Hiiiiiii everyone, or atleast the few people that might still be reading this,
I returned back, safe and sound from Limon on Wednesday. It was the craziest 4 weeks of my life and I couldn't be happier I chose to live where I lived for my intership. At times, it was really hard, but I mostly only remember the good and GREAT.
I'm not going to write about my experience cause first, I have no time, second, typed sentences aren't sufficient to describe the last 4 weeks, and third, I'll be seeing you all very shortly. So you'll just have to wait for juicy details and funny stories.
For those that are still following my life through the internet, I leave for Cuba in a few hours and CAN'T WAIT! We'll be there for a week, then have to come back to San Jose for a night, before we go to Miami. I'll be in Miami for 2 days and then I'm CO bound :)
I hope you all had a great thanksgiving and soon it'll be Christmas! Have a good week, see you sooooooooooon
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Livin jungle style
Hey y'all,
I can't believe it's already November! Time is flying by like you wouldn't believe. Looking back, I'm amazed at all I've learned, and looking ahead reminds there is still so much to be experienced.
Last weekend, our fall break, was one of the most ridiculously fun weekends I've ever had. Myself and 10 other friends decided to take a trip to Manuel Antonio near Quepos, Costa Rica. Manuel Antonio is a beach town/national park on the Pacific Coast. Two of the people in the group did all the planning, which I was fine with. They told me how much it would cost, and that we'd be staying in some kind of villa. In my mind I was still thinking "hotel" kind of business, which instead turned out to be our own private mansion for 5 days.
I'm not sure I've ever stayed, or even been in the presence of such a place. At first, I was sure it was a mistake, we were being ripped off, or that the 11 of us were sharing the Villa with another family of 20, but no. Just us, on fall break, in the middle of the rainforest, overlooking the beach, from our villa. WOW!
Since the peeps that own it aren't "hurting" financially in the midst of this not so great economy, and because it's the rainy season, they offered us a good deal. Either way we were speechless until the last day, and soaked in every second. It was pure laughter for 5 days straight, and an incredible feeling to be done with classes and do nothing but relax. On the 5th day, none of us wanted to leave. But, of course we did, which is always interesting going from the coast to the city, where things are busier and more crowded. In this case we went from Jungle Villa to concrete jungle, ha. But if anything, fall break was energizing and rejuvenating.
I had a few classes this last week, in preparation for our internships, AND my momma came to visit!!!! I'm sure most of you already know, but for those of you that didn't, she's here RIGHT NOW. To be honest, she really couldn't have come at a better time, between fall break, and before I leave to live with the Bribri. Although we've spent all our time in the city, it's been a blast. We've been embracing our tourist selves and showing Costa Rica a good time.
I leave on Monday, around 6 am, for Puerto Viejo, Limon. Getting nervous for the unexpected, and can't decide if 3 weeks is really long or just kinda long. Guess I'll find out. All in all, I hope this internship shows me a whole new side of Costa Rican life, and that I find myself experiencing and putting into practice new ways of thinking.
Can't wait to see you all in a month or two!!! Enjoy your Nov and I'll return on Nov 25th from Limon with lots of stories. Love you all :)
I can't believe it's already November! Time is flying by like you wouldn't believe. Looking back, I'm amazed at all I've learned, and looking ahead reminds there is still so much to be experienced.
Last weekend, our fall break, was one of the most ridiculously fun weekends I've ever had. Myself and 10 other friends decided to take a trip to Manuel Antonio near Quepos, Costa Rica. Manuel Antonio is a beach town/national park on the Pacific Coast. Two of the people in the group did all the planning, which I was fine with. They told me how much it would cost, and that we'd be staying in some kind of villa. In my mind I was still thinking "hotel" kind of business, which instead turned out to be our own private mansion for 5 days.
I'm not sure I've ever stayed, or even been in the presence of such a place. At first, I was sure it was a mistake, we were being ripped off, or that the 11 of us were sharing the Villa with another family of 20, but no. Just us, on fall break, in the middle of the rainforest, overlooking the beach, from our villa. WOW!
Since the peeps that own it aren't "hurting" financially in the midst of this not so great economy, and because it's the rainy season, they offered us a good deal. Either way we were speechless until the last day, and soaked in every second. It was pure laughter for 5 days straight, and an incredible feeling to be done with classes and do nothing but relax. On the 5th day, none of us wanted to leave. But, of course we did, which is always interesting going from the coast to the city, where things are busier and more crowded. In this case we went from Jungle Villa to concrete jungle, ha. But if anything, fall break was energizing and rejuvenating.
