Una Noche Divertida

I had a very very good night tonight. In fact, one of the best nights I've had here so far. I went out with two of the teachers from the preschool section of the school (who I know semi-well because that's the area where I always teach). They took me to a place called Pizza Rica, which basically means, "Realy good pizza," but it's funny because it sounds like "Pizzaria." Man I had a good time with them. They're SO cool and nice and they complimented me a lot, saying things about how good of a teacher I am and how they like my music and everything. And on top of that, they taught me a LOT of swear words in Spanish, which I have to remember. We just had such a great time talking, laughing, and everything. They're so much fun. And the pizza was really good! And I'm excited because we're going to hang out some more before I leave, which will be so fun! And on top of all that, obviously, lots and LOTS of Spanish was spoken. Makes me feel SO good. I LOVE it.

Semana Santa: Part II

Monteverde/Santa Elena

Friends: When I left La Fortuna, I got on a van myself and the two Canadian girls got on a different one (because of different company reservations). We were planning on meeting up again anyway in the town, but since the travel was a van-boat-van, we ended up seeing each other on the boat part of the travel and then hung out from then. Then, once we got to the town, we wanted to meet up with Brent, since he had already been there for a day. Turns out he was staying at the same hostel as them so that was really easy, and then they just came over to my hostel, so we were all reunited!

Hostel: Was at Pensión Santa Elena. The atmosphere of it wasn't quite as nice as the La Fortuna hostel, but it definitely made up for it in other ways. First of all, the room was great! In La Fortuna, I stayed in a dorm, which kind of sucked, with lots of people in there sleeping and a common bathroom. In Santa Elena, I had my own private room and bath. AND a purple comforter! Awesome! Besides this, it was in a good location in the town, and the staff was VERY helpful. They recommended a bunch of the things we did when we were there. There was also a taco/burrito place right next to the hostel that was really good. We all got tacos/burritos every day, more than once a day. When we got burritos, they were called just that, but when we got tacos, we were having "small talks" (our invention, not the restaurant, or to be more precise, Brent's invention). Something funny happened outside the hostel as well - one day I was in there talking to the guys, asking for information, and my friends were waiting outside. But when I went out, I didn't see them. I was thinking, hm, where are they, are they walking back to there place, are they at a store nearby, are they in the hostel, what? But I didn't want to look stupid so I just stood there kind of casually looking back and forth, trying not to look like I didn't know what was going on. Then I see Christine emerge from behind a truck, and I'm like, "Ah, god, you GOT me, damn!" Then I see Brent and Tawnya. So they were just hiding on me. But the best part about it is that somehow, Brent got like TEN pictures of me looking left and right and everything. How did I not see him if he could get pictures of me?! Hahaha.

The Town: Oh man I loved Santa Elena. It was very pretty, it had cooler stores than La Fortuna, and the restaurants were great! The best thing about it, though, was the temperature. Oh my GOD it got cool at night. I wore jeans both nights (I wear shorts EVERY day otherwise) and even bought an awesome Costa Rica jacket thing one night. We went to this cool restaurant in town called The Treehouse. There is actually a tree inside the restaurant, going up through the middle, with all these branches and stuff. http://www.treehouse.cr/index.php. The only problem with Monteverde is that it's pretty touristy, so things are more expensive and stuff isn't quite as cultural. But it didn't really matter, it was really nice and I loved it.

Zip Lining: Very fun and very worth it. It was great because we all went together to the same one. I asked the hostel guys before hand and they said this one was the best because it had the longest zip line overall (1.2 kms!). It was cool because there were liked 18 different zip lines throughout the whole thing. Some were very short and dumb, but some were aaaaaaawesome and went way above the rainforest and you could look down inside as you were going down. One of the best things though was the Tarzan Swing. You stand on this platform and they hook you in, then you jump off the platform and it's like a HUGE swing so you go WAY up. VERY fun and of course you've gotta yell like Tarzan when jumping. The funniest part of the swing though was how they slow you down - as you swing back to the platform area, guys on the ground yank your feet to take some momentum away. They do this every time you swing back for like three times, sometimes yanking HARD (I almost lost my shoe) and then they put this rubber thing attached to the ground around you, like a backwards sling shot, that hooks you in and catches you. Pretty awesome overall though.

Monteverde Cloud Forest: We went on a guided tour of the rainforest. Oh man if we hadn't gone on a guided tour, we wouldn't have seen ANYTHING. He was so helpful and knew where all the cool stuff was. We saw spider monkeys in the trees (it's always exciting when the tour guide gets excited - he was like, "We only see spider monkeys every three or four months, this is great!"). We saw a tarantula hiding in a very very creepy hole in the dirt wall. We saw some really cool flowers. We saw a very very tiny hummingbird nest. He knew where all this stuff was and he knew the names of birds and animals and stuff and it was cool. One of the best things he did was this: we were next to a tree, looking at a flower, when suddenly the guy starts sniffing and says, "Do you smell that?" I started sniffing something and was trying to place the smell. Christine said, "Yeah that's a powerful smell!" He then said, "That's the smell of a walking stick bug. It must be nearby." I was like, Jesus this guy's a pro, he can smell a damn BUG! But then he was like, "Whoa, there it is!" And it was right on the tree in front of us. I was like, god I can't believe he found that. But then he said he was kidding and that he saw it THEN said it. HAHA. Totally fooled us. Although Brent kind of figured it out because he's always pranking so knows the mentality. Then the rest of the night, we kept "smelling" things before we saw them. After we came out of the rainforest, there was a hummingbird watch place nearby that was really cool. There were a ton of bird-feeder things and a TON of hummingbirds were always around, flying by and up to the feeder things to eat/drink. Very cool!

A Story of Language, In Limericks

There once was a man at IU,
Who really liked music, it’s true.
He taught middle C,
And he used do, re, mi,
Then he fled from the country he knew.

He went to a land quite unique-a,
And the language he hardly did speak-a,
He stumbled through words,
And he sounded absurd,
When he first came and saw Costa Rica.

But practicing leads to perfection.
He was heading in just that direction.
His Spanish got better,
Right down to the letter,
And soon he was making connections.

When teaching, he used mostly Spanish,
And English, he practically banished.
He learned every day,
Of new things he could say,
And he tried to cause English to vanish.

So that’s how his story is going,
And his knowledge is constantly growing.
He hopes by the end,
That he’ll just comprehend,
All the words that the Ticos are throwing.

Semana Santa: Part I

La Fortuna

Hostel: Oh my god this was a nice hostel. Arenal Backpacker's Hostel. I slept in a dorm so the sleeping conditions weren't great. It was sort of hard to sleep with a bunch of random people in there and it was kind of hot. But nothing to complain about. It was really cheap and I generally slept fine. This place had a great pool, lots of trees, a cool hang out area in the middle, a cafe, hammocks, free internet cafe - the works. It was great. And on top of that, the workers were very nice and helpful.

The Town: Eh. Not much. A bunch of crappy souvenir stores and adventure tour companies. There was a local Soda though (local restaurant) that was VERY good and cheap.

Waterfall: I asked the guy at the hostel for some good local stuff to do, and he suggested I go see the waterfall and that you can even swim in its pool. This sounded pretty cool so, as he suggested, I took a taxi up there (a few kilometers away and uphill). I paid the $10 admission and went into the park area. When you go in, there are a bunch of rugged steps going down and down and down throughout the forest. You go WAY down. I was thinking about how hard it was going to be coming up. When I got to the bottom, the waterfall was beautiful! Very pristine, perfect fall with lots of rocks around and a nice, round pool at the bottom. I took a bunch of pictures. I wasn't sure at first if I was going to swim, but I was really hot and there were some other people swimming and I just though, I can't NOT swim. So I got in. It was SO COLD, oh my god. But I got used to it FAST because of the current. The water is CONSTANTLY pushing you back towards the shore so you have to constantly be treading water hard. Not only this, but I kept trying to swim closer to the actual point of the waterfall. I tried REALLY hard once, but when I looked up, I wasn't any closer at all and was a little bit to the side. That's how strong the current was. When I got out though, I just felt so REFRESHED. It felt SO COOL to go down and swim right next to a waterfall. I LOVED it. Then climbing back up was HELL. I was SOOOOO tired. But there was this viewpoint at the top that was simply breathtaking. I took some more pictures and even yelled "YEAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!" into the amazing view of forest, sky, and waterfall. Then I heard someone way down there yell back.

