Detalles de Panama - Part Uno

The journey to Panama was a long and tough one. We left Tortuguero muy early. We had about an hour boat ride back to the mainland. Then we had to get on our chartered bus again. We tried to watch a movie but it wouldn't work. And then the air conditioning wouldn't work. Now, Tonya, you may be asking, you have survived in Costa Rica without air so far. Why not now? Funny you should ask! Imagine being on a closed in bus with unopenable windows with over 40 cranky hot people, trying to breathe in cool air. It just doesn't work. Thus bus switch number one of the day. We rode for a while, and for a reason that I still do not know, we switched buses again (number 2). We stopped in Cahuita to have lunch - yummy casados and pineapple juice - and got back on the bus. We continued riding for a whie until we got to the CR/Panama border. At this point we were running nearly 2 hours behind. We had to get a CR stamp before crossing the bridge, and of course the line was long. So we cross the bridge, which is pictured in my previous post, and I really felt like a fugitive crossing the border, scared for my life. Luckily I made it across, and then we had to wait in ANOTHER line to get the Panama stamp and such. We waited patiently in line and finally made it through. Then we had to lug over to the bus, get packed up and packed in, and we settled in for another one hour bus ride. When we arrived to the dock, we loaded our luggage and our tired little selves onto the boat and rode for another 45 minutes or so. The night was beautiful though. It was clear, and I seriously have NEVER seen so many stars in my life. It was absolutely breathtaking. It seemed like the longer I looked up at the sky, the more stars that appeared! I will never forget that boat ride as long as I live. We arrived at the island and had to get to the hotel and checked in. After checking in we had a delicious supper - Panama casados, but still delicious. Most everyone in the group went out after that, but KL, MIF and I stayed in to relax and rest! And we were glad that we did.

Thursday - breakfast at 7. KL, MIF and I were the first ones there. We ate breakfast - I had toast and fruit and juice and coffee, and then KL and I went out in search of more coffee. We found some for 55 cents! By the way...Panama's currency is the American dollar. We came back and had to board a boat at 8:45 am with NO IDEA of where we were going. We first pulled up on some random beautiful island to hop out of the boat and order lunch. I ordered 'deditos de pollo,' or chicken fingers. After we all ordered we re-boarded the boat and then proceeded on to a secluded isle. We pulled up to this gorgeous island that looked like it belonged in Pirates of the Caribbean, and they basically told us to jump out of the boat and swim! And that we did! AND they had snorkel gear so we were able to do that a little bit. It was awesome! After that, we went to Playa de las Estrellas del Mar, I think was the name - in English - Starfish BEACH!!!! It was BEAUTIFUL! The water was perfectly clear and there were countless sizes, shapes and colors of starfish! It was so neat! After that, we returned to the island to eat lunch. It was DELICIOUS, the best food I had in Panama, hands down. The rice was the special rice made with coconut milk that was SO GOOD. I WILL be making rice with coconut milk when I return to the US. Anyway, after I absolutely stuffed myself FULL of food, we all relaxed a bit until it was time to continue island hopping. This time, we went to Red Frog Beach. We rode the boat to a dock and parked it, got off, and then walked to a little hut to wait. Soon two trucks appeared to carry us through the jungle so that we could reach our destination. After a short drive, we arrived, and walked through some trees to get to the BEACH. It was pretty secluded, though a lot of people were there. Our huge group of gringos parked it on the beach, played in the water, and relaxed! It was nice and pretty there. A random group of guys asked if some of us wanted to play volleyball. They were obviously intoxicated, and after short conversation we learned that they were in the Coast Guard and were in Panama for the week. Tough life, huh? Anyway, they went on their merry little way to go play volleyball and we just hung out at the beach for a while longer. We spent a couple of hours there, then boarded the boat to head back to our hotel and our island. When we got back, KL and I immediately went in search of coffee - again, and got our 55 cent coffee again, just as good as the first time! We then went back and got ready. For supper they took us to a nice restaurant. We sat under nice white tents and had PIZZA! It was delicious! There was a big dance floor in the center (this whole restaurant was out in the open, in the sand :-)), and so some of us danced salsa and meringue since that's all they were playing (and because I love to salsa!!!). We stayed there for a while and then went back to the hotel to figure out our evening plans. A bunch of people in the group all went out together that night and hung out for a while. We got to dance a lot, which I appreciated, of course. One place we went to, called Barco Hundido, or sunken ship, was especially neat. They had sand and all kinds of things set up to make you think you were shipwrecked on an island. The dance area was out in the open too with lots of room, and out past that was the dock that you could sit on and let your feet dangle in the crystal clear water beneath you. AND there was a shipwreck underwater too, and starfish, that you could look at - It was SO COOL!

