English.

This week I've been around sooo much English. We haven't had actual school in a month just a few classes here and there so I'm not around all my friends all the time to speak English and at home, I mean I speak with my parents in Spanish, but they've still got work all day. But the main reason is because I went to a free Tech College here on Friday to help out with the English course. Before then, I really did nothing. At all. I had 2 days of no school whatsoever and it rained the whole time on Wednesday and Thursday and I just had nothing to do and it was so boring. And it's supposed that the strike will finally end tomorrow, Wednesday, maybe, depending on the actions of the government. The students here are really getting a bad end to this long term holiday because well, I'm not sure if I mentioned this before, but they have to take a test at the end of the year to graduate. And they need the material that's in the test from the school. But with no school, they don't have material, and are going to have a harder time taking the test because it is a huge test to take and makes or breaks you to go to a University the next year. This test is so important that in classes, when we have classes, we do reviews or practices for that test. By the way, the test is called the Bachillerato. Well scratch that the strike is supposed to be over tomorrow. My host brother, Pablo, just told me it's continuing till who knows when. But said that hopefully only a few more days. But my host mom, Marcia says she doesn't think it'll end so soon. So lucky them, the seniors still aren't being taught to get prepared for next year at a University. Students are so focused on the Bachillerato, well some, and they take courses all year to prepare. Every week and sometimes more than once a week for like a 5 hour class learning about how to do the test and what will be on the test. I cannot imagine studying that much. Or being on your weekend or holiday and still having to go to extra classes because the high school isn't a service anymore.

So for Friday, I actually did have 2 classes because these 2 teachers are willing to teach without pay for the education of the students. And afterwards, I went to a nearby Tech University which is all free. Except the food. The people that apply there don't have to pay for any tuition or classes or whatever. Not even housing depending if the applicant lives far away. But when you sign up, it is just one focus career and is for all ages. From 17 till as old as you'd like to be. The majority are in the English course and it is a very good English course. Many students said that they were there because they really liked the language or that their future job requires English and that the high school didn't do a good enough job in teaching them and wanted to continue. So a volunteer from New Zealand, a lady from California, and I helped out with the class. We sat in a gym and would just talk with groups or split everyone into groups and talk about whatever. It was fun getting to know everyone there and seeing how fast they've learned English! They started 4 months ago and can have a conversation about practically anything and everything. And after, we went dancing. So now, might as well call me a professional, because I have learned how to salsa, bachata, and a little merengue. Like I said, pro. But the next morning my hips and legs were so sore. It was like 3 hours of dancing and learning and so much English it made my brain hurt. I was not used to that amount of English. Definitely the most English I've been around my whole time here. But even with all the English, I don't think my Spanish has faltered. I really feel a fluency when I talk and just talking or thinking in Spanish comes easy.

Saturday I slept. And cooked and cleaned with my host mom. It's a weekly thing. Like I guess the weekends are chores and cooking and church. And I really like it. Because for one, I am finally learning how to cook something besides pasta or toast. And it's always super good food and we nap afterwards. It's the life. Plus when everyone wakes up, we have coffee and bread and talk until it's time to get ready to go to church. And this service was a special service because the Archbishop had passed away so the Diocesan bishop moved into his position. The church was packed. My host parents said it was even more packed than Christmas or Easter. People were standing along the walls and in the door ways to watch the service and all the leaders of the Church.

Sunday I waxed a car for the first time in my life. In these few months, I've done so many things for the first time in my life that, I'd probably never do if I never came here. And I'm so grateful for that. Marcia and I cooked and we feasted for lunch. We had an easy afternoon and Marcia and I went out for a run. We go out for runs a lot. And they're long. Usually around an hour or more. I mean I'm thankful that she gets me out to go run for an hour because it's really going to help in corss country, especially the hills here. So many hills. There is no such thing as flat ground in this region. Wisconsin is going to feel so flat after all the mountains and volcanos here.