Canyoning: Overrated and too expensive. I definitely had fun, don't get me wrong. It was rappelling down canyon walls, about half of which actually went right through a waterfall. It was a cool experience for sure. The problem is, there were only about five canyon walls. On top of that, the rappelling was SO quick. You drop down in like 20 or 30 seconds, and it's over. Then, you wait for like 20 other people (most of whom were REALLY slow going down 'cause they were scared). So you're just sitting there at the bottom waiting forever. So in all, you're only actually rappelling for a total of 3-5 minutes, interspersed by watching, semi-hiking, and waiting. I think what would have made it much more worth it would have been if there had been some climbing involved. It just seemed so babyish to go down canyons without doing any climbing.

Bungee Jumping: Oh my god what an absolutely amazing thrill. SO worth it. And way cheaper than canyoning! It kind of sucked because there was NO one else there except for the workers. I wish I had had people there. But still. It was amazing. The best way I can explain the feeling beforehand is like being walked to a gallows . . . only a bit milder. It's just this relentless march. Everything is happening and you keep having these thoughts that well, maybe something will stop it from happening, but no. You walk into the elevator. You go up. The ground disappears before you. You're WAY up. You look out and see an amazing view of the town and the volcano about 10k away. They strap on your equipment. They yell "THIRTYYYYYY SECOOOOOONDS!!!!!!" They give you a quick overview of how to jump. They yell "TEEEEEEN SECOOOOOONDS!!!!!!" They tell you that once they start the countdown from five, you can go whenever you want. You stand on the ledge. They lock the door behind you. They start the countdown (VERY quick seconds - not normal length). They put their hands on your shoulder as a warning that you better jump or they might push you. At "three," I jump. As I fell, I think my only words were - quietly to myself - "Oh shit." Seriously that initial descent was AMAZING. Oh my god. Completely, completely free falling. Yes, I've been sky diving, but I think this was actually scarier because you can see the ground, and even though you're really high, you're also REALLY close, and you better HOPE that cable supports you. And I did the water-touch, so at the bottom is a pool, and you quickly dip in once the cord reaches maximum length. It's AMAZING how fast it pulled me back out of that pool. The next part was less fun because bouncing up and down for a long time brought a lot of blood to the head and after awhile it got kind of uncomfortable. But man. I definitely am doing it again.

Arenal (The Volcano): There is a big, active, volcano, right on the outskirts of the town. You can see it VERY well from the town. It's a perfectly shaped mountain. Totally what a cartoon mountain is shaped like. Very triangular. A lot of times, you could see smoke coming out of it, which was pretty sweet. Often, people can see lava at night. Actual red, smoldering lava, dripping down. I went on TWO trips, two nights in a row, to the other side, where you can normally see it, and both nights, it was really cloudy (which happens frequently). So that was sort of a disappointment. But it was still cool.

Hot Springs: There are a bunch of natural hot springs around because of the heat from the volcano. When I imagined this, I imagined sitting in basically a mudhole that had hot water in it. Which would have been really cool. And I think there are things like this around. But I went with a tour thing and part of that was going to Baldi, a specific hot spring resort. I NEVER expected to be this cool. Oh my god I want to stay in a hotel like that so bad. AAAAAGHHHH. It was a nice resort area with coolly shaped, waterfall-laced, different-temperature, naturally heated hot tubs EVERYWHERE. Some were relatively cool, like 93 degrees. The hottest one I got in was 116 (at least that's what the sign said - I do have a hard time believing this because even 106 in a hot tub is difficult). There was even one that was 154, but this was just for show because you'd probably die in that one. And that one was actually right below some massage chairs, so they probably use it for steam. But. Overall. The coolest damn thing was that there were WATERSLIDES. One was swirly and a tube type thing, but it wasn't very good because it was bumpy, and I even got kind of stuck in there once and then ran into some kids, 'cause the water flow wasn't good. But there was another slide and it was AMAZING!!!!! It was SO fast. SOOO fast. It was just a quick, straight shot down with a few dips. But the dips got you MOVING. Oh my god I ended up going so many different ways: back feet first; back head first; stomach head first; sitting. It was SO fun. Man I went so many times.

Friends: Even with all this AWESOME stuff, I have to say that one of the best things about my time in La Fortuna was the friends I met. That's the great thing about hostels because there's usually a common area and you can just meet people.  I met so many people that came and went throughout the time there. Overall though, there were three people that I hung out with the most - Christine, Tawnya, and Brent (all from Canada - MAN there were a lot of Canadians traveling). I didn't actually hang out with Christine and Tawnya that much in La Fortuna, so I'll talk about them more when I discuss the next places on my vacation. But Brent. Oh my god, seriously one of the funniest people I've EVER met. Very different and unique too. He's a helicopter pilot that has six weeks on/six weeks off. So he works in some random place for six weeks, then travels around for six. On and off. Currently, he's based in the Central American area, but he's been based in almost all the other continents. Next, he's going to Thailand. But god. He was just so funny. The type of guy that you get annoyed at because he's ALWAYS pulling pranks and making fun of you and everyone, but it doesn't matter because it's just so funny. One story that's really funny that happened with Brent (and Christine and Tawnya): He starts telling us this story about a job he had to do where he had to bring a bear somewhere (by dangling it from his helicopter). I've seen things like this online, so I totally had a picture in my head. So he continues the story by explaining that he let the bear go somewhere in the woods. We him how he lets the bear go, 'cause it seems kind of weird - how would you safely get a bear to the ground from a helicopter? He just says, "I push a button." So in my head I'm imagining this fancy contraption of belts and wires that unhooks and lets the bear free to walk away when he pushes the button. But the story develops more. He says, "So I fly right over the river - at this point I'm like 500 feet up - and I drop him. I turn the helicopter so that I can watch it fall. Now keep in mind that there is a huge engine behind my head and the rotors directly above me. When that bear hit the water, I STILL heard it. It was like an explosion!" At this point, we're thinking, um, what the hell, the poor bear! So I say, "Couldn't you go any LOWER?!" and he looks at me like, "Well, I could, but who cares?" At this point, we finally figure out that the bear is DEAD already. That was a crucial part of the story we missed! Oh my god we laughed hard though. It was just so funny because what an asshole helicopter pilot - he takes a living bear, flies it over a river (which in the first place will already make it more difficult for the bear), but instead of lightly putting it down somewhere, he drops it from 500 feet up and intentionally watches it smack the water and revels in the SMACK it makes. I was thinking, man there's no way that bear survived. So he said from now on he's going to tell the story like that so people get confused. SO FUNNY. Overall though, the best part about travel like this is that you can meet people, then plan your trip around hanging out with them more. Luckily, the people I met were already going to where I was going next (Monteverde), so I ended up meeting up with them again. But as I'll mention later, I ended up just going to Tamarindo on a whim, with Christine and Tawnya. It's just great that you can quickly meet people, quickly reserve transportation and a room, and just hang out. I LOVE that.

Improvements

HAD SUCH A GOOD CLASS TODAY.

My favorite class I teach is “preparatoria” (equivalent to Kindergarten). This class has been incredibly fun and rewarding since I've been here. They almost always listen and pay attention, and they're always really actively involved (as GREATLY opposed to the really young kids, who often just sit there staring into space). I set some goals before teaching this class, including: ability to sing a number of songs (some in English, some in Spanish); ability to sing with a smooth, flute-like voice (as opposed to yell-singing, which kids naturally tend to do); and ability to maintain a steady beat. Today, I saw all three of those things.

They were singing all the words of the songs, which is awesome (no other class has done this). The words were kind of weird sounding because they didn't really know them in English, but we went over them and it got better. That's the thing, they're really willing to learn and improve.

