where the streets have no name

wtf, costa rica? get some street signs. no one knows where they are or where they're going. oh, wait, no... they're going 800 meters south of the grocery store down the hill around the corner to the right. i asked a women in san jose if she could show me where on the map her store was so mom and i could figure out where we were. she couldn't. i asked a security guard if he knew which way avenida 4 was. he didn't. costa rica, in general, doesn't really have signs, but in san jose? i don't know.

anyways, we made the "quick," 3-hour jaunt from manuel antonio up to san jose to spend our last 36 hours walking around the plazas and doing some sight seeing. san jose has a completely different feel from the rest of costa rica- big city, international feeling. 37 hours would have been too much; we spent the perfect amount of time there.

we started out the day taking a taxi to a butterfly garden where we watched a little video on the mind-blowing journey from egg to butterfly and walked around the garden. we some how made it down to the city center without a glitch and went to the plaza de cultura to watch some street performers and feed the pigeons 8 bags of corn (the smallest bill we had was 1,000 colones- $2). made for a nice picture. as we walked around, we were trying to head in the direction of a gallery. see picture 29 to see how that turned out. after a pointless 15-minute cab ride that literally took us back to where we started, we went to the grand hotel for lunch and had some of costa rica's famous pop's ice cream.

we spent the afternoon at the gold museum learning about costa rican history, culture and currency. sparked my interest to go back to school and study anthropology. we did some shopping for gifts in the rain, then had tickets to see the costa rican youth philharmonic orchestra play at the teatro nacional. the theater was beautiful and the orchestra was incredible. mom has her master's in performing arts and she said it was one of the best performances she has ever seen.

i get a headache thinking about how i'm going to pack everything into my backpack and 2 carry ons. pura vida.

Monkey dancer

buenas! how the heck are y'all doing? as hard as it is going to be to leave, i am looking forward to seeing many of you soon! mom and i had the most unforgettable time in manuel antonio on the central pacific coast. we stayed at an AMAZING place on the beach that is eco-friendly and all the employees are locals and have just been learning english over the past few years. the hotel is in a huge private wildlife reserve and we didn't even have to leave our room to see iguanas, crabs, hummingbirds, bats and monkeys! animals were everywhere and i wanted to take one of each species home with me but that's illegal. i got some great pictures though. the people are incredible- genuine, friendly and helpful. but that goes for everywhere in costa rica. i've been here about 7 weeks and i've only ran into one rude person and that's because we were idiots (circa wide mouth frog for those of you who know what i'm talking about).

we went to manuel antonio national park yesterday. we had an awesome guide, william, who was determined to show us everything there was to see, and he did a great job. we saw two- and three-toed sloths, monkeys, frogs, spiders, deer, bats, snakes, iguanas, toucans, crabs, plants... the works. at one point he was trying to point out a rare deer, but it disappeared and he goes, "it's gone? oh jesus, no!!" it was so funny, but cool he was so passionate about his job. a lesson for everyone. we went to the beach and walked around the park some more. the park's path ends at the edge of town, where we had some "wicked" nasty coconut milk and browsed the street venders. i got a "wicked" cool ring made out of a shell from a drifter who has been traveling around the world for the past 7 years.

aside from the park, we've been hanging out on the beach, watching the monkeys roam around above us, eating well, drinking well, reading, wearing what we normally consider dirty clothes, and having good old fashioned mother/daughter time. i'm also happy to say that i'm weening myself off of chai tea lattes, all skim, no water, one pump vanillas and taking my coffee half milk, half coffee, 1 tablespoon sugar. what what? mom tried it and gagged. i think it's delicious.

i'm almost overwhelmed by all the unforgettable moments i've had since i got here. bear with me over then next 4 or 5 years if i keep peppering in stories that i have forgotten to mention. i also appologize if you are overwhelmed yourself by all the pictures i've posted. the problem is i had no desire to carry my computer around the country with me, so i've loaded all my pictures on facebook, then i'm going to copy them to my computer when i get home. luckily, i've got a lot to look forward to when i get home, including some job interviews, BWOOL Lake Keowee 2K9, and a weekend at home for my godbrother's graduation! plus i get to see my boys and friends :)

p.u.r.a. v.i.d.a.

