past several days have been filled with adventure, confusion, and lots of emotions. The land that is so beautiful where everyone is happy can be quite challenging and difficult to handle.

Beginning with last week, I attended a cultural event that ISA hosted for us. It was a cooking class with the most adorable woman. She was like Martha Stewart but way better. She taught us how to cook gallo pinto, which is a traditional rice and bean dish that can be made in different ways for any meal. She showed us a kind of lunch version. I couldn't stay for the whole thing but she also made a coconut cookie kind of thing. It was a lot of fun.

Last Thursday, I went to my first dance class at Veritas. They offer latin dance classes on Tuesdays and Thursday and for some reason I still hadn't gone. I'm so glad I finally went because it was so much fun. The teacher was hilarious and such a fun lady. She could tell that Libby and I (we have become dance buddies) had experience. We worked on merengue steps which she translated to tango. We then did some salsa. Our friend, Tricia, also came and we helped her learn. She was a great sport and did such a good job. I have missed doing salsa and ballroom dancing and all of the moves I learned when Robby and I took classes at Carlisle's are slowly coming back.

Now this is where the confusion and craziness began. Friday was the day I was to travel with my placement to work on one of their projects. I was supposed to buy bus tickets on Thursday with Ana Cecilia but she ended up being unable to come, so I was told we could go by car instead with some of the other board members. Now, this entire time I was trying to figure out where we were going and what I would be doing and I had it all mixed up. I finally figured out on Friday before leaving that we were going to Playa Samara to work on TECOCOS. (TECOCOS is an abbreviation for Territorios Costeros Comunitarios. This is a law that CAP and other organizations and people have been working to promote and get the government to pass it. It basically stops the government from declaring the first 200 meters from the water on the coasts public land, which they are trying to do. This displace many communities that have been there for years. It also includes some conservation and development stipulations.) I knew that I was supposed to stay until Sunday, though Ana Cecilia was only staying until Saturday but I wasn't sure why. I knew I would be taken care of, as I was assured of this before. But once I figured out that we were doing something with TECOCOS I was even more confused. What would be doing with a law? I guess my idea was that I would be doing hands on work or talking with people in these coastal communities to aid them in some way...or helping the turtles.

This was not the case. Marcella and her husband Mario picked me up and asked me what my plan was for Saturday. (Internal Panic Mode: Go) I told them I didn't know because Ana Cecilia said I was staying until Sunday and I didn't have a bus ticket. They were planning on leaving early on Saturday. We eventually got to Ana Cecilia's house in San Ramon and had lunch. Then we set out on the drive to Playa Samara. Despite the rain and torrential downpour at times, it was a beautiful drive. I had planned on asking many questions to get a better understanding but never did.

When we arrived in Playa Samara we went to a hall where there was a conference happening. We went to a conference about this law where people gathered to speak and talk about it. A presidential candidate for the 2014 election was also there. I can't figure out if this was a big deal or not so much.

 Ana Cecilia speaking at the conference

Observation: Costa Ricans are so laid back that there was next to no etiquette in this conference. This was perplexing and startling...speakers answering phones. Just weird.

I couldn't understand their speeches so I pretended to get it and clapped when everyone else did. I met a lot of people who probably wondered who the random girl from the US was.

I certainly was taken care of because we were fed two dinners and taken to a resort to stay. Yes, a beautiful resort equipped with a huge pool and jacuzzi, gorgeous deck, patio, and eating area, live band, and server who brought us free, fresh smoothies while we waited. What. I was so confused as to why I was even there. It was a villa hotel. So we found our little villa and it was beautiful.

 Yum!

Hotel Villas Playa Samara

 Pretty snazzy

Hotel Villas Playa Samara

 Again

Hotel Villas Playa Samara

 Not a very good shot but the pool was amazing.