They were singing in pitch, at least for the most part, which is VERY good for Kindergartners. I was really amazed at how in tune the songs were.

 They had a great tone, which is also VERY good for Kindergartners. Usually they sound awful. It's especially great because it's only been a month. They definitely have a tendency to want to yell, but I've really been grinding down and getting them to sing in their upper register - head voice - and they're really starting to get that flute-like tone that kids have when they're singing well.

They were moving in rhythm, at least with important parts of the songs. There are parts where they have to do certain movements with certain words, and they were doing them right on beat! Kindergartners tend to have trouble with keeping a beat so this was a great step.

They really love music. A lot of kids this young are shy and don't really want to be singled out. But most of these kids love participating so much! One kid even suggested today that he sing a solo. I was like, "Yeah!" He sang it and then almost everyone else wanted to as well, so we went around the circle. Now, to be honest, in a solo setting, most of them didn't sound as good (although there were a few who sang PERFECTLY), but still, to be that enthusiastic about music is really good. And they don't just do it with this - they love dancing, moving, singing, playing games (of course), improvising, and tons of stuff. It's just great.

They're just a great class and it made me feel accomplished today because I could really see improvement.

As for the other classes, it's hit or miss. I'd say about half I feel pretty good about, and half, I am having a hard time with (mainly due to classroom management). Some of the kids here just don't give a DAMN about what the teacher says. They'll talk, talk, talk, laugh, talk, play their instrument (if I haven't taken it away yet), talk again, laugh again, and so on. Then I'll freak out in a various number of ways - go up to a student and just stare at them; loudly say "NO HABLEN" [don't talk]; take away they're instrument (if we're using them); whistle to get everyone's attention; or burst out and say something like "Okay, I've HAD it. I'm SICK and tired of this. No matter WHAT I say, it doesn't matter. STOP." But it doesn't really matter, they don't really work for more than a few minutes.

One of the issues is that I really don't know names. Next week I'm going to bring in the rosters and really try to learn names. Then I can call specific kids out. Also (in the after school band, at least), I'm going to start marking when kids play or talk when they're not supposed to, and if I have to scold a kid like three times, I'm going to make them go to the office and just sit there. Then maybe I'll give them one more chance the next week and if it happens again, I'll kick them out of the band. The band's hard enough as it is because it's basically thirty kids with sticks and drums. That is HARD to make sound good and to make everyone play together. I'm struggling with it. But add on top of that a bunch of annoying kids who don't really care and who talk and play all the damn time, and you've got yourself a TOUGH situation.

Overall though, I think I've taught the kids some good stuff and I think they really enjoy music. And that's the most important thing. So good!

Speaking Spanish: Fun . . . or Just Funny?

I started writing this as a short reflection about something "important" that I've learned here for the unstructured portion of my reflection I have to do for IU. But it became this LONG entry and it's pretty funny!

One of the most important things I have learned in my time here is how much I absolutely love speaking Spanish with other people. It is often very difficult. Sometimes I even feel lonely and left out because of all the Spanish around me that I don’t understand. But whenever I have a conversation with someone in Spanish, I just feel so invigorated. I feel cultured. I feel like I am doing something special. The longer I’m here, and the more I study the language, the easier it gets to converse with people, and the better I feel about it. On top of this, there have been a few times where I have actually translated what people have said in Spanish so people who only speak English can understand it. This made me feel very good about my ability.
I just relish every time I speak Spanish. Even the smallest things like “¿Cómo está?” [How are you?] and “¡Qué calor!” [It’s so hot!] are fun to say. Even the most mundane conversations are enjoyable. For example, today I went into a store to look for new sandals, since mine are falling apart. I had a short conversation with the salesperson about how they didn’t have my size and asked if there were any other stores with sandals. She didn’t know. But, just being able to talk like this made me feel great. At times it can be scary to go out into the world of a foreign language, but it’s worth it for the times that you really are able to converse with another person, even if it’s in jumbled language.

One more thing: it’s amazing how important pronunciation and accent is. As I have said before, accent is very important. It’s amazing the confusion pronunciation and accent can cause, even if all the right words are there. I’ll give one or two examples from each side of the language barrier.

From my side of the language barrier:

There was a fútbol game this Wednesday between Costa Rica and El Salvador. A few days before, I asked one of the brothers, Max, in my host family if El Salvador was playing (since I wasn’t sure at the time). He responded by saying, “No, está al Miercoles” [It’s on Wednesday]. I was VERY confused as to why he said this. We went back and forth a few times until I finally realized what the problem was. He thought I said “Sábado” [Saturday] when I said “El Salvador” because I didn’t pronounce the country’s name quite right.

Another example happened the same night. Max asked me, “¿Por qué la bola rueda?” I had ABSOLUTELY no idea what he asked me. But then he said, “Porque está sucia,” which I know means “Because it is dirty.” But I didn’t understand the question at all so I asked him to repeat himself. He did. I still didn’t know what he asked me. So I asked him to repeat it again. I STILL didn’t know. This went on for about five to ten minutes. I felt very embarrassed that I didn’t know what he said, but he was mumbling the words so much! When I realized what he was actually saying, I STILL didn’t understand because I didn’t know what “rueda” meant. But finally, I realized a few things. First of all, it was a JOKE that he was telling me. Second, mumbling was actually important part of the joke. Third, I realized it was a joke because of a double meaning. Now, this was just so difficult for me to understand because I didn’t even know ONE meaning, let alone TWO. After much breaking down of the sentence and awkward, difficult explanation in Spanglish and Engspan, I FINALLY understood. The original question means, “Why does a ball roll?” The funny part is that in the lazy drawl of a mumbling Costa Rican, the question also sounds like, “¿Por qué lavo la rueda?” which means “Why do I wash the wheel?” to which the answer, “Because it is dirty” makes sense. YES! And then, after about fifteen minutes of analysis and awkward discussion, I laughed at my first official Costa Rican joke. Man, that’s gotta be one of the longest delayed reactions to a joke that short on record.

From the Spanish side of the language barrier:

A few nights ago, I was watching Die Hard 2 with Max. We were watching for a while when suddenly, Max said something that sort of sounded like, “Very junk.” I didn’t understand why he said this, so I asked “Junk?” He tried to clarify it by saying, “He is very junk.” I was still confused but I thought perhaps Max didn’t like Bruce Willis as an actor. I asked again and he accentuated the word and I finally realized what he meant: “He is very young,” to which I replied, “Oh! Yes he DOES look young in this movie.”

This next story actually has more to do with grammar than accent, but it’s still funny. I was sitting in the living room with one of the other brothers of the family, Javier. Most of the time, I am wearing my flip-flops (99% of the time, actually). However, this night was a rare occasion where I was actually chilly, so I had my sneakers on. Javier looked at me, pointed at my shoes and said, “I like his shoes.” I thought this was a little strange, but thought that maybe mine were similar to Max’s, who was in the other room. Or maybe he didn’t really mean to point at my shoes. But I asked him what he meant and he pointed at my shoes again and said the same thing again! Here’s a basic rundown of what was said (it’s like a Costa Rican version of the “Who’s on first?” routine):

Javier (pointing at my shoes): I like his shoes.
Me: Huh?
Javier (pointing again at my shoes): I like his shoes.
Me: Whose shoes?
Javier: Huh?
Me: Whose shoes do you like?
Javier: I like his shoes.
Me: You like Max’s shoes?
Javier (pointing at my shoes with a bit more force): No, I like HIS shoes.
Me: OH! You like MY shoes!!! Thanks!

After that encounter, I explained that he should have said, “I like your shoes.” All the confusion was fixed and we laughed about it. I realized the problem: in Spanish, “sus zapatos” can mean either “your shoes,” “his shoes,” or “her shoes.” He probably just got this mixed up and as a result, said “his” instead of “your.” Man, I love all the funny confusing stories. The best thing is that they happen on both sides of the language barrier, so it doesn’t make me feel really stupid. The most important thing is to laugh about it!

Tico Talk

I had SO MUCH FUN tonight. Finally, this is exactly what I have been looking and hoping for this whole time.