The track we have running practice on. It's just cement and stones. 

Sometimes, there are cows taking laps around the track. Which means manure on the track as well..

Coco's getting huge and bites a ton still. 

A Visit

After 3.5 months, I finally got to hug my mom because my mom and older sister came to Costa Rica to visit me. And wow was it a tiring trip. We packed as much as we could in 5 days for their mini vacation and it was exhausting. But it helped that last week, because there is still the strike going on, we only had 2 hours of school the whole week. So I got to sleep and get ready for them to come and hang out with friends. I was soo excited for them to come visit all week. It just dragged on because Friday was so close. So close to being in my moms arms again. So close to actually being with my mom again since I left. Time makes the heart grow fonder and I really missed my mom. Yet with the time apart from my family in Wisconsin, I have gotten used to being apart and it was so new again actually being together with my mom and sister. And I was really excited for my families to meet each other.

So Thursday night, was not a night for sleeping. I was just so anxious to see my mom and sister again and show them where I live and how I live and everything that I've told them before, now becomes more clearer because soon, they will know what I've been talking about. Friday morning I got up nice a early to head to the airport on the bus to pick up my mom and Maris. The bus was early and the plane was late. So I waited 2 hours at the airport. AFS students seem to be everywhere because at the airport, I ran into another student who kept me company as I anxiously awaited for the plane to arrive. I don't think I'll ever forget when I first saw my mom and Maris while they were looking for me as I walked toward them and my mom saying: I don't see Jolan, where is she? THERE IS JOLAN! And we hugged and they cried but we were all just so happy to see each other again. And then, the moment got interrupted by a man getting us a taxi that ripped us off. It was sooo expensive and we were just going from the airport to the central of San Jose. They really know how to get vulnerable people and use them to their advantage. But after that incident, we got to the National Museum of Costa Rica. I wasn't really into it because I was soo hungry but my mom likes museums and it was her trip so we went and learned about the history of Costa Rica. I think the best part was about the indigenous people and the artifacts from them. After the museum we walked around and ate at a soda in a grocery store. Soon we got onto the bus to head back to my home in Ciudad Quesada. It's such a repetitive trip for me because I take it so much but my mom and sister were such tourists and taking photos of everything and commenting on everything. As we arrived in Quesada, there were fireworks! Just in time for our arrival of course. I really have no idea why they were going off but it was nice. At the terminal, I showed my mom and sister around the mall here. The tiny, empty mall while we waited for my host mom to come pick us up. We arrived at my house and they got to see where and how I live and what everything is like. My family here was getting ready to head to a reunion with teachers so they weren't able to stay too long. But they got to meet each other and talk some. For supper, we had a typical soup here with common vegetables grown here as well. The whole trip was basically a food tasting trip because I had them try all the typical food here in this region and in Costa Rica in total. My mom and sister headed to bed early after a long day of travelling and I stayed up to talk with my host parents when they got back and talk with some friends from home over Snapchat. But my host parents got home too late and I was so tired so I didn't stay up too long.

