After a few weeks in Costa Rica, I feel like I am finally somewhat getting into the swing of things. The combination of a new country, new surroundings, new school, new professors, new family, new friends, new foods, and around the clock Spanish speaking has been simultaneously exhilarating and exhausting. After a short weekend of getting to know one another and playing fútbol in the enormous and lively Parque La Sabana, each of us fourteen students were placed in varying neighborhoods in the capital of Costa Rica, San José, with our familias anfitrionas, or host families. I live in a neighborhood named Guadalupe with an extremely welcoming host mother, father, brother, and sister-in-law.
All of the students with their host mothers
Zelmira, mi mamá tica* and me
The place I get to call home this semester is charming and cozy, yet unlike any other house I have seen. It almost does not appear to be a house from the outside and has features typically not found in many homes in the United States. My favorite of these features are the indoor plants that adorn the walls of the dining room.
“El patio” and my bedroom
…and of course I can’t forget to include all my new, silly tico pets!
One other thing I have had to begin getting used to is waking up early and commuting a long way to school. Throughout my entire career at Monmouth College, I have purposefully tried to select my class schedules so that they begin at or after 11 a.m. Also, classes are never more than a five minute walk on our tiny campus and most of the time, I have chosen sleeping more over waking up for breakfast. Here, my classes begin at 8 a.m., my commute is about an hour long by both bus and walking, and my host mother insists on making me a large breakfast every day. This means I need to be up by 6 a.m. The first few days, Zelmira walked me through how to get from the house to school. I take a bus, walk the city streets, then go through the beautiful University of Costa Rica campus before arriving at the ACM (Associated Colleges of the Midwest) building. There are practically no street signs here and jaywalking is the norm (and most often the easier way to cross the street), so I thought that I would never learn how to navigate the route by myself. I am admittedly horrible with directions, so the first time I got to school and back home by myself successfully, I was SUPER proud of myself.
You know when people say, “back in my day, we walked to school uphill both ways?” That is actually my reality this semester.
A couple small pieces of the University of Costa Rica campus I get to walk through and pretend I’m a student in.
Not to mention, I am in love with the ACM building where the fourteen of us have our classes every weekday. It is our quiet, little sanctuary in the middle of the bustling San José province. Even when I’ve had a rough walk some mornings, I feel a wave of relief upon entering the building and out to its amazing backyard.
Not a bad view from right outside a classroom!
The main classroom itself.
Even through all the adjustments, the long walks, long days, language barriers, and cultural hiccups, es totalmente vale la pena (it’s totally worth it!) I feel so lucky and thrilled to be able to live through this experience and I cannot wait to see what this semester brings me both personally and educationally.
*Word of the day: Tico/a:
of, relating to, or characteristic of Costa Rica or its inhabitants [x]
Phrase of the day: “Panza llena, corazón contento.”
“Full belly, content heart.” My host father (¡mi papá tico!) has had me repeat this phrase just about every other meal we have eaten together! I am always full, thanks to my host family’s amazing cooking, and being in Costa Rica these last few weeks has made my heart not only content, but just as full as my belly.
¡Qué rico!
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