I was actually kind of feeling sort of depressed earlier in the day. I had a good time watching the fúbol game: it was fun to watch even though Mexico destroyed Costa Rica. However, I have just been having a hard time connecting with the family because of the language barrier. When they're all together, they all talk really fast and it's so hard for me to connect and understand what they're saying. As the night went on, it got better and better though. I talked with Max more, as well as Iris, about random stuff in my life, like family and friends and things. I had a good time. We talked more than usual.

However, around 9, when I didn't think there was anything left to do, I got offered to go with Iris to hang out with some "crazy nephews and nieces." I was like, sure. Why not? I don't really do anything at night anyway. I WANT to do stuff and I get so bored just sitting at home all the time. So I went. We walked for about a minute (that's how close these people live). Pretty much the whole family lives right near each other.

We got to the house and I instantly knew why they were called "crazy." Some of them were smoking, there was loud music, and they were all drinking. But they were all just hanging out, talking. I was a little timid at first, since I didn't know anyone and was scared I wouldn't be able to connect with anyone, but quickly, that changed. This couple immediately brought me into the group. They started talking to me and really acted interested in me. I just really haven't gotten that much here. The girl didn't really know much English at all but she REALLY enunciated every word, so she was VERY easy to understand in relation to a lot of other people around here. And the guy apparently had lived in Oregon for a year, so his English was really good. We spoke in Spanish 80% to 90% of the time, and I used him for translation or if there was something I just couldn't figure out how to say in Spanish.

Seriously, though, it was SO AMAZINGLY FUN. Although I've had some good experiences talking with people in Spanish, this is the first time I've really felt comfortable with it. By no means is my Spanish perfect. But with their great enunciation, their understanding of needing to talk kind of slowly, and their ability to translate when needed all mixed together and became a really really cool night. Even though there was some language barrier stuff, it was fun to deal with instead of feeling like a burden, like it does a lot of the time. It just felt like we were friends, hanging out, drinking some beers. Sometimes, I even forgot that I was speaking/listening to Spanish, which is a REALLY good sign. I just hope I can hang out with them some more because it's EXACTLY what I've been wanting. I've been wanting some people/friends with whom I can hang out who I can regularly speak Spanish with. And I can actually really understand them! The family I live with is great but they're VERY hard to understand. Once I get a little better and more fluent, it will be easier, but they're lazy with their words and most of the time I have no idea what they're saying. Tonight, the Spanish was more on the backburner than usual. We were just hanging out, talking, albeit in Spanish. There were other people there and I talked with them a little bit, but most of all, I talked to the couple.

I just felt so good because earlier in the day I was really feeling crappy. I was feeling like my Spanish wasn't very good at all and that I would never get very good at it. But when I hung out with them, I was really talking and it felt SO good. And they were complimenting me on it a lot and saying that my Spanish is very good (which made me feel SO cool).

They live in San Jose and they said they would be happy to bring me there and show me around (because it's not really a good idea to go alone, since it's pretty unsafe and I don't know the language well enough to do that). I just hope I can hang out with them sometimes because they're so cool and I really have been hoping for some actual Tico friends. I have WANTED that. More than anything. Truly. I want Tico friends who I can hang out with and speak Spanish with on a regular basis.

FINALLY.

I just had a great time and I hope to do it again!!!

Milestone

I feel like I've hit another milestone in Spanish speaking. Already, the Rosetta Stone has helped me a LOT. Most of the stuff that I've been doing with it has actually just been review, but it's been really good to just solidify things and relearn the basics. Because it's the basics that you need the most. Now I am certain of how to say "the dog is behind the car" or "the fat man is in front of the store" or "the eviscerated colon is to the side of the dilapidated hemoglobin." Okay, maybe not that last one. And it didn't even make sense anyway. But. There are a lot of things like that that I have been reviewing and that have really helped (another example, "it's cloudy" which I heard and used today).

But on top of that, some things are just clicking. I was getting pretty frustrated for awhile that I couldn't understand my host family very well. But I think I've figured out why. They are very lazy with their words and don't enunciate very well. I bet I'd be really hard to understand in English if I didn't enunciate, but I try to when I'm talking to foreigners. I think Iris is starting to get it though 'cause she now pronounces the words a lot more clearly.

In fact, she just came in and said "Whit [Weet], voy a salir; llego a las siete" (Whit, I'm going out; I'll be back at seven) which was very easy to understand, compared to when she's talking very fast and not enunciating and it sounds like, "Whit [Weet], voaslee; llegoalasete." And a lot of people talk like that. Which I know is one thing that everyone learning a new language has a hard time with.

The great thing about Sandra, the secretary, is that she realllly enunciates every word. Probably has to do with the fact that she is also learning English. But I think it's just also the way she talks. So we talk a lot and it's fun and cool (and she compliments my Spanish a lot and I feel VERY cool)! It's awesome though because she will say things like, "Is the . . . band . . . today?" or something, unsure if she said it right, and if she did, I'll give her a thumbs up and say "yes!" and she'll be so happy and give a little cheer. And if she didn't say it totally right, I'll correct her. And the same goes the other way around. So we help each other and learn a lot.

Today I went to a fútbol game that the kids were playing (sorry, I can't let myself call it soccer here; it's offensive). It was a lot of fun. There were probably three or four games. But there was a lot of time just sitting on the side lines while a bunch of kids hit the balls around ("a bunch of kids hit the balls around" sounds like a really messed up adult film). There were some other schools there and they totally pwned our kids.

The soccer field was way up on a hill and all around were beautiful hills and stuff. We were at a high altitude. On a clear day, you can apparently see the Pacific from it but unfortunately, "estaba nublado."

There was a building to the side of the field and there were a bunch of people with snacks and cooking meals and stuff and it was great 'cause you could just go in there and buy food. But it was actually home made food for the most part, which is cool. And everything was CHEAP. I got so much stuff, including a few chocolate bars, a few caramel empanadas, a cheese empanada, some potato picodillo (just a bunch of mixed up stuff that was good), some Pepsi, some Coke (Coca) and some other stuff, and I only spent about the equivalent of $3.

I "played" a little bit, just on the sidelines with some of the kids, for about five minutes. We made a makeshift "goal" out of sticks and grass and I tried to be goalie. Trying to get a ball past me as goalie is like trying to hit a golf ball into the grand canyon. Oh MAN. Especially against these kids who have been playing all their lives. It was nothing to them. All the kids were so talented.

I took pictures all day. I took over 150 pictures of kids playing fútbol, trying to get a bunch of action shots, and a few of the environment and stuff. But it will be great and I can't wait to go through them all and pick out the good ones.

One of the best parts of the day, though, relates back to the title of this blog post. I talked for about 10-15 minutes with Edgar, the coach/gym teacher guy. He knows about .0023% English. Basically nothing. And we talked a lot and I understood probably 75% of what he said and I spoke pretty well. It just felt SO good and cool. Especially because Ashley (one of the West Virginia girls) was standing nearby and I could translate some of what he was saying to her. I felt bad that I kind of left her out of the conversation but it's tough when neither of them speak at ALL each other's language. And I really wanted to get some practice in. It just felt so good. We were talking about how he went to Cleveland with the students one year to do some tournament thing. And how this January, he had planned to go to Disney World with his family, but they couldn't get the visas because he's retired, or something like that. He was annoyed because he worked for more than 30 years! And he's STILL working, just not full time or something. But he'll figure it out and go eventually, maybe next year, he'll just have to start preparing more in advance.

I just love Edgar. He's so NICE and really doesn't mind helping me out if I don't understand something. And he also asks how to say things, which is always fun to help with.

