San Isidro²

My heart is beyond full.

There are two major things I want to share. There's my site assignment, and then there's that whole turning 30 chunche.

First, my site assignment. My group had been looking forward to Friday morning for so long, and finalmente it arrived. We piled into a pair of buses and sat in traffic on our way to Belen for the big reveal. We sat in traffic, chewing on our fingernails and trying to appear less nervous than we all were. Thankfully, the PC staff didn't waste much time getting the whole process started. We circled up in the shade and our Program Managers unveiled a giant map of Costa Rica. One by one we were called up to receive our assignments and pin our picture to our spot on the map. By the time my name was called, the amount of butterflies in my stomach could've carried an elephant to the Sun and back.

At long last I learned where I'll be heading: A rural community in the Northwest of Costa Rica called San Isidro de Aguas Claras. There are somewhere between 300 and 400 people there, and it's right next to Aguas Claras, the community hub, which has closer to 1,000 people. So it's not nearly as big as my current San Isidro (de Heredia), and I'm sure it'll be its own amazing adventure. I cannot WAIT to get there and meet all the people.

From my info packet, I know that there's a huge push for eco-friendly initiatives, such as a recycling campaign, and they're also interested in building a gym for the community. They're pretty interested in nature in general, and I'm stoked to experience that side of Costa Rica as well. I found it particularly interesting that, under the Project Partner/Counterpart heading, there were six different people who'd listed themselves as interested in working directly with me. Now, they don't know me from Adam, and for all I know they all cheer for the Yankees and love cats, but it certainly does bring a smile to my face to see that many people on board already, before I step foot in their community.

I understand the vital information we'll continue to learn throughout the remainder of our training, but I must also admit that I am so ready to go and meet these people, ready to dig deep and establish those relationship, ready to do life with the people there.

In other news, I'm thirty. Whoa. Saying that might take some getting used to. I've said it a ton but it bears repeating: I could not have picked a better place to turn thirty. Here's how it went down. After our Site Assignment, we had some free time to share the news among our group and with all the PC staff, and then we played basketball, soccer, swam in the pool, and pretty much just hung out for the afternoon.

After a bit, we got back on buses and made our way to the other event, Welcome VAC. So, VAC is the advisory council among PC volunteers, and they act as a go-between for us. They also know how to throw one heck of a party, so we discovered on Friday night. They put on this huge gathering of all the in-country volunteers, and we had a blast. A few brave folks from my crew even jumped in the pool (it was colder than you might expect) at the stroke of midnight to celebrate my birthday. The next morning I took my time getting out of San Jose and back to San Isidro, mostly because I'd been told to not return until 6:30PM.

Now, although I'm smart enough to figure out that something was up, I had no clue as to details. I'd already put a few pieces together as far as who might be there, but BOY was I wholly unprepared for what went down.

I turned the corner down to my house and was immediately met by three smiling boys telling me to wait. They sprinted back into the house to summon my host sister, Melissa, who walked me into the darkened house. As I walked into the living room, the light was switched on, and before me was a beautiful group of people crouched, ready to pounce, screaming "Cumpleaños Feliz!" Introvert or not, I was so thrilled, touched, excited, and amazed to see all these people who I've literally known for 2 months (almost to the day) gather to help me celebrate the big 3-0. There were lots of my CED and TEFL buddies from Tico 31, everyone from my host family, a bunch of locals from the neighborhood, and my awesome Language Facilitator, Elena, even made it!

The kids came out to play too! Mis amigos por siempre!

Nancy R, Tory, and Sami!

Nancy T, Joeta, and Yenia!

 

Cheesin' with that CAKE

Elena w/Hansel!

But that CAKE tho!

So much joy. Melissa gave a poignant speech (def had some wet eyeballs for a bit, there) and then proceeded to slam my face down into the cake in keeping with the local tradition. We sang, danced, ate, drank, and just enjoyed the night. One of my group members - who shall remain unnamed for the moment - also definitely got a little freaky with Doña Elsa on the dance floor, but that's a different blog post.

Learning, sheepishly, how to properly pour a beer...

Katie and Doña Elsa!

Cara de Pastel

Wouldn't be una fiesta without the Piñata!

Melissa, my host sister!

Bottom line, I've never been happier in my life. With the community vibe/Pura Vida, the incredible people in my Tico 31 and Peace Corps family, and the excitement of my impending service, it's better than I could ever dream.

Thank you all for being a part of it. Love y'all.

Tech Week

This past week, we took part in what Peace Corps calls Tech Week. After nearly a month and a half of classroom training with a few spots of community interactions, we were all shipped off to a handful of different sites - CED to the south and TEFL to various sites in Guanacaste and Limon - to live and work with active Peace Corps volunteers. 

Playa Preciosa, just before a storm blew in

            My group, six strong, was assigned to Puerto Jiménez on the Osa Peninsula, working alongside a married couple of volunteers, Luke and Brittany. Luke is a CED volunteer, while Brittany is a TEFL volunteer, and it was really cool to see them working as a team. Right off the bat, they showed themselves as incredible hosts. They planned out an entire *cough* week of work for us, both with local businesses and with the local high school. They were even able to find housing for all six of us.