Now, on to Friday!

PANAMA photo tour

Sketchy bridge to get to Panama

Pretty secluded beach we visited

Beachin' it

Playing with my food....can you believe I'm almost 22??

Beautiful water - everywhere in Bocas!!!

STARFISH beach!!!

Hey, little guy!

Hangin' out at the beach

Pirates of the Caribbean???

this week so far

This week has been more hectic than I expected. I should have known better, seeing as we didn't have class for a whole week. It was worth it, though, to go to Panama and Tortuguero, which I still need to finish writing about.

Monday was a good day. I spent a lot of time doing homework. SC and I also went on an excursion to find Halloween costumes for the USAC fiesta Friday afternoon. I had NO IDEA what I wanted to be, and I am not creative with stuff like this. Luckily walking around gave me some ideas - Christmasy something, Rasta, etc. SC and I toughed if out through the rain to go to a lot of different places to get stuff. I finally decided on rasta-ness. I will be donning my red, yellow, green and black this Friday and Saturday. I wanted something that was easily recognizable.

Another reason that Monday was a good day.....My host mother made fried chicken 'strips,' I guess you could call them, for lunch and they were SO GOOD. And then for supper we had leftovers of those AND macaroni and cheese. BEST DAY EVER - food-wise! I was ecstatic.

Tuesday was busy. I had to spend the morning in a workshop at the hospital with Claudia which went well. I left at lunch time and had lunch at home - KFC that my host parents had bought. It was good. I then had class 1-4 and 4-7. The 4-7 is sometimes tough for me, because I am sleepy and hungry and that's just a bad combination for me. But the professor is really sweet and so it makes it easier to get through it!

I then had to go home and write an essay for Intl. Political Economy on the Washington Consensus, which I knew nothing about. I later went to KL's house to watch a movie with a bunch of the others, and it was fun to eat popcorn and watch a movie and laugh together. I really do like the group a lot and am so thankful that we are all close and like each other!

these are my people

Today has been a long but good day. I had class from 8-11 (or more like 10:30). My awesome teacher for Intl. Political Economy offered to pay for my coffee if I went to buy one for him, so I accepted, and am I SURE glad I did because the coffee was GREAT! He also told us some great spots to check out in Nicaragua if/when we go over Thanksgiving break!

I hung out at school for a while after class to catch up on some e-mails and do some internship work. We are ALMOST FINISHED with the hospital's strategic plan. Reviewing the documents we have completed gives me a feeling of accomplishment. We have come a long way and have gotten a lot done! It will be nice to have a tangible finished project from this internship when I leave Costa Rica.

I had lunch with my family at home - some kind of pasta with chicken and sausage mixed in. DELICIOUS, of course. I had the largest helping of anyone. I know that mommy isn't surprised!

I wanted to nap this afternoon, but there were some younger guys working on the electricity in my house and in my room so I couldn't really do that. My host mother called me back to her room after lunch. My aunt had stopped by to show us a home video from 1995. My host family and their extended family was in it, and it was interesting to see all of them - almost 15 years ago! It was special to share that moment with them, watching the video and laughing and talking about how much things and people have changed since then.

