Costa Rica ~ Fall 2010: A Family Reunion

So I´ve been trying to figure out how to explain what I´m doing here in Cachi and what life is like living with my family...I´ll do my best.

School...
Go to school at 7am and have been observing classrooms. Last week was final exams week, so except for maybe one test a day, the kids didn´t do anything but mess around. It was like the movie School of Rock. CRAZY!

Now, the kids have another month of classes...yes, they still have school and are still learning somewhat. They only go in the mornings now, til 11:20am. Then, the afternoons are for planning and preparing a Christmas celebration of some sort as well as their graduation ceremony on December 20th. The school year runs from March through December. With two, two-week breaks in there. Seasons in Costa Rica are classified as wet season (May thru November) and dry season (December thru April). End of December, January, and February is when they harvest the coffee beans, so that´s their ¨summer.¨ At the school I´ve also helped correct some math papers and do some cataloging in their so called library. This school is considered poor so everything is very old and there isn´t much in a room besides old desks, a chalkboard, and Chrismas decorations. That´s the gist of the school. I could probably spend a good two hours talking about how it functions.

Family...
I LOVE my family here! It´s like being at a family reunion. Eveyone knows and hugs and jokes with everyone. They feed me all the time! This dessert and that dessert and icecream and chocolates...any weight I´ve lost will be regained while here. I might also add that the woman pride their muffin tops and somehow maintain skinny legs.

This weekend I walked a good 2 miles down to the Cachi Dam with my 17 year old brother, Oscar, and a 21 year old cousin, Louis. Apparently a big deal in Costa Rica, but isn´t really anything like others I´ve seen. Went to Oscar´s soccer game. Hiked uphill 2 miles to a river and waterfall near the top of the mountains. GORGEOUS! Looking down you could see the whole mountain valley and Lake Cachi (because of the dam), which by the way is not swimmable. There were huge, beautiful blue butterflies flying around, which are kind of like the hidden jewel of Costa Rica. First ones I´ve really seen and they fly like hummingbirds-almost impossible to get a picture of. Sunday afternoon went to a 4 hour bridal shower where we ate and ate and ate. Some dancers, both guys and gals, and a drumline came, which are traditional for quinceañeras (15th birthday party) and sometimes bridal showers. Felt like I was in Las Vegas. Totally normal in this ¨love to dance¨ culture.

Everyday I have tasted something new, learned how to prepare a new food or make something new, such as the scarf. Definitely being blessed by them! I pray I´m returning the favor.

I´m not sure if I can upload any pictures. If I can I will. Otherwise, when I´m back in San Jose I will.

Oh, and during my afternoons I try to work on my homework for the Literature course I´m taking these last few weeks with ten other LASP students. The others are in Business or Latin Culture courses. Usually that means that I fall asleep reading so I get to take a daily nap :) Now I know why Grandma Starr has always enjoyed her afternoon nap! (Speaking only in Spanish is tiring I might add).