Lightning and Thunder and Earthquakes, Oh My!

This past week has been great! I thought I was adjusting well before, but I am doing much better now! I have begun to really find good friends to hang out with, including someone to hopefully go to Mass with next week. She actually knows one of the other girls in my nursing classes at Pitt! Such a small world! Unlike in Pittsburgh, I have not been able to go to Mass 3-4 times a week, which is unfortunate. There is a church only a couple blocks from my home here, but the Mass times are not conducive to my schedule unfortunately.
Additionally, I can really notice my language skills improving. Are they anywhere near what I would like them to be? Absolutely not! Ideally I would like to be fluent some day, but I know that is not a realistic goal for a ten week summer in Costa Rica. I am hoping to attend the "Mesas de Conversación" hosted by the Pitt Spanish Club in the fall. They are held at Panera Bread weekly, and the Spanish Department treats us to free coffee!
Wednesday night's event was a surprise! Around 9:00 in the evening, I was in my bedroom studying, and all of a sudden, I felt a shaking. At first I thought it was a car rumbling down one of the nearby roads or perhaps thunder (which, at this time of year, is highly typical here, especially loud booming thunder and bright lightning), but then I walked out of my room at the same time my housemate Renee did, and I knew that it was an earthquake!! I was so excited, and the adrenaline was pumping through my veins at an intense velocity. My host mother told us there had been a tremblar. A tremblar is a small earthquake, whereas a terremoto is a large, destructive earthquake. Now I can check "feel an earthquake" off my bucket list!

Rainy season in Costa Rica!

Thursday night I went to my first salsa-merengue class! The hour and half (more or less, depending on how punctual the instructor is) lessons are somewhat difficult for a novice like me, but my friends Libby and Taylor were excellent helpers and were very patient teaching me. I can run, but that is the same movement all the time; my other coordination skills are lacking! I still enjoyed myself--one of the first times I can actually say that about dancing--and am looking forward to returning this Tuesday for another session!

From left to right: Libby, me, Taylor

Friday morning I had my midterm exam--yes midterms already! The term passes quickly when it's only four weeks long! I think it went decently well, but it was by no means an easy exam. Then I packed my bags, and we were off to Tamarindo, a beach in the northwest portion of the country, for the weekend. It was a five hour trip through the countryside of Costa Rica. We traveled along the coast for some of the trip as well, and the sights were beautiful. One of the things that struck me most, though, is the varying living conditions of the Costa Rican natives. Houses range from small, metal shacks in the country to gigantic monstrosities high up in the mountains.

The countryside on the way to Tamarindo.

We were privileged to stay at El Diria, a fancy resort on the beach, which apparently was booked at a significant discount due to the massive number of students ISA brings through each year. The view was gorgeous!

One of the many pools at the hotel.

Beachfront view!

Friday night we had a nice buffet dinner at the hotel, and my favorite part of it was the tres leches cake (again!). I know what kind of cake I want for my birthday--and I will still be in Costa Rica at that point, so it's a likely possibility! I also tried sopa negra, a traditional Costa Rican black bean soup. I loved the broth, but the restaurant had cooked some sort of fresh cheese balls in it, which I did not care for. But, I did give it a try, and that's what counts! Breakfasts were also buffet meals served at the hotel restaurant. My favorite part was easily the abundance of fresh fruit--pineapple, papaya, watermelon, grapes! I was in heaven, or so it seemed! I also enjoyed the gallo pinto, fried eggs, and today's specialty: tortilla pie. The tortilla pie (which I unfortunately forgot to photograph) was similar to lasagna, but made with corn tortillas instead. Flour tortillas are not popular here, and that is okay with me; I prefer corn!

We were entertained by native dancers while at dinner!

Tres Leches Cake!!

Saturday was a very busy day! The morning began after breakfast with a two hour surfing lesson in the waves of the Pacific Ocean. I have only been to the Pacific Ocean one other time in my life, when we traveled to California when I was ten years old. The water was much warmer this time around! I learned the technique to surf, and I was even successful a few times to stand up on my board. It takes a lot of coordination and timing, but once I got the hang of it, I loved every minute! I certainly have some board burns to show for my hard work, but I think they were worth it.

If you see the small person in the distance, that's me!

I am on the far left in this photo!

The crew! (I am sixth from the left in the orange suit!)

Post surfing snapshot! (I am third from the left)

Lauren and I took advantage of the break between surfing and the afternoon catamaran tour to take a run on the beach. I do not know the exact distance we run, but I estimate it was around four miles round trip to and from a very large rock on the beach. Sand is much more difficult to run on than typical pavement or grass, and my legs were feeling it when we finished. However, we went again yesterday in the opposite direction. It was a great way to explore the area, and the view was positively priceless!

Libby took this one picture of me;
I don't have enough candid running photos!

The catamaran was a gigantic touring boat that fits seventy or eighty people on it, but we only had around fifty. We departed from the shore in a much smaller boat around one o'clock in the afternoon and rode to where the larger boat was anchored. Throughout the afternoon we enjoyed various beverages and snacks. I had my first piña colada, since the drinking age is only 18 years old here. It was delicious! The ship crew made us homemade pico de gallo, guacamole, chocolate chip cookies, and pasta salad, and had a wide assortment of fresh fruit (pineapple, papaya, mango, watermelon--some of my favorites!!!) and chips for us. It was a great spread!
In the middle of the afternoon, we anchored further down the coast and got off the boat to snorkel for a while. It was a lot of fun seeing the different fish--there were some magnificently colored blue ones! I wish I had a photograph of the fish, but my camera wasn't built for the water. We returned to the Tamarindo coast in time for the sunset, which, while nothing spectacular due to cloud cover, was still quite a beauty. It is hard to believe all of the amazing opportunities I am having here, and how quickly these weeks are flying by!

In the catamaran--from left to right: me, Libby, and Lauren 

Posing on the boat!

Look at that bird flying in for some lunch!

One of the girls from our group is teaching
one of the crew members how to "dougie". 

Sunset view!

Snorkeling with friends! (I am second from the right)

Last night we went out for a quick dinner (and when I say quick, I mean an hour and a half; life is lived at a much slower pace here), where I had a bowl of the "soup of the sea". It contained several different forms of seafood, all of which I believe were freshly caught: shrimp, calamari, whitefish of some variety, and many different vegetables in a broth. As is Costa Rican tradition, it was served with rice on the side. We all turned in early after an exhausting day.

Yum!

This morning I woke up at 5:00 with McKenzie and Lauren to view the sunrise. Unfortunately, we were not at a good vantage point (and on the western coast) to see it well, but we still were up early to enjoy the absolutely delightful weather. I spent the morning enjoying the Costa Rican coffee and later jumping waves. The waves are better (yes, I am admitting that ocean waves are superior to Lake Michigan's) and more consistent in the ocean, but the one thing I have yet to adjust to is the salt content of the water! Yuck! I thoroughly enjoy my freshwater beauties in Michigan; at least I don't come out of the water dehydrated there! For the most part that wraps up my past few days. ¡Hasta luego!