I had a meeting with Claudia at school around 2 pm to review some stuff from our workshop at the hospital yesterday. We finished around 3:30, and I went back to my house to have coffee and get some money. I had coffee and toast with my sister and her sweet friend. Around 4:30 I met SC to go do some other Halloween shopping. We shopped the other day - she is going to be a cute little devilish thing with red and black things, and I am going as a rasta. Should be interesting! I had considered going as Santa Claus, or a Christmas tree, or something Christmasy since all the decorations and such are out everywhere here now and things for a costume would be easy to find, but I decided to go with the rasta. USAC has a party on Friday afternoon for all the students from all three programs (San Ramon, Heredia, Puntarenas) here at a ranch in San Ramon. Should be a fun time!

I found a green shirt to match the yellow skirt I bought the other day. I picked up a few other random things I needed too. When I bought the shirt, the girls at the register were fascinated with my first name, and so I told them what it was and how it is pronounced here and in the United States (here the o has more of a long sound, so for the pronunciations to be the same, my name really should be spelled "Tania" here in Costa Rica). They were so kind and wanted to talk about my name - they said they had never heard that name before and that it was pretty. I felt special! Then SC and I went to the grocery store, and I got some cereal and cafe Britt drinks (frozen capuccinos are INCREDIBLE here!!!!) and some other things I needed. A sweet gentleman who works at the mercado offered to give us a basket to hold all of our things in. He was so kind to us! After the market we went home. We took a taxi back. Our driver was a woman (first lady cabbie I've had here) who loved listening to Portuguese music. She just loved it and let us listen to it. She was so nice!

Back home I had some popcorn and Coke because I didn't want a big meal, plus my family was gone and I didn't want to make any real food. I then headed to SC's house to have a study party and I was able to get a good bit done. I think the thing I most enjoyed about today, other than the company of my Costa Rica gringo friends, was the kindness of the Costa Rican people who I came in contact with today - the man at the market, the taxi driver, all of the people in the stores that SC and I went in while shopping - everyone was so kind and helpful, and it always brings joy to my heart when people are that way to me. PURA VIDA!

check this out

Check out this site that BFF Elizabeth sent me:

http://www.xmarkjenkinsx.com/outside.html

Tortuguero

My week-long fall break consisted of 2 different aventuras: Tortuguero, here in Costa Rica, and Bocas del Toro in Panama. Tortuguero was parte numero uno of the trip. It is on the Caribbean side of Costa Rica, and is made of a small town of about 1500 people, with various resort and lodging areas dispersed throughout the surrounding islands. Obviously tourism is the way these people survive. The town and area has only developed within the last 50-75 years, so it's relatively young. Tortuguero gets its name from all of the turtles (in Spanish, tortugas) that come there. We're talking the BIG ones, that lay thousands of tiny eggs. Unfortunately, people hunt for and steal the eggs to eat or to make money, though a conservation association there is doing a lot to combat this. Our guide told us that out of every 1000 eggs that a mother lays, chances are that only ONE out of those will survive, considering all the factors surrounding their little precious lives - hunting/poaching, difficulty making it to the ocean, etc. He also told us that if you EVER see a baby turtle trying to find its way around, LEAVE IT ALONE and let it find its own way. Usually if they are roaming around they are memorizing the beach and the land and will definitely return one day to lay their own eggs, and they need to explore the land on their own, and if left alone, they WILL find the ocean!