I had a few classes this last week, in preparation for our internships, AND my momma came to visit!!!! I'm sure most of you already know, but for those of you that didn't, she's here RIGHT NOW. To be honest, she really couldn't have come at a better time, between fall break, and before I leave to live with the Bribri. Although we've spent all our time in the city, it's been a blast. We've been embracing our tourist selves and showing Costa Rica a good time.
I leave on Monday, around 6 am, for Puerto Viejo, Limon. Getting nervous for the unexpected, and can't decide if 3 weeks is really long or just kinda long. Guess I'll find out. All in all, I hope this internship shows me a whole new side of Costa Rican life, and that I find myself experiencing and putting into practice new ways of thinking.
Can't wait to see you all in a month or two!!! Enjoy your Nov and I'll return on Nov 25th from Limon with lots of stories. Love you all :)
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
More fotos...
Amigas
Adam eating our graduation food... before we graduated
Spanish class
Beach in Tamarindo, Guanacaste
Pretty church in Granada, Nicaragua
Mr. monkey chillin on our boat
Touring Las Islas in Grananda
Part of mi familia in Nicaragua
The national sport of Nicaragua is baseball, but everyone still loves futbol!
Finished product
Our church, where I spent most of my time in Nicaragua. The beginning of a sweet paint job.
Old theatre in Managua with a picture of the Revolution in front
The whole group
Found my name in downtown San Jose
Adam eating our graduation food... before we graduated
Spanish class
Beach in Tamarindo, Guanacaste
Pretty church in Granada, Nicaragua
Mr. monkey chillin on our boat
Touring Las Islas in Grananda
Part of mi familia in Nicaragua
The national sport of Nicaragua is baseball, but everyone still loves futbol!
Finished product
Our church, where I spent most of my time in Nicaragua. The beginning of a sweet paint job.
Old theatre in Managua with a picture of the Revolution in front
The whole group
Found my name in downtown San Jose
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Back from the dead
I'm baaaaaaccckkkkk
Some of you might be wondering if I'm still alive here in CR, but most likely I've talked to the mjority of you and that's not the case. I started writing this post last week, but after re-reading it just now I decided to erase it. So now I'm starting fresh, and I don't plan on leaving this spot until I finish this post!
I last wrote to you after going to the beach with my family. Only a week after that we went to Nicaragua. Nicaragua was a two week trip that required each one of us to stay individually with host families. There were a few assignments while we there, but the point was simply to live with them. It was a really really hard trip, but also eye-opening both politically and socially. Although my family and the community I lived in was one of the poorest in Managua, the hospitality I received was out of this world. I went to church everyday, sometimes twice a day, and even had the privilege of giving a sermon in Spanish. Yaaaa, didn't really think of it like that at the time, but looking back it was a good excercise. The two most frustrating things while I was there were the fact that my spanish was horrible, and I got really sick. I think I hit a wall with spanish, as well as the fact that Nicaraguans have a craaazzzyyyy accent. Being sick was definitely not fun either, and made me a bit homesick, but now that I'm better all is good :)
After Nicaragua school got a little more intense with papers and presentations, but of course it all got done in the end. I have now officially graduated from Spanish after 80 hours of class and 60 hours on the bus to get there everyday, and it feels sooooo good. Yesterday was the last day of my program classes and it really helped me sum up a lot of what I've learned here so far, which is...
What I do in my daily life, how I consume, and how I live as an individual in my community really does affect others around me, and in other parts of the world. (I know many of you are thinking "duh," but putting it into practice here has been meaningful to me).
Besides school, I've just been trying to live it up. Two weekends ago a few of us took a beach trip to Tamarindo in the province of Guanacaste. It was beautiful, of course, and gave me a lot of energy to finish my semester here. The area was really touristy, and all the shops and businesses are owned by people from all over the world, but being around so many foreigners reminded me how much I love traveling. I also finally went salsa dancing this last weekend, and now feel complete. I thought I would be doing dancing all the time here, but until now hadn't found a place. Oh well, I'm happy to have done it once.
