Soy Aqui!

My friend Emily and I arrived in San Jose at about 12:15 AM (Costa Rica time= 2 hours behind East Coast North America time) on Sunday, May 29, 2011. By the time we went through a very easy custom experience, got picked up by our program director, Andre, and his girlfriend, and headed to our new home it was about 2:00 AM.  In a haze, we drove through San Jose for about 45 minutes until we reached our new home. This oasis is atop a gigantic hill which appears (to me at least) in the middle of a rainforest canopy. Since it was early morning we couldn’t actually see what our surroundings were. Even though the night sky couldn’t depict our exact surroundings it has a beautiful view of the nearby mountains and breath-taking view of the lights of San Jose.

The building itself is a brand new sustainable living structure. The front of the building is all glass which makes the neighboring nature feel like it is part of you. It has two floors with rooms for the students to occupy. Emily and I live in the last two rooms on the left side of the building. The private rooms we each have far surpass my expectations. They are modernized with dark wood doors and furniture to put all the necessities brought from the United States away. There is even a private bathroom off each of the rooms with a glass shower. Ironically, it is the most beautiful bathroom I have ever had the pleasure of calling my own if for only a short time. Since it was so late when we arrived we didn’t get a chance to put all of our things away before it was time to call it a night. Emily and I each went to our separate rooms to rest, but due to the silence of living in the middle of a fern plantation I decided to sleep in Emily’s room this night. I feel like I haven’t been able to grasp the time since I arrived in Costa Rica.

No one really seems to know and our ipods, computers, etc. confuse us since we didn’t have internet for a few days and were unclear if they were on east coast time or Central American time. We slept in the next day, Sunday. Having free time, we called our parents to ensure them that we arrived safe. We practiced Bikram yoga atop the gorgeous views from our hill and even got a bit sun-kissed by the foreign rays. And perhaps no surpise, we have befriended some of the local stray dogs. Oso, most frequently visits. He appears to be a Chihuahua/Huskey mix and to be a puppy since he is always trying to nip at my feet and shoes. Eventually, we decided it time to venture out and get some dinner. We found a bar restaurant a few blocks away. We ordered nachos, a queso taco, and some Imperials, the local Costa Rican beer. The food was excellent fatty deep-fried authentic food. We made the best of friends that we could with our limited Spanish conversational skills with the bar patrons and bar tenders. The bar tenders were even nice enough to give us a ride home.

 The next day we began our TESOL classes after breakfast- eggs, fruit, cereal, breads, and orange juice. It was clear from the start of our classes that this is no joke. We have a lot of work, testing, and real life experience ahead of us. If you are looking for a quick easy escape to another country I do not recommend this. It is only Wednesday and we have already had our first quiz and have a lesson plan due on Friday, not to mention all the required reading about a subject I have previously known nothing about. This all seems quick, but has made my transition fairly easy since I don’t have that much time to miss home. Though, it is hard not to always miss my dog, Chloe. I do not know what is in store, but I can say that I expect the unexpected. Que sera sera!