We left San Ramon around 5:30 am and stopped in Heredia to get on a big chartered bus to pick up that group of about 30 or so. We then headed off to Tortuguero! Our guide, of Panamanian descent, told us all about the landscape around us as we rode. We had breakfast at a cute lodge nestled somewhere, and proceeded on our way. We stopped at another point to view a banana processing place. There are pictures of this below that you should definitely see. Next to coffee and tourism, bananas are a HUGE part of Costa Rican industry. On our ride to Tortuguero, we passed miles and miles and miles and MORE MILES of banana trees. I have NEVER seen so many banana trees in my life, and now I understand where all the bananas come from. The process of processing the bananas is a bit corrupt, and workers don't always live in the best of conditions. It was really cool to see CR industry firsthand though. We finally arrived in Tortuguero and checked in to our little lodges - 2 to a room. They were so adorable! We basically stayed in the middle of the jungle on an island, so we woke to the sounds of howler monkeys each morning, which was pretty cool! The food at this place was great, and so was the coffee!!! It was pretty touristy, but hey, it's okay to have that sometimes! Some of the activities we did included: a walk on the beach (a bit dirty), a walk through the town, a jungle walk to observe plants and animals, a boat ride to take a tour of the canals and rivers nearby, swimming in a turtle-shaped pool, consuming large amounts of (complimentary) coffee, and for me and some others who payed $35, a RELAXING MASSAGE!!! I have never had a real massage before, and this was my first. They offered us a special deal, so I took it!!! It was INCREDIBLE - being near the water with no sounds but the ocean and the tranquil music they played. It was like paradise!

Howler monkey in the tree outside of our room - common in Tortuguero

View from dock at our lodge

River/canal exploration

Boots we had to wear on our jungle hike so that we wouldn't be up to our knees in mud!

Cute rooms

Lodges

Banana processing

HAHAHAHA

Scenery

Tortuguero overall was fun. It was nice to be away from a city - no car alarms, no dogs barking, no noise at all but howler monkeys and geckos chirping.

Stay tuned for the adventures of PANAMA!

Monday so far

I still have a TON of blogging to do to catch up from a week in Tortuguero/Panama, and I plan to get to that today. I have over 200 pictures as well, so hopefully I will be able to get all of that organized and posted...if not today, then definitely this week!

This morning during our break in class I was talking with another USAC student about how much I really wanted to see a big soccer game in San Jose. He mentioned to me that there is a game on November 14th against Uruguay, I believe, and that he had asked Gerardo about going. So of course I RAN to the office to talk to him about it. We immediately made a list of other students who may want to go, and he is going to call today to see about getting tickets, which shouldn't be more than 10K colones = 20$. I was thinking JUST THIS MORNING how much I want to go to a game, and then this all happened! Pray that I will get to go!!!!

I am experiencing the smallest twinges of homesickness (I know that mom and dad have been wondering when this would happen since I talk about not wanting to ever leave Costa Rica), and really do miss all of my friends and family from home. My mom sent me this picture this morning, and isn't she just adorable? The TIGER (from Clemson) visited her school today, and looking classy in her orange and white and argyle, here is my mother with one of God's greatest creatures:

More to come later!

Bailey and Andy

What a great weekend we had together! Bailey and Andy arrived late Thursday night. Their flight was delayed one hour, but they still got here safe and sound!!! We went immediately to their hotel for the weekend and I took care of everything for them, and then I went to my house to sleep! We got up early and went to see Volcan Poas on Friday. Friday night we had supper and I took them to meet some of my program and tico friends! Saturday we went to the beach near Puntarenas with a bunch of other people in the program. Saturday night we went to Night Fever and danced, danced, danced! Bailey and Andy left Sunday. The weekend was short, but full of fun! Bailey's 21st birthday was on Saturday. I think they had a great time, and it was so wonderful to have friends from home come visit. I love them both very much and am very lucky to have them in my life!

Beach we went to on Saturday

Bailey and I at the beach

Volcan Poas - so cool!

Being silly

Bailey and Andy at the volcano

Lagoon at Poas - used to be a volcanic crater, but now it has filled with rain water and is still very acidic

Bailey, Andy, and I at the lagoon

Bailey and I at the volcano

Andy and I at the volcano

And the volcanic crater....so cool!!!

Whirlwind 10 days

I have 10 days of catching up to do!!!! AHH!!!!

