We All Cried

I cried. They cried. We all cried.

The night before I left, my family had a going away party for me and all my brother’s friends came. Basically, I borrowed all of his friends the whole time I was in his home. At the party, we had food of course there was dancing, then we all sat in a big circle and had a discussion (i.e. everyone said something nice about their experience with me!). And it took everything in me not to cry. It was so sweet of them.

The next day, my family decided to drive me to my new home, which was so generous and made my life 1,000 times easier. But my brother Marco wouldn’t come…he said it’s because he had to study, but we all know it’s because he didn’t want to CRY.

And thus the good-byes began: I went to say bye to the neighbors, who were like another family to me, and as soon as I walked in the door to say good-bye I started crying.

Then I had to say bye to Marco. So I cried again.

Marco sent in his place my OTHER brothers: Tony, Kenneth and Coco. And we traveled about 3 hours to my house. When we arrived, they all came into my room and tried to fix it up because clearly they are all SUPER worried about me. So the boys climbed around and fixed my mosquito net and my mom fixed my bed. And they told me to BE REALLY CAREFUL.

Then they had to go. And my sister and I bawled. And then my parents cried. And then the boys looked at me with lots of sympathy and said “Don’t worry. We’re going to talk soon. And we’re going to visit you.” And then they drove away.

Then I went to church. There is a church practically in our front yard so I thought it would be better to go to church than to cry all night long.

And here I am. I am here in my new home, and I am starting all over, and I hope that in three months, I love this place half as much as I love my first Costa Rican home. And to end on a happy note, I AM SURE I WILL LOVE THIS PLACE!

It´s Official

Our swearing in ceremony was very little in excitement compared to our day to day life, BUT since it was like a graduation of sorts…I thought I would give it a paragraph. The director of Peace Corps spoke, the directors of our official counterparts spoke, two volunteers spoke, and the ambassador spoke. We each got called up to receive a certificate (which was pretty hilarious because they took a picture of each one of us with the ambassador –so we each had to stand their awkwardly in front of everyone waiting on the picture) and then we all swore to protect the country against all enemies foreign and domestic.

My Costa Rican mom and Jenna’s Costa Rican dad came and they got to enjoy a nice reception, but the volunteers were shuffled from picture to picture, to meetings, and to sign random papers, etc. Then it was over. But –I guess it was the official moment that we TRANSFERRED from trainees to volunteers so here are the pictures!

1. The whole group with the US Amabassador - The Excellent Mark Langdale.

2. My Costa Rican mom - Nina

3. Jenna & me - bc we´re hot.

4. No matter where we go Ryan and I will always represent THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL. (we´re making a unc if you can´t tell. )

Rain is My Friend

My last day in Costa Rica as a trainee was better than I could have ever imagined. My brother’s friends, Tony & Kenneth, (who have been like little brothers from the beginning as well) took Jenna and me to the mountain close to our town. And by close, I mean, it took us 15 minutes to get the TOP of the mountain! Jenna and I MIGHT have been mad that they waited till the last day to show us the trail, but ALL the same – it was an AMAZING day.

ONE: I felt so integrated into the community because no one in my family was involved. One of MY friends offered to take me on a hike. And then OTHER friends wanted to come…even though I am the silly American who cannot speak or understand their language!

TWO: It was beautiful. We went up and sat on a rock and just looked at our town and the capital city. Tony took pictures! My dog, Lassie, came with us and was a GREAT dog. She was like a farm dog – no need for leashes. She could run free and she always came back to her owner. It was just a wonderful day.

THREE: As we were up on the mountain, we could HEAR the rain coming. So…Tony and Kenneth looked at me and said “Let’s RUN!” So we did. And then – as with most trails where there is a downpour – the trail turned into MUD. So...instead of running down the trail – we just sat down and slid down the mudslide. It was pretty WONDERFUL.

FOUR: When we got to the bottom, Tony & Kenneth said “Kim, do you want to play soccer?” And clearly I did. So we played soccer in the rain – soaking wet and muddy. We splashed in the puddles, we laid down in puddles, Lassie played keep away…it was a pretty amazing day. Please refer to the pictures to see how much fun Jenna, Tony, Kenneth and I had on the last day as a PC trainee.