Saturday was the welcoming morning of getting up at 6 from the sun and my mom wanting to wake up but not knowing what to do. Poor them they couldn't ever get the water to be hot so they both kept taking cold showers. It is so hard for my mom and host mom to communicate. Like my mom is deaf but can read lips extremely well and my host mom speaks very minimal english and with an accent so their communication was mainly pointing if I wasn't there to translate the 2. I liked it. For breakfast we had gallo pinto which is the typical breakfast of rice and beans plus eggs and a slice of cheese. Next was a long day ahead of going to Rio Celeste. It is a very very bright blue, natural waterfall and river you can hike. It was a looonnnnggg hike. At first, the main trail was closed for construction so we went to the other side where the trail is nicer and easier to walk. It took us less than an hour to get there. Plus we saw this turkey that was gray with a bright yellow/orange beak. After we saw the ever so gorgeous waterfall, we were able to hike the otherside. And everyone that came from that side, seemed to have mud. Caked all over their shoes and legs. So maybe it was just that they went too close to the water and we could find a drier path. We decided to go to the other side because there is more of the river to see. Over there, there weren't any 'dry' paths. There was mud. And if the mud looked dry, it probably wasn't and your foot would sink in. Those poor hikers who wore white shoes that day. Or white anything in general because there is no way anyone was getting out clean. It was a nice, long hike and afterwards we at fruit. A lot of fruit. Fresh fruit here is so wonderful. Especially red mangos. We drove down to the beautiful La Fortuna in time to see the sunset tuck behind the volcano. Seeing the Arenal Volcano from the town makes it really hard for me to believe that I've climbed to the top of it. And then the drive home. Thank god La Fortuna is only an hour away because everyone was so tired. The hike of Rio Celeste is not a flat one. One part is but then to actually get to the waterfall. You have to walk down stairs. A ton of stairs. And then after the view and relaxing, there is the set of stairs awaiting the ascend up again. All those stairs. The longer part of the hike where you can see more of the teal river is walking up some sketchy steps, and back down a few again, up a hill, over a bridge, plus the return trip to get back to the car. At least we got to swim in the cool water. Felt soo good but the current is very strong and it will pull you down the rocks. Such a fun experience with rocks in my swimsuit. It was an early night.

Sunday we got up early to make breakfast and get ready to go to some hot springs in Quesada. The water was just so hot. It was so hard to breathe and the air was hot as well but it felt really nice after the hike the other day. And everyone just relaxed in the hot water before another day of travelling. Marcia tried to take us to see the waterfalls but instead we ended up walking 15 mins on the wrong trail, eventually we made it to the waterfall though. At home, Marcia and I made lunch of this delicious chopped mixture with heart of palm. If you've never tried that stuff, I suggest you do. It tastes so wonderful with vegetables and tuna and rice. We left early afternoon to head to San Jose to go to Manuel Antonio. And when we arrived in San Jose at the terminal, guess what, another AFS student. Can't go anywhere without running into one. It was a nice drive on the bus. It was my first time seeing that part of San Jose and driving so flat closer to the southern region. After only a 3 hour trip on the bus we arrived at our hostel in Quepos which is the town right next to Manuel Antonio.

Monday of course was another early morning because we went ziplining! Oh how cool it was. And the staff were also super friendly. There were 9 or 10 runs plus rapelling. The rapelling by far my favorite because you just sat in the rope and then just dropped. The guide would hang you out and just let go of the rope as you dropped and then when the guide at the bottom thought you were close enough would stop you on the rope just dangling in the air as he lowered you. It was so cool. But not so cool for my mom or sister who were so nervous and afraid to go down and went slow. Some of the lines were very long and we got to hang upside down and glide along the line. Hanging upside down or just sitting there, running down the line is so relaxing and calm just letting the trees zip by and being weightless through the canopy of the forests. In the afternoon we went to the beach in Manuel Antonio. It is so hot near the coast. My mom and sister didn't think it was as hot as I thought it was but wow was it hot for me. I think I'm made for the winter. After spending sometime on the beach and the water and getting knocked down by waves and sand everywhere, we left to head back to the hostel to head back to San Jose. Such a short time at the beach. The bus to go to San Jose was so late and then had complications with the motor and we had to wait so long that when we arrived in San Jose again, it was 10 o'clock. A bus back to Alajuela where our next hostel was and then we got off at the wrong park. What can I say, it was dark out. Apparently Alajuela has like 4 parks in the middle so any guess could be the right guess. But it was a nice walk going through Alajuela and seeing the pretty parks and buildings. Finally at 11 we ate dinner. Thank goodness because we were starving. A late night.