Anyways, tomorrow starts our fall break. It's a five day break the program gives us between classes and our concentration, which I'm so thankful for. A bunch of us are planning on going to... try and guess... yes the beach! I'm excited to not think about school and kick it with amigos.
That's about it for now. I'm really going to try and make a conscious effort to write more over the next week and a half before I jet out to Limon. But I did find out that there is internet close by the reservation, so now I can update you periodically while I'm there! Until then, I love you and miss you, and hope the majority of you receieved my postcards! ciaochowwww
Carli
Some of you might be wondering if I'm still alive here in CR, but most likely I've talked to the mjority of you and that's not the case. I started writing this post last week, but after re-reading it just now I decided to erase it. So now I'm starting fresh, and I don't plan on leaving this spot until I finish this post!
I last wrote to you after going to the beach with my family. Only a week after that we went to Nicaragua. Nicaragua was a two week trip that required each one of us to stay individually with host families. There were a few assignments while we there, but the point was simply to live with them. It was a really really hard trip, but also eye-opening both politically and socially. Although my family and the community I lived in was one of the poorest in Managua, the hospitality I received was out of this world. I went to church everyday, sometimes twice a day, and even had the privilege of giving a sermon in Spanish. Yaaaa, didn't really think of it like that at the time, but looking back it was a good excercise. The two most frustrating things while I was there were the fact that my spanish was horrible, and I got really sick. I think I hit a wall with spanish, as well as the fact that Nicaraguans have a craaazzzyyyy accent. Being sick was definitely not fun either, and made me a bit homesick, but now that I'm better all is good :)
After Nicaragua school got a little more intense with papers and presentations, but of course it all got done in the end. I have now officially graduated from Spanish after 80 hours of class and 60 hours on the bus to get there everyday, and it feels sooooo good. Yesterday was the last day of my program classes and it really helped me sum up a lot of what I've learned here so far, which is...
What I do in my daily life, how I consume, and how I live as an individual in my community really does affect others around me, and in other parts of the world. (I know many of you are thinking "duh," but putting it into practice here has been meaningful to me).
Besides school, I've just been trying to live it up. Two weekends ago a few of us took a beach trip to Tamarindo in the province of Guanacaste. It was beautiful, of course, and gave me a lot of energy to finish my semester here. The area was really touristy, and all the shops and businesses are owned by people from all over the world, but being around so many foreigners reminded me how much I love traveling. I also finally went salsa dancing this last weekend, and now feel complete. I thought I would be doing dancing all the time here, but until now hadn't found a place. Oh well, I'm happy to have done it once.
Anyways, tomorrow starts our fall break. It's a five day break the program gives us between classes and our concentration, which I'm so thankful for. A bunch of us are planning on going to... try and guess... yes the beach! I'm excited to not think about school and kick it with amigos.
That's about it for now. I'm really going to try and make a conscious effort to write more over the next week and a half before I jet out to Limon. But I did find out that there is internet close by the reservation, so now I can update you periodically while I'm there! Until then, I love you and miss you, and hope the majority of you receieved my postcards! ciaochowwww
Carli
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
PICTURES!!!
Our lovely little beach (playa blanca) at the end of the day
Best Ceviche of my life
My dad... probably making fun of me
View from an island in Puntarenas
Dinner in Limon followed by dancing in the hottest weather imagineable... but way worth it
Adam with the most giant pig known to humans
My future family and dinner in less than two months
Lengua de Vaca (cow tongue) and some other goodness
Me and my sister at Volcan Poas
Monday, September 14, 2009
21!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wow
I´m not sure where to begin. I feel like it´s been forever since I´ve last blogged, and now I have so much to say. If I was only to write one more word to describe the past week it would be "beach goodness," which is actually two. Thankfully I wont only be writing that one word, but most likely a novel or two again.
Last weekend was our Limón trip from friday to sunday. Something I´m extremely thankful for in this program is how much I´m learning about the culture. It would be easy to just travel around Costa Rica somewhat removed from reality while hardly getting to know the people you encounter. But one of the main reasons we went to Limón was to understand poverty in Costa Rica from an Indigenous and Afro-Costarican perpective. There was a lot of preparation before we left with speakers and reesarch. We were also required to interview 3 people in San Jose before we left, and 3 people while in Limón about poverty. All I can say is that it made me see Limón, and Costa Rica in general, for more than just it´s beaches, although that was a huge part of it, it´s been a healthy mix of fun and learning. But I´ll try not to bore you with the school stuff too much.
