The 1st week :)

I haven’t described myself as shy or anxious since about the sixth grade. Well, I guess most people who know me well still might describe me as anxious, but trust me I am not nearly as bad as I once was. However, during this past week in Costa Rica I have commonly found myself once again quieting that inner voice telling me, “You can’t do this.” However, I love those fleeting moments when I conquer something unexpectedly, and I just want to scream back, “YES I CAN.” For example, I will ask how to say a word over and over again in Spanish and repeatedly not remember it, until all of the sudden I blurt it out without thinking. Or when I realize I have just navigated my way around Tres Rios by myself, and I am suddenly back at my front door. In these moments, I am reminded of just how capable I am. These instances remind me to just let life happen, because “worrying is wasteful and useless in times like these.” I think that is a quote from the singer, Jewel.

I have now been in Costa Rica for a week. Some days I feel like I have already been here months, while other days I feel like I have only just arrived. I will try to briefly recap my first week. Sarah and I thankfully arrived here safely at about 5:30 am after the whole airport debacle. And yes, we did get our tickets refunded! Our host mother picked us up from the airport. I immediately realized how hard this whole Spanish thing was going to be after I spit out about the five Spanish phrases I know and then sat in silence the rest of the car ride home. For those of you who know me, you know how difficult this was. I am never one to sit quietly during conversations. I love to be right in on the action. Quite frankly, silence scares me! It is always good to work on your fears though, and practicing active listening is always beneficial, too. Sarah and I spent most of Tuesday unpacking, and getting some much needed rest!

On Wednesday, I took the first trip to my beautiful school! It was love at first sight. What is not to love about adorable Costa Rican children, with big brown eyes, squealing with delight as they play at recess! On the way to see my school I was very nervous, but I should have known that no matter what part of the world I am in, being with children always makes me feel right at home!

(My classroom!)

On Thursday, I went to Sarah’s school. Sarah is doing her practicum at a Montessori Kindergarten. When we arrived we spent the first half hour or so greeting the children as they arrived. I spent most of my time with the one and two year olds. We are at a pretty similar language level when it comes to Spanish. Then, I had the opportunity to follow the Pre-Kindergarten class around. We spent about an hour and a half in the Montessori classroom. For those of you who are not familiar with this teaching technique, the Montessori classroom is filled with several different learning-based activities. There is a certain way the children are taught to go about completing each task. The children come to the Montessori classroom to work, not play. After this, the class headed to Karate class. Cutest thing I have ever seen! This was obviously something the children do weekly, as they were extremely good at following the routine! Then, the children went outside and practiced a dance routine and poem they had been working on for their Mother’s Day celebration. Also, very cute! Finally, the children had some English Language instruction. This was such a great morning!

(The students at Sarah's school practicing their dance for Mother's Day)

On Friday, Sarah and I ventured to the bus station by ourselves! Thankfully, we successfully made it to our respective schools! Friday was exciting, exhausting, over-stimulating, confusing, stressful, joyous, and enriching. As you can imagine after a day full of this many emotions, I was worn out! I am working

with a teacher named, Milena. I am so gratefull that Milena is warm and welcoming. It has made my transition into this experience much more enjoyable. Milena teaches English and science. Most everything she says is in English, but of course she resorts back to her native language to communicate some things to her students. However, the students typically respond in Spanish. I have already encountered countless situations in which I have had no idea what they are trying to ask me. Most of them are patient with me, and we get by with Spanglish and hand gestures.

On Saturday, I headed out for my first big adventure with the girls. I will quickly give you some background information on, “the girls.” Although, Sarah and I share the same major and even lived close to each other freshmen year, we did not meet until last year. We had several of our classes together our last semester of college, and one day I asked Sarah if she would student teach in Costa Rica with me, and she said, “Sure.” How easy was that?! Kelly also goes to Winona State. We had a couple classes together our sophomore year, but sadly haven’t had the opportunity to talk much since. In a student teacher meeting Kelly overheard me talking about student teaching in Costa Rica, and decided to come along, too! Finally, Linsey is from Washington and lives with Emilia, too! Both Linsey and Kelly are Spanish majors so that has been extremely helpful! Anywho, the four of us tried to go to Cartigo to see a volcano, but we ended up being too late for the buses. So, we ended up just wandering around the town. We had some great food, waited for the rain to pass and then headed out to a small town in the middle of a beautiful valley. We stumbled upon this beautiful river that left me in awe. It was one of those moments I had to stop and inhale deeply just to remember how beautiful life is.

(Sarah and Kelly on the bus)

(Kelly, Sarah, and Linsey)

(A very typical Costa Rican meal)

On Sunday, we ventured back to Cartigo and had the opportunity to listen to a band from Mexico playing music for Mother’s Day. I loved watching everyone, young and old, dancing in the crowd.

On Monday, I began my first full week at school! I am getting tired of writing. So, I will just list a few things.

Things I struggled with at school:

*Communicating effectively with the students and staff. I really dislike not being able to engage in meaningful conversation with the staff members at the school, and I find it very frustrating that when a student comes up to me crying and I can’t figure out exactly what happened.

*Trying to write in cursive. I love to print!

*I want to be helpful at school, but I also don’t want to over step my boundaries.

*Learning 90 Spanish names! Este es muy dificil para mi!

Thanks for reading! I will update you on more Costa Rican life soon! Don’t forget to keep me updated on your life, too!