Tuesday was an early morning. What else? We walked around Alajuela again and seeing the pretty parks and looking for souveniors for them and food to take home. Then, the shuttle to the airport. It was such a great trip with my mom and sister. I'm really going to miss them but I mean, I've made it 3.5 months so what's just 1.5 more? And I've got another wonderful family waiting for me to return in Quesada. I am glad they came to visit and had a wonderful time because even though at times we were tired and hungry and crabby, that is just what made the trip because we also had times of excitement and adventure and peace. I can't wait to see all my family back home, but then again, my days are numbered here and who knows when the next time I'll be here.

Ancient artifact from the indigenous tribes.

Getting ready to zipline

My mom and Maris 

My mom, me, Marcia, César, and Maris

Rio Celeste

Maris, me, and my mom

Swimming in Rio Celeste

La Fortuna

At Manuel Antonio

Hot springs in Quesada

Video of ziplining, I'm not sure how good it will turn out. 

Despedido y Camera

 Whoa. Slow the roll. only 2 months left? A little less now, but wow is this going by faster than I'd prefer. It just has gone by so fast I'm in shock. There's still so much to do but with a counting clock for what's left.

Thursday made it seem even more real because with my local chapter here, we had a 'despedido' for a few other exchange students and I. They are from Kansas, Germany, Italy, and have been here for a year and leave in a month and I only have 2 months. So we had a little going away party, hence the despedido. It was with all the volunteers and students in my chapter and we had a bunch of typical Costa Rican food like beef and tortillas and refried beans and salsa and chips plus iced tea. It was so fun getting all together and joking around and learning to dance and music but it was also a little sad because these people have been so supportive and it all ends so soon.

The school days this past week have been very short. Sometimes just showing up in the morning to take a test and leaving right after or going to one or 2 classes. The teachers have been on strike and I finally figured out why, they haven't received their pay in a month or 2 and all go to the capital and strike the government for not getting paid for their work. With this we don't have too many classes or just no school at all, like today.

Saturday was the classic of cooking and cleaning all morning but in the afternoon we went to the Camera which is a festival I guess but more of a fair or expo. The main purpose is to show the animals to sell but there are also concerts and parties and showing cars or motorcycles and just fairlike stuff, just no rides. We watched this battle of the marching bands type this where marching bands in the area compete against each other. Like 2 bands would come out in the middle of the arena and one would play a song and dance and then the next, and they'd both play 2 songs and then exit, and 2 more bands would come on. There were like 6 bands I think. We also got to see the cows. They are so ugly. Like the ugliest cows I have ever seen in my life. Just ew. And they're huge. Well the ones at the fair were. I'm sure most are smaller but the ones at the fair, when I stood next to them, I only reached its back. But I caught a baby calf that was running around the area. Maybe not catch, more like it was standing in the open and I walked up to it and grabbed its rope around the neck. At night, like an hour after arriving at the fair, it started pouring so we went into the arena, and we waited and waited for the rain to let up, and it never did so we had to run through the pouring rain to get to the car. And we were soaked. Like completely. Also, the region I live in, San Carlos, is basically the Wisconsin of Costa Rica. San Carlos is known for its dairy farms and cows and cheese, just like Wisconsin. Except Costa Rica isn't nearly as flat as Wisconsin is.

The other past few days have been really relaxed because it rains a lot more so we can't always go out and there isn't much school.

The ugliest cow I've seen in my life. 

The calf I caught

Kansas, Germany, Wisconsin, Japan, Hungary

Exchange students in Ciudad Quesada

Franzi and I 

Guanacaste

  This past week has been round 2 of exams. I am not a fan of test taking. At all. Whatsoever. But the good news is teachers have been going on strike so some days we have no school, some we just have to take a test, and some we actually have a full day because some teachers are loyal and want students to learn. This time for the tests, I may not have done too much better on my score but for sure I've done better on understanding. I'll know scores later.

