La Isla Tortuga

The past few days have been wonderful. Last night we went to Jazz Café to listen to a salsa band that was conducted by a Grammy winner. It was really fun, but it was nothing compared to today. At 5 this morning, I woke up and went down to the bus stop so that I could make it to school by 6 in order to go to Tortuga Island with my program. We rode a bus for two hours to a port city. Then we got to ride on a party boat for an hour until we got to the island. It was a private beach that was beautiful. I can't describe it fully and do it justice. I'm putting pictures on facebook for everyone to enjoy. I did, however, get burned very badly because my skin has not see the sun in years. I'm crossing my fingers that it'll be okay, but I'm not too optimistic. I'm so ready for a lazy Sunday tomorrow.

The Life of a Tico

I am completely in love with this place. The food is wonderful. My family is great as well. We finally met the dad last night! We had thought there was some unspoken understanding that he didn't live in the home, but it turns out we had just missed him every time he was home. He works as a baker for a lot of bakeries in the city.

My housemate's name is Stephanie. We get along really well! This is a good thing since we have class together and hang out together all of the time. She's from Virginia and goes to school at James Madison University.

Every morning we have class at 8. Then there's a break at 10:20, and class begins again at 10:40 and lasts until 1. It's a lot of time, but I actually enjoyed class today. My advanced class is really fun and not too difficult at all. We actually played Hangman today to help people remember the alphabet. This was after I had to tell the story of the three little pigs in Spanish. It was really difficult!

My other good friends are Tyler and Becky from Texas State. The three of us and Stephanie spend a lot of time together because we live on the same street, and we're all really excited about going to Tortuga Island this weekend! I've put pictures on facebook, so go look at them!

Also, an awkward cultural moment happened today. Stephanie and I had to ask our host family what certain Costa Rican phrases mean in plain Spanish. One of the words was a curse word! Her four-year-old daughter was sitting at the table with us! What kind of homework are they assigning?

Day 2

Hopefully, I'll think of more interesting titles for each post, but for the moment this works. Yesterday was my first full day in Costa Rica, and it was wonderful. The school I go to has the expanses of jungle like areas that are just beautiful. Unfortunately, we had to take a placement test today to see what classes we'll take. It wasn't too difficult at least. I've already made three good friends who live near me, so I am excited to get to know them better. Also, everyone in this program is for Texas! Luckily, they're from Texas State, so most of them are okay with the whole Alabama is awesome thing. Last night, my roommate, Stephanie, and our friends Tyler and Becky went to a bar that we affectionately call Feng Shui. It was great! Like 20 people from our program came, and we dominated that place. I'll put up pictures soon! Today is the actual first day of class! AH!

Day 1

Fortunately, it was much easier getting to Costa Rica than it was to Spain. I left at seven this morning and got here at around noon. I have been here for almost five hours, and I already love it. I am currently waiting on the other student living in my house to show up so that we can hopefully eat soon. My family consist of David and Ana and their two children Maria and Diego who are 4 and 10. Conversation has not been too much of a problem, but it gets tiring constantly translating everything. On the bus into the city, I met another girl from my program who goes to Alabama, which was a nice surprise. My room is nicely sized, and I am just ready to start doing stuff. Now, however, I am ready for a nap.

Hasta luego,

Wesley