I also had my band for the second time today. I've been focusing on teaching the kids the common clave rhythm in a lot of Latin American music (dotted eighth/dotted eighth/eighth/eighth rest/eighth/quarter). I thought that they might be naturally good at it since they're from Latin America . . . NO. They were just as bad at it as any American kid would be. Now don't get me wrong, it's a very tough rhythm, especially for kids. The biggest difficulty for them is always the eighth rest. They always speed right through it and don't give it its full value. So I made up this thing where they say "1, 2, 3-YA!-4-5". The "YA!" is where the eighth rest is and it gives the rest an actual length. The kids got really into it last week and I reviewed it this week. Actually, last week, it was awesome, 'cause after the class was over, I was in a different area, but I heard in the distance, "1, 2, 3-YA!-4-5", which made me feel good. Oh, and I also LOVE their accents. It sounds like "one, too, tree-YA!-for, fie". So cute and awesome.

But the kids were sounding better today overall. They have a tendency to smash the HELL out of their drums, but I've been making them tone it down constantly ("más suave" and "muy muy suave" . . . someday I should say "suave tigre"). Now they can play a clave rhythm 75%-80% correct in piano, mezzo-piano, mezzo-forte, and forte. That's pretty good for two rehearsals!

There are some kids who talk a lot and play when they're not supposed to. Today I took like three drum sticks from kids. It's always satisfying to do. I just walk over and pull it out of their hands (while the rest of the students laugh). The more they get on my nerves, the longer I'll keep the sticks for. And a few times I just walked right up to a kid and said, "STOP talking." Now, I'm not sure if he totally understands what I said, but I'm sure he got the essence. And either way, just to be sure, I said "No hable." Haha. So I think he knows to shut up. At least there are also a bunch of the kids in the class who go "shhhhh" and say "callase" (basically "shut up") when everyone else is talking. So I think the kids like it overall and they're having a good time.

Speaking of "shhhhh", a small interesting fact: the "shhhhh" sound here is a bit different than in the States. It's more of a "sssssss".

Man, didn't think I would write this much. But I'm glad I did! I always hate thinking of the daunting task before me when I sit down to write an entry, but I'm always happy after I do.

Hasta luego (or as most pronounce it, "haluego")

Weet

Comida

The food isn't bad here. I'm not complaining. It usually consists of rice, which is in pretty much EVERY dish. Really. It's VERY rare not to have rice. Usually there is also some variety of beans, which I actually have surprisingly liked with it, especially in gallo pinto, a rice and bean dish, haha. The only bean thing I really haven't liked was a refried bean thing they often have. It just tasted very weird to me. And there is usually some sort of fried meat. Often, the meat isn't the best and the way they fry it doesn't taste too amazing, but overall, it's really not bad. I'd say I have enjoyed more meals than not.

However, there are some things I miss. It's weird, it's like they have everything here, but it's just not the same. I had that burger at Denny's, and it just didn't taste American (although the fries were AMAZING). However, the Denny's fries were the only ones that were really good. The rest of the fries I have had here have been overly greasy/mushy and have come with this weird sauce that's kind of like sweet and sour and sometimes with mayo. I want my ketchup! I have had pizza here and it was really very good but it was more in the Italian restaurant style, not the greasy, fatty, college student style.

Food is definitely one thing I am going to be very happy to return to. When I get back I'm going to pig out for awhile. Go to Scotty's and get a total American burger and fries. Then go to Mad Mushroom and get an insanely big, greasy, goodness-all-over pizza with some cheese bread. Then go to Chipotle (I know I know, this sounds VERY hypocritical, but I still miss it). Then I'll just make myself a good damn sandwich. Mmm. They don't really eat sandwiches here that often. I want one. Oh, and Coldstone (although I've gotten these orange popsicles a few times here that is made by a local woman and they're SO SO GOOD and refreshing).

Bosetta Slone

The school uses a very popular language learning tool, let's just call it . . . Bosetta Slone. It's so good. The kids use it to learn English and it really helps with vocab, speaking, listening, grammar, etc. I have REALLY been wanting to use it to learn Spanish. Mirthala's husband apparently got the copies for the school. So I've been talking with her and even talked to him about it on the phone. Turns out the version he had was only PC, and on top of that, the funniest thing is that he acquired it in not the most legal way, haha. So I attempted to get a mac version off of a certain website and it worked. Now I have it. It. I. I am so excited. I have levels 1, 2, and 3 for Latin American Spanish. I can't believe it! Now I can not only talk to real Spanish-speaking people but hone my skills and practice the tough things I've forgotten from high school on my own computer. YES. I think that will be the best way to learn. Studying and speaking at the same time.

Insectos

Insects abound at night.

Every night here it's like a reunion of bugs. It's SO sick. You kind of just have to live with it, I've realized, because parts of the house are always open. The living room area with the TV, dinner table, a couch, and some chairs doesn't even have a solid door to the outside. One wall is completely not there, save for a gate that can be shut at night. That combined with the oldness of the house and the food that is sometimes left out, the bugs just have a field day.

Mainly, the bugs consist of ants and cockroaches. Now, I'm not normally annoyed by ants, but last night, it was really sick. I turned on the light in the kitchen (which is always a scary thing, because often, you'll hear scattering noises) and I was thirsty, so I went to the sink. The first thing I see is a bunch of ants crawling in and around the sink. Ugh. But whatever, it's not too bad. I then pick up a glass that I'm thinking about cleaning and drinking from (I wasn't sure if it was mine before so I was just going to clean it to make sure). So I pick it up and look in. I see at least thirty, maybe fifty ants in there, crawling ALL over it. AGH. It freaked me out so I quickly put it down and succumbed to the calling of the straight-from-the-faucet water in the bathroom.

The same night, as I'm in the kitchen, I saw a few cockroaches. One was on this little plastic cup thing, just hanging out. I tried to reach out and pick up the plastic cup so I could bring it to the toilet to flush him. But he knew I was coming and VERY quickly scattered to another side of the cup, then off the cup, then into the shadows that cockroaches thrive on. Then I turn around and see one on a banana that they had lying out. At first I think it might be just sitting there, but I look closer and I see that he's kind of pulsating and his head is sort of buried in the banana. He was literally SUCKING it out. SICK. So I just turned off the light and went to my room.

The sickest thing about that banana-cockroach thing is that this morning, I looked at the banana again, and it had a hole in it about a centimeter in diameter. Oh man he went to town. And I looked inside and it was all hollow where the whole was. That just really grosses me out. It's like he ate the entrails.

Luckily, there have only been a few bad bug cases in my room. Most often, it's in the kitchen. Or wherever food is. So one day I had a few candies and left the wrappers out on my bedside table. That must have been what attracted them, because that was the first night I saw bugs in my room. It was later at night, when I turned the light back on, that I heard the distinctive scattering noise, paired with a flash of black running across the floor to hide in the shadows of something near the wall. Fortunately, there isn't really a great place to hide in the room. So I found the cockroach and smashed him with my shoe, followed by a satisfying toilet flush. A little later, I was trying to open the blinds to let the air in, and as I start to pull them open, a cockroach literally FALLS from the top of the blinds directly onto my bed. I try to quickly get him off, but then I lose him. OH GOD. WHERE IS HE. I do NOT want him in my bed. Fortunately, a second later, I see him fall to the ground and run under my bed. I move the bed away from the wall and at first can't see him. AGH. I guess he got away. But no, with a little closer look, I see him hiding under some wires. I try to get him but again, he runs behind some other shadowy stuff. I keep coaxing him out of the shadows until I finally get him too. Oh man, this guy had a pus pocket expel from his body as soon as I crushed him. It wasn't liquidy and didn't spill on the ground. It looked like a bubble of pus that was just connected to his body. So it was easy to clean up and bring to the toilet, fortunately.

The only other bug story in my actual room so far was last night. I had left a cup in there from which I had previously drunk some sweetened iced tea. Just that sweet film left on the inside of the cup was enough. When I picked it up later, I looked in and there were these TINY bugs crawling inside. HUNDREDS of them. I quickly brought it to the sink and washed the hell out of that cup. A person couldn't have even survived the flood that I made that cup go through. Then I drank out of it.

Lesson learned: don't EVER leave food out in my room (reminds me of the time I had Fast Break bars in my room in Bloomington and I woke up to the sound of mice eating them).

Improving My Spanish

I've been feeling kind of upset about the way things have been going with the family here. Not like we're negative with each other or anything, but I just haven't really felt like we have clicked yet. 

