Estoy Aqui!

Buenos!
That's short for "Buenos dias!" I've finally arrived, and so far I am loving it. These last few days have gone by quickly; this is already my fourth day here, and I'm sure the time will continue to fly by as I start teaching and become occupied with lots of work to do.

Classes start next week, but as of right now there is still so much to take in! First of all, I love my host family. There are three of us student teachers living with la familia Leon, and the family is so hospitable and gracious. Rosa, our host mother, cooks us delicious meals: gallo pinto (a traditional Costa Rican dish of rice and beans) for breakfast each morning, lots of chicken, tortillas, a really good lasagna, and lots of fresh fruit. For dessert after dinner we have plantains, which are sort of like fried bananas—they’re muy ricos! Rosa doesn’t speak English, but she understands us pretty well and continually encourages us to make her house our home, telling us to hang out in the living room and patio whenever we like. Jorge, Rosa’s husband, is also really kind and fatherly, driving us places and explaining things in English when we don’t understand. Rosa and Jorge have three children: Jorge, Mario, and Maria, all in their twenties and all of whom speak English very well. Maria still lives with her parents, though we don’t see her too much, and Mario and Jorge have their own place, though they are in and out of the house. Mario is great with computers and helped us get our internet up and running. The house is very nice; Deborah, Alyssa and I each get our own room, which is a luxury I wasn’t really expecting. We live within walking distance of a large supermarket as well as lots of little restaurants, and we can easily catch taxis and buses to get elsewhere.

On Sunday, we decided to explore downtown San Jose. We really aren’t very far from el centro; the bus takes us there for about 50 cents. (I think we figured out the bus system, but it took some trial and error. ;) ). Anyway, we wandered around downtown for a bit … they have lots of touristy shops as well as larger stores and things to see. We took our picture in front of the Teatro Nacional (I’ll have to visit another time to see inside, they say it’s very extravagant) and visited a big Catholic cathedral. I also got to try pipa, a fruit sort of like coconut. You hack off the top and stick a straw inside to drink the juice. Yum! And Costa Rican ice cream, helado, is pretty good, too.

All this week we have orientation at Lincoln School, meeting the staff, learning the rules and procedures, planning with our master teachers. It’s a beautiful campus, almost brand new, with a lovely view of the city and surrounding mountains. My master teacher, Jenny, is very nice and fun, and I’m excited to learn a lot from her. Next week I’ll get to meet my 7th graders! I’m pretty nervous about the planning part, since I’m not sure how to go about it, but the students will make it all worth it.

Well, that’s enough for now, I guess. This weekend the student teachers are planning a day trip to Tortuga, and island in the Pacific, so I really hope that pans out. Until then,

Hasta Luego!
Heather