i'm back (for a short while!)

[me and most of the 1st grade class!]

I am back from my internship and will only be here in Costa Rica for a few days before I head off to Cuba! I had a really great three weeks in San Jose de la Montaña. I worked at an elementary school in the mountains of the Hereidia province (not too far away from my house in San José). My host mom is the cook at the elementary school and I helped her in the kitchen with various tasks – many of them were chopping, stirring, assembling food and lots and lots of dishes! I also did some random things around the school like helping the teachers if they needed something, but for the most part it was very low-key.

I was a little nervous before coming to my internship about living with another host family, but I think since this was the third time I was the gringa coming into a stranger’s home with my stuffed suitcase and a smile, it was pretty easy and I immediately felt at home which was a big blessing. I quickly became a huge fan of the tele-novela “Pasión de Gavilanes” which is a Spanish soap opera playing every night and became accustomed to going to bed before 10:00 and waking up at 6:00 . My house was about a quarter mile walk from the school and I shared a room with my 8-year old sister Barbara. Also living with me were my host parents and four sisters (ages 23, 20, 14, and 8). My 20-year old sister was 8.5 months pregnant when I arrived and that was a unique experience for me since we were so close in age but I felt like our lives were so completely different. I had a lot of fun helping her get her and the baby’s room ready, sorting through baby clothes, buying a dresser for her room, etc. And…I got to meet her son: Oscar Davíd who was born on April 8th (por dicha that I got to meet him since I left only 4 days later!) I was so grateful for the unique experience to be in the family during such a momentous event! He is adorable – with a head full of black hair and 10 precious tiny toes & fingers.
[oscar david and i]

The neighborhood was all family – aunts/uncles/cousins/grandkids ...I just decided to stop trying to figure out whose kids were whose and just consider them all family. It was fun to be in this small community and every morning the grandfather would pick us up to go the school, the kids and I would hop in the back of his pick-up truck (something I love about Latin America) and the dog, Negro, would run ahead of us to the school where we would get dropped off (Negro is the most precious dog and is a faithful companion to my host mom and follows her everywhere we go!).
[cousin gabriel and i]

I came home on my birthday and had a really special day with my host family welcoming back with flowers, a lovely dinner, and cake & ice cream! I was honestly really overwhelmed by the love I felt from my community in San Jose de la Montaña when I left and coming “home” to San Jose. I received little gifts, cake & ice cream from another LASP student’s family (he worked at a milk processing farm close by and I visited once afternoon a week ago – they remembered my birthday and bought a cake for me before I left!).

The Latin American people I have had the privilege of living with and getting to know have blessed my life in so many ways. They have embraced and loved me despite cultural and language barriers. They have invited me, a “gringa,” into their home and allowed me to live life with them, and in doing so I have learned so much – and I think that learning has taken place in my heart and mind on many levels.

i am excited for cuba but also overwhelmed by all the good byes and preparations i need to do before sunday. this is an incredible opportunity to go to a country most americans cannot visit so i really want to take advantage of it.

looking forward to seeing everyone soon!!!