With two of the brothers, I have felt pretty good, and we have talked a good amount, alternating between Spanish and English usually. They're great and they really try to talk to me, it seems, which is great and has given me good practice.

The hard thing is that the mom doesn't speak ANY English. And it's great because that's what I originally wanted so I would learn more. But it's been tough because I have just felt so awkward with her because I will see her all the time but never know what to say, and even if I do, I won't know HOW to say it. I say little things to her, and she does to me, but it's always with lots of pauses and misunderstandings. And it's embarrassing not to ever know what someone is saying.

But, tonight, when I got home, I thought to myself that I really am just going to try to have a conversation with her. So I just walked up to her in the kitchen and asked "Ha estado a Arenal?" (Have you been to Arenal [the volcano that I'm going to see over spring break]?) And she said she had and talked a little bit about it. Then, since travel came up, she brought up the fact that you always have to be careful in the city here. Any city. You can't ever carry anything with you. Once, when she was in San José, someone ran up to her and pulled her necklace to steal it. She quickly grabbed the pendant so he couldn't take it but he broke the chain. Another time, the necklace was too strong to take so it sort of choked her for a second, but I guess that guy just gave up and ran away. She also told me that sometimes people will just run up to girls and literally pull their earrings out, which most often will rip the ears. Then she told me she was once held up at gunpoint in one of the grocery stores here! She had a gun put up to her head as well as her sister's, they tied their arms up and took everything. And she also told me that she knew about the guy from Indiana who I have talked to who was walking around with his laptop and passport and stuff and it was all stolen. And she told me about how her son was just randomly punched one day so hard when he was playing basketball that he has a hole in his forehead bone (you can see the skin dip in where there isn't bone.) And she told me someone put a bag with a nice camera in the storage area above them in a bus and how it was stolen. It's just nuts; JESUS. So yeah, I've gotta be careful around here for myself as well as my property. I knew this coming down here and I have always been really careful, but still, to see and hear it is actually happening is just crazy.

But overall, I just felt REALLY good that I had a real conversation with her. Yes, to be honest, there were a LOT of gestures flying around, and I had to use my dictionary a few times, and she was talking slowly, but overall, we really did converse and it was so much fun. Her personality is cool and it's the first time I've really been able to see that because I just really haven't had a way to converse.

I LOVE speaking in Spanish. I want to get better and better.

Hasta luego,

Whit

Settling In

I finally feel more comfortable in the town. I haven't wanted to walk around because I was scared I would get lost and I don't know the language too well. I went out to coffee/pastries yesterday with the USA girls traveling abroad here and the other girl from the USA who lives here now. She showed us around the town a bit and since it's a small town, I got the hang of it pretty quickly. So today, after school, I just walked around town a bit (after I finally figured out my credit card problem.) I went into a few clothes stores because I wanted to get a few more shirts, since I don't have any, but most of the stores had really expensive shirts, like Perry Ellis, Hollister, etc. Maybe not really expensive, but not cheaper than in the USA and I feel like I could get something cheaper here. Then I went to this bread place that the family goes to and it's a great little bread/bakery place. I got a sugar coated donut and ate it on the spot. Mmm. I also went to a candy shop and got a bottle of shampoo and a chocolate bar for about $2. And I ate the chocolate right there as well. MAN that's cheap though. Although I must say, the shampoo was VERY watered down. But it works.

When I was walking around town I saw a stray dog (there are a bunch here) with a very incorrectly bent leg. His front left paw was facing pretty much 90 degrees inward and his leg had a kink in it. But he was walking on it normally. He must have been hit by a car but never had it healed. I felt so bad for him, the poor guy. At least he seemed like he didn't care. Then I saw another guy like this about 20 minutes later! God damn, I miss how dogs are treated in the USA.

The people at the school are SO nice and cool. The director of the school, Mirthala, is just so damn chill and nice and friendly. She's also bilingual so it's been easier to get to know her. She was telling me today about how she had bot flies once and it sounds SO SICK. She had this big mosquito bite looking thing for a long time, but didn't know what it was. She finally realized that it's not just a normal bite, and one reason may have been that it had a hole in the middle (a telltale sign because that's the BREATHING hole.) But yeah, eventually she extracted the little worm larvae guy with a needle. Some people just pop it. And she said she knew someone who's dog had a BUNCH of bot flies and the owner thought they were cancerous tumors. I guess that is a good result, haha, but SO SICK. And she also told me that she got bitten by a very venomous snake. It was really early in the morning and dark and she looked down and thought she saw a hair tie, so she reached down and swiped her hand across to pick it up. Then she soon realized this wasn't correct when it BIT her. Soon after she fainted. Then got up again and thought she was fine. Then fainted again. Then got up and fainted again. She kept forgetting that she had fainted so thought she was fine. Eventually her husband came in with the dead culprit in his hands and told her he had already called the paramedics. She was in the hospital for 8 days. I guess it was one of the most poisonous snakes there is so she's lucky! The awesome thing about it is that she still has the snake in her freezer.

Sandra, the secretary, is also very cool (yes, she's an older woman, and I've already told this to Dana.) She speaks Spanish and a little bit of English - maybe about as much as I speak Spanish or a little less. She has told me that my Spanish is really good and that she can't believe that I haven't been practicing it much for years (I felt VERY cool, especially because she told me this in SPANISH.) And I love when she tries to speak English. It's cute. So we've been sort of talking to each other going back and forth between English and Spanish and it's fun!

On top of all this, it's just such a good way to learn Spanish to just listen. I have so much free time at the school that a lot of it is spent simply listening. Sometimes, when I understand, I talk and join in, but often I am just sitting and trying to figure out what they're saying. It's pretty cool, especially when I understand the overall point of a conversation.

I taught my first lesson here today. I taught essentially the same lesson three times in a row. It was all the little kids (Kindergarten and pre-Kindergarten classes.) I did some beat related movements where the kids had to move a certain way when I played chords on the guitar. And I sang old MacDonald and had them do animal noises and "E-I-E-I-O." And I played the awesome game Hillery showed me where you give students objects when their eyes are closed and sing to them, "Who has the pencil?" and they have to sing back, "I have the pencil." I adjusted it slightly because of the language barrier. I first had them simply echo the names of the objects. Then just sing back the names of the objects. Then I started putting in their hands and having them sing (I also changed it to "Quién tiene 'the pencil?'" and "Tengo 'the pencil.'") It was tough though because I REALLY had the push the kids to sing and keep reminding them. And also, when they did sing, it was always in a yelling type of voice, so I worked on getting their voices in a higher, softer place. The problem is, I told them to sing in a "voz más alta," but I didn't realize that that means "in a louder voice" so of course they basically started yelling. I did want them to be a bit louder, but I was looking for them to match my pitch, not start yell-singing. It makes sense though, since they never have any regular music lessons and they're not used to it. By the end of this experience, they'll be singing Don Giovanni.

It was really cool though because I really am speaking Spanish somewhat in the class. I said things like "levantense" and "sientense" (stand up and sit), and things like "pongan las manos atrás de las espaldas" (put your hands behind your back.) Although it wasn't perfect and I was struggling somewhat, it was a LOT better than some of the other people here could do because I was actually speaking! Also, I had the actual teacher to help me if I couldn't figure out how to say something.

Pura vida,

Whit

P.S. Speaking of "pura vida," I was embarrassed today because I asked Max the usual "Cómo está," and instead of answering "bien, y usted?" like I have heard a lot, he said something that sounded totally different and that I didn't understand. I asked what he said again and it was "pura vida." Then I felt really stupid because I KNOW people say that; just couldn't understand it at first, haha. So I said it back and that was that.