we can´t talk about the ¨yo¨ form, my mom will crack a joke

greetings from arenal, costa rica! i shouldn´t make cyber promises because i´ve let another week go by (unless you include my airport boredom) without blogging. mom and i met up at the airport on saturday and headed up to finca rosa blanca in heredia (20 min north of san jose). amazing little costa rican country cottage. i single handedly gained any weight i lost over a month and a half in one sitting, but it was really delicious wine. it´s been fun walking around with someone that knows a thing or two about plants and animals (even if she thinks a caution sign is a snake shedding its skin and\or a leaf is a resting moth). we did a hilarious tour of the cafe britt coffee plantation, then headed up to tabacon hot springs in the arenal volcano area.

it´s very strange being back here with mom instead of laura- it´s the same, but different, you know? anyways, we´ve had a lot of fun relaxing, horseback riding, chatting, shopping, going out to eat, charging to the room, etc. the hotel is as gorgeous as the hot springs and we´ve had the chance to see the cone of the volcano more than a few times! no erruptions yet, but we have seen two volcanic rock avalanches and lots of ash smoking out the top... which is annoying because we keep thinking she´s gonna blow any second. i had a wonderful massage at the spa after riding millionario to the la fortuna waterfalls this morning. i´ll post pictures soon- another amazing place. we swam in the pool below the falls, then headed to the river and chilled with the salmon. shortly thereafter, i had a mild cardiac arrest hiking up the 89 degree slope that is the trail from the waterfall.

it has been difficult knowing that my time at escuela san francisco is over. the kids are so amazing and i hope they stay as happy as they were while i was there, because they deserve it. i just have to remember that no one can change the world in a day, but you can share experiences and educate others in hopes that they will be influenced to make a difference in any way they choose. that being said, i hope everyone is living, laughing, loving, and living. peace. love. happiness.

mmmmmmmm, la pura vida. no heat, nor humidity, nor rice, nor bean can keep me from loving you. mom and i are heading to manuel antonio in the morning, but stopping in puriscal for a few hours to visit escuela san francisco and where i lived. i can´t wait to show her everything and see the kiddos again!

and now for a few note·worthy items:
em and griff- congrats! love love love you!
jama: i knew it was a girl!
sadie- hope you had a happy birthday!
dad- have a wonderful father´s day, i can´t wait to see you!
ccs girls: i miss yall so much already!
mi amor y los chicos: ¡hasta pronto! no puedo esperar para el lunes que viene.
to everyone else reading: i´ve really missed you, and as much fun as i´m having down here, i can´t wait to see you and catch up!

besos, em

Madre

I'm just chilling at the airport with free wifi. Mom lands in about an hour. I'll go claim her at arrivals, then we're heading to a coffee plantation in Heredia. The people watching where I'm sitting is exceptional. I've been here an hour and haven't been bored. Some people are idiots, it's amazing they figured out how to leave the country... but they picked a great one to come to! I'll have an update posted soon!

Monteverde = Mind-blowing

i promised myself i wouldn't go a week without blogging again. oopsies. thanks for being one of my followers, dad! so now my followers are: myself, laura- who was with me when i started it and i asked her to follow me, my boyfriend, harris- who asked me to start blogging, and my dad. shout out to them!

another weekend for the record books! we just got back from a truly mind-blowing weekend in monteverde. sometimes things just blow your mind! for example, climbing the INSIDE of a fig tree or seeing a butterfly hatch from a golden cocoon are examples of mind-blowing events. we made the quick, 3 hour jaunt up what can only be described as a vomit-inducing, 1-car-wide, edge-of-a-cliff strip of gravel to the lovely mountain town of monteverde. they didn't rack their brains too hard to name it, as it is the greenest place on earth. even the curbs of the road were green with moss. we stayed in a little cabina, complete with a matress on top of the bathroom just for sophie.

we spent saturday ziplining through costa rica's famous cloud forest, hiking to the suspension bridges, touring the butterfly gardens, shopping and eating ice cream. ziplining was on a completely different level than in montezuma. in montezuma, it was fun being lower to the ground, going over waterfalls and rivers, and seeing monkeys, but monteverde is known for the country's best ziplining for a reason. we were hundreds of feet high and one of the cables was around 600 feet long and took over a minute! we did a free fall jump that also blew my mind. i lost a shoe, then a sock, as they tried to slow me down. the suspension bridges (8 in all) and hiking were very beautiful and unique. we saw toucans, butterflies, lots of mossy greenery, and rainbow colored beetles. next, we toured the butterfly gardens. i might challenge laura's opinion of ants being the most fascinating insects. google butterflies. we saw them at every stage of their life, even when the go to the coolest place in the garden to die. shopping and eating ice cream self-explanatory.

