Let's start with the updates shall we?
Update #1 Tengo Frio siempre! (I am always cold!) Apparently this is considered their "winter" months which basically last from June-November. They don't actually have what we consider "winter weather" instead it's rainy, windy, and cool all the time. There are spurts of sunshine and wonderfully specular days but they are few and far in-between
Update #2 I've learned a lot about this town. Apparently it was founded by Quakers from Alabama! Can you imagine? It actually explains why a lot of the locals here look like English expats but only speak Spanish.
Week 3
Week 3 was extremely busy! We had our biggest group out of the entire summer camp thus far (and as it turns out would be the biggest group for the entire summer) Over 50 students. Again, I worked with the 3-5 year olds and "surprise" every Friday we put on a performance for parents and staff well on the day of our performance my co-eacher called in sick. So guess who had to take over the class and make sure the students were prepared for their 1:00 performance? This girl. But I aced it!
Week 4
By far week four was the hardest. Not only did we shrink from having over 50 students to barely 10 but something just kicked in and I was extremely emotional that week. I kept getting asked:
"Se siente bien?" (How are you feeling)
Which I would then reply "bien" (Fine) but that didn't stop them from asking me five million times a day if I was okay. Eventually I just told them I was under the weather due to the climate change to which they would suggest I go home early. "No thanks." I would reply. Going back to my small, dark, cramped casa tica would add to my odd state of emotional distress not relieve it. I'm actually writing this during week five of being here and I feel so much better - so there is a light at the end of the tunnel, but that week was brutal. I think what I went through is part of the process. During the weekend, I took a nice day trip to the beach (I will blog about that) and came back with my spirits renewed. I saw another part of Costa Rica that is absolutely beautiful. I met others who were staying here for an extended period and realized that a lot of the prblems I have others are also experiencing. Plus I met cute Costa Rican guys so that was a plus :)
Week four was definitely a week that made me want to go home more than ever. Sometimes when living abroad out of nowhere you wake up and you are ready to go home. Home sickness hits you like a wave of bricks (if that was at all possible) What I found helpful was getting out, sleeping when I needed to (but not becoming a recluse),and also indulging in little things that maybe I normally wouldn't. I started working out hard core and doing yoga. I am so happy that I splurged on that day trip to the beach it was so needed and I found myself enjoying it more than I normally would because of everything going on that week.
There were also some pluses from these past two weeks: I discovered a new coffee shop - well actually it's a bakery but the bread is divine and smells awesome when they are baking something new! I also started Zumba and trust me it wasn't as easy as "Okay let's just do this." Remember to get there I must climb up a hill, find a way home because it gets pitch black by 6pm and dance follows Zumba. So I had a huge internal debate inside my head on if I should stay home or go out. My body and emotions were telling me no but my mind was telling me you better!
In conclusion, weeks three and four were bipolar opposites. There was the good, the bad, and the ugly. Hopefully sooner than later I can explore this good, bad, and ugly topic further. My computer has decided to start acting up (again) and so I also spend hours at the coffee shop waiting on my computer to actually load. Against my vivid imagination - the coffee shop owners did not become some of my dearest closest friends - in fact I get the vibe they are not used to people coming in and sitting hours on their computer. Anywho you live and learn,
xxxx
Update #1 Tengo Frio siempre! (I am always cold!) Apparently this is considered their "winter" months which basically last from June-November. They don't actually have what we consider "winter weather" instead it's rainy, windy, and cool all the time. There are spurts of sunshine and wonderfully specular days but they are few and far in-between
Update #2 I've learned a lot about this town. Apparently it was founded by Quakers from Alabama! Can you imagine? It actually explains why a lot of the locals here look like English expats but only speak Spanish.
Week 3
Week 3 was extremely busy! We had our biggest group out of the entire summer camp thus far (and as it turns out would be the biggest group for the entire summer) Over 50 students. Again, I worked with the 3-5 year olds and "surprise" every Friday we put on a performance for parents and staff well on the day of our performance my co-eacher called in sick. So guess who had to take over the class and make sure the students were prepared for their 1:00 performance? This girl. But I aced it!
Week 4
By far week four was the hardest. Not only did we shrink from having over 50 students to barely 10 but something just kicked in and I was extremely emotional that week. I kept getting asked:
"Se siente bien?" (How are you feeling)
Which I would then reply "bien" (Fine) but that didn't stop them from asking me five million times a day if I was okay. Eventually I just told them I was under the weather due to the climate change to which they would suggest I go home early. "No thanks." I would reply. Going back to my small, dark, cramped casa tica would add to my odd state of emotional distress not relieve it. I'm actually writing this during week five of being here and I feel so much better - so there is a light at the end of the tunnel, but that week was brutal. I think what I went through is part of the process. During the weekend, I took a nice day trip to the beach (I will blog about that) and came back with my spirits renewed. I saw another part of Costa Rica that is absolutely beautiful. I met others who were staying here for an extended period and realized that a lot of the prblems I have others are also experiencing. Plus I met cute Costa Rican guys so that was a plus :)
Week four was definitely a week that made me want to go home more than ever. Sometimes when living abroad out of nowhere you wake up and you are ready to go home. Home sickness hits you like a wave of bricks (if that was at all possible) What I found helpful was getting out, sleeping when I needed to (but not becoming a recluse),and also indulging in little things that maybe I normally wouldn't. I started working out hard core and doing yoga. I am so happy that I splurged on that day trip to the beach it was so needed and I found myself enjoying it more than I normally would because of everything going on that week.
There were also some pluses from these past two weeks: I discovered a new coffee shop - well actually it's a bakery but the bread is divine and smells awesome when they are baking something new! I also started Zumba and trust me it wasn't as easy as "Okay let's just do this." Remember to get there I must climb up a hill, find a way home because it gets pitch black by 6pm and dance follows Zumba. So I had a huge internal debate inside my head on if I should stay home or go out. My body and emotions were telling me no but my mind was telling me you better!
In conclusion, weeks three and four were bipolar opposites. There was the good, the bad, and the ugly. Hopefully sooner than later I can explore this good, bad, and ugly topic further. My computer has decided to start acting up (again) and so I also spend hours at the coffee shop waiting on my computer to actually load. Against my vivid imagination - the coffee shop owners did not become some of my dearest closest friends - in fact I get the vibe they are not used to people coming in and sitting hours on their computer. Anywho you live and learn,
xxxx