Kiwi Kevin: My Unknowing, Unwitting Savior

Kevin unknowingly SERIOUSLY saved my ass tonight with 23 cents. Since Sunday, my credit card hasn't worked here at all. I've tried it at three banks in town multiple times and have even gone into the bank and poorly spoken to the teller in Spanish to try to figure it out, but my account has been invalid. I emailed my dad about it and he said he could try but they probably wouldn't do it for him because of fraud protection stuff. Fortunately, he emailed someone in Bloomington and she got an international bank help phone number I could call. The problem was, she said to call collect since the bank would accept it but I couldn't figure out how to call collect from here. I looked at sites and none of the collect calling things included Costa Rica. So I was like what the hell do I do! I can't use the house phone because I don't want to charge them a dumpload of money. So I was like, my only option is Skype. So I tried to buy some credit on Skype to call a phone number, expecting it not to work because of my fraudulent card, and of course it didn't. So I was like AGH I'm out of options.

Then, I thought of Kevin and his Skype name. I knew there was money on the account. There was only one possible way that it could work. But I remembered his universal password. And it worked. And he had $8.23 on there. And now he has $8. So I owe him 23 cents as well as my life for saving my ass. Oh my god thank you Kevin!

I can't believe how cheap it is to call any phone using Skype. My GOD.

Short and Sweet

In the morning I sat and watched a few of the early childhood teachers. It was GREAT because they speak so well and enunciate every word because they're talking to little kids so it was a really good way for me to listen and practice. And they were also doing things that were hands on so if I didn't understand the words I could look at a visual. I understood almost everything!

Then after, I went downtown for a little bit with the two West Virginia girls and this other girl who lives here now and teaches here (she's from California) and we went to a little cafe place and they got some awesome looking coffee things and I got a "Pepsi Light" and a "Cremita" (basically a pastry filled with cream). The cremita wasn't as good as I'd hoped, but it wasn't bad.

I got to know the town a little better now, so now I feel more comfortable walking around, and know where some things are, like the bank, a candy store, some pastry shops, some restaurants and some other stuff. Good!

First Days

So I've had two embarrassing moments so far. And since embarrassing moments usually make the best stories, I'll start with those.

First: Some extended family came down from San José yesterday. Among them was a young boy and a really young girl. I asked the boy's name, and after a few tries, I finally understood what it was: Sebastian (he said it like "say-boss-tee-an" quickly and I wasn't sure what he said for awhile.) Then I asked the parents what the name of the little girl was, and they said "Mañana." I thought that it was an interesting name, since it means either "morning" or "tomorrow." Mañana = tomorrow; la mañana = the morning. So I thought it was interesting but didn't give it much thought. Not too much later, to make some more small talk, I asked them something like "Es su nombre cómo mañana, cómo ayer? O es cómo la mañana?" I don't know if I said it that well, and I don't even know if that is correct. But basically, what I asked was "Is her name like tomorrow, similar to yesterday?  Or is it like the morning?" I just wanted to know which they meant to be the main focus of her name. After asking them, however, they corrected me by saying her name was Marianna. If you say that name quickly and in a thick Costa Rican accent, it sounds a LOT like mañana, at least to a gringo like myself. I felt stupid but had to laugh and I think they thought it was funny as well.

Second: I went out to a local bar with Max last night, one of the three brothers in the family. He was really nice and bought me some beer. I of course wanted to try the local beer, Imperial. It was realllly good beer. It was a lot smoother than most American beers (similar to Blue Moon but even smoother), and since I don't really like the hops-filled, bitter beers, it went down so easy. On top of that, their custom is to drink beer out of a cup with ice, which I LOVED because I like everything I drink to be as cold as possible. Perhaps as a result of the beer, or perhaps because of earlier liquids, after awhile I had to go to the bathroom. From the bar, I saw in plain sight the women's restroom, with a picture of the iconic bathroom female and the word "Damas." I didn't see the men's, however. I got up, telling Max, "Voy al baño" (I'm going to the bathroom) and feeling confident I knew exactly how to say it (since most often I am sort of stumbling over words and sentences). That feeling of confidence quickly vanished, however. I went to go look for the men's bathroom around the corner, but I didn't see it. I opened a door that I assumed must be it but there was just a tiled bench in there. I then looked around a little more and all I saw was the storage area for the bar, where the customers aren't even supposed to go. I was confused. So awkwardly, I go back and say something like "A la derecha?" (To the right?) to the people there (two bartenders, Max, and another guy who showed up and was talking to Max). One of the bartenders says "A la izquierda" (To the left). I'm really confused now because to the left is the exit. So I point to the left and say "A la izquierda?" and he says no. At the time, I just thought, "What the hell, I don't get this, so I'll just look again," although thinking about it now, I have realized that I think he meant that once you turn the corner, then it's on your left, even though he didn't say that. Either way, I looked again, and once again, all I saw was that stupid room with a tiled bench (maybe it's a shower stall without a shower head?) and the back room for storage. So I go back and bare my face one more time, and say "No puedo encontrarlo" (I can't find it), so the guy gets up this time and walks over to help me. He walks right up to the room with a bench (which is on the left after you turn the corner), opens it, and tells me that it's the bathroom. I now feel so INCREDIBLY stupid, especially because I've already opened it and looked into it TWICE. He must have been like, what the hell, why doesn't he see it?! I take another look at the bench and I realize that it's angled backwards and that there is a strange looking drain on one end. AH. NOW I get it. It's like those trough-like urinals they have at stadiums. Only, it looks almost exactly like a tiled bench and not at all like somewhere to pee. But, as is best to do in these situations, I laughed it off and he laughed as well. Later in the night, I brought it up again, attempting to say "It's very different than what I've seen" and "Hopefully I can find it this time," and even though I may not have said it exactly right, it got a good laugh out of the guys and I felt kind of cool. So good, I regained my confidence . . . somewhat.

Everyone has been really nice here overall. They're a very polite people. It's good that I know the basic greetings and stuff because even if I can't speak Spanish too well, I am always fine asking "Como está?" and when I meet someone, I am fine asking their name and you always say "Mucho gusto" after you meet someone (sort of like "nice to meet you.") Now even though I often feel like I don't know a lot, I definitely am understanding a fair amount and speaking pretty well given the fact that I haven't practiced much at all since I last took a Spanish class in 2005. I have already had two people tell me "su español es muy bueno" which has made me feel very good. I can talk about where people are from, the weather (somewhat), where people have been around the world, and some other things like that. It feels REALLY good to actually have sort of a conversation with someone in a completely different language!

Unrelated sidenote: I am actually sitting in a hammock right now outside the house underneath a Cas tree. The weather is great now (it was really hot earlier) and I keep hearing a rooster crow about 20 feet away. The rooster's crow here is not "cock-a-doodle-doo," it's "qui-qui-ri-qui," which is pronounced "kee-kee-ree-kee." I also found out that the dog sound is "guau guau," which sounds basically like "wow wow" since the "g" is hardly pronounced.

I had my first day at the school today. It. Is. BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!! The school itself isn't too amazing, but it's very small, with only about 6 or 7 classrooms and a preschool section. There are many things that make it beautiful though. First of all, it is inside/outside. The only things that are inside are the classrooms. Nothing else. There are no hallways or lunchrooms or anything. The "lunchroom" is just a table outside of the classrooms. And instead of hallways are sidewalks adjacent to the classrooms. The preschool doesn't even really have doors. It's all open with just a roof. And the other classrooms leave their doors open all the time. The most amazing thing about it though is the view from the school. I can literally step right outside of the office or a classroom and look out to a view of lush plant life, a few streets, and many, many hills. But they're more than hills. They're not mountains but they're big and beautiful. After all, it is called "Atenas Preschool y Escueala Colina Azul" (Atenas Preschool and Primary School on a Blue Hill.) It's just such a change going from an Indiana school - which is completely closed, and when I go outside, all I see is roads, some trees, and flat landscape - to being here in this tiny outside school on a hill that feels very open and has an AMAZING view.

I love Cas juice. Mmmmm. Very good. I had a bite of raw Cas as well, and it was VERY sour but good. Sort of like a lemon, but with a very different consistency. The consistency is more like a pear but it looks kind of like a green orange or lemon. But the juice (called "fresco") is really good and they sweeten it up nice and dandy. And Iris (the homestay mother) makes it fresh all the time.