Two of my best friends from home came to visit last weekend, and then Monday-Saturday I was gone to Tortuguero and Panama!!! I hope to spend a while today catching up on posting and putting up lots of pictures for everyone to see! Be patient with me as I try to catch up.

this week

Whew, what a week it's been! I'm so glad it's (almost) over! This week was midterm week, meaning that on Tuesday I had to take one midterm and make a 20 minute presentation in Spanish, and today I had two more midterms - all cumulative, of course! Thus, there aren't many exciting details to share.....Monday there were no classes because of Columbus Day. I spent the day in Cafe Delicias doing work leisurely with my other gringo friends. Monday evening and Tuesday morning I spent preparing and studying more. Tuesday I had a presentation in Spanish about the fashion of Costa Rica, and then a midterm in my cultures class that I think I did well on! Wednesday I had class in the morning, and then spent most of the day studying for my 2 Thursday midterms. I DID, however, take a few hours out of my study time to go watch the Costa Rica/US soccer game!!! We went to a popular spot near the mall on the edge of town and cheered Costa Rica along with all of the ticos! It was incredible! I think they get more excited here about soccer than Clemson fans do about football, and that is some SERIOUS excitement!! I then came home and studied for a while longer. I got up at the crack of dawn this morning to go to school to study for my 8 am midterm, which went okay, I guess! And then I spent the afternoon studying for my 1 pm midterm. TOO MUCH STUDYING! The second one today went well too, I believe. MIF and I then took a walk around town to relax a bit and it was nice! And then we had cafecito at my house, and then went back to school for dance. Today we did more aerobics and cumbia, which is also pretty much like aerobics! I am now waiting anxiously for my precious friends to arrive from the US who are staying in CR for the weekend!!!!! And to test my patience, their flight has been delayed....one hour. AHH!! Help me, Lord, to just be patient! Tomorrow I am taking them to a volcano nearby (PRAY FOR GOOD WEATHER!), and then Saturday we are heading to the beach. I really hope that they enjoy their time here. They are two of my best friends from home! And then Sunday they will go home, and Monday I leave for Tortuguero, CR and PANAMA for almost a whole week! Some fall break, huh? Just another reason why I LOVE Costa Rica!

sweet family

Sunday afternoon was tough for me, to say goodbye to my parents. I came home and my host family was gone for the day. I tried to call a few people to see if anyone was in town, but couldn't get anyone. I was really sad and just did NOT want to be at home, so I decided to just get out of the house and walk around town. I walked around for about 45 minutes, and it was very refreshing. I went to the supermarket, got some cereal and cold coffee drinks for next to nothing, a Costa Rican version of Glamour or something like that, and came back to the house. Getting out for a little bit was nice. So I came back in, my family still wasn't home, and so I went out to the river near my house just to take in the beauty of the sunny day. I stumbled upon a couple of dads and their sons, and of course decided to strike up a conversation with the kid about the crocodile in the river. He was SO adorable - couldn't have been more than 2, with big blue eyes and curly curly brown hair. I talked to him and his dad for a bit, and they asked if I wanted to have coffee at their house. I think he sensed my nervousness, and he pointed me to their house which was just on the corner. I felt good about it, so I went. The family welcomed me in and made a WONDERFUL cup of coffee for me. I talked to them for a while and they were very nice, and told me that anytime that I wanted coffee or lunch I should stop by. There were no catches, nothing weird about the whole situation. I was so thankful for that "magic moment" that the Lord gave me - it was just what I needed that afternoon...the happiness, the feeling of family. It was incredible. When I got home, my host family had arrived and we all talked for a while. Having other people around me made me feel a lot better. I'm so happy that the Lord was looking out for me, and that I didn't miss my magic moment of that day.

Weekend with my parents - Part 2

Saturday was a fun but tiring day. We arrived back in San Ramon around 5 pm. We hung out at the apartment for a bit, and I went back to my house to get some things to send home. I came back and we decided to just go get a quick supper at a nearby soda around 7. I let mom and dad have casados, but they weren't that yummy unfortunately. Afterwards, to fill our stomachs a bit more, I took them to my favorite ice cream place in town. I think they enjoyed their $1 cones. We then walked back to the apartment to watch the soccer team play! Dad and I fell asleep watching it around 8:30, and I didn't wake up really until 7 am Sunday morning! It was nice to have a good night of sleep. I think we were all pretty tired from 2 days of lots of exploring and fun.

