It's been a few days-sorry to keep ya'll waiting! Let's see here, where did I leave off...Saturday morning I woke up (way too early for my liking) and walked to the bus stop where I met up with my friends from school. We took the bus into San Jose where we had to run to catch our second bus to Jaco. The ride was long and fairly boring. Although I did see some cocodrilos (crocodiles) and the views in Costa Rica are always gorgeous so it depends on your definition of boring.
The bus company over-booked the ride so some of my friends had to sit on the floor, pretty unfortunate but in the end I'm sure it was worth it. It was our first trip to the beach, so exciting! Jaco is known for its tourism and dirty water-not too much else. I have been told many a times that this beach is a disappointment compared to others like Manuel Antonio (going there next weekend) and others. I guess I am easily impressed! The weather was crazy hot, easily hitting a hundred degrees with a ton of humidity. There were palm trees and the ocean, which was all I needed. We sat on the sand and played in the water all day. It was really relaxing. I would sit under the umbrella (we paid less than $1 a piece between 18 people to use them for the day) and close my eyes and breathe in the ocean air and let the sun tan (or burn) my skin. Even with sunscreen, my skin was shot.
I stayed the night in a hostel that cost less than $15 a person for the night. It was a super awesome deal that we were only able to find because we had tico friends with us that know all the good spots. It was a clean place to stay with a nice view of the beach. The following day (sunday) my host family (and some extended family members) picked me up in Jaco. We proceed to go to another beach (which was way less impressive with its rocks, dirty sand, and crowds.) Afterwards we drove to Puntarenas, a supposedly better beach to eat dinner and show it to me. It was very pretty with its expansive beach and views of nearby mountains. Then we faced the 2 hour drive home. My family proceeded to 'help' me with my Spanish homework. They did the classic, say this word in a sentence, then the entire van bursts out laughing because what I said was an offensive phrase. They're such goofballs, although I appreciate the humor. Personally, I was a bit cranky after having too much sun, not enough water or food, cuts on my feet, sunburn, and an upset stomach. But we made it home, and boy was I thankful to finally get some shut eye.Today was back to school. This week is the start of my Central American History class. We have this young professor named Francisco or Franc for short-he seems pretty cool, he likes his politics, but I think I will enjoy the class. We watched a video today by a Nigerian women named Chimamanda Adiche entitled, "Dangers of a Single Story" this link is here --> [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9Ihs241zeg]. If you have the time to youtube it, I would highly recommend it as I think everyone should see it. It explains the perceptions we learn as we grow up in our cultures, only seeing one side of every story. It has a lot to do with trying to understand other cultures while still embracing your own. Very interesting.
After class, I had a 3 hour break until my Spanish class so I went into town and bought some more band-aids (curas) since I can't stop cutting myself on things, tripping, or otherwise finding a way to need a band-aid. Good thing it only cost me a little over $1 for 46 band aids. If you're curious about the weird number, it's because I had to buy them at the pharmacy and they usually sell them one by one for 15 colones.
Afterwards, I returned for Spanish class. It was fun, as it always seems to be here. I don't know if I've ever enjoyed my classes as much as I do here. We learn a lot but in a non-traditional style. We play games and my professor is young enough where he still likes to crack jokes and make class fun for us all. I look forward to class and seeing what we will learn next.
After class I returned home to hang out with my host family. After dinner I was hanging out with my sister when we got the bright idea to pull a prank on my brother. My mom helped us cut saran wrap and we proceeded to tape it to his door at about eye level. I sat in the breezeway to take a picture of the hilarious moment as my mama called for him to come into the house. He opened the door, immediately saw it...and me. I made a break for the house but ran straight into the clear glass sliding door. They were dying laughing for a good five minutes. Jokes on me, I guess! Don't worry, he left for the night so we sabotaged his room with a better prank-newspapers under the sheets and peanut butter on the door handles. He should be coming home any minute so we shall see his reaction-I'm sure I'll be getting pranked for a while after this!
Hasta Luego!
Love, Kristin
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