On our way to Limón we stopped at 3 different plantations (fincas). I don´t think I´ve ever been to any type of plantation, so all 3 were new to me. The first was coffee. A plantation I probably should´ve visited a long time ago considering how much I drink. The second was a pineapple plantation, which in case you were wondering, pineapples from the ground out of bushes. First, I thought they grew on trees... silly me. Then I thought they grew IN the ground. But no, they grow from these weird plants. The third was a Del Monte Banana plantation, which was loud and exciting, and we got a bunch of free bananas.
During our drive to Limón, we could immediately tell by the weather when we had reached the Carribean. Once we finally got there the weather was unbelievable. It was some of the hottest, stickiest, most humid weather I´ve EVER experienced. I´m not what I was expecting but I wasn´t prepared for the massive amount of sweating I did the entire weekend. Showers felt pointless, and towels were useless, since nothing is dry there. Although it was uncomfortable at the beginning, you get used to it quick, since everyone around you is equally sweaty.
Saturday was the best day of our trip, mostly because it was my BIRTHDAY!!! We started the day by visiting an indigenous reservation of a tribe called the Bribri. The reservation was crazy. They raise animals and grow all of their own food, but the biggest thing they farm are Iguanas. Iguanas are realy important to them not only for food, but also help replenish the forest. They are extremely in touch with nature, and always seek new ways to sustain the resources they consume. But they are also really marginalized in Costa Rica, and hardly have a say in any political decisions. They receive little medical care, and many times the government treats them as if they don´t exist.
After that, we went to a nearby national park, Cahuita, where there were tons of beautiful beaches. As I was swimming in crystal clear, warm water, while everyone in my group sang me happy birthday, I thought to myself, "I´ll probably never have a birthday like this again." And it´s true. We spent several hours at the beach, and although it wasn´t very sunny, everyone had a really good time. When we got back, we had an authentic carribean meal, which was amazing, followed by dancing, with music from a live carribean band. Literally, one of the best birthdays I´ve ever had.
The next day we went home, and I immediately appreciated my situation in San Jose more than before I left. The weather, which I use to think was hot and humid, felt dry. And my house, which sometimes made me squirm with cockroaches, felt like a mansion after seeing the wasy people live in Limón. That afternoon when I got home, I decided to eat an early dinner. Then I found out that it was my cousins birthday and that we were going to their house to eat more. Basically I´ve never eaten that much in my life. I´ve learned how to say no to food at my host home, but when I´m a guest at a different home, it´s harder. Sooooo either I ate so much that I made myself sick that night and next day, or I had a bug. Who knows.
On monday my family surprised me and told me that since I wasn´t in San Jose for my birthday, they wanted to take me to the beach on Tuesday, which was Independence Day. Woo hoo, more beaches! So since everyone has school and work off on September 15th, yesterday we went to a city called Puntarenas to a beach called Playa Blanca. It was equally, if not more beautiful than Limón. Like nothing I´ve ever seen. There were vendors that came by selling fresh Ceviche and Coconuts, and the sand was made of only seashells. I basically spent 8 hours in paradise all in the name of independence and my birhtday. I definitely wouldn´t say that I´m living a vacation here everyday, although it sounds like it, but it´s crazy to me that I can drive only 2 hours to places many people dream of vacationing. Very fortunate.
One downer, is that during the past two trips to the beach, I´ve gotten water in my ear that wont come out. So on top of not always being able to understand the language, I´m now part deaf. Great. Hopefully they have something at the store that can take care of this little problem.
I definitely could say way more, but now my fingers are tired of typing. I´ll try to write again before we leave for Nicaragua on Monday, but if not I wont have any communication while we´re there for two weeks. So if you have anything to say before I leave, ya better do it soooooooon. Much love
P.S.- please please please comment and leave me updates about yourselves. I really miss you all!
I´m not sure where to begin. I feel like it´s been forever since I´ve last blogged, and now I have so much to say. If I was only to write one more word to describe the past week it would be "beach goodness," which is actually two. Thankfully I wont only be writing that one word, but most likely a novel or two again.
