Back to the beach!

Went back to Playa Hermosa on Sunday, after our bus for Manuel Antonio was full. I love the beach.... hope this gives you all some nice warm feelings!

Festival Palmares!

Palmares! Jayme and I with the bus drivers

I have no idea why Barney was there!

Vino in the bus on the way to Palmares!

So on Saturday most of my TEFL class traveled together in a bus to the Festival de Palmares, a big festival about an hour outside of San Jose in a small town that hosts this big party every year. There are famous bands and DJs and bull-fights and parades and lots of vendors and drinking.

Playa Hermosa

This past weekend I travled to Playa Hermosa on the pacific side of Costa Rica. The beach is well known among surfers, and is where the world surf competition will take place this year. I also took my first surfing lesson! Shantel and I stayed over night at a Cabina ($15 dollars each) on the beach Saturday night and arranged for a surf lesson Sunday morning. Unfortunately our surf instructor got stung by a stingray early in our lesson, but we were able to resume after he went to the pharmacy (he said it was the worst pain he had ever felt!) Playa Hermosa was a wonderful beach with a very relaxed and safe community of small cabinas and a couple of bars on the beach, and I hope to go back and continue to practice surfing!

Travelmates Jayme, Bing and Greg Enjoying my first Pina Colada in Costa Rica!

Tico Cowboy

Shantel and I at a lookout spot in the mountains where we stopped for breakfast on the way from San Jose to the beach.

Volcan Irazu

A trip to volcan Irazu, outside of San Jose. We saw many onion farms on the way up the volcano, which has been inactive for about 50 years. The laguna at the bottom of the volcano's crater was a breathtaking blue color.

Maximo Nivel

So the school that I am going to for my TEFL certification is called Maximo Nivel, and you can check it out at www.maximonivel.com.

My last night in los estados unidos: KARAOKE!

My room!

this is my bedroom window, with view of hanging laundry and courtyard, and this is my room

Leaving home!

This is the photo mom HAD to take of me before leaving, with all my luggage. We were going to be late for the bus, so I was not really happy about this :)

I made it!

I have finally arrived in San Pedro, San Jose. A nice 13 year-old boy named Andres was waiting for me outside the airport, and we waited for his father while I told him how bad my spanish was. The school that I will be attending is very small but nice- there will be only 9 students in my TEFL program. I am staying in a nice house, complete with cable and wireless (how spoiled am I?) with Rita Rodriguez, her daughter Gretel, Gretel's daughter Amanda, and another student named Crystal who is from Canada. I have not yet met Rita or Crystal, as they have been "alla playa" (at the beach!) all weekend! Me familia solo hablan en espanol (they only speak in Spanish, though Gretel is good at Ingles) so I have been quite aware of my deficiencies in this area of communication! Frustrating, but I know it will
I start my Spanish classes on Monday! La me gusta Costa Rica!

Senorita Smith