I know it's been a long time since I last blogged. There was a lot of waiting without knowing much more than I learned at orientation in May. I finally learned about my family in Puriscal in June, and I exchanged some e-mails (in Spanish) and some pictures with them. It made me excited all over again.
But, the few days before I left Wisconsin, I didn't want to go. I was scared and didn't want to be gone for five and a half months. During my whole day of travel (July 16), I regretted my decision to go to Costa Rica. Needless to say, a lot of tears were shed.
Once I landed in Costa Rica, I started enjoying myself more. I liked the AFS Orientation with students from all around the world. Sunday was "meet your family" day. I was really nervous. Once I met them, all of nerves went away. The first person I met was my little brother. After greeting everyone with a kiss (and lots of pictures), we drove an hour through the beautiful Costa Rican landscape to their home. Although I was frustrated at first with getting used to a new culture and dealing with the language barrier, I quickly got into the swing of things.
I really like school and my classmates are really nice. I like how everything is a little bit more relaxed here than in the United States. I also really enjoy the food. I absolutely love gallo pinto (a Costa Rican dish of rice and beans) and all of the fresh fruit here.
I feel like I'm still adjusting, and there are times when I feel homesick, but I'm glad that I decided to spend a semester abroad. I can already tell that this is an unbelievable learning experience that will carry though for the rest of my life.
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