and so it begins.

Day three in Costa Rica! I can’t put in words how incredible it is. I am madly in love with this place. The first thing I noticed when I was flying in was the most incredible thunderstorm—our plane flew what felt like inches away from it. I just stared out my window while massive flashes just appeared out of the night sky every few seconds. It’s like you could see the surges in the clouds.

When we landed, the San Jose airport is nothing spectacular, and neither was the dark drive to the hostel. The city seemed scary at night. But when we arrived at the hostel, I instantly felt comfortable. It was brightly colored and filled with travelers my age from all over the world. I heard lots of German! There was a TV playing “There’s Something About Mary” and computers with the internet, and a pool, a bar, hammocks, couches, a restaurant… Our room was among a labyrinth of dorm rooms and nothing to write home about, but cozy. It was a really nice place. And only $12/night! I officially love hostels. We got to lounge there all day the next day.

I woke up early and went walking around San Jose. I had no idea where we were in the city, or any comprehension of Spanish really, except what I could decipher from street signs. Luckily, I was traveling with a girl who speaks fluent Spanish, so when we went out again later she ordered all our food for us. $2 for a massive plate of huevos (eggs), pintos (beans), plantains, y queso fresca (the most delicious cheese in the WORLD) AND café con late. So delicious and inexpensive. We ate in this small little room next to a small kitchen. It was so quaint and nice. But incredibly hot. Eating food that’s hot (temperature) just instantly makes you sweat.

We lounged at the hostel for the rest of the day and then took a van back to the airport to meet up with the rest of our group. The group seems great. There are 7 boys and 20 girls. Everyone is really nice and we’re all hanging out together and getting along. I anticipate things will get a little more cliquey over time, but for now it’s really great. I am having a hard time being social 24/7, which is how it seems like some of the people here are, but we definitely get alone time, which is good.


I love the Center that we’re at. Our dorms are on a little hill. We have nice bathrooms, a classroom, a game/lounge room, library (very small and with very few books) and an AIR CONDITIONED computer room. That is my hide out, whenever I’m dying of heat. I feel like I’ve settled in and made it home. I have pictures of all my family and friends on my desk, and some ink paintings of Sam’s. It feels like my own. We have very shoddy internet access, but we have it nonetheless! Which is nice. We only get it in the common room though, so at night everyone comes out of their rooms with their computers and sits in the same room, facebooking and whatnot. It’s quite adorable. We also have a POOL and hammocks, and a cafeteria up a little road, and a nice house where all the professors have offices. Everyone who works here is so so so nice and fun and there's just nothing better.

The food here is AMAZING. We have rice at every meal, and some fresh vegetable and usually beans and some sort of carne. The best part is the fruit though—fresh watermelon, bananas, papaya, pineapple… so sweet and to DIE for.

Today we went into the small town called Atenas, which is about a ten minute drive away. We got a tour, exchanged money for colones (the currency here)… Everything is cheap. I bought stamps and some cards. It was a nice outing. The rest of the day, we didn’t do much, but hang out, we had a Spanish placement test, which obviously I failed, and a meeting with our safety coordinator. After dinner, we drove into the neighborhood (we live in a neighborhood called La Preza) and played soccer with the locals there. They are AMAZING. It took us two hours to score a goal against their team. It was really fun and I got some really good pictures.

The culture here is just so beautiful. Everyone is friendly and helpful. Especially in this small community, it feels like everyone knows each other and works together to accomplish their goals. That is a big focus of the school for field studies—they abide by the principle that our research is only progressive if we make a positive impact on the community and our clients. SUSTAINABLE LIVING THAT’S WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT!!!! wooooo hooo!!!!

I am getting used to the bugs, but it’s difficult. I saw monkeys today and some gorgeous birds. Also there are dogs everywhere and they’re all cute and small and friendly. There is so much I could say and go on FOREVER about. But I guess, in conclusion, I’m living in paradise. It is the most perfect experience I’ve ever had (once I get over heat exhaustion!) I miss home sometimes, but I think that will fade. Anyway, so much happens in a day I am sure I will write more soon!