100 degrees

It's been sooo hot here lately, it's insane. The ticos say that it's usually not THIS hot. But I'm definitely getting used to it and it makes great beach weather and the A/C in the classrooms makes it bearable.

So nothing too exciting has been happening here. Classes, talking with my family, meeting with my speaking partner Reinier... So I'm just gonna comment on some more things about Costa Rica that are so totally different than the US.

- ANTS. My house is FULL of them. It's starting to really gross me out. Like I'm sitting at the table and there's at least 30 of them crawling around while I'm trying to eat or do homework. Then I open up the sugar container to put some in my coffee and there's at least 10 ants crawling around in there. and my family doesn't even care haha.

- THE GUYS. the guys here are definitely different in respect to how they treat the ladies. they will always hold doors and hold their hands if they're trying to go down stairs. they will order them drinks and wait on them hand on foot. and it's not even like they like the girl or anything. it's just how they grew up learning how to treat women.

- THE FOOD. So I ate soup a couple weeks ago that had a pig's snout in it. YUP a full pig's snout. With bone and little hairs and pink. I almost puked. But I ate it... not the actually snout. but the soup. I had to try sooo hard not to think about it. I mean, the soup tasted good. I think the snout was just for flavoring... but really? did they have to put it in my bowl.

- Everyone says HI to everyone on the streets. Probably because everyone knows everyone in Puntarenas but it's really nice just getting smiles and waves and buenos dias all the time

AND there's more to come...but I can't think of all of them right now!

Oh, I love it when I'm talking or writing in English and random words in Spanish will come out! It shows that I'm thinking more in Spanish! Oh and the other night I had a dream in Spanish! It was crazy I was talking and thinking and communicating all in Spanish in my dream! You know what the worst thing is though? When you look up a word that you don't know in Spanish and then the English translation is also a word you don't know in English haha. It's the worst. So then you have to go to a regular English dictionary and look that word up.

San Jose Mayhem

Ahh this weekend was sooo tiring but so much fun. My mom’s coming to Costa Rica to visit me! In less than 2 weeks she will be here!

So this weekend we went to San José with the Latin American Cultures class. We had 3 field trips for the class and this was the one overnight (actually spent two nights). It was really fun. I like San José. I definitely wouldn’t want to leave there, a little too crazy, but it was fun to experience it. We went to el teatro nacional (national theater) which had some really cool architecture and paintings then we went to the national museum which again was cool but a little boring (you know me and how much I love history). Then we had the night free so we went to a mall and had subs from quiznos and frostys from wendys and we went to the movies! Lauren and I saw shutter island with Leonardo dicaprio. It was good. A little freaky, like sixth sense freaky, but good. Messed up at times haha. Then we just hung out at our hotel (which we had all to ourselves, like 30 USAC students) because we rented out all the rooms. Then Saturday we went to a church and another museum and another church and then drove to this really pretty view of the Orosi Valley. It was probably one, if not the prettiest view, I’ve seen in Costa Rica so far. Then we went to the mall again and had taco bell! And shopped and I got the indrustial piering in my ear! It actually didn’t hurt that bad. It hurts more now haha. Then we went out to “El Pueblo” which means “town” in English but it was CRAZY. Its basically like 3 blocks (a little town) of bars and clubs and mayhem. It was one of the USAC student’s birthday so we all went out to celebrate. Haha. It was really funnn. Tequila shots are 2 for $1.75 and the clubs have like dancers on stages and let girls in for free. It was crazy but really fun. I hung out with some USACers that I haven’t spent much time with and talked and hungout with some ticos and some people from Colombia too! Then Sunday (today!) we went to another church and walked around san jose stopping at places like parks and important places and ended up at this hippie market where I bought some cool presents for people!

Overall, san jose was really fun. Definitely and experience but fun and I wouldn’t mind going back there for a weekend possibly. Oh and movie tickets were only $3!

Montezuma Pictures

Montezuma!

