So last night our entire town was evacuated because of an impending tsunami. It was actually pretty scary for us. Deborah and I were in our room when Angela came in our room with her daughter to tell us that our coast had been issued an alarm for a tsunami and that we needed to pack what was necessary and leave immediately.
The television weather advisors were telling everyone in our vicinity to evacuate, and they predicted the tsunami to come a few kilometers inland. And we can see the ocean from our house.
Joshua, the little boy, was crying and and breathing hard and Angela was scurrying around her house, putting anything of importance into plastic garbage bags.
When people are speaking at a normal pace, I can generally understand what they are saying, but with everyone´s voices raised and talking so quickly I only got the basic message, which was, we need to leave, and we need to leave now.
The worst part was just how scared everyone seemed...you could feel that something was very, very wrong.
Debs and I put our passports, all our money, our camera, journal, first aid kit, one change of clothes, and our journals in a backpack thinking that everything else would be gone when we came back.
We went outside and there was a stream of cars leaving the city and throngs of people walking, trying to hitchhike, carrying a plastic bag with them.
Luckily our family´s dad is a taxi driver and he was able to take us several miles inland to wait out the storm. He and Katy´s husband dropped us off at a gas station and then returned to help tourists staying in hotels evacuate to the highest floor of a condo building.
We slept in the car they had left behind for several hours until the television report indicated that it was safe to return.
Luckily, the storm missed our piece of coastline, but that didn´t make those few hours any less scary.
On a brighter note, the day before was gloriously sunny and were able to drive to a remote and deserted beach that is pretty much inaccessible unless you know exactly where you´´re going and happen to have 4 wheel drive.
We kayaked on the ocean and saw dozens of crabs and played the beach game that involved throwing heavy balls as close as possible to a smaller ball.
It was Katerinas )the Slovakian) birthday, so we at cupcakes, although the icing had melted before we were able to eat them )but it was definitely still delicious)
We were lucky to know a classmate of Deborah´s, who´s husband is currently working to develop some land in that area. It was a beautiful beach and we were very lucky to see it.
We also saw the workers who are currently counting every single tree in the area by spray painting them in order to complete an environmental analysis of the area. They live in bodegas, or metal shacks with no electricity or running water, and work 16 hour days for $2 an hour.
They live in the mountains and come down to work for several days at a time. One had just come back from finding his girlfriend murdered by a jealous acquaintence who had slashed her head open with a machete.
Tonight is our last night here in Brasalito, tomorrow our last day at C.P.I. flamingo. I can´t wait to see J and my family, but I´m sad I can´t stay here and learn more Spanish and live with my amazing Tico family any longer......
Pura Vida!
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Monday, August 13, 2007
August 13
Of course, our last week on the beach has consisted of the following amalgam of weather: normal rain (pelo de gato), annoying sprinkles that make just barely puts going to be beach out of the question, and then rain so hard and so loud that you start to be concerned that you might need to be evacuated by helicopter from the country.
Our roof is made of metal, which makes the rain seem even louder than it actually is.
We are still enjoying the pura vida and are learning a lot of Spanish. Deboarah doesn't really ask me to translate anymore, and isn't hesitant to talk to people or ask them for something.
Today Angela cleaned our clothes (AGAIN....THE WOMAN WON'T STOP) and so I went to hug her and thank her. Of course she only comes up to my neck so she gave me a big kiss on my neck since she couldn't reach my head.
We've been spending our time joking with the famila, reading, and talking. I really feel like I've finally gotten to know my baby sister, which has been one of my favorite things about the trip.
Tomorrow we were going to kayak out to an island and go snorkling with a friend from Debs's class who lives here in Costa Rica, but with the weather being the way it has been, it's going to take some luck.
I'm looking forward to classes this weeks because I will be the only student in my class, which means every day (except Wednesday, which is a national holiday on par with Memorial Day in the US, so no school) I will be talking one on one in Spanish with my teacher for 4 hours...I'm really excited about that.
That's all for now....only 5 minutes left of internet time and if I'm lucky it won't take that long for to post my entry on this impressively slow computer.
Our roof is made of metal, which makes the rain seem even louder than it actually is.
We are still enjoying the pura vida and are learning a lot of Spanish. Deboarah doesn't really ask me to translate anymore, and isn't hesitant to talk to people or ask them for something.