            I ended up with the best of the housing options, if I do say so myself. I bunked with Luke and Brittany’s neighbor/landlord, Hector, and his family. I got to spend some really great time with Hector and his kids, Keilee (20) and Keiler (15). They both speak English (if I happen to have spelled your names incorrectly, I do earnestly apologize), and speak it very well. Keiler is actually heading to Washington, D.C., in May, for a three-week trip in recognition for his studies there in Puerto Jiménez. Keilee, meanwhile, works in a swanky tourist-laden restaurant nearby and has aspirations for more - including finding herself a nice Gringo with whom she can settle down in the U.S.

My host for the week, Hector, along with one of my group members, Jackie

My host sister, Keilee

             I can honestly say that an overwhelming portion of my positive experience in Jiménez revolved around my host family. Every night - and I do mean every night - we found ourselves lounging in the living room next to the fan with a game of some sort on. Most nights it was a soccer game, but there were a couple opportunities to share with them the beauty that is baseball (Peace Corps 2^nd Goal whaaaaaaaaa). Talk about a boost to my own Spanish: imagine trying to explain stealing a base, the balls/strikes count, and what it means to tag up before advancing on a fly ball. Thankfully, Hector and his family possess a near-infinite amount of patience, and they interestedly listened as I fumbled (pardon the cross-sports reference, please) through the vocabulary. Despite my own struggles to explain all the rules of America’s Pastime, Hector was super interested. He would ask new questions with every pitch and hit. The most confounding thing for him? The fact that there’s no time, that there’s no definitive start and end, that it all depends on the teams getting 27 outs (or 24, depending on the score). I had a genuinely great time with them, and I hope they did too. By the looks on their faces with every new question, they did.

            The community of Puerto Jiménez, in my pit-stained opinion, begins and ends with one thing: the heat. Even before my journey southward, I was hearing about it from seemingly anyone and everyone with whom I spoke concerning my destination. One conversation sticks out over all the rest: I was in the local sports clothing store chatting with the employees, and the topic swayed toward my trip. The moment the words Puerto Jiménez left my lips, both guys immediately lowered their heads in some strange reverent homage to those who still live under the burden of the heat. I was at once inundated with story after story of the heat: how it affected their jobs, how it made their friends and families sick, and how it eventually caused them both to move away to the cooler climate of San Isidro de Heredia.

             I really felt like I was prepared for it. I felt like, being from the Sunshine State, I could handle the heat. Dear heavens, I could not have been more wrong. I can honestly say I’ve never been in a hotter place. Of all the places I’ve been fortunate to visit in my life, Puerto Jiménez takes the cake. And that cake is burnt to a blackened crisp.  From the moment the sun rears its molten head over the horizon, the temperature seems to skyrocket to Satan’s oven, and it only gets worse as the day groans on. The only solace, seemingly, was the ice cream. Oh did we consume our (un)fair share of ice cream.

Another member of my group, Ed, holding a soon-to-be-opened coconut

            But here’s the thing: the heat didn’t get in the way of having an amazing week. I could continue to bellyache and conjure all the funny analogies about how freaking hot it was, but the fact is we dealt with it. More than that, we set it aside and lived in Puerto Jiménez for those few days. We helped teach schoolchildren how to tell time and describe their daily activities in English. We explained the necessity and process of both resumes and interview skills to a class of respectful, attentive seniors. We met with a group of women who run a recycling center and who are very passionate about their community, its people, and its environment. We met with a local agricultural cooperative with some very real needs, and we got to discuss some options for moving forward and offered a handful of suggestions for bettering their operations. We encountered a woman who owns her own artisanal shop with all kinds of handmade goods, and we had a chance to share with her some basic business practices that might improve her overall profit margins.

Some of our group members, Anne and Princess, working with the artisan

            Talk about a needed reprieve from our classes. Although I can say I’ve enjoyed an awful lot of what we’ve learned in our day-to-day training lessons, it was a massive boost to my spirits to use these tools in the community with real, live, breathing people. The looks in their eyes when they explained these things - their livelihoods - and then to have the chance to share with them a new vision, seeing the lights in their eyes get a little brighter, that is something I’m very, VERY excited about.

           On Friday, we were given an opportunity to reflect on our week and share our thoughts among our group with our host volunteers. We headed for the beach, Playa Preciosa to be exact, and relaxed in the shade while the waves crashed on the sand. We played a solid game of ultimate (got a sweet set of scrapes from an all-out dive into the tidewater sand and rocks!), dined like kings and queens on mashed pinto and tortillas, and even fit in a few hilariously fun games of volleyball. The whole day was much needed, and I found myself in agreement that the week in its entirety couldn’t have gone any better.

Beautiful day on the Southwestern Coast

            When I think about what I came to Costa Rica with Peace Corps to accomplish, it was almost all wrapped up in this one, sweaty week. Connect with the local people? Check. Enjoy the environment? Check. Find new ways to help those in need? Check. Come away with a new appreciation for a different people group? Check.

            I find myself much more prepared, so I feel, for my service after Tech Week. I’m grateful for my group members, my host volunteers, my host family, and PC Staff for helping organize the entire experience for us. I’m beyond excited to learn my site assignment next week, and I can’t wait to start planning, preparing, and learning about what will be my new home. 

Let’s just hope there’s some shade.