sunday we went on a hike to what we thought was a wild goose chase to a "fig tree." a 20 minute hike turned into almost an hour and a half hike and ended at the most mind-blowing fig tree. you have to look at my pictures to see what i'm talking about. the hike back was, in fact, 20 minutes and we had a very cultural experience for lunch: salads with lettuce, cooked carrots, mayo, white vinegar and sugar, among other ingredients. we walked around town browsing the shops some more before heading back to good ol' puriscal.

it's nice being so familiar with everything now: the routes, the stores, the town, the people, the staff, the school "schedule," etc. it makes the second half of the trip a completely different experience than the first half. i also know most of the students names and they are very accustomed to having us there now. courtney was sick today, so i was on my own and it was really neat coming up with the lesson plans and teaching on my own.

i feel very refreshed getting out of the u.s. for awhile, being isolated from technology (well, you know...), being creative in a different way, and being immersed in a different culture. i've learned a lot about myself and i've learned a lot about others. i love spending the day with kids that live a completely different life than i did at their age. it's very interesting and humbling.

"travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness... and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime." -mark twain

Life's been good to me so far

I am about half way through my trip, and it feels like forever and it feels like I just got here. The only time I miss home is when I talk to my friends and family or I think about Groucho's. Rhett thinks the only reason I like to Skype is so I can see Jack, but that's not true. I just can't tell the little guy how much I miss him. One of the things I won't miss is seeing all the homeless dogs and cats and the occasional cow or horse in the middle of the road. I'll also have a new appreciation for fabric softener.

We just had an amazing weekend in Puerto Viejo on the Caribbean coast! I learned to surf and rode my first wave the entire way! I don't even think I looked that ridiculous. The Caribbean coast is very different from the rest of Costa Rica because of the influence of surrounding islanders settling there. It is very interesting to hear black people speak Spanish with a Jamaican accent. It felt a little like we had left Costa Rica for the weekend. The food was amazing (also very Caribbean influenced), the beaches were beautiful, and the people were as chill as can be. To say that our hostel, Rockin' J's, was unique is a huge understatement. To learn more about what makes it so "unique," check out their website. There was a bonfire on the beach, chairs carved out of tree stumps, probably 200 hammocks, and best of all, a guy checking in on Saturday thought it was Tuesday.

I was invited over to a teacher's house to meet her family and have dinner. She is a very caring person and it was fun to spend the afternoon in a real Costa Rican home. I feel like I've known the kids at school for months and I can't get enough of their tiny little hugs and kisses. Most of them are so short that for their kiss goodbye, they just look up at me with their lips puckered. As I get to know them better, it becomes clear that some of them come from very difficult backgrounds. No matter how much fun we try to have with them, some just have a blank look on their face. At least the teachers there are great and I'm glad to be there.

Costa Rica is playing the United States this Wednesday in a qualifying round for the World Cup. We are all going to go in town and watch it. I actually hope the U.S. loses because I'm a little concerned for my safety if these soccer fans get in a bad mood. I have no idea how my kids come to school everyday with a white shirt on because they leave everyday wearing a brown shirt from playing soccer in the mud. I have been very disconnected from the rest of the world because I only get on the internet 2 or 3 times a week. But I don't mind and it's done wonders for my Facebook-photo-album-checking problem. I did hear about the disappearing plane and I'm wondering what Charles Widmore has planned this time (speaking of, I still haven't caught the LOST season finale!).

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer! I haven't had any Speidi sightings yet, but I'll be sure to get their autograph if they know how to spell their name. Ciao!