Hotel Villas Playa Samara 

 Hammocks everywhere you go here

Hotel Villas Playa Samara

Inside our villa

Hotel Villas Playa Samara

Fresh flowers everywhere in the villa

Hotel Villas Playa Samara

 Our little villa

Hotel Villas Playa Samara

 Gorgeous

Hotel Villas Playa Samara

The beach

Hotel Villas Playa Samara

I had made a friend by this time that the people I was with seemed to already know. Her name is Miriam and she is a German volunteer who has been here for 9 months with another organization. She was very helpful to me because she spoke some english and actually knew what was going on. We went exploring and enjoyed the band for awhile. We made a couple other friends who were also college students and were at the conference. We all walked on the beach for way longer than we realized. It was beautiful and sometimes it was so dark, we literally couldn't see what was in front of us.

In the morning, we packed up and left to go back to the hall. The rest of the even was supposed to be going through the entire document and answering questions, etc. Ana Cecilia had given me instructions the night before but I wasn't sure what they were. I knew she said I could go to the beach but I didn't know with who or when. My panic was growing because Mario and Marcella were leaving at 10 am and I didn't understand what was expected of me. They finally explained that I could stay and do whatever I wanted. I could stay in Nicoya (an hour North) at the place Miriam lives and get a bus back on Sunday. I guess the whole purpose of me staying longer was just for me to have fun, since I was at such a beautiful beach. I appreciated this but didn't understand this until then. I had been fighting confusion, defeat, and simply being overwhelmed the whole time so the uncertainty just made me more flustered. Again, I knew I would be taken care of and had a friend but I didn't have a bus ticket or that planned and just kind of wanted to be done with the weekend.

So, I left with them. Ana Cecilia left too. I then had feelings of regret and cowardice. I was torn between being adventurous and taking advantage of opportunities and security and understanding. We took Ana Cecilia home and then I ended up going with Mario and Marcella to their family's Father's Day celebration with her side of the family. This was so much fun. Her family is huge and so welcoming. I spent most of the night playing with all the kids because they wanted to practice their English with me and teach me Spanish. It was so cute.

 Costa Rican countryside

 Green for miles

 And sometimes it rains so hard you literally can't see in front of you.

Adorable mustache Father's Day cupcakes

San Ramon

In all, it was a very interesting experience. I know that they took me so that I had exposure to the project that they are very involved in. However, to be quite honest, I am having reservations about my placement. I haven't had much of a purpose and was banking on this weekend to experience and learn a lot. I figured I would be given "homework" to do during the week instead of just being a receptionist. This has spurred a lot of stressed thoughts and doubts. The experience as a whole being here is amazing and I am certainly learning, but I don't know that I am getting all that I should out of my internship. I talked to the ELAP coordinator who advised me to talk to Ana Cecilia. I hope this helps but I am not sure.

Ps. Another thought along with this. There is so little structure in Costa Rica...if you couldn't already tell and there is very rarely a plan. If there is a plan...it always changes. When you know almost no one, speak Spanish far from perfectly, and don't know where you are, this is extremely unnerving.

On a lighter note, Sunday was a great day. My housemate, Toni, and I went to mass at the Cathedral downtown. We grabbed drinks to quench our thirst at none other than Wendy's. Then we headed to one of the museums in the city. It was pretty interesting. They had several exhibits. We first explored an art exhibit for a current painter, Sofia Ruiz. Loved it! Seriously amazing. The we went to the main attraction which is the gold exhibit. It was archeological and anthological which was really fun to see the ancient civilizations here and their uses for gold, learn about the rain forests, etc. They also had a little feline exhibit about the 6 species of cats in the rain forests here and ancient art that was modeled after them. We also checked out an exhibit about money and the history of currency here and an architecture exhibit. Despite being the capital city, San Jose doesn't have much striking architecture or glorious features. It was really fun. We then wandered downtown, stopped at a coffee shop, and walked back.

Today, Libby and I started another dance class. This is taught by a student like us. It was a group of girls with little or no experience and is for the teacher's internship at her home uniersity. It was again a great work out and fun. We are performing next Friday. The dance will basically be a mix of many styles with several songs and include her choreography as well as some that the students have made up in little group projects. I definitely never thought I would be performing while in Costa Rica. It should be fun.

So that's life currently.

<3