Random Update

So there isnt really anything special going on right now, my class was just cancelled for some reason so I am using the time to update everyone : )


Update 1: My face is peeling all over. I went to the store and bought aloe lotion yesterday, but it was just too burnt. I feel like I have to get burnt before I can get tan lol. I also bought sunscreen and bugspray, so I have learned my lesson and will 1) reapply sunscreen every hour (or less) and 2) wear bugspray, even on the beach


Update 2: I miss everyone at home! It seems like I have been here a lot longer than a week just because I am getting familiar with everything here and am in a routine.  It also helps that this weekend was some serious bonding time, so I met a lot of great people who are now friends : ) Some of us girls are going to start meeting once a week to have a little bible study, probably over lunch on Mondays. I'm looking forward to spending time during the weekends really getting to know and hang out with people like we can't really do during the week because of crazy class schedules. And while it seems like forever since I got here, I know its only the beginning and I will miss people a lot more as time goes on. Skype helps a lot (add me if you haven't - racheltish) because I get to actually see the people I'm talking to, and its nice to be able to talk to my whole family at once. It kind of seems different here, though. Like I am in another world and separate from my life at home. It's very strange, and I'm not sure if thats just me talking or if its fairly common.


Update 3: I am adored here. Yesterday 2 girls in my spanish class and I went to a museum downtown for a class project. Twice while we were walking around, random men came up to us and told us we were beautiful, they loved us, thanked us for our beauty, etc. and that's not that strange down here - everyone loves blonde american girls for some reason. People are always honking their horns at us as they drive by and making catcalls on the streets, which is actually a really common occurrence here. Women from Latin America get depressed in the U.S. because it doesn't happen and they feel like no one notices them. Anyway, we were stared at a lot as we explored downtown and the craft market a little  yesterday, and apparently a couple of our guy friends got hit on by prostitutes, so everyone just loves Americans, I guess (or they looked easy to rip off). Downtown was fun, and we felt so proud of ourselves for finding everything and taking the right bus back and such. We're getting more and more streetsmart!


Update 4: This weekend we were talking a lot about things from home but also about our experience here. It's nice to have other exchange students to talk about this stuff with, and my group of friends definitely likes to talk! So we ask each other lots of questions, and two of the questions I thought I'd share with you.
    Q1: What has been the hardest thing to get used to here? 
    A: I think almost everyone said that it's the bathroom system here. In a lot of houses, people can't put used toilet paper in the toilet because they say it will clog the pipe systems because the pipes aren't very big (but that doesn't make sense, because then certain other things would be too big. I don't know, that's just what they tell us). Luckily, my host mom doesn't have that rule, so it's not too bad. The other thing about the bathrooms is the showers.  In the U.S., everyone has water heaters, but here it's not like that. For one, the only hot water is in the shower. There's not hot water to the sinks in the bathrooms or the kitchen, or probably the washer (I don't know, I don't do laundry).  The showers are warmed through an electric system on the shower heads. These little things on top of the shower create an electric current that heats the water (and yes, sometimes there are sparks but I have been assured that it's safe). The stronger the stream of water is, though, the less the current can heat up the water so the colder it is. Therefore, you either get pressure or heat, not both.  I am also lucky because the hot water in our shower has fairly good pressure (meaning its more than the trickle most people have). Some people have still been unable to figure out how to take a hot shower, though! Although we all have problems with the bathroom, it's a pretty small issue compared to things that could be going wrong, so that's good.
    Q2: What has most impressed you about Costa Rica so far?
     A: This is my answer, but since it's my blog I figure you all are interested. I think the people here are most impressive. Everyone is really friendly and helpful.  I feel like in the United States, people can be really egocentric.  If someone is speaking English but they are having a hard time and speak with a heavy accent, I think a lot of people get annoyed that the person doesn't know English very well and is wasting our time.  Here, though, it's totally different.  Everyone is really supportive of people who are learning Spanish, and people are always complimenting us students even though we know we're no where close to fluent.  The security guard at my apartment complex always says how we're so good at Spanish, even if I make a couple of blatant mistakes. They are just really supportive and caring about everyone, whether that be their very close knit families or strangers to their country.  It's really refreshing to see and I am very happy that I get to interact with at least some Ticos (what Costa Ricans call themselves) every day!