So this past weekend we went to Montezuma which is an hour ferry ride and then a 2 hour bus ride away. It was really fun. It's like this hippie beach town with a ton of cute bars and restaurants and stores. There were a little too many gringos (white americans and foreigners) since it's a big touristy spot... but it was still fun. I went to Jackie and Lauren and our friend Matt and then there were other USACers there that we met up with a few times but kinda did our own thing.

On Saturday we hiked about 30 minutes to these beautiful waterfalls (pictures soon) and I jumped off about a 15 foot job into the pool at the bottom. It was scary but really fun cuz I was shaking afterwards from the adrenaline! We hung out there for a bit just relaxing and then we realized that there were other BIGGER and BETTER waterfalls like another 45 min hike away. So Lauren and I set out on that trail..what we didn't realize was that we had to climb a mountain to get there! IT was insane. We had to hold on to branches to keep up and at one point there was only a rope for us to hold on to while going down a steep hill. It was quite the adventure. So we get to the top and theres this 40 foot jump that everyone is doing. I was contemplating doing or not until we saw this kid go and he got hurt! Lauren thinks he broke his arm cuz he couldnt move it and couldn't get out of the pool at the bottom...I think maybe he just dislocated it... who knows. but after that I was like nooo way am I jumping off that. Then we found a different path done (more on the road) after taking a few wrong turns and getting lost for a little while... but eventually found our way back to Matt and Jackie after about 2 hours haha.

This week is actually kinda busy with a 10pg paper, an exam, and a quiz for me. I'm meeting with Reinier (my conversation partner) and one of his friends tonight. We're all going to go to San Ramon this weekend to go to the movies! I'm so excited! I haven't seen a movie in months! Oh and guess what I ate while in Montezuma?? A BAGEL! It was sooo delicious! My first bagel in over 2 months and it was homemade!

Pura Vida!

March Already!

I can't believe it's March already! Craziness! Yesterday was my half-way point of being here. I can't believe I've already been here 2 months and only have 2 more months to go!!

This week has been pretty relaxing. Classes are getting harder...well not really harder. More like just more homework. I had a 20 minute presentation all in spanish! my topic was education in costa rica and the US and the differences and similarities. It was kinda interesting. Next week is crazy busy with school work again too. I have one exam, one quiz, a ten page paper (in spanish!) due, and i have to read 130 page spanish book... this should be a fun weekend of homework haha.

This weekend we're going to Montezuma! I'm wicked excited! I'm not even exactly sure who is going haha...but I know me, Lauren, Jackie, and Crystal all definitely are and Montezuma is supposed to be really fun with little markets and beautiful waterfalls.

So I fell again this week...that equals 4 falls in the 2 months that I have been here. I think I need a bubble sometimes haha.

fall#1- shopping. woman was cleaning the floor with a hose. I thought i would just walk carefully and slowly over the wet floor...failed. feel on my side. got extremely wet and had a lady nearby see everything and ask if i was okay. injuries: none. just embarrassment and a wet butt.

fall#2- one night i was just talking, hanging out with a group of people and someone goes "look jupiter!" So i look up to see Jupiter but move to fast and end up falling flat on my back. injuries: cut on shoulder and knee. (not really sure how the cut got on my knee since I fell backwards on to my back...)

fall #3- attempting to ride tico style (2 people on one bike where one person sits on the bike's bar in front of the other person) with Lauren. I was the person in the front. Didn't quite work out as we had hoped and me and the bike fell tumbling to the ground. injuries: hugggeee bruise on the side of my leg. bleeding hand. bruises on elbow and back.

fall #4- this week. while running. I dont know how it happened. I was just running at a pretty good pace, listening to my tunes, then all of a sudden I'm going down and theres no way to stop myself. Scrapped by my shoulder, my knee, my hands...

yup, same old Laura. It's alright. I'll come out with a few battle scars...maybe they'll help me remember Costa Rica more when I'm old.

Nicaragua Pics

this is me, becky, and lauren all ready to go canopying (my favorite part of the trip so far!)

we got volcanic mud baths!

gorgeous sunset on the boat ride back to san juan del sur

massaya volcano...we couldnt see the bottom cuz of the sulfur smoke that was coming out of it

at the top of the church tower in granada, me lauren and jack attack