¡Otorrinolaringólogo!

¡Hola mi amigos!

I hope this entry finds you well. My stay here in Costa Rica so far has exceeded even my loftiest of expectations. My host family, Xenia, Boliviar, Alejandro, Leo, Cheespa, grandma, and [the other one whose name I cannot remember] are wonderful Ticos to be paired with. I have yet to begin any actual schooling, as this past week consisted of a few tours of the area as well as a trip to the Ecolodge San Luis & Research Station near Monte Verde.

It has been a busy week for me, where: I woke up at 5:30 in the morning to go bird watching (for the first time), milked a cow (for the first time), hiked every day for at least 10 miles a day, played football with my host-brother and his friends, visited the national museum in San Jose, jumped from a ledge into the pool at the bottom of the most beautiful waterfall I have ever had the privilege of viewing, ate the greatest food from the greatest kitchen known to man, played volleyball, learned about plants and their families at the Plant-o-rama, got sick of being stared at by the natives and dyed my hair black so as to fit in a bit more, spoke with naturalists from all over the world and made a fool of myself for not remembering that the Netherlands and Holland are the same place (and that I have been to them), lost my pencil at least six times (but luckily I have found it every time so far), helped a nice Ecologist trap, examine, and release birds living on the coffee plantations, went to a sustainable, shade-grown coffee plantation and got a tour from a native Costa Rican, improved my hackey sack skills, saw the biggest and awesomest rainbow I have ever heard of (!), had deep, thought-provoking conversations while staring at the night sky, wished on a few shooting stars, and probably I whole bunch of stuff I have forgotten already.

My trip to the lodge allowed me to see countless exotic (and not so exotic) wildlife, including but not limited to: bats, a praying mantis, a Clay-colored Robin (Costa Rica´s national bird), some cows, some sort of parrots, many chachalatkas (a turkey-looking bird), the biggest beetle I have ever seen, a few horses, a plethora of Hummingbirds, a Coral Snake (ooh! Poisonous!), plus many more. Unfortunately there was not a monkey in sight wherever I would go, even though some of my cohorts were privy to the shy devils nearly every day.

I start Spanish classes Monday morning, where I will ideally progress with such speed that both my teachers and host family praise me as the genius I am. Tomorrow is a day for a game of football against the Ticos, though I do not expect to put up much of a fight considering the ten year-olds can run circles around even the best players in my group. I hope you are enjoying whatever activities you choose to pursue, and drop me a line if you would like some sort of specific gift from Central America. I would not know where to start otherwise, you see.

I shall see you later, so do not die beforehand!

Thank Goodness for French People

I touched down at 9:49 PM (Central/Standard Time), a return to the earth that signaled a 12-hour journey had come to a close. Though the trip was—for the most part—unremarkable, I finally felt free of the anxiousness and apprehension that had built up over the past few weeks. My new friend Yvan (ee-vahn) and I made our way to customs to enter what so far, is the awesomest country I have ever been in (NOTE: May be slight exaggeration in response to the drastic change from inclement to tropical weather). Unfortunately, his luggage was left behind in Houston, which meant that two non-native English speakers, he and the claims counter attendant, were forced to attempt to communicate in its halting and awkward prose.

Flash forward to outside the airport, where the tour guide-type person that Yvan had procured to take him to his hostel was nowhere to be found. Being that I had no reservations or any idea where I was supposed to stay once I arrived in San Jose, this boded unfavorably for our chances at having a clue what to do next. Thankfully, a nice non-English speaking "taxi" driver hassled us enough to convince us our rapidly dwindling options were, in fact, singular in nature. We accepted his offer, and he proceeded to lead my new friend and me to—rather than one of the nice, official-looking orange taxis in front of the entrance—a back-alley-ish parking structure which contained his decrepit blue van.

A frightening, harrowing drive and subsequent escape later, the beacon of hope and wonder that was Case Yoses stood before us! They were gracious enough to grant me accommodation even though I had not contacted them in advance, and now I find myself at a slow-ish, Spanishly-keyboarded computer reminiscing about the days' activities. No clue what is happening tomorrow, but Yvan wants to get his bags and depart for the coast where he plans on surfing an abandoned stretch of pristine beach front property for six weeks. Sounds delectable, I know—but alas!—I must find other means of entertainment for three days until I meet my, hopefully, amicable and gracious family, where I shall be staying for the next two months.

Wish me luck! and until we meet again!

Prologue to Costa Rica

In order to better serve my adoring fans I have decided to relocate my updating mechanism to this particular website. In less than two weeks my journey into Central America begins, and I have come to the conclusion that despite previous assertions to the contrary, I will most likely not be returning to Minnesota.

Instead, I will take a Tico woman as my wife, obviously making sure her family is of wealthy stature, so that I may spend the rest of my days sipping drinks out of coconut shells on the beach of my illustrious estate. I will also have a cocoa farm, from which I will derive a substance most beneficial and fitting of my newfound position in life. Cocai-... "Chocolate" rather. I meant Chocolate.

If you wish to join me on my excursion, please do so. I will need all the able-bodied help I can get if I am to live in the luxury that I feel I deserve. Thank you for your time, and I wish you good day.

Update: I have relocated all of my entries to this site as of 02 July, 2007, so be happy or something.