It was funny because I played Nintendo with Sebastian. He had Mario Party on his Nintendo DS and he was showing me some of the minigames on it. It was funny because I think he thought I didn't really know how to play video games (haha yeah right) because he never let me play a new minigame first. He would always say "espera" (wait), show me how to play it, explain how to play it in a bunch of Spanish I didn't understand, then give it to me to try. The game was in English, so all I would have to do is read the instructions, but he would always skip through them. So sometimes I actually didn't know how to play so it made it look like I wasn't good at videogames! Eventually, I started saying "espera" when we got to the instruction screen so I could read it and know how to play. He still wouldn't let me play before he showed me how though, haha. But all in all, playing with him got me to practice listening and sort of speaking a lot of Spanish. So who said videogames aren't educational?

After Nintendo, he took out his massive quantities of Pokemon figurines and showed me. Man, he had SO many in this backpack he used especially for them. I think he said there were 48. He then told me each one cost about 1,000 colones, which is about $2, which adds up to about $100. Man! He said "escoge seis" (choose six). So I did, but then I had no idea what to do. He kept trying to explain how each of them had a different class, like some were "rock" and some were "fire" and some were "water" and that each of them had different attack moves. I FINALLY started getting the gist but it took a long time. But then I told me to pick an attack to do with one or something, but I didn't know any. So he told me some and even that took a long time, because he kept saying "roca tumba" or something and I had NO idea what that was. Turns out it was simply "rock tomb." I don't even know what that is in ENGLISH let alone Spanish. It would have helped IMMENSELY had I played any sort of Pokemon game before. But alas, I haven't. So I thought, well, he has Pokemon cards as well and that looks like it will be easier than using these weird figurines. So I ask "podemos usar las tarjetas?" (can we use the cards?) He says yes and goes and gets them. Oh man. Not any easier. There were all these rules and symbols on the cards and I had no idea what they meant. After a long, futile, explanation from Sebastian, I eventually just gave up and got my computer to read the instructions on how to play. In a way, though, this made it even harder! Because as I was reading them, there were tons of rules and stuff that applied to the cards, but when I tried to confirm with him that I understood, he most often would say that it wasn't right. But what I think was happening was that pretty much the only rule he used was that the "attack points" of one character card would subtract a certain amount of points from the "health points" of the character being attacked, depending on how good the "defense points" of the latter character were. This is all fine and dandy, but it made for a very shallow, unfun, game because it was basically like seeing a number 50 and attacking it with a number 60. Or having a 90 and getting attacked by 70, so you have 20 points left. It's an addition/subtraction lesson! Eventually, after going through our hands of cards, Sebastian won of course, since I still didn't really understand the rules. Overall, though, as with the videogame, it was a good lesson in Spanish to try to keep up with him. Most people here slow down to talk to gringos, but I don't think kids realize that it helps us to understand them, so he was BLAZIN'.

Es todo. Hasta luego.

Whit (or as they pronounce it, "Weet")

It's Official

Just got back from Denny's. In Costa Rica. Yes. My first meal was Denny's. But to be honest, it was a great intro experience. I got the Spanish version of the menu (even though it's pretty obvious what you're ordering with giant pictures and words like "hamburguesa"). The burger I got was insane - it had hash browns, an egg, and queso sauce on it. It wasn't amazing but the fries were SO good. The ketchup had a different consistency.

I definitely spoke to the waiter pretty much only in Spanish. I asked for an extra plate for ketchup. I told him that I wish America had burgers with eggs and hash browns and queso sauce. And I think he told me that it was a common thing here and he seemed surprised that it wasn't in America. That's so interesting how every country probably has different versions of classic foods.

I definitely did the Foreigner's Laugh a few times, where I sort of MAYBE understood what he was trying to say but definitely wasn't sure, so I kind of just pretended I knew and chuckled, even though it was so obvious I was faking. AGH. His name was Juan Carlos. He was very nice.

The thing that's annoying is that I thought the exchange rate made things really cheap here. I know normally things probably are but I guess since I'm rrrrrright near the airport, things are really expensive. I didn't really realize until I got the check how expensive it was gonna be. It cost like $15/$16 for just a burger, fries and a Coke. What the HELL!

Ah man, it's SOOOOOO cool to be here though. I LOVE speaking Spanish and trying to get better at it. I love that type of learning. You just DO it. You don't practice, prepare, or anything like that; you're just thrown in there and do it. It's great. I am SO excited to meet my family tomorrow.

AAAAAGGGGHHHH this is gonna be such an awesome trip.

I must say though, I definitely miss Dana sooo much as well as family. I felt pretty lonely tonight in Denny's. I want a friend (even though Juan Carlos was a pretty awesome chap.

Hasta luego mis amigos

In the SKY

So I'm finally in the plane on the way to Costa Rica. I'm writing this obviously without an internet connection and will later upload it to the blog. It's been a long day.

The first delay occurred in Indy. We had a short delay due to weather in Atlanta. Not much to worry about.

Then, once I got to Atlanta and was waiting at the gate there, I heard that earlier in the day, apparently, there was a delay due to the tire on a plane popping when it landed. Man, that's scary! The people sitting next to me now were on that plane and they said the landing sounded louder than it should have been, and then they heard a "flop flop flop" as it rolled down the runway.

So in Atlanta, we were waiting at the gate for maybe 20-30 minutes longer than we're supposed to and finally started boarding. After about 20-30 people got on, they just suddenly canceled boarding and everyone had to get off (not sexually). We didn't know what the hell was going on for a long time but apparently there was a maintenance problem on the plane and something was broken. Great! Well obviously I would much rather be delayed than fly in a broken plane.

So now I have a bunch of extra time and I'm not sure when we're going to board. After a lot more time waiting, I end up going to the bathroom. While I'm in there, I hear that the gate has been changed. So I quickly finish up, get out and go to the gate. A lot more waiting follows.

Then there was this mob of people up at the counter where I guess they had to reissue our tickets for the new gate or something. I don't know, it was really confusing. But I happened to be right at the counter with maybe one person in front of me when they told us they were going to have to do that. Immediately though, a mob of people forms behind me, and social rules start to disintegrate as people pushed up to the counter and cut in line and a few people got to go before me. Eh, it's not a big deal, but in my head I was thinking, "I HATE you. You are an awful person."

I don't really know what happened next, because soon after, we all just started boarding and I feel like the ticket swap thinking didn't really do anything. I don't really know. It felt sort of like the Obama inauguration though for awhile there. Tons of people standing around, getting annoyed, and not knowing what the hell was going on.

FINALLY we got on the plane and now I'm in a chair . . . in the SKY.

It was pretty cool though: in the Indy airport, there was this lady who looked confused about if we were boarding or not (we weren't; it was just people checking to see if they would make their connections.) She came up to me and asked me in broken English what was happening and if she needed to worry about it. I told her that we weren't boarding yet.

I noticed, though, that she had a Spanish accent. So I figured I'd try it out. I first asked if she spoke Spanish (just in case my accentdar was bad and she was actually from East Tuk-Tuk, Mokoland.) She said yes and so I tried to explain the situation in Spanish. I probably sucked it up big time, but I spoke with her for a few minutes, or maybe just a few sentences.

It just got me excited for all the Spanish speaking I'm going to be doing. And if I have enough Spanish in my brain to be able to understand the basics of what someone's saying and to speak with her about random flight stuff (at least TRY to), I just know I'm gonna be SO good by the end.

Packing, the Sequel

After I went back and read my last post, I realized something. I actually haven't always hated packing. I used to love it when I was a kid and was going to Westport and stuff. I used to say with Stoddard, "I can't WAIT till we're packing for Westport." So I guess I haven't ALWAYS hated it. Just in recent years I have. And I hate it now. But this is a BIT more entertaining 'cause it's a cool reason. Even though it's also more annoying 'cause it's gonna take longer.

Packing

I hate packing. I always have. However, this is the most exciting packing I've ever done, since I have to think about packing for two months in a foreign country. Crazy! I'm excited as hell though. Can't wait to be speaking Spanish all the time.

Less than 24 hours . . .