Solo Bueno...

This morning my Tico father called me into the kitchen to see some kind of animal whose name I didn't recognize in Spanish. He seemed excited for me to check it out, so I jumped out of my seat and darted over to the open air cocina, only to find out that it was a SKUNK!!! (or as they call it, a zorillo or mofeta.) Lukas then informed me that this furry friend lives in the kitchen, under the cabinets, and eats the food that falls to the floor. Sometimes it even enters the house and does a loop around the living room. "And this is ok with you?" I asked, "Isn't this the animal that sprays that horrible scent?" He shrugged his shoulders and said with a smile, "Only if you bother him, otherwise he's fine...it's a little bit of nature inside the home!"

Rainbow Rock

Wow...now it all makes sense. It wasn't long ago when I thought I smelled a skunk-like odor in the kitchen. My Tica mom had told me that it was probably a skunk and that the neighbor's little dog had scared it, causing it to release it's odor. No big deal, I figured, it was outside of the house; but no, that little devil lives right underneath where we keep our pots and pans, just waiting for scraps to fall. Occasionally he even comes out and steals the eggs off the counter (eggs here are rarely refrigerated). Now I know why they often keep them in the microwave!

Oh, Cabuya. My little town is super tranquilo. Aside from the fisherman and the farmers working the land, there really is nothing going on. There are only a few grocery stores, a little bookstore, and a couple cafes around. So the other day when I realized I really needed gas for the quad and I was no where near one of the two bombas - gas stations - in the area (one is in Cobano and one is in Mal Pais), I asked around Cabuya, and sure enough, there are two houses in the hood that sell gasoline. Que dicha! I also discovered through a friend that there is a lady just across the street that does pedicures for a measly 1,500 colones...that's less than three dollars! I immediately made an appointment to get my toes painted. Then last weekend I had a llanta ponchada - a flat tire - that needed fixing, and I also wanted to buy a 6 pack of beer after the super closed (which is early in Cabuya). Well, what do you know? It turns out all of these things are available here, you just have to know which door to knock on. The beer is sold out of a fridge in someone's house, prohibition style, and there is a makeshift taller just down the street that can change my oil and fix my flat tire on the cheap cheap. (Plug for a flat, air and balancing of all four tires, $3.80) And of course, the owner is the brother-in-law of my Tico father. Go figure.

Pilsen, mi cerveza preferida

Que calor! It has been extremely, overwhelmingly, unbelievably hot here lately. Like WTF, are you kidding me, it's-supposed-to-cool-off-at-night-and-I'm-still-freaking-sweating kind of heat. The only ounce of relief I've felt was when I heard from a friend traveling in India that it's 110 degrees over there. Well I guess almost 100 isn't too bad. Still, we could really use some rain to cool things down. I would definitely welcome some more pelo de gato, although I'm a little nervous about the rainy season on the quad. It's going to be an interesting, wet and muddy adventure with Rubi, but I think we'll manage. I've made it through every other seemingly impossible obstacle so far in Costa Rica, so why not conquer the rainy season on an ATV?




Mere & I in Cabo Blanco

Solo bueno... My girl Meredith was here to visit for a week and we had a fabulous time. We laughed so hard that I almost lost weight, but I made up for it by drinking lots of Pilsens and Imperials. We rode around on the quad por todo lado (Mere even learned how to drive it), exploring mother nature's wonders by day, and partying like rock stars by night. We went hiking in Cabo Blanco Nature Reserve, swimming at the Montezuma waterfall (where we met the most gorgeous guy from Uruguay - I think his name was Piero and I still can't get his image out of my head), checking out the beaches of Mal Pais and Montezuma, eating loads of delicious ceviche and garlicky grilled calamaris, dipping into rivers to cool off, and taking a boat trip out to Isla Tortuga where we snorkeled, ate fresh fish, and napped on the white sand beach. It was stellar having a good friend like Meredith here to share my little world with me, and I'm pretty sure she loved it too - she was already talking about coming back in August ;)

Isla Tortuga

My classes are in full swing and they're starting to feel like little communities. All of my Santa Teresa classes had their first exam this week and I'm in the process of grading them. It's nice to see how much progress they have made already (well, most of them), and to think they didn't know any of this stuff just 6 weeks ago! My Montezuma groups are finally feeling groovy after having to change a few things around. We have Semana Santa (Easter week) off, so classes will resume on April 5th. In the meantime, I'm heading back to Samara for fiesta! Just a long weekend trip to see a few friends and a few rodeos, I'll be driving the quad (with a friend) up the coastal road from Mal Pais to Manzanillo, Punta Islita, Carillo, and finally into Samara. There are supposedly some really nice views and secluded beaches along this drive, so I'm stoked. Should be quite the weekend!