Rice and beans. Beans and rice. Rice and beans. Beans and rice...

contrary to what my dad says, my last post was not a hacker. claudia, one of my canadians, helped me write a post to allison and marie-pier, my other canadians. a small joke, nothing more. moving on...

we just spent a lovely weekend in manuel antonio on the central pacific coast of costa rica. we went horseback riding, to the national park, and to some beaches. we saw some monkeys, and some sloths, and some hippies. there are some beaches that are a part of the national park, so we hiked around spotting all sorts of creatures, then hit up the beach. then high tide came, so we left the beach. shout out to allison's first time going to the beach!! we stayed at a really legit hostel, the wide mouthed frog. our room was all of 10 square feet, but we made it our own. swimming in the pouring rain and playing with the many puppies were also highlights.

some of us went horseback riding while the others went zip lining. i rode manchito for a beautiful 2 hour ride into the rain forest to a couple waterfalls where we plummeted 12 feet into the swimming hole. the other waterfall was 350 feet. that one hurt more than the 12 footer. not. we even saw a toucan during the ride! technically, we had a tour guide, but we kind of just did our own thing, which was really fun. most of us galloped on the way back. i don't recommend it if you plan on walking normally the following day.

my first week at school went very well. each day goes smoother and smoother. it took me the entire week to figure out the not-so-scheduled schedule. i am teaching 1st-5th grade and each grade is soooo different! not to be biased, but the girls behave much better than the boys. the younger kids are learning basic things like animals and colors and the older kids are learning simple phrases. it's fun teaching them because they understand the importance of learning english and they love to learn! i'm improving my soccer skills from zero to ok during recess and it's so fun to see all the different grades play together. there are only 55 students in the entire school (1st-6th grade) and the principal is also the 6th grade teacher.

well, i'm about to go eat beans and rice for dinner. hope you are enjoying the pictures! pura vida.

Saperlipopette

Hé les perdants, vous croyiez que je ne pouvais pas parler français mais vous aviez tort. Je savais secrètement tout ce que vous avez dit du début à la fin, et je ne suis pas vraiment heureuse. Par conséquent, je jaillirai du dentifrice partout dans votre lit une nuit quelconque la semaine prochaine. Après le dentifrice, j'aspergerai du riz et des haricots partout dans vos vêtements propre afin que vous ne puissiez porter que vos bracelets. Tout les "ticos" tomberont amoureux avec vous. Donc la prochaine fois que vous parlez français, je suggère que vous y pensez deux fois.

Oui oui, rhan rhan.

"How did you get here?"

i survived my first day at escuela san francisco! its one of the poorest schools in the area of puriscal, but the kids are so excited to learn, are very curious, and behave much better than i expected. i meet with 4 classes, 3rd-6th grade, for about an hour monday-friday. the students are very chatty and have a million questions for me! for example, how did i get to costa rica? no one at the school speaks any english; the teachers even ask me some questions like they're trying to learn, too. they told their students i am there to teach them a very important language- english- and they all screamed with excitement! 

after class was over, kids were coming up to me and hugging me, then they went up to their principal, shook his hand, and said, "goodbye! nice to meet you!" it was soooo adorable. i played soccer with a few of them during recess. the 9-year-olds especially whooped up on me. i was sitting on a bench for a little while and they all crowded around me with questions about anything you can think of. the school is up on a hill and has a gorgeous view of the mountains. my program director said "the kids might not have much, but they're always happy with a smile on their face." i have to speak 99% spanish during the day; the only english i really speak is the word or phrase i'm trying to teach them.

so far in puriscal it dumps rain around 3 or 3:30 for a few hours, but its beautiful the rest of the day and the rain cools down the hottest part of the day. it's funny being in a small town because sometimes the water just shuts off for a few hours without warning. we have a reserve tank at our home, so it's usually not a big deal. but we definately notice it cause there's no water upstairs and the water pressure downstairs goes low. we say we should just go outside and shower in the rain. the power also randomly goes out sometimes. its just not as reliable as in the u.s. but no one cares. pura vida. 

Goodbye. Hello.

well, laura is leaving in the morning and i will have orientation for my program tomorrow. i'm sad she's leaving, but we have had the best time! i got my work placement the other day and i will be helping a new school develop an english as a second language program for their students and teaching. it's a perfect fit for me and i am so excited to get started on monday!

we got to san jose today after about 3 or so days in playa jaco. oh, playa jaco. you were so much fun that i will forgive you for all your prositutes and humidity. it was a great way to end such an adventurous week. lots of pool and beach time. lots of fun bars and restaurants. jaco is known for surfing, so every other store was a surf shop with lots of "dudes" with damaged hair and freckle-y shoulders.

san jose has left us stranded in our hotel. let's just say being a young american girl in the center of downtown san jose does NOT go unnoticed... glad we are only here one night. just your typical (or should i say tipycal?) big city capital. but it is neat to have a different change of pace. mom and i are going to go to some museums before our flight out, so i'm sure i will get a different feel for san jose.