Costa Ricans are SO Funny

P.S. At the family party, the PCT’s, we wanted a picture of all of us. So we took a couple sorority girl group poses – one smiling, one silly...and we were done. However, our Costa Rican photographers were NOT done. They told us to get in ONE long line on the floor. Jenna and I looked at each other like “That’s not how you take a picture.” But reluctantly, one by one we got in a long line on the floor. They wanted us to be positioned with one knee up and our hand on that knee. At this point we were just HUMORING them to get the picture over with. THEN the next thing we knew – the guy on the end pushed us – AND WE FELL LIKE DOMINOES. It might have been one of the funniest things ever to watch 17 silly Americans fall over like dominoes. We fell right into the trap – and above shows the picture that came from it. Costa Ricans are HILARIOUS.

Tonight

Tonight, I sat at the kitchen table and watched my brother paint for his art class. I laughed as my sister bothered him and as our mom tried to tell him how to paint. It was a typical and hilarious night just hanging out. Unfortunately, I just got more and more sad about having to leave this family.

FAMILY PARTY

It has been a week of “lasts” and it began as we threw a party for our families on Sunday afternoon. We were told it might have been the best party in the course of Peace Corps Costa Rica family party history – complete with chips & bean dip, pizza, cake, BINGO, a slideshow, certificates, door prizes and a homemade piñata!

I not only invited my family, but I also invited my brother’s neighborhood friends (who have also been like brothers to me). My family and my herd of brothers really enjoyed themselves. The highlight of the party was definitly the slideshow. Each of us turned in pictures of our families and one of our volunteers made a beautiful DVD slideshow (which I have a copy of and I hope you will want to see it one day!). The pictures of my brother and his friends were RIDICULOUS and we pretty much laughed till we cried – they loved it.

The pictures above show my family; then our table at the family party that includes my brother, my sister, their friends, me & Jenna; and then a picture of the AFTER PARTY back at my house!

I know this family will continue to be an encouragement to me for the following two years and I am excited about being able to speak Spanish better and talk to them more and more! For now though, I am sad to be leaving them. It’s hard to say another round of good-byes a short three months after saying good-bye to all of you.

BUT HERE GOES NOTHING…Costa Rica here I come. Again. J

My Dog had Puppies!

Ok so in Costa Rica there are a lot of street dogs. One day a street dog decided to live in front of my house. Our Peace Corps Medical Officer told us to NEVER touch street dogs…so I didn’t. But the dog continued to sleep in front of the gate to our house. And it was a beautiful dog. In the morning it would walk me to class or to the bus station and it would always return to the house and sit outside the gate.

Eventually my little brother started feeding it, because he has a good heart. SO clearly, this dog was never going to leave and I BROKE. I started petting the dog. So then, our parents started letting the dog come in the front patio. It would sleep out there and I would always pet it and Marco (little brother) would always feed it. Finally, one Saturday we bathed it and got it some bug killing medicine.

Then the dog was allowed inside. The dog was house trained, very calm, and very smart. Seeing as I have never had a dog…I loved that dog. It would sit in my room and follow me from room to room. So the family called it my dog and they named it Lassie.

I told them from the very first day we saw it – “THAT DOG IS PREGNANT!” At first they did not believe me and Marco never believed me. But one night my dog became very restless and she would cry and cry – and she started burrowing herself under my bed and under my table.

AND THE NEXT MORNING – SHE HAD TEN PUPPIES!!!! My Costa Rican mom called me and said “You are a grandma! And you better get home and clean up this mess!” It was hilarious. So – I’m not saying I would like to be a dog owner and be responsible for 10 puppies, but it sure is fun to play with my dog Lassie and her puppies in the morning before I leave and when I get home in the afternoon!

Those are the pictures of my dog the NIGHT before she had the puppies and then her with the whole bunch.

Costa Ricans v. Americans

Before going to visit our new sites, we spent two days in the mountains with our “counterparts.” Our counterparts are the Costa Ricans who will be helping us integrate and who will be supporting us as we begin our work. We did an activity where the “the gringos” (Americans) expressed their impression of “the ticos” (Costa Ricans) and “the ticos” expressed their opinion of “the gringos.” I thought it was pretty HILARIOUS so I am just going to share some of the conclusions.

