One month in.... and still loving it

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We have now completed 1 month here in Costa Rica and while still pinch ourselves a little bit every morning, we have settled into a bit of a daily routine - wake up, leave the house by 7, drop the boys off at school, drive to the clinic, start seeing patients at 8, work until noon, have lunch with our colleagues and volunteers, then head out - to spanish class or to do errands/study spanish - until it is time to pick up the boys at school at 3:15. The weather even has a pretty standard rhythm to it - beautiful, clear, sunny skies in the morning with the rain arriving around 2 or 3 - sometimes gentle and steady, other times coming down in buckets, with flash flooding on the streets. It will be interesting to see what happens when the rainy season ends.

A few highlights from the past 2 weeks:

- checking out the beautiful grounds of the United Nation's University for Peace, just 5 miles up the road from our house

- a great Sunday road trip that included stops at Irazu volcano, the Orosi River valley, a trout farm where they charge you by the kilo for what you catch and then cook it up for a tasty lunch, and the oldest churches in the country (one is still operating)

- a girls' night out for Nancy with 2 female volunteers (one a Physician's Assistant from Arizona, the other a Nurse from Minnesota!) - between home and work, she is surrounded by boys all day long so she enjoyed a late-night dinner and dancing at a Lebanese restaurant in downtown San Jose, arriving home after midnight

- a smoking washing machine that now requires a new motor (fortunately it is under warranty)

- week-long midterm exams at school for the boys (one subject per day)

- Nancy and Steve starting twice-a-week Spanish tutoring (the boys are excited that we now have homework, too)

- improving our Spanish comprehension through daily patient interactions (Steve checking them in and finding/creating their charts, Nancy diagnosing and treating them, and Steve filling & explaining prescriptions)

- some excitement at the clinic when we arrived to find no electricity due to a guy climbing a pole 100 yards from the clinic in a middle-of-the-night attempt to cut down and steal the power wires only to discover that the human body does not handle 150,000 volts very well (he was DOA)

- watching the country debate and ultimately vote in the first-ever direct referendum - on whether to join the Central American Free Trade Agreement. Si vs. No banners, bumper stickers, and ads were everywhere. On the Sunday election, with 60% turnout, the referendum passed 52-to-48

- finding the libraries in Santa Ana and in Ciudad Colon (Nancy has been running right by it on her regular running route for several weeks now) and checking out books with minimal help from the boys (Nancy was thrilled to find Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix was one of the few English books at the library-- she really is addicted to the series).

- earning 2 small victories in the continuing "Quest for Internet Access" - a) discovering that the Santa Ana library has free access and b) finally getting the order placed to get service at our house (but sadly, with no date scheduled for the actual installation - our money is on 2-3 weeks from now)

- spending a wonderful Saturday afternoon with a British family who are also in the middle of a year abroad; their daughter is in Sam's class at school. They live in the hills overlooking Santa Ana in an apartment with a beautiful pool and an amazing view. We all enjoyed sharing stories and tips about life as expats in Costa Rica

- and last (but not least) enjoying the highlights of Stanford's unbelievable upset victory over USC in football (they were 41-point underdogs)

We also discovered that our home phone comes with voicemail and figured out how to set it up & retrieve messages. Sadly, we have yet to receive an actual message from anyone.... (hint, hint)

Steve, Nancy, Kyle, and Sam

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Photos

A mapache in the Irazu parking lot
Mapache is Spanish for raccoon, but this guy almost looks cute!

Comments

[grandma linda]

great entry
This was the best ever. The pictures are wonderful. I hope you will take us back to these beautiful sights in December. Hey Sam and Kyle how did you like the trout you caught. It is my favorite fish and I hope you will catch some when I am there. Love, grandma

[tarino's family]

hola
WoW! Love the pictures and the update. Nathan especially appreciated the fishing pics and explanation. Was the fish good? Emily and Mara would like to know if you have spotted any flamingo's? It sounds like you are settled in and life is movin' on. You're taking outings and hanging out into the wee hours of the night. Sounds like all is well. Sure is hard to drive down Commonwealth Ave without missing the Struthers family. It's okay though - the blog helps tremendously....the updates are greatly appreciated!