photos: my neighborhood, my house and my host family (part of it)This morning we got up early and left the compound for the PC training center. Only a short bus ride away, we quickly arrived to our training facility for the next 11 weeks. wow!….. to say the least. Imagine a business/conference center located amongst beautiful gardens full of giant palm trees, bamboo as tall as the sky, flowers you've never smelled before, complete with a shaded patio area with plenty of relaxing and reading room that never gets too hot because the 80 degree sun is cooled by a gentle breeze off the figure eight shaped pool that sits in the center of it all. And of course we have a bunch of large meeting rooms and offices for the staff but everything is very open air or should I say open window/door policy. We also have about 6 (mas or menos) picnic tables set up in the shade that are for technical and language training sessions. All of this is located securely within four brick walls and we have a few guards that let us in and out of the place. Hmmm, doesn't sound like the PC does it? Well, if it makes you feel any better we don't get toilet seats and the toilet paper sure doesn't get flushed. But you're right, this sure ain't nothing like the main conference room at Gore….. :)
After scoping out the place they served us lunch with Lucama ice cream, mmmmm, and then split us up into our language groups. The groups were formed from our initial language interviews and would be the basis for the location of our placement with a host family. I was in a group with Freddie, Mike and Alex and was freaking out because Freddie and Mike are both really good and really comfortable with their Spanish and at this point I can barely speak in partial sentences. But, there was nothing I could do because it was time to meet my family. I grabbed my 44 lb back pack on my back, my super heavy day pack on my front, my messenger bag around my neck and grabbed hold of my 47.5 lbs rolling duffle bag and shoved my way through the mass chaos of 32 other volunteers, their. Before I knew what was really happening, my host mom, dad and sister (8 yrs) were in front of me. They would be my new family for the next 11 weeks.
We hopped in a taxi and after a 7 min ride down the road, we turned up a steep street that lead us up the side of mountain. Soon, the paved road disappeared and we drove along a dirt road that made the streets of Costa Rica seem like smooth sailing. As the hill got steeper the road became lined with tons of stray dogs. We drove almost all the way to the top until we stopped outside a simple blue house, made of concrete complete with a tin roof. My mom opened the door I met the rest of my family.
Have you ever felt like you are having a sensory or information overload? For the next eight hours my head felt like it was going to explode and burst into pieces. For the majority of the day, I almost felt like that would be the best of options.
Say hi and introduce myself to everyone. Kiss everyone on the cheek. Try to explain that my Spanish sucks. Met remaining members of family. Brother (11), cousin (girl -7), brother (4). Try to explain why I have so much stuff with me. Hear lots and lots of questions but not know what most of them mean. The ones I do, I don't know how to answer. Sit down with parents in living room and have 12093182301283128 questions thrown at me. Don't understand. Don't know how to answer. Offered water. Not sure if it is safe. Exhausted. Confused. Want to speak English. Bathroom check. Toilet with seat – yes. Hot water – no. Finally escape to my room to unpack my stuff. Clothes don't fit in dresser. Have too much stuff. Don't want to talk to family. Lay down on bed and pretend to have fallen asleep. What am I doing here?
After scoping out the place they served us lunch with Lucama ice cream, mmmmm, and then split us up into our language groups. The groups were formed from our initial language interviews and would be the basis for the location of our placement with a host family. I was in a group with Freddie, Mike and Alex and was freaking out because Freddie and Mike are both really good and really comfortable with their Spanish and at this point I can barely speak in partial sentences. But, there was nothing I could do because it was time to meet my family. I grabbed my 44 lb back pack on my back, my super heavy day pack on my front, my messenger bag around my neck and grabbed hold of my 47.5 lbs rolling duffle bag and shoved my way through the mass chaos of 32 other volunteers, their. Before I knew what was really happening, my host mom, dad and sister (8 yrs) were in front of me. They would be my new family for the next 11 weeks.
We hopped in a taxi and after a 7 min ride down the road, we turned up a steep street that lead us up the side of mountain. Soon, the paved road disappeared and we drove along a dirt road that made the streets of Costa Rica seem like smooth sailing. As the hill got steeper the road became lined with tons of stray dogs. We drove almost all the way to the top until we stopped outside a simple blue house, made of concrete complete with a tin roof. My mom opened the door I met the rest of my family.
Have you ever felt like you are having a sensory or information overload? For the next eight hours my head felt like it was going to explode and burst into pieces. For the majority of the day, I almost felt like that would be the best of options.
Say hi and introduce myself to everyone. Kiss everyone on the cheek. Try to explain that my Spanish sucks. Met remaining members of family. Brother (11), cousin (girl -7), brother (4). Try to explain why I have so much stuff with me. Hear lots and lots of questions but not know what most of them mean. The ones I do, I don't know how to answer. Sit down with parents in living room and have 12093182301283128 questions thrown at me. Don't understand. Don't know how to answer. Offered water. Not sure if it is safe. Exhausted. Confused. Want to speak English. Bathroom check. Toilet with seat – yes. Hot water – no. Finally escape to my room to unpack my stuff. Clothes don't fit in dresser. Have too much stuff. Don't want to talk to family. Lay down on bed and pretend to have fallen asleep. What am I doing here?
No comments:
Post a Comment