(So I thought I had the initiative, but apparently did not--the text above was written very long ago. But I get it posted eventually, hopefully you have all learned to patient by now; if you had not, you wouldn't be reading this.)
Doka Estate
My program took us on a day trip to a local coffee estate (called the Doka Estate). The tour was in spanish, so I got the gist of it, but couldn't really relay a whole lot of details. I was completely ignorant of how coffee is produced--I guess I always figured coffee beans in starbucks had been picked directly from the plant. It turns out that the production process was "discovered" or "invented" about 900 years ago (don't hold me to that exact figure :)) in Ethiopia. This might seem like a random fact to share, but I reiterate that the tour was in spanish, and I was excited to comprehend any arbitrary bit of information I could. I also shared a picture from the lunch, because it was delicious and provided by the program--two very positive attributes.
Monteverde - the "cloud forest"
The same weekend as the coffee estate, myself an seven others in the program set off for Monteverde, which is a private reserve north of San Jose. Its rainforest is called the "cloud forest" for reasons made clear in the picture below. We took a $4 public bus from the city at 6:30 in the morning and some of us were enjoying the entertainment of a singer/guitarist by about 7:15. Unfortunately, we arrived to a rainy Monteverde after the four hour bus ride and were not able to do much walking in the reserve. This was disappointing, but expected, and our major objective for the trip was scheduled for the following morning--zip-lining.
I was really excited and did not leave disappointed. I had imagined it taking us through the forest, but we were actually zip-lining above the canopy as high as 350 feet in the air. No photos can really do it justice, but the views were incredible and it was such a rush. It was nerve-racking to walk up the steps and feel the gusts of wind, but almost relaxing once I was on the line. Doing this made me want to really try other things of the sort...hand-gliding, bungy-jumping anyone?
Rio Celeste and Arenal
Fast forward to the following weekend...I'm sticking to the weekends because they have generally had the most to
report on. The weeks have generally consisted of a lot of class and more casual hanging out with the family. I do have
some more photos from that aspect of my stay so I'll try to post those at a later time. For now, however, I will stay focused
on the current "catching up" objective....
The program took us near the northern border of the country (we could see Lake Nicaragua from our rooms) to do a
hike and visit a river called Rio Celeste. The hike, which took place on the first day, had us walking through the forest
and crossing three or four suspension bridges that were just flimsy enough to make me really focus on putting one foot in front
of the other. Though the guide spoke in spanish and it was, once again, difficult to catch the details, he kept us interested throughout
the hike. The next day he took us to go see Rio Celeste, which is the river you see in the pictures below...can't say I have
a detailed understanding of why the water is that incredible aqua blue, but my understanding was that minerals from a
nearby volcano caused the river to turn that color. It just as beautiful as it appears in the pictures and was among my
favorite sites of Costa Rica despite the giant horse-fly bite that stung for the majority of the hike. What made this day so
memorable were the other experiences that it included: soaking in a hot spring, swimming near a waterfall, and seeing
a poisonous snake (which we all crowded around until our guide nonchalantly informed us that it was "very poisonous").
Defined line that illuminates the river's change in color
On the drive home, I was talking to my friend Jenny, who was going to be dropped off near the active volcano Arenal because her sister was going to meet her there. She offered to take me along, and I made the last minute decision to go along the moment the bus stopped to drop her off. After an adventurous cab ride, we made it into to the center of La Fortuna, which is the closest town to the volcano. Hoping I could see the lava that night and then head out the next morning (Sunday, with school on monday), I was disappointed to find out from the staff at our hostel ($7 a night!) that you had to be on the other side of the volcano to see it flowing down the mountain. Thus, I decided to take the hit, miss a day of class, and stay one more night. You can tell it was really a tough decision. The next day, with her sister, we drove to a beautiful waterfall ("cataract"..see picture below) located near the volcano. In the evening, after driving around for hours in search of a hotel from which you could see the lava, we finally found one--and it was well worth the wait. Seeing the lava slowly stream down and separate down the volcano was everything I had hoped it would be. Arenal has been in the news in Costa Rica for having been particularly active recently, so we got a incredible show. If I hadn't been so tired from the weekend, I could have stayed up all night watching the spectacle. The few photos that captured the lava did not come out well, so below is a view of the volcano from our hotel during the day. The smoke you see is the same lava rock that was bright red/orange during the night.
Goodbye Costa Rica, hello Chile!
The time in Costa Rica passed so quickly, but was really an incredible five weeks. I have not shared much about my host family in these journals, but they were incredible and so welcoming. It was a perfect fit, because they were constantly joking and I did my best to joke back--I hope to return someday with stronger spanish so I can do so with more success. I was lucky enough to have my last night in San Jose fall on the birthday party of my "host brother-in-law" (don't know how else to say it). The fiestas at there house (I got to be there during two birthdays) were always a really good time. My favorite part was how they bought two cakes--one for eating, and one for smearing on everyone's face (see the evidence on my "host nephew" Maxito above). I even got in on the action a bit (see below, photo of me with another host nephew, Luis Carlos). It was the perfect way to spend my last night, but it made me very sad to go the next day. I can't say enough about Costa Rica, the people, and the sites and I recommend it as a vacation! It is really cheaper than traveling cross-country in the U.S.
The picture directly below is me in front of my house in San Jose--the bottom floor was my house, the one above was my host sister and her family's, and to the right is the mechanic shop run by my host brother and host brother-in-law.
Sad to be leaving after five weeks that passed much too quickly, I headed for Santiago the next morning. That is where I have been for the past week, getting oriented to my program and getting to know my new host family, who I have lived with for four days now. They have made me feel very comfortable and I have had a great experience with Chilenos in general thus far. The photo below is of my fellow participants in the GW program and the resident director, Pedro, who is fantastic and cares for us like we are his children.
I should also take this opportunity to mourn the death of my camera, which took a fatal fall when I was searching for my alarm clock one morning. It died on impact with the rock-hard tile floor. I joke, but am actually really bummed about this, as you might expect. I'm going to try and find a solution to this problem soon, bear with me for now. Future posts (yes..I'm going to try and stick with this) might have to make due with photos taken with my fellow students (as the one below), for now. I'll write more when there is more to report. Next week, I will be attending my first classes in Chile. I'll be better about keeping this updated. Well..i'll try.