Today Angela cleaned our clothes (AGAIN....THE WOMAN WON'T STOP) and so I went to hug her and thank her. Of course she only comes up to my neck so she gave me a big kiss on my neck since she couldn't reach my head.
We've been spending our time joking with the famila, reading, and talking. I really feel like I've finally gotten to know my baby sister, which has been one of my favorite things about the trip.
Tomorrow we were going to kayak out to an island and go snorkling with a friend from Debs's class who lives here in Costa Rica, but with the weather being the way it has been, it's going to take some luck.
I'm looking forward to classes this weeks because I will be the only student in my class, which means every day (except Wednesday, which is a national holiday on par with Memorial Day in the US, so no school) I will be talking one on one in Spanish with my teacher for 4 hours...I'm really excited about that.
That's all for now....only 5 minutes left of internet time and if I'm lucky it won't take that long for to post my entry on this impressively slow computer.
Saturday, August 11, 2007
August 11
Hola
Apologies for delayed update- internet access here isn't exactly ubiquitous, the connections are slow, and the one internet cafe is usually full.
But who cares when you've got pura vida!
Pura vida is a Costa Rican expression that basically sums up their philosophy of life, which is pretty much equvilant to gather thy rosebuds while ye may, or carpe diem, with as little hassle as possible involved.
Our padre tico, Henry, says Pura Vida! at least 5 times a day.
We saw a whale!! Debs and I went parasailing over the coast and we saw a mother whale with her calf. She jumped so high out of the water-just this immense and beautiful creature. I felt so lucky that the world revealed that to me.
Our guide steered our boat over to where the whale was (they come up for air about every 4 minutes or so) and we got several glimpes of the amazing animal.
Later when we got back to school we told some people in the office about what we saw, and one older tico insisted that it couldn't have been a whale, because the water was too warm for them (bellanas son immensos, fue un dolfino..........) and Katy, another tica, started arguing with him in rapid Spanish that there were too whales, so the argument bascially sounded like (Bellena, Dolfino, Bellena, Dolfino) it was pretty funny. It was definitely a whale, though.
Yesterday a monkey swung across the coconut trees in our front to the telephone pole across the street. I love their curly little tails.
We also saw a woodpecker pecking at a coconut, and Henry cut a coconut down for us so we could drink the coconut water, too. That will be the last time Debs and I drink any, I think
Deborah and I went to Playa Conchal today, which is a beautiful stretch of coast where the sand is comprised of zillions of broken shells that clear blue water washes over. I found several shells that I hope to make necklaces out of and Deborah and us both are pretty much completely roja. Our tico family finds this incredibly amusing.
The whole family really likes Deboarah and jokes with her a lot. The family is just amazing...we keep trying to get our madre tica to stop doing things for us, but she won't!! She does our laundry all of the time and she cleans constantly, but the worst part is that she won't let us pour our own water or cereal. She does it all with a smile and I think if anything she'd be offended if we insisted to do our own dishes.
One day her daughter got sick and so we told her not to worry about cooking dinner, that we'd just go out to eat, and she really did get a little bit offended. SO different. Next week is Mother's day, which is national holiday here (i.e., banks close, schools close, etc) so we're going to do something special for her.
Deboarah got her hair cut in a little beauty shop next to our house and let's just say it was an interesting experience.
Everyday we get more conversant---debs is talking a lot more now and I don't have to think about it as much. We need more time, though!
See everyone next Saturday!
Love,
Sara & Debs
Apologies for delayed update- internet access here isn't exactly ubiquitous, the connections are slow, and the one internet cafe is usually full.
But who cares when you've got pura vida!
Pura vida is a Costa Rican expression that basically sums up their philosophy of life, which is pretty much equvilant to gather thy rosebuds while ye may, or carpe diem, with as little hassle as possible involved.
Our padre tico, Henry, says Pura Vida! at least 5 times a day.
We saw a whale!! Debs and I went parasailing over the coast and we saw a mother whale with her calf. She jumped so high out of the water-just this immense and beautiful creature. I felt so lucky that the world revealed that to me.
Our guide steered our boat over to where the whale was (they come up for air about every 4 minutes or so) and we got several glimpes of the amazing animal.
Later when we got back to school we told some people in the office about what we saw, and one older tico insisted that it couldn't have been a whale, because the water was too warm for them (bellanas son immensos, fue un dolfino..........) and Katy, another tica, started arguing with him in rapid Spanish that there were too whales, so the argument bascially sounded like (Bellena, Dolfino, Bellena, Dolfino) it was pretty funny. It was definitely a whale, though.
