En un abrir y cerrar de ojos

In the blink of an eye


Well, my last days of study abroad 2011 in Costa Rica have been just spectacular, as has this entire experience! 
On Wednesday, I turned in my very last take-home test for Costa Rican Health Care and Tropical Medicine! Katie and I then went to kickboxing class at the gym. It kicked our butts (no pun intended)! We then visited the Museo de Los Niños (Children's Museum)! It was SUCH a cool museum! If I was 5 again, I would have been all over that place like white on rice. Katie and I still managed to bring out our niña side though :) 

"Once upon a time..."

Human Kaleidoscope!!


We actually weren't able to cover the whole museum. We got caught up talking to a few of the museum workers. We held great conversations in Spanish! It's amazing how much my Spanish has improved! Afterward, we went back to our respective houses for dinner. Antonio made this really good soup- Sopa de pollo y verduras (chicken and vegetable soup). It had squash, carrots, sweet potatoes, chicken, rice, and eggs! Yum! Afterward, I went with a bunch of ISA students to Los Profesionales (the usual) and had a really fun night! 


Yesterday was my very last day of Costa Rican Health Care and Tropical Medicine class :(. A speaker came and lectured about snake bites and antivenom. I ended up with an A in the class! Yippeee! After class, I went to ISA and FINALLY got my passport back from the U.S. Embassy! I was getting a little nervous! It was a gorgeous day, so Katie, Caroline, and I walked to Cosechas, a little smoothie place that Emy recommended to me. 

It was delicious! We then took Katie's little 9-year-old Tico "sister" Caroli to the park and played with her for an hour or so. Caroli actually taught me a form of a patty-cake that they say. I hope you all remember the "Double This" patty-cake game. Instead of our "double double this this, double double that that, double this, double that, double double this that"; Chiciticos (Tico children) say "choco choco la la, choco choco te te, choco la, choco te, choco choco la te." (Like chocolate). So cute! Caroli is such a doll! 

The 3 of us had a lot of fun playing games with her little sassy self! 
Last night, some ISA girls that live next to Veritas hosted a piñata party as a farewell for all the ISA students. It was a blast! They actually made a piñata and everything. 

Apparently their Tico "mom" and "dad" host a farewell party for every group of students that they host! After the party, we went to Los Profesionales for the very last time :(. Then we hit up another bar called Castros that has a lot of salsa and techno dancing! It was a great final night to go out in San José!


This afternoon, ISA hosted a mini carnival for all of us! After the carnival, a lot of us went to the park and just hung out for the rest of the day until dinnertime! It was great getting to spend time together before everyone leaves. Saying goodbye was just awful, though. All of us have been around each other 24/7 for the past 5 weeks, so we've grown to be very close. I met so many great people! 

Then, Antonio, Emy, Darrian, and I went to a bar and hung out for our last night!

All in all, I couldn't have asked for a better study abroad experience. I had the time of my life, learned a lot, and made a lot of new friends! I'm so incredibly grateful for everyone who has supported me along the way, especially my family! Love you all! ¡Cao!

El Día de la Virgen de Los Angeles

The day of the Virgin of the Angels
[August 2nd - A national holiday]


August 2nd is a Catholic holiday in Costa Rica that honors the Virgin Mary. People from all over the country walk to the city of Cartago in her honor to see the Basilica de la Virgen de Los Angeles. It's an amazing holiday! I'm sad I wasn't able to participate in the walk. Here's some more information about it:
http://www.facesofcostarica.com/catholicism/aug2.htm


Yesterday morning, Jackie and I walked to the Museo Nacional (National Museum). 

It only cost about 2 mil colones ($4) and we learned quite a bit about the history of Costa Rica! The Museo actually used to be a fort until Costa Rica got rid of its army in 1948! We were able to see the actual holding cells that the captains used to put the soldiers in when they were misbehaving. 

The cells still have the wall graffiti too! 

This is one of the ancient stone spheres found in Costa Rica. They are an archeological mystery. Nobody knows the exact date or purpose for their creation. All they know is that the ancient peoples made them. 


The Museo also had a butterfly exhibit and gold and jade exhibit. The other exhibits educated tourists about the changes in Costa Rican architecture, the 3 different regions of Costa Rica, and the first inhabitants of Costa Rica. I really enjoyed it! 
After the Museo, Jackie and I grabbed some lunch, then headed to the Artesian Market. 
Had to do a little more bargain shopping:) 
When I got home, I did my take-home test for the Tropical Medicine class, hit up the gym, then ate dinner. Antonio made a new dish. It was pasta stuffed with crema de hormigos y queso y pavo (cream of mushroom, cheese, and turkey) with tomato sauce. It was a different taste, but it was pretty good! After dinner, I showered up quickly and headed to Multiplaza del Este with Darrian and Jackie to see Harry Potter 7 (Part B).

 I haven't read the books, but I definitely want to now! Despite the fact that I just ruined them by watching the last movie- haha! We hit up the TCBY in the food court. Compré una taza de yogur de fresa con almendras y moras. (I bought a cup of strawberry frozen yogurt with almonds and blackberries) Yum! However, blackberries are probably the one and only fruit that is better in the States than here. At the Multiplaza del Este, a small box of popcorn and a student movie ticket costs half as much as just a movie ticket in the U.S.! How ridiculous is that! I definitely took advantage of that opportunity! 

¡Eso!

