My heart is really torn about leaving...I am just as excited about going home as I am sad about leaving here. Bittersweet. But I am so, so, so happy with the way that I took advantage of my time spent here. I have no regrets looking back (although I still have a lot of work to do with my Spanish)-I saw, learned, did so much. I do think it could be very easy to be here for 4 months and see only the surface of the country, as did a lot of people in my study abroad program. I feel sad for those people because they won't look back on their time here with the same appreciation that I feel. I think that my study abroad experience will have a lot of influence on how I approach different situations throughout my life- studying here was one of the best decisions I could have made, and it was a decision that I almost didn't make.
Since starting university, I had always envisioned myself studying abroad somewhere in Europe, so when it became clear that Europe wasn't really an option for my area of study/bank account, I had to decide really really quickly what I was going to do. I decided on Costa Rica with a little push from my friend James and my Dad and because the study abroad office told me that I should, but I barely did any research on it before coming here. All I knew was that a lot of people come through here on cruises and stuff, so I was envisioning a tropical paradise full of beaches and sunsets and resorts and stuff. To be honest, I really wasn't that excited about coming here. I was nervous and scared and not looking forward to it and I just had to keep telling myself that those feelings were good, that I shouldn't fight them, that it was necessary to push myself outside of my comfort zone.
Costa Rica is sooo much more than a resort/cruise destination, as you can see if you look through the rest of my blog and talk to me after I come home. The people, history, places, and lifestyle in this tiny little country have taught me an indispensable amount, and I have taken away more than I think I could have taken away in another study abroad program. Costa Rica was the absolute perfect fit for where I am in my life right now, and it has set me up for a future of exploring the rest of Latin America (once I have the funds..) and continuing to learn the language.
I won't be able to say for sure how this experience has affected me until I have re-adjusted to my life at home after returning, but I know I have at least gained an appreciation for Latin American culture and have definitely grown up quite a bit in the short time that I have been here. Living in a place where no one understands me has helped me to understand myself more. Does that make sense? English can be hard for me now.
Either way,
Pura Vida
Things I will not miss about Costa Rica:
-Rice & Beans
-Car exhaust in my lungs
-Being whistled/yelled/stared at
-Bugs
-Dogs being mean and loud
-Language barriers/not being able to communicate exactly what I feel
-People not understanding what a vegan is
-Internet that cuts out every 5 minutes (1st world problems, I know)
-LMFAO/Latino's have the worst taste in music/no live music anywhere
-Missing my friends and famil
Things I will miss about Costa Rica:
-Speaking in Spanish
-The incredible biodiversity/everything everywhere being beautiful
-Being considered exotic (also known as: never having to buy my own drinks)
-Traveling every weekend, always to somewhere amazing
-My friends from my program/Tico friends
-The beautiful weather of the Central Valley
-Tropical fruits (pineapple will never be the same again after these 4 months)
-Knowing time here is limited=truly savoring every moment
-Tico Time/Pura Vida/Never having to worry about time or schedules or generally being responsible
-Being able to travel cheaply/ do everything cheaply
-Being tan
-Stray dogs in the dining hall
-Awesome public transportation to everywhere in the country
-Meeting new and interesting people everywhere
-Latin dancing
-Los Ticos/The most wonderful people in the world
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This past weekend I saw a Leatherback Turtle (the largest turtle in the world-this lady was about 6 feet long!) laying her eggs under the stars on the Caribbean beach of Toruguero. It was one of the most incredible things I have ever seen-I had tears in my eyes as I watched her carefully take time (2 hours!) to find the right spot, dig a hole, lay her eggs, and then cover them up and camouflage them so that they are all protected. Only about 1 in every 1000 eggs ends up surviving to reproductive age, so the chances are slim of even one of her 80 eggs becoming an adult.
It is not yet full-on laying season so we were very lucky to be able to see this. Danielle and I think we have good animal karma, being vegans and all, so I would recommend a vegan cleanse or something if you ever plan on coming to a country with amazing wildlife like Costa Rica, just to be safe... =)
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| We weren't allowed to take pictures or anything, but for your reference, this is a leatherback turtle |
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Until I leave:
-Three days ago we went on a field trip with my bio class (all 3 of us) to a beauuutiful nature reserve about an hour outside San Jose. The woman on the reserve has faced a lot of discrimination in her fight to keep her property and conserve the wildlife there, and her story was incredibly inspiring.
-Yesterday I gave a 10 minute presentation about el veganismo for my Conversations final! My Spanish has improved so much since being here, and being able to do that made me feel awesome! And my teacher didn't know much about veganism and she seemed really interested which was pretty cool. Definitely going to miss that class.
-This weekend, Danielle and I are gonna have our last BFF getaway to the beach and this national park where we are hoping to see some wild scarlet macaws. Vamos a ver! It's gonna be a sad sad day when I say goodbye to that chica
-I am TERRIFIED of packing up all my stuff because I am sure there are cockroaches hiding in some of my nooks and crannies. alskdjfaklnsdflkasnf
-I will very likely be going through a rollercoaster of emotions, stay tuned! See you all soon!!
Also, special shout out to mi Mamá and Ed, who are in Spain right now! Hope you are having an amazing time and I can't wait to see you next weekend =)
Y finalmente, una foto de mí con un bebé latino (el sobrino de un amigo):
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| Parece bien, verdad?! Tehe |
I probably am not going to update again before I leave, so next time you hear from me will be in person!
Nos vemos muy pronto =)
