Miami. Not a fan of the city but I was America’s biggest fan for the weekend. I went off the rice and bean diet for the weekend and indulged in some American food while enjoying English and a little bit of shopping and last but not least I DRANK SO MUCH--- milk! Milk in Costa Rica just is not the same and I don’t exactly drink it very often or at all here so it was probably what I missed the most in terms of food/drinks. I also enjoyed a hearty salad a day at Panarea Bread (everyday) and I even found myself a Gluten Free Pizza in South Beach, Miami. I was in American food heaven!
Thank you papa Durante for working for American Airlines! My friend Chelsea was able to fly in for a little over 24 hours before she had to get back to classes. However, in the time that she was there she had a bit of a cultural experience… when she took the bus from the airport to North Miami, which passed through lovely “Little Havana” and if you are not familiar with “Little Havana” it is not the best part of town. She at one point informed me that she was the only Caucasian on the bus and was excited to tell me that a “fellow white man” joined her on the bus but soon got off. Hahaha I had a good laugh at this after being the only “white girl” for the last 3 months. Any how, I was incredibly grateful that she could come and it made me a little sad that I wasn’t home or in Boston with all of my friends but all the more sweet it will be come fall!
I tired. I really tired to make it 6 months with out depending upon Americans to hang out with or help me out here but at the end of the day you just get along better with the people in your own culture. I hate to admit it but it is just the way it is. However, I am proud that I gave it a shot and made it 3 months on my own and I did attempt to meet Ticos but it is a really difficult culture to infiltrate into. The US is very unique compared to other cultures. In the US there are colleges that are basically huge playgrounds for students from ages 18-23 where there are no supervisors or parents and complete freedom! This also means that you have thousands of people to hang out with and make friends with on a daily basis. Most of the time it is also people from all over the country and sometimes world. It is not the same in Costa Rica. Compared to Americans ticos have very few friends and mainly hang out with their childhood friends that grew up in their neighborhood and their family. They are also not very interested in making new friends and are content with what they have… which made it extremely difficult to make friends here. I also understand that it is my environment too because cities are always a bit harder to meet people. With this understanding I decided that the next American that I ran into I would introduce myself and possibly try to reach out and make a friend. So two Saturday’s ago when I was at the feria I heard a couple of girls speaking English so I took my 20 seconds of courage and introduced myself, and I am glad I did. One of the girls has been in the peace corps in Costa Rica for 2 years and just renewed for another year! The other girl, Anais (First generation Cuban-American) has lived here for a year and a half and works for a Micro lending company in San Jose. I was surprised when Anais called me a few hours after exchanging numbers to hang out. Since, Anais and I have gone to see the Hunger Games and lunch at TGI Fridays (yes we had to embrace our American-ness but it wasn’t even that good) and she even invited me to go with her family to Tamarindo this weekend! I tell her that Karma is just building up for her kindness and she just accredits her kindness to “knowing what is like to be alone in Costa Rica” because that is what is was like for her when she first got here. For me, it feels weird to have an American friend after fending for myself the last three months but I’m ready to be somewhat social again! haha
On the Walk to TGI Friday's.
Hard. Knock. Life. Two three day weeks, going to the beach, 80 degree weather… poor me. Haha This week from this past Monday to Sunday is La Semana Santa or The Holy Week in Costa Rica. Most businesses close for the entire week and some only have Thursday and Friday off and of course my company is only off Thursday and Friday, which I will admit is better than nothing! As mentioned above I am off to Tamarindo Thursday morning with Anais and her family and very much so looking forward to it!
Sorry for the lack of pictures this week… I will be sure to take extra this weekend in Tamarindo!