Sunday was a tough day because I knew I would have to say goodbye. We got mom and dad all packed up and cleaned up the apartment, and the driver picked us up around 11. We headed toward San Jose. We got them all signed in at the airport, and then hung out for a bit before they had to go. And in walked the Costa Rican soccer team that is playing in the US tomorrow!!!!! They actually were on mom and dad's flight to Charlotte! Crazy, huh? Anyway, we said our goodbyes rather hurriedly so that they could beat the team in line, which I was thankful for because if we had had a long sappy goodbye I probably would have cried. I let them go and then had the driver come back and pick me up.

It was hard to say goodbye. Sunday afternoon was pretty tough for me, but I am doing better now, a couple of days later. I am glad that we still have Skype so that we can see each other. It makes things much much easier!

I am so glad that mom and dad got to come. I wish that my little sister could have come as well.....

See you in a couple of months, mommy and daddy!

Weekend with my parents - Part 1

I think that this weekend can best be explained in pictures.

My parents arrived Thursday after lunch time, and Gerardo brought them to my class! My teacher was kind enough to let me leave, so I did and I took them to Claudia's apartment where they would be staying for the weekend. We got all of their stuff there and then headed back to the U so that I could go to dance class. They watched us dance, and I had to hit dad a few times so that he would stay awake. They had had a long day of traveling and little sleep the night before, so I could understand. After class, we stopped at a nice restaurant to eat. Dad had fettucini alfredo and mom and I had shrimp and rice. It was delicious, and the waiter was nice too. Afterwards we went back to the apartment to rest. I went to meet up with my friends for a while, but came back soon because I was tired too.

On Friday, we got up and went to Soda Lucy down the road to have breakfast. I ordered gallo pinto for them with coffee, and they seemed to like it okay. We then walked all around San Ramon, to the church, to the park, the hospital, the stadium, down to my house and then to the University. I showed them around and let them see some pretty views of the city from there. We hung around there until lunch time or so, and then continued walking around. Around 2 pm we headed back to my house so that they could meet my family. My host mother had volunteered to take them on a scenic ride of San Ramon. We ended up riding around for two hours! We saw some beautiful views of the city and all around town, parts that I haven't even seen before! She took us to a poorer part of town as well. We came back after that and ran into some of my amigos, and so they met my parents and we all decided to walk to the farmer's market together. They had all kinds of fruits and veggies for sale, in addition to underwear. Interesting. We then decided to go get some coffee, and sweet KL went with us to Aroma's! We all had coffee or hot chocolate and a little snack, and talked for a while. When it got dark, we headed back to the apartment for a while. I went by my house to get some more clothes and stuff. We hung out at the apartment and then I went to meet up with my friends for a while. I came back within an hour though because I was TIRED, and we all went to bed early.

We woke up early Saturday morning and were picked up by a ride I had arranged for us to have all day. We spent the day traveling around several smaller cities outside of San Ramon: Sarchi, Zarcero, Naranjo, Grecia, San Carlos. The pictures below are in kind of random order, but they basically show the highlights of what we saw all day: lots of churches, lots of flowers, and lots of cute little cities in the mountains of Costa Rica!

View of San Ramon

Look closely just beside the tree and you can see Arenal Volcano!

Cute garden in Zarcero, a town that reminds me of Gatlinburg, except it's in Costa Rica, obviously! This garden has all kinds of trees cut into various shapes! Look at my facebook or my mother's for more pictures of this!

Beautiful church in Naranjo

Mom, me, and Dad

Sarchi is famous for these decorated carts used in Costa Rica. The colors are so vibrant and beautiful on all of them which are always hand painted! We saw a workshop where these are made and sold, and they are all beautiful.

Stay tuned for Part 2!

cute dress

Vineyard Vines Lakeview Dress: a little pricey for my budget, but still adorable!