What GRINGOS think of TICOS:
-women do all the housework
-women wear TIGHT clothes, lots of jewelry and lots of make-up
-women wear high heels for everything (like walking in the mud or a mile on a gravel road)
-they have lots of kids who they take care of alone
-there is ALWAYS coffee
-there is always rice & beans
-there is no concept of time
-men watch tv – mainly soccer
-men have mustaches
-men drink a lot

What TICOS think of GRINGOS:
-wear informal and sloppy clothes – torn pants
-wear dirty tennis shoes or flat ugly sandals no matter the occasion
-always tie a rain coat around waist
-always wear a backpack
-always thinking about where we are going to travel
-always have dictionaries
-we don’t smile and we don’t like jokes
-MUCH BIGGER!
-dance like a broomstick
-TIME IS IMPORTANT! Always thinking about time
-we have a lot of money
-we always have lots of POCKETS on our pants
-always have water bottles
-wear the same thing NO MATTER WHERE WE GO
-lots of suitcases with wheels
-work is #1 priority! Spanish is #2. Travel is #3.
-we always have books

*Clearly these are stereotypes on both accounts. But their view of Americans cracks me up because it is clearly based on the fact that their MAIN connection with Americans is travelers. And of course when Americans travel to Costa Rica they don’t track over the country in their high heels, jewelry and make-up! So it just makes me laugh to think of all of the US walking around in torn jeans, dirty tennis shoes, a backpack and a water bottle at ALL times. Hahahaha….

i´ll put a picture of my counterpart on here soon! i have a really cute one, but someone else took it, so i have to get it from their computer!

HOT

I spent 5 days with my new family in Cariari. And I just want you all to know that when I move there on September 16, I will officially be changing from the Posh Corps to the Peace Corps.

Living Conditions: Don’t get me wrong – I have everything I need. I have my own room with a door that closes and locks. My family was so sweet to provide me with a full size bed and a little piece of furniture to store my clothes. I have electricity and an indoor bathroom. I have more than a lot of people in the world. I am still spoiled. I know.

Weather: But, it is soooooooooooooooooo HOT. Between noon and 3 o’clock, I literally could not move. I sat in a chair and I sweated. I thought to myself "I could read." or "I could write a letter." or "I have that Peace Corps work to complete." – but I could not. It was too hot to inspire myself to move, much less be productive. A fan – didn’t help. Still sweating. A cold shower - helped while I was in the cold shower, but as soon as I put on clothes – SWEAT. So, I’m about to be VERY VERY hot for the next two years.

Mosquitoes: Let’s suffice it to say it looks like I have chicken pox. Even on my face and neck. It’s awesome. I will most definitely be sleeping under a mosquito net for the next two years. J

Privacy: There is none. The house is open air. The rooms are divided by concrete walls, but the walls don’t connect to the ceiling. So during the day when there is noise and everyone is busy –its not really noticeable. But at night, when anyone’s light is on, when anyone is snoring, when anyone goes to the bathroom, or when anyone rolls over in bed – I know it.

In conclusion: I have already started experiencing, "it was the best of times, it was the worst of times." For instance, the first day when I practically couldn’t breathe because it was so hot – RAIN CAME and made everything fresh and clean. And my sister and brother took me on a walk through the banana fields which were beautiful. My brother climbed trees and picked me different fruits to eat. In the course of an hour, my life went from "Can I do this for 2 years?" to "I get to do this for 2 years!". The whole five days were like that – one minute I was thinking "What is going on?!?" and the next minute I was so excited and surprised and happy!
This post only brushes the surface – I can NOT wait to get started. I am excited for the challenges and for the life that is about to be mine in less than 2 short weeks.

(P.S. The picture above does not in any way capture the feel of my five days in my new site. It was a picture we took to display our MOUNTAINS of luggage before we separated! One more thing – before I left for the PC, I read a piece of advice that said "Pack all your luggage and make sure you can run around your neighborhood with it all." I laughed out loud – hahahah – what an exaggeration. Yeh, not an exaggeration at all. :) )