And my love for this life in Costa Rica continues...PURA VIDA!!!

Seasons Change

The seasons are different here: we have the dry season and the wet season. Verano (summer) is the dry season, when it gets a tiny bit hotter because there's no rain to cool things off, and invierno (winter) is the wet season, when the massive amount of rainfall brings in clouds and moisture to deflect the sun's piercing heat rays. Right now we are in the dry season (December to April), but we actually got a touch of rain today, and it was sort of magical...everyone stopped what they were doing to listen to the pitter patter of the pelo de gato (a light rainfall or mist, literally "cat's hair"). Apparently this has almost never happened before: rain in the dry season. Everyone is talking about the crazy weather, and the changes that are happening all over the planet. This past wet season wasn't normal either. Sure, it rained a lot, but it started late, and there would be runs of several days without rain here and there. As a newcomer to Costa Rica during the rainy season, it didn't seem so extreme to me, but everyone assured me that this rainy season was a mild one. Well, the times are definitely a-changin'.

Sunset in Santa Teresa

No spring and no fall...it's kinda strange to live with only two seasons, especially since spring and fall were always my favorites. The perfect weather, not too hot and not too cold, the newness and fresh energy that comes with spring, and the crispness and reflective repose that fall inspires: these seasonal changes are embedded in my soul; after 30 years of living with the same cycle, I still instinctually feel the shifting in seasons, even if I'm not immersed in the physicality of them. I realized the other day how things seemed to be starting to bloom around me, internally and externally, and how my spirit seemed excited with the possibilities to come, and I realized...this is spring that I'm feeling! Then I started thinking back to the fall, when it was the rainy season here, and how there were moments that reflected the darkness of fall, especially when it was raining. I am still on a four season cycle. My internal clock just doesn't believe these ticos when they tell me that January is summertime. Sure it might be hot outside and school may be closed for a break, but my summer still starts in June, and that's when I will feel the freedom that summer has always brought to my life. Luckily I have a two week break around then...visa run, perhaps?

My Classroom in Montezuma

I taught a full 18 hours this week, and to top that off I've been planning like a madwoman! I literally spent around 4 hours every morning this week working on lesson plans, worksheets, and tests for my students. But I did it all in the name of freedom - when my fabulous friend Meredith comes to visit next week I want to be free to hang out, explore, and party with her! I'm really stoked that she's coming and looking forward to keeping her wildly entertained with trips to waterfalls and secret beaches, a little surfing, a little snorkeling at Tortuga Island, lots of rides around on the quad, and plenty of sunset cervezas ;)

Classes generally went well this week, although I had some hiccups with my newest group in Montezuma. Let's just say I had my first behavioral issues, but I have a plan to nip it in the bud next week, so hopefully it won't be too much of a struggle. With a location like this, I can't really complain...

View from my "office"

All of my other classes are usually a pleasure to teach; the majority of the students are eager to learn English, and I feel appreciated. As I go over new vocabulary and watch them scribbling down words in English and Spanish in their notebooks and then looking back up for more, I feel a sense of accomplishment. These students want it all, and they remind me of myself when I was first learning Spanish. I wanted to get at it from every angle. Music, movies, poetry, online quizes, googling new words, anything to put a little more español en mi mente. I hope I can inspire them (if they aren't already inspired) to absorb English from everywhere possible. I guess with each group and with each student it takes something different, but hopefully my classes will be dynamic enough to reel them all in. Next up on the agenda (after our pre-Easter test)? Activities with music. Yes please!

Lately I was thinking to myself that my Spanish wasn't really getting any better because I never study it anymore. Julia told me it most likely was improving, I just wasn't noticing it myself, like when you age or grow, it happens slowly so it's not easy to see from day to day. I think she was right. Not only am I constantly picking up new words in conversation (even if they don't sink in the first time it's still helping), but I'm learning things from my students too. They always seem to translate everything out loud, as a sort of mental check, and I love it because it helps me check my Spanish too...how would I say that? Oh, right, of course, that's it. As they get more advanced I will definitely have to limit the amount of Spanish spoken in the room, but with beginners it's literally impossible to put a ban on their native tounge, so I'm enjoying it while it lasts.

Safe Traveler

Hope everyone has a great weekend and happy spring from the land of eternal summer!

P.S. Don't worry Mom, I'm wearing my helmet ;)