Long Day

Had class first thing this morning. She gave me a huge packet of homework. It appears that I am unique in that I actually complete all of my homework. I had lunch with Meredith and a girl that I met in the program. We were thinking about going to a movie but instead Meredith and I went for a hike. Being that we are in the Orosi Valley all hikes are up mountains. We were planning on going to a waterfall but we apparently had to find this guy after hiking to his house. We looked a bit and then decided just to turn back. There were some gorgeous views of the valley particularly because we went about an hour before sunset. This was a nice exertion before dinner and relaxing. I completed the end of my homework and did some studying.

Tomorrow we travel to Cairiari where we will be taking a boat to Tortuguero.

Miércoles

Nothing real exciting to report. I have crazy class times this week and next which is a bit obnoxious but it's ok. What that means is that today in the afternoon I just read my book. I actually finished it and found a Michael Crichton book in Spanish and am attempting that. I also had my laundry done today which should last me to the end of my trip :). I also made my first hotel reservation in Spanish which went well.

My shin splints are killing me. It was nice to relax today and give them a chance to heal. Tomorrow will probably be more of the same and then Friday we are traveling to Tortuguero for the weekend.

Jardín Botánico Lankester

We got up early and traveled to Paraiso where we went to the Jardín Botántico (botanical gardens). It was different than what we would find in the states. It was nice to have a place to go and talk and look at things. We won't do much in the next few days because I have class 8-11 and Meredith has class 12-3 which really kills the day particularly because after 3 it typically rains.

I decided I wanted to purchase a book in Spanish to read while I'm here and when I'm home. There are apparently only a few bookstores in the country which are all located in San Jose. That just baffles me. So I may or may not be getting any books. There are 2 groups of high school students taking classes which has frazzled the teachers and is obnoxious. I liked my vacation from my high schoolers. I think it will be mostly a problem this week. We will be going to Tortuguero for my final weekend in Costa Rica to see the tortugas (turtles).

I have been having good conversations with the family here and my Spanish has improved. I hope I reach my goals while I'm here.

Happy Monday

We returned to find that our class times changed which meant that we didn't have to rush back. We went at the usual time and they looked at us like we were crazy. Apparently the school is supposed to calorie family to let them know what time class is on Sunday and nobody did. It's ok though because I enjoy being with my family. It really pushes me to work on my Spanish in a low pressure situation. We hiked up the rode further than we thought but found this nice artesian that has a shop on the side of the road. His work is really nice done by hand with dried coffee plant wood. We are going to go prior to class tomorrow to one of the places to hike or relax. We may be more limited on time but we still have a lot to see in Orosi. It is surprising that here is so much in such a small town. I did not like the 3-6 class that I had today. I'm happy that this should be my only one. The teachers are getting tired and are not doing as well because of it. 2 large groups of high school students came in and are taking 2 of the 3 time slots. They are also obnoxious high school students. We keep saying that we left to get away from the American teenagers :).

Another day of Travel

We were woke up by the heavy rain and then by someone's alarm clock that just kept going off. We ate and got dressed and then decided to try a hike. We didn't realize that it was going to be as crazy as it was. We ended up taking a taxi part of the way and then not making it to the top because it was really hot And up a hill. There was an even greater distance from there. We were both slipping and falling on our trek. So we walked back so we wouldn't be late for the bus. And then we traveled to San Jose then Cartago and finally arrived in Orosi. It is unfortunate that the public transit system here stems from San Jose because it adds a lot of time on our trips. It of course was raining since it rains here everyday at 3:00. It is nice to be back where there is some predictability. The only problem is that I have been speaking English all weekend and it was a little difficult to transition back to Spanish. I was only speaking Spanish to get directions and talk to people but nothing consistent. I return to class tomorrow. We are already planning our trip for my last weekend here (next week) to Tortuguero to see the turtles.

Manuel Antonio

We were hoping to sleep in, alas everyone in this country is up at 7. The birds and dogs and such start to make noise. I have yet to wake up to an alarm at my family's house. The Hostel gave us free breakfast which was still rice and beans but it was free and we were on our way. we took the bus from Quepos to Manuel Antonio which cost ¢240 which is about 50 cents. We spent time first in the national park which is a rainforest where we were looking at the plants and animals. We saw a sloth that was actually moving and at a much faster pace than I would have expected from a sloth. We then went out onto one of the many stretches of beach. Since it's the Pacific coast the water is fairly warm which was nice to ride the waves. We also did some reading and we brought a lunch. Once high tide was setting in (about 1:30-2:00) we browsed the street vendors and then caught the bus back to Quepos. The hostel here is nice and they give you a lot (such as beachmats and towels). However, I discovered that they don't have any hot water so I took a cold shower which was quite unpleasant. Overall, a good day.

Tomorrow we will be heading back to Orosi and I will meet the father in the host family. He works in Guanacaste and lives there during the week which is common here.

Class and Day of Travel

Class was good. Right after class we hopped the Orosi bus to Cartago and ended up sharing a taxi to San Jose at the next bus stop. This turned out not to be a quicker route and it was a little more expensive. Live and learn. We then took a bus to Quepos which is where our hostel is. We will be heading to Manuel Antonio for the beach tomorrow. It wasn't too bad of a trip. We did Italian for dinner because we are tired of rice and beans which appears to go with everything :). We also treated ourselves with Gelato which Meredith exclaims is not as good as Gelato in Rome.

Hopefully we will have nice weather tomorrow!