Last weekend was our Limón trip from friday to sunday. Something I´m extremely thankful for in this program is how much I´m learning about the culture. It would be easy to just travel around Costa Rica somewhat removed from reality while hardly getting to know the people you encounter. But one of the main reasons we went to Limón was to understand poverty in Costa Rica from an Indigenous and Afro-Costarican perpective. There was a lot of preparation before we left with speakers and reesarch. We were also required to interview 3 people in San Jose before we left, and 3 people while in Limón about poverty. All I can say is that it made me see Limón, and Costa Rica in general, for more than just it´s beaches, although that was a huge part of it, it´s been a healthy mix of fun and learning. But I´ll try not to bore you with the school stuff too much.
On our way to Limón we stopped at 3 different plantations (fincas). I don´t think I´ve ever been to any type of plantation, so all 3 were new to me. The first was coffee. A plantation I probably should´ve visited a long time ago considering how much I drink. The second was a pineapple plantation, which in case you were wondering, pineapples from the ground out of bushes. First, I thought they grew on trees... silly me. Then I thought they grew IN the ground. But no, they grow from these weird plants. The third was a Del Monte Banana plantation, which was loud and exciting, and we got a bunch of free bananas.
During our drive to Limón, we could immediately tell by the weather when we had reached the Carribean. Once we finally got there the weather was unbelievable. It was some of the hottest, stickiest, most humid weather I´ve EVER experienced. I´m not what I was expecting but I wasn´t prepared for the massive amount of sweating I did the entire weekend. Showers felt pointless, and towels were useless, since nothing is dry there. Although it was uncomfortable at the beginning, you get used to it quick, since everyone around you is equally sweaty.
Saturday was the best day of our trip, mostly because it was my BIRTHDAY!!! We started the day by visiting an indigenous reservation of a tribe called the Bribri. The reservation was crazy. They raise animals and grow all of their own food, but the biggest thing they farm are Iguanas. Iguanas are realy important to them not only for food, but also help replenish the forest. They are extremely in touch with nature, and always seek new ways to sustain the resources they consume. But they are also really marginalized in Costa Rica, and hardly have a say in any political decisions. They receive little medical care, and many times the government treats them as if they don´t exist.
After that, we went to a nearby national park, Cahuita, where there were tons of beautiful beaches. As I was swimming in crystal clear, warm water, while everyone in my group sang me happy birthday, I thought to myself, "I´ll probably never have a birthday like this again." And it´s true. We spent several hours at the beach, and although it wasn´t very sunny, everyone had a really good time. When we got back, we had an authentic carribean meal, which was amazing, followed by dancing, with music from a live carribean band. Literally, one of the best birthdays I´ve ever had.
The next day we went home, and I immediately appreciated my situation in San Jose more than before I left. The weather, which I use to think was hot and humid, felt dry. And my house, which sometimes made me squirm with cockroaches, felt like a mansion after seeing the wasy people live in Limón. That afternoon when I got home, I decided to eat an early dinner. Then I found out that it was my cousins birthday and that we were going to their house to eat more. Basically I´ve never eaten that much in my life. I´ve learned how to say no to food at my host home, but when I´m a guest at a different home, it´s harder. Sooooo either I ate so much that I made myself sick that night and next day, or I had a bug. Who knows.
On monday my family surprised me and told me that since I wasn´t in San Jose for my birthday, they wanted to take me to the beach on Tuesday, which was Independence Day. Woo hoo, more beaches! So since everyone has school and work off on September 15th, yesterday we went to a city called Puntarenas to a beach called Playa Blanca. It was equally, if not more beautiful than Limón. Like nothing I´ve ever seen. There were vendors that came by selling fresh Ceviche and Coconuts, and the sand was made of only seashells. I basically spent 8 hours in paradise all in the name of independence and my birhtday. I definitely wouldn´t say that I´m living a vacation here everyday, although it sounds like it, but it´s crazy to me that I can drive only 2 hours to places many people dream of vacationing. Very fortunate.
One downer, is that during the past two trips to the beach, I´ve gotten water in my ear that wont come out. So on top of not always being able to understand the language, I´m now part deaf. Great. Hopefully they have something at the store that can take care of this little problem.
I definitely could say way more, but now my fingers are tired of typing. I´ll try to write again before we leave for Nicaragua on Monday, but if not I wont have any communication while we´re there for two weeks. So if you have anything to say before I leave, ya better do it soooooooon. Much love
P.S.- please please please comment and leave me updates about yourselves. I really miss you all!
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