Hola from CR!!

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Hola Amigos! It’s day 6 for me here in Costa Rica and I’m most definitely loving it!

Things are going great and I’m really beginning to feel like I understand the transportation system, how to talk in Spanish, and that it rains EVERY day!

My first day of school was on Monday and it was just an orientation day. They talked to us a lot in English about what to expect and about the school, but every other day will be all in Spanish. We also had 2 placement exams, a written one and an oral one. Some parts of the test were really hard! Spanish class is from 8-12Noon everyday! I wake up at 6AM everyday. And for those who know me I am not at all morning person, but its not a problem for me to wake up here! Probably because I go to bed around 9-9:30 each night! I get ready for school and my mom makes me breakfast before I leave at 7am. For breakfast, one morning I had mini tortillas with cheese or beans in them and coffee. I have coffee (with milk) every morning! It’s so delicious. Other typical food for breakfast is Gallo Pinto (the national food dish in CR). It is rice and beans with cilantro and few tomatoes and other seasonings. As well as eggs (scrambled!). Other days I have mixed fruit (like watermelon, bananas - yes I eat them!-, papaya, apples or oranges), and “crackers”- which are more like hard bread with butter. The food here is fabulous! There is no preservatives in the food here! At 7am, I meet 5-6 other students and we have to walk down a huge hill to “Carrillos Bajo” where we catch a bus which takes us to school. I live in Carrillos Alto, which is at the top of the hill. The bus is about 50 Cents to take to school and it takes us all the way up another hill because my school is at the top of another huge hill. Remember, I am living in the mountains!

School ends at 12Noon each day. And then we are free for the remainder of the day except for Mondays & Wednesdays, we have another class taught by my NCC professor who came here and all of the other students from NCC. This class is from 1-3PM and its called “Society & Technology.”

On Monday afternoon, after our first day of school orientation, we went to Grecia, which is a town near us. It was only about 20 minutes away. It is a great town with more shops, and restaurants and another Internet Café. We had a walking tour around Grecia with a instructor from our College here, which is called ICLC. Of course it rained a lot and then it got really cold. In the morning its always really hot and then in the afternoon, usually around 2pm it rains and gets cold! Remember it is the rainy season aka “winter” here. Its really funny because my mom always says that she’s cold in the nights here and wears long sleeves, but I’m most definitely fine in short sleeves!

On Tuesday, was our first day of “real” class at ICLC. We basically talk in Spanish, of course, for 2 hours then we have a 20 minute break where most of the students go get snacks. My favorite new drink is called “Tropicales Fruitas” which is basically an all natural fruit drink either melon, banana, grape, mango, mixed fruit, raspberries, peaches, etc. They are so good and they even have a “light” version which of course I get all the time! After class we went on a bus tour with all of the students and an instructor from ICLC to Alajuela, which is the 2nd biggest city in CR. The town is much bigger than Carrillos where I live. Alajuela is also where the airport is at where we flew. We ate at a really good restaurant called “Las Delicias del Maiz” which means The Delicious Corn. We had typical food de CR. I had chicken, rice, potatoes, guacamole, black beans, salsa (kind of), and a fried plantain (which is a mini banana with sugar and its kinda fried). All this food for lunch! We all had the same food and ICLC paid for it! After our bus tour, we got back home around 4ish and then I came home. It was raining of course and I had to walk home up the huge hill again, with my friends of course! I enjoy and need the exercise though so its good! When I came home a bunch of my other family was here, like my uncles and aunts and cousins! My mom told me that every Tuesday they all come over to our house to hang out! It was so much fun! They talk all the time and its great practice for me. We also played dominos, the correct way, they love that game! My mom made chicken and rice soup for dinner. Of course it tasted way better than Campbells or Progresso! And they love my chocolate, so of course we all had chocolate for dessert. Don’t worry, I’m definitely not going without having chocolate!!

Today, (Wednesday) I had school again and then I came here to the internet café so I could write in my blog and skype those special people who get to talk to me. 😊

Also the most exciting thing is that this weekend a bunch of kids and myself are going white water rafting!! I’ve always wanted to do that and I’m really pumped!

Ok that is all for now! Hope everyone is doing well!

Love you all! ~Courtney =)

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Comments

[mom]

oh my gosh!
I can't believe you are eating bananas! See they don't taste so bad.....and they are good for you. Sounds like you are having a good time.. lOVE yA..