¡That's it!
[Costa Rican slang]


I've been gone all weekend long, so I haven't been able to update my blog. Let's start with Thursday...
Thursday
In my Tropical Medicine class, we did our presentations. My group presented a power point on cardiomyopathy.  Last day of la clase de Español! I was relieved, but sad at the same time :(. Our little class of 6 girls and Ronulfo became a family these past 4 weeks. For our last class, we played a Spanish board game and he gave us our notas finales (final grades). I got an A! Woo hoo! We also got out extremely early, so Tien, Caroline, and I headed to Pequeño Mundo to do some bargain shopping! I got a long strapless dress for just $12! Pequeño Mundo is one place I'm definitely going to miss when I get back to Arkansas (Not that I don't love the States:))! We then headed to a nearby outdoor mall and got some Pops ice cream. I ordered the cas sherbert. Cas is a type of fruit that is kind of citrus-y. It's very refreshing! On the way home, it started pouring down rain. And, of course, Tien and I both forgot our umbrellas. So we hopped in a cab and ended up paying a $6 cab fair that would have cost us nothing if not for the rain! Pura Vida, right? Haha. Once I got home, I dried off and got ready for dinner. Some friends and I went to Hooters. Haha, let me tell you the reasoning before you start judging. Nicole works at the Hooters in Colorado and she wanted to see the one in San José. Legitimate reasoning to chow down on some American cuisine, right? We actually ended up staying there for awhile, then headed to a bar called Kongos on La Calle (The Street). Great ending to a great day!
Friday
For Tropical Medicine, we took a field trip to InBio Park. The Park is so cool! Located in Heredia, it presents all the different ecosystems of Costa Rica. We learned quite a bit! Fun fact: Costa Rica is home to stingless bees! 

 Mariposas!

 Only 11 years old!

Stingless bee hive!


After the tour of InBio, our class headed back to Veritas. Nicole and I then grabbed our backpacks and made it to the bus station just in time for our 2 o'clock bus to Puerto Viejo! This past weekend we had no planned excursions, so a large group of ISA students headed to Puerto Viejo for the weekend. Once we arrived, we took a taxi to Rocking J's, our hostel for the weekend. It was such a unique place! It was covered in mosaics! 

They gave you the option between a hammock, tent, or room to stay in. Friday and Saturday night I stayed in a tent with Nicole. Sunday night I slept in a hammock. You're also given a pretty big locker to put your belongings. The downside was the bathrooms and showers. The showers were FREEZING cold! It was my first hostel/living out of a backpack experience, and I survived! Rocking J's had a little restaurant/bar inside it with a lot of different types of food. All of it was amazing! After eating dinner, they had a DJ come into the bar, so everyone danced and hung out. 
Saturday
Woke up and walked to Puerto Viejo Bakery with some friends where I had a delicious breakfast of a parfait! 

Yumm:) It was gorgeous and sunny so we hurried back, changed into our swimsuits, and went out to the beach! 

It started getting cloudy around 2, so I walked into town with some girls and checked out some of the little shops. Puerto Viejo is on the Caribbean, so the town is extremely Rastafarian. Organic food, inspirations by Bob Marley, traveling by cruiser bikes, dreads, the whole enchilada.

My new boyfriend...hottie huh?
Kidding!
J (the owner of Rocking J's) lets the hostel dwellers contribute to his mosaic pathways, tables, chairs, etc. So when I got back to Rocking J's, Sam, Nicole, and I decided to take him up on the offer and make our own mosaics! It took awhile, but I enjoyed creating a mosaic of a sun. When we were done, we showered up, ate dinner at Rocking J's, listened to the band, and played some cards.
Sunday
The majority of the ISA students staying at Rocking J's left to go to Bocas in Panama around 7 in the morning, but Jackie, Sydney, and I stayed in Puerto Viejo. The U.S. Embassy still has Jackie and I's passports, so we were unable to go to Panama, and Sydney just wanted to stay with us! We were bummed at first, but the three of us ended up having a ton of fun together! Jackie and I went running on the beach in the morning, then got Sydney and went to Puerto Viejo Bakery again for breakfast! The whole day was sunny and hot! We laid out for awhile and jumped in the lagoons, then decided to rent bikes. 

Everyone else in town was cruising with cruisers, and we wanted to fit in :). It only cost 10 mil colones ($5) to rent bikes for a full day! We only rented them for a few hours, but it was still considerably cheap! We rode the bikes all around town, enjoying each and every minute of riding along the Caribbean coastline:). We took a break, got some ice cream, and sat in some tables by the beach. Then we rode back, dropped off the bikes, did a little shopping, and headed back to Rocking J's to get ready for dinner. We went to a delicious Caribbean-style restaurant called Salsa Bravo. We got an appetizer of hummus and french bread, and I had a tropical shrimp salad for my main course. I decided this weekend that I'm in love with Caribbean-style food :)
Today
Sydney, Jackie, and I got breakfast at..you guessed it..Puerto Viejo Bakery! It was just too good! I got banana pancakes (yes, inspired by Jack Johnson). 

We went into town, got our bus tickets, and checked out this adorable boutique called Luna May. The style reminded me of Francesca's (I was home! Haha). The owner actually came up with her own dress designs and design patterns. I had to refrain from buying the whole store. I ended up getting a dress with a matching belt that I can't wait to wear! 
We then walked back to the hostel to check out, then walked back into town to the bus station. We arrived back in San José around 4. It was a long trip, but I had a blast! I never thought I'd be so happy to see a bed and have a hot shower when I got back to Emy's house!