Funny Story

This morning I caught up with my friends from the U.S. One of them had a very funny story to tell me, and because he isn`t following my blog, I can tell it. My friend speaks almost no Spanish, and his first days here were very hard for him . AFS tells foreign exchange students to smile, nod, and say yes for the first few days with the family, or at least that is what my friend thought. When he met his family for the first time, he was enthusiastic and happy, even though his family seemed rather sad. He didn`t have a clue what his family was saying, so he continued to nod and smile.
The next day his host family invited him to church. He thought it was rather strange, going to churh on a monday, but he went. When he got to the church, he continued to nod, smile, and be genuinely friendly, even though the people seemed very sad and confused by his actions.
Then my friend noticed the coffin in the middle of the church and he understood. The day before his host parents had been explaining to him that his host grandmother had died, and they had invited him to the funeral. Needless to say, he will not make that mistake again.

Life and the Beach

As of tomorrow I will have been away for a month, and I would like to say that I am completely settled in. I know how to walk to school in under 10 minutes, be at home by curfew, buy things at cheap prices, and live without an iPod and cell phone for a month, what was previously thought to be impossible. Life here is beautiful. I am not sure how, but there must be five more hours in a day because there is always time for everything. My host family and I are getting along very well, and I have made friends both in the youth group and school. The people here are very friendly and I don`t find myself bored very often. 

Monday I went to visit my host grandparents and then my host aunt and uncle. With my host sister, dad, aunt, uncle, and cousin I spent 20 hours (from 2 am to 10 pm) in a hot car going from city to city so that the family could work, and finally the beach. Tilaran signifies wind and water, hence it is colder than most of Costa Rica. Hence, the majority of other cities in Costa Rica feel like an oven. I was not exactly thrilled to squish 6 people into a four person truck in the very hot climate of Costa Rica, but it was worth it for the beach.

I spent hours and hours in almost deserted beaches, and was thrilled to swim in the clear water. The water warm and the beaches are clean. There are lots of tourists in the area, and it is easy to tell who they are because they speak English. Also, by the beach are a variety of animals. There were wild monkeys in the trees and a huge spider. If the spider bites you and you are not allergic, it gives you a bad burn; if you are allergic, you die. Fortunately, the spider did not bite me, considering it was about two feet from my foot. Other than the trip to the beach, I have spent most of my time with my friends and family here in Costa Rica. I am excited for the rest of my year here and plan to update my blog when I can. ¡Hasta Luego!

School and Arenal

My first week was gerat, getting to know my host family and buying things for school. I walked to a cross with my host brother, sister, and cousin. It was a couple hundred feet up in the air on a hill, but I couldn`t resist. This week, I started school at Liceo Maurilio Alvarado Vargas. It`s a bit different from my school back in the U.S. Here, when I have a free period, I can leave the school, and I get an hour to go home for lunch. It`s really nice to have an open campus, and I think it`s worth it, even though I have to be at school by 7am. The other students in my class are really nice, and have all helped me in various ways: walking me to class, helping me with notes, and they are really inviting.

Also, my host family and I have enjoyed a lot of time at Lake Arenal, which is 20 minutes away by the family morortcycle. It is absolutely beautiful there, and I never wanted to leave. Also, I have to say, it was quite a strange feeling, sharing a lake with water snakes and crocodiles. However, my biggest foe here has been the bugs. For example, there were two very large spiders in the house yesterday. However, Costa rica is beautiful, bugs or not, and I have pictures to prove it.

Mi Familia

I am so happy about my family. God is great, so great. My host father is a pastor for the protestant church that we live next door to. My host father and mother are fair, with their rules and are very loving. My curfew is 10 at night, which is great here. My host brother is very nice, and speaks some English, so between the two languages we can get the point accross. My host sister and I share a room, and she is great as well. I just finished unpacking all of my stuff, and I have to say that I did not pack a lot.
I will be attending a school here in Tilaran that is within walking distance, which is wonderful. I will be a junior for the first six months of my stay here, and I will be a senior starting in February. My host sister and I start school a week from tomorrow, and I am very excited because the classes that I will be taking sound awesome. Also, it looks like I am going to get the Science and English credits that I need for the year.
Tomorrow I am going to buy school supplies and clothes. because I go to a public school that requires a uniform. As of right now, I think that I am going to sleep. One last thing: my house has computers, and I may use them, which is great. Once again, thanks to God for all of this.
Feliz en mi Casa Nueva,
Hannah

I'm here!

I would like to say sorry for the grammer and spelling mistakes I will make. This keyboard confuses me and I am rushed on time. However, I'm in Costa Rica and it is beautiful, and it is hot. Right now I am at oreintation, and I am tired. We got in at midnight last night, and everyone is about to fall asleep. There are so many foreign kids here, it is amazing to meet people from different countries. Tomorrow, I am going to meet my host family, unpack, and get ready for the year. The only scary thing is the swine flu scare. Although, we get to start school a week later because of that, which is great. I have to go now, but I have to say that I am thrilled to be here. I already miss my friends and family, but Costa Rica is such a great place to be, that you really can't be sad here.

Happily in humidity,

~Hannah

Almost There!

Guess how many days until I leave? Four. I remember being excited about having only six months left. Time flies! I have finally forced myself to pack, and I was sad to find that the kitchen sink did not fit in my suitcase, mostly because there was too much sunblock and bug spray in the way.

I am glad to be going, but I am going to miss everyone. I know that I have the best parents in the world, because not everyone could send their only child away, and not see them for a year. God sure knew what he was doing when he gave the stork this particular sarcastic pink bundle and told the bird to fly to my parents. It can't be easy, but I am glad that they are letting me go, at least for these next 11 months.

On another note, I would like to say that I am less terrified than I thought I would be. I was fully expecting to be breathing into a brown bag by now, but I am far from it. I am ready to go. I have the suitcase tags and everything. 

I have no idea when I will be able to update next. I don't know how often I will have access to internet. Who knows? Either way, the adventure is about to begin!

La Familia

Apparently, I forgot to talk about who I will be living with. Oops! I will be living with a family of four. I have a host father, mother, older brother who is 21, and sister who is 17. I have a feeling that this is going to be great. Some foreign exchange students have problems with their host families, and decide to switch and live with someone else, but I am not too worried about this happening to me. I have a bit of information on the characteristics of the people who I will be living with, and they sound awesome. They like to travel, and seem to be really active, so I am sure that I will have a great time with them. They are also Christian. I consider myself very lucky to be living with a Christian family, and am thrilled to meet them in a month. I leave on July 16th, and will get into Costa Rica on the 17th. At that point, I have a two day orientation, and I will meet my family on the 19th, and move in. I don't think that the words thrilled, excited, etc. can even begin to cover this. Of course, I will miss my friends and family, but I feel like God is leading me to go here, and so I go. I would like to say a big thank you to all of the people who are helping me to get to Costa Rica, and for all of the people who are praying for me while I am down there.