Yesterday a monkey swung across the coconut trees in our front to the telephone pole across the street. I love their curly little tails.
We also saw a woodpecker pecking at a coconut, and Henry cut a coconut down for us so we could drink the coconut water, too. That will be the last time Debs and I drink any, I think
Deborah and I went to Playa Conchal today, which is a beautiful stretch of coast where the sand is comprised of zillions of broken shells that clear blue water washes over. I found several shells that I hope to make necklaces out of and Deborah and us both are pretty much completely roja. Our tico family finds this incredibly amusing.
The whole family really likes Deboarah and jokes with her a lot. The family is just amazing...we keep trying to get our madre tica to stop doing things for us, but she won't!! She does our laundry all of the time and she cleans constantly, but the worst part is that she won't let us pour our own water or cereal. She does it all with a smile and I think if anything she'd be offended if we insisted to do our own dishes.
One day her daughter got sick and so we told her not to worry about cooking dinner, that we'd just go out to eat, and she really did get a little bit offended. SO different. Next week is Mother's day, which is national holiday here (i.e., banks close, schools close, etc) so we're going to do something special for her.
Deboarah got her hair cut in a little beauty shop next to our house and let's just say it was an interesting experience.
Everyday we get more conversant---debs is talking a lot more now and I don't have to think about it as much. We need more time, though!
See everyone next Saturday!
Love,
Sara & Debs
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
August 7
This morning I woke up at 5 and ran barefoot along the beach that is a 3 minute walk from my house. Ive always wanted to run down a beach with the tide flowing over my toes, and I finally did it today.
It gets really light very early so 5AM doesn{t seem like 5AM here.
Spanish classes are going well and both of us are talking more and more with less difficulty. Our family that we{re living with talks a lot and watches tv a lot, which is great for learning Spanish.
The mom is a great cook, and I keep asking her for recipes for picadillos, but she keeps telling me that there isn{t a recipe, which is a sign of a good cook.
Debs and I are waiting for a bus to Tamarindo, a beach that{s supposed to be white sand and good for suring (not that I know how to surf) so today we{re going to study on the beach and try to not get completely scorched.
Muchos Abrazos
It gets really light very early so 5AM doesn{t seem like 5AM here.
Spanish classes are going well and both of us are talking more and more with less difficulty. Our family that we{re living with talks a lot and watches tv a lot, which is great for learning Spanish.
The mom is a great cook, and I keep asking her for recipes for picadillos, but she keeps telling me that there isn{t a recipe, which is a sign of a good cook.
Debs and I are waiting for a bus to Tamarindo, a beach that{s supposed to be white sand and good for suring (not that I know how to surf) so today we{re going to study on the beach and try to not get completely scorched.
Muchos Abrazos
Monday, August 6, 2007
August 6
Hello,
We{ve been without internet and phone for several days, exploring different parts of the country. In short, we have seen lava flowing from an active volcano, swam underneath a 70m tall waterfall, hiked through the jungle in torrential rain, and visited hot springs heated by the volcano. I also got to hold a toucan.
Our family here in Brasilito lives maybe 3minutes away from the beach by foot. They are a lot more animated than our first family. The dad used to ride bulls and his daughter and he box together. Our mom is super cute and sassy and they like to joke a lot and listen to music. So there{s always something happening. Also, here we have our own bathroom. There is no hot water here, but it{s so hot it doesn{t really matter.
My teacher here wasn{t very good, but the school was really great about changing my class tomorrow...
Right now there are several people waiting to use the computer, so I will stop here for now and we{re going to explore the beach!
They ran out of phone cards but I{ will try to call people as soon as I am able.
We{ve been without internet and phone for several days, exploring different parts of the country. In short, we have seen lava flowing from an active volcano, swam underneath a 70m tall waterfall, hiked through the jungle in torrential rain, and visited hot springs heated by the volcano. I also got to hold a toucan.
Our family here in Brasilito lives maybe 3minutes away from the beach by foot. They are a lot more animated than our first family. The dad used to ride bulls and his daughter and he box together. Our mom is super cute and sassy and they like to joke a lot and listen to music. So there{s always something happening. Also, here we have our own bathroom. There is no hot water here, but it{s so hot it doesn{t really matter.
My teacher here wasn{t very good, but the school was really great about changing my class tomorrow...