Wednesday night was so cool. AFS had a huge meeting in Costa Rica, to be more specific, in my town. So all AFS volunteers, staff, students, community service, and the families, got to go to a dinner and meet all the directors of every AFS country in the world. Turns out, the president of AFS USA isn't even from the US, he's from Argentina. Anyways, throughout the night, we talked and met people and watched traditional dancing and singing from the local dance and chorus team. We ate all the traditional Costa Rican foods and fruits and dessert. And it all took place at this super fancy tourist hotel.

Thursday was a holiday of some sort so no school! So Marcia, my host mom, and I got the wonderful time to do chores and cook all day with the help of another lady as well.

Friday was sooo long. I took a Civics test and wow was it bad. To study, we have never been taught by the teacher in anyway and it's been 2.5 months. Before the test, he told us to open our textbooks and would say hi-lite this paragraph through this paragraph, this web, these facts, and that was it. It lasted like 20 minutes maybe and that's all we had to study for the test the next week. When the test came, Friday, it was more on general knowledge of the politics in Costa Rica. And I was clueless because we hadn't learned anything yet. After the test, I left school to head to the beach! And some difficulties occured because why not. I went from Ciudad Quesada to the capital, San Jose, which is farther south. And along the way, when we were SO close to the city, the bus tires blew out so we had to wait half an hour to get them fixed. In San Jose, at my terminal, the lady told me to walk to this other terminal nearby because that one had the tickets to go back north to the Nicoya Peninsula to go to Santa Cruz. So I walked to the terminal. The man there told me there are no tickets for that region and to head to the terminal that I JUST came from and that's where they are. I went back. And asked again. This time they told me it was at a different terminal nearby but smaller and that's where I could get the tickets. So I walked to that terminal. And finally made it after asking for directions multiple times because they were never the same. At the right terminal, when I was in line because I wanted to leave at 12:30 so I could get to Santa Cruz when it was daylight still and it's a 5 hour trip, a lady a few people in front of me got the last ticket. So I had to get the 2 o'clock one and wait around in San Jose for 2 hours. How exciting. On the bus to Santa Cruz, thankfully it was airconditioned because after 5 hours from the cool temps of San Jose, through Costa Rica, to the peninsula, it was so HOT. Like so hot when I stepped off the bus at 7:30 pm. Usually in Quesada, when the sun goes down, so do the temps, but here it was dark and still 80°C and I was wearing pants and shoes and a tshirt and a big backpack and my friend from Germany, Franzi, and I had to walk through Santa Cruz and the heat to get to her house. Afterwards, we went to a going away party for another foreign exchange student in that town. She has been here a year and it's really starting to sink in how much I'll miss it here.

Saturday we got up nice and early after not sleeping much that night to head to the beach. It was a group of other exchange students in the area as well to go from Santa Cruz to Nicoya to Playa Samara where we went to meet up with another group going on a trip with AFS. It was so fun and great to see everyone again and hang out with them. After lunch we went to another beach nearby called Playa Carillo and it made me realize that this might be the last time I might see some of these people. I've made such good friends with AFS students and we are so close and I wish it was easier to visit each other and not have to cross oceans and countries. But after a long day of fun, my group and I had to head back to Santa Cruz. And it was so tiring. and hot. always soo hot.

On Sunday, I wanted to leave in the morning but when Franzi and I walked through Santa Cruz, it was soo hot and at the terminal, there was only one bus headed to where I needed to get off at and it wasn't until the afternoon so we just hung around Santa Cruz and at her house. But it was soo hot. It was 95° and only 10 am. It was miserable and like just sitting anywhere, you sweat. I don't know how people can manage living and working in that heat. And eventually I made it back home after 11 hours of traveling on Saturday and only 6 hours on Sunday. Even though Guanacaste might be scorching, it's a really pretty province and has really nice beaches as well!

Pura Vida mae

Playa Samara

Germany, US, Switzerland, Germany, Norway, Switzerland, Iceland

My closest friends from AFS

Playa Carillo