i hope you all are doing well! i miss everyone.

rhett: thanks for getting on gchat for me. i love you.
jackson and murphy: try not to take up too much of the bed and be good. i miss you. you would have lots of fun with all the doggies down here.
jessica: it's not as easy to fall asleep at night without some winnelberry. i've still got my bracelet on.
lebar: don't let bentley grow up too fast. the four of us will go to the park as soon as i get back!
harris: hey bud. i miss you lots and lots.
jefferson: i'm getting some great new ideas for recipies and i'm going to bring us home some awesome salsas.
b: happy graduation! enjoy that you have school in the fall! seriously.
jo ho: live the dream, girlfriend. i love yo ass.
jules: the news anchors down here wear formal gowns. stick to the local stations. :)
whit: stay out of trouble, but have some good stories for me when i get back!
family: i love you and i can't wait for todd's graduation weekend with everyone!
todd: so proud of ya! we're going to have so much fun celebrating!
my WH listserv girls: you y'all light up my life and my inbox. i love hearing from y'all and miss everyone being together!
jama: am i still going to be your little one come october? you can say no. i still love you :)
lawrence: playa jaco = playa del carmen. you know what i mean.
alliman: oh the places we'll go...

will someone please have an STP for me? thanks a bunch.

take care, everyone! talk to you soon.

Gone to Montezuma... yeah, yeah, yeah

hello again! greetings from montezuma, costa rica. laura and i have been here for about 3 days and are heading to jaco beach soon. since i last blogged, we have gone zip lining, hiking, swimming in the waterfalls and cliff jumping. that's just what you do when you're in costa rica. at night we grab a table on the beach and eat shrimp and drink mojitos. 

we finally saw monkeys! we've heard them all night, every night, but they are as adorable as they sound. especially the little guys, except when they don't quite clear the jump and fall down a few branches. but they're troopers. we saw lots of them when we went zip lining. we strapped on to a cable in the rain forest and zipped from one platform to the next (about 9 times or so). some short, some you can't see where you're going to end, but you know the end of the cable is attached to something. 

we ignored advice and hiked to the waterfalls in rainbows. no real damage, but i did manage to get a minor twisted ankle the next day wearing new balances. such is my luck. we made our way through the howling monkeys and rivers to the falls and did a little swimming and a little jumping and a little swinging from the rope swing.

our next stop is jaco beach- costa rica's rendition of spring break. we're pretty excited to have some beach time and wander around some more. we've been very active, something our muscles are making clear now. we can't lift our bags very high before the excruciating soreness kicks in, but it's been worth it. plus it gives us an excuse to eat whatever we want and i've got a sweet bruise the size of a banana. well, i'd love to spend some more time on the computer, but not really. 

hasta pronto!

¡Pura Vida!

hello friends. look at me blog! i figured if you care enough to check this out, you might care what i´m up to in costa rica. let me start out by saying this: you need to come to costa rica. it is one of those places you can´t die without seeing or you´re missing out. it is absolutely incredible. for those of you that don´t know, here is my story:

laura and i are traveling about costa rica may 7-may 17. then she is leaving and i am going to be working at a school (escula san francisco) teaching english to 4th graders in santiago de puriscal for a month. my mom is coming down june 13 and we will be traveling until june 22. the end.

i have been here for almost three days now and i am so in love with this country. and people. and food. and prices. yesterday we went to the tabacon hot springs... heaven on earth. the springs are made up of waterfalls, rivers, and lagoons that are heated by the lava from the arenal volcano. the most picture perfect place i have ever seen. we stayed most of the day and ended with a good amount of tequila at the swim up bar, but that is a different story.

today we went canyoning: hiking through the rainforest and rappelling down waterfalls. awesome. just the epitome of tropical beauty. not scary at all either, although i should´ve been. we rappelled down four waterfalls, two smaller rocky ones and two bigger ones: 150 feet and 200 feet. the rainforest was at the base of the volcano. by the way, no major erruptions (although there is a hotel here called ¨hotel erruptions¨).

obviously i will post pictures on facebook (i´ll try to email you, mom and dad) when i bring the necessary equipment to the internet cafe. until then, my friends and family, i am going to go enjoy myself with one of my best friends in one of the best countries in the world.

¡Pura Vida!