Right now there are several people waiting to use the computer, so I will stop here for now and we{re going to explore the beach!
They ran out of phone cards but I{ will try to call people as soon as I am able.
Friday, August 3, 2007
I almost forgot
Yesterday, before we left to visit the cheese factory, our hermano tico, who is barely two years old, finally let Deborah hold him. We had been trying to get him to let us hold him all week long but he wouldn´t let us. Finally, yesterday he reaches up his little chubby arms for Deborah to hold him. It was a really precious gesture.
I started to feel something wet, and I looked up to see if it was raining, but it wasn´t. Then I looked at Jonatan´s nose, and it was running a little so I said that I thought he was getting snot on us. Then we realized that he was actually peeing on Deborah. HAHAHAHAHAHA
It was sooooo hilarious. He´s still our little amigo, though. Just thought I´d share that with ya´ll.
Hasta Luego
I started to feel something wet, and I looked up to see if it was raining, but it wasn´t. Then I looked at Jonatan´s nose, and it was running a little so I said that I thought he was getting snot on us. Then we realized that he was actually peeing on Deborah. HAHAHAHAHAHA
It was sooooo hilarious. He´s still our little amigo, though. Just thought I´d share that with ya´ll.
Hasta Luego
August 3 2007
Today was our hermana tica´s birthday. We had a party with a lot her friends and family, which was a wonderful experience. We sang songs and played games with Costa Ricans )for the record, telephone is much harder in Spanish and they got a huge kick out of watching try to repeat what they said in Spanish).
They also have a wonderful tradition in which the birthday girl gets the first slice of cake, but they have to bite into the cake so that icing gets all over their face. Ana´s mother pushed her face into the cake and it was hilarious. Yorleny, our madre tica, made SO much food....ice cream, cake, candy, and some sort of rice and meat dish. Then afterwards we just sat and talked and made fun of ourselves. It was nice to just spend time with the family.
Deborah and I almost made them cry from laughter. We kept joking in Spanish about how the sugar made us happy and that we couldn´t live without sugar. I also told her that I was sad to be leaving her because our next family couldn´t possibly be as wonderful, so she told me she would give me a bag of sugar to take with me to make me happy when we left her house.
I´m a little nervous because our home at the beach is actually in a little town called Brasalito, and we have to take a 30 min. bus ride to school every morning, which I´m not looking forward to. The problem is that the school is in a resort area, but we´re living in small fishing communities.
Anyhow, I told Yorleny that if I didn´t like the bus I was going to live on the beach with the turtles who are my friends. She thought that was really funny.
I love what Costa Ricans call the ´pura vida´ which is just their whole philosophy about enjoying life in the moment. They are, from what I´ve seen, generally relaxed about everything. They work hard, but take time to enjoy themselves, too. They aren´t so preoccupied with material possessions, partly because they don´t have as much money, but also because they don´t need or want more than they have. I guess I mean that they are content with what they have. At least that is true for our family. They just talk and drink a lot of coffee.
They also have a wonderful tradition in which the birthday girl gets the first slice of cake, but they have to bite into the cake so that icing gets all over their face. Ana´s mother pushed her face into the cake and it was hilarious. Yorleny, our madre tica, made SO much food....ice cream, cake, candy, and some sort of rice and meat dish. Then afterwards we just sat and talked and made fun of ourselves. It was nice to just spend time with the family.
Deborah and I almost made them cry from laughter. We kept joking in Spanish about how the sugar made us happy and that we couldn´t live without sugar. I also told her that I was sad to be leaving her because our next family couldn´t possibly be as wonderful, so she told me she would give me a bag of sugar to take with me to make me happy when we left her house.
I´m a little nervous because our home at the beach is actually in a little town called Brasalito, and we have to take a 30 min. bus ride to school every morning, which I´m not looking forward to. The problem is that the school is in a resort area, but we´re living in small fishing communities.
Anyhow, I told Yorleny that if I didn´t like the bus I was going to live on the beach with the turtles who are my friends. She thought that was really funny.
I love what Costa Ricans call the ´pura vida´ which is just their whole philosophy about enjoying life in the moment. They are, from what I´ve seen, generally relaxed about everything. They work hard, but take time to enjoy themselves, too. They aren´t so preoccupied with material possessions, partly because they don´t have as much money, but also because they don´t need or want more than they have. I guess I mean that they are content with what they have. At least that is true for our family. They just talk and drink a lot of coffee.
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