Dos Días Más

It’s been a crazy couple of weeks since I started this, but I finally feel like I have a bit of down time to relax before I leave. I finished up my sophomore year just two weeks ago and moved all my stuff home. (Molly Spears and I could probably set a record for how much stuff can fit into a dorm room—I could barely move on the way home, much less see anything out of my windows. Really safe, I know.) Since then, my days have been full of unpacking, a little bit of work at the research campus, some end-of-the-year business for some clubs at App, and intense Spanish grammar review—with a relaxing weekend trip to the lake and some visits with old friends thrown in there.  But as of today, I’m completely packed for Costa Rica thanks to tremendous amounts of help from the wonderful Margo Pray, who visited for a lovely lunch at Old Stone Vino, some shopping and packing, and goodbyes. I think I’ve managed to pack minimal amounts of clothes to leave room for souvenirs and clothes I buy there. Pretty impressive for this extreme overpacker.

The school I'll be attending:
Instituto San Joaquin de Flores

I leave in two days, and I cannot wait! I found out I’ll be living with a 63-year-old widow, so I’m excited that she’ll have lots of time to talk so I can get better at speaking Spanish. Her house is only a ten minute walk from the school, which is great. I’m really looking forward to learning about the culture, and I’m going to try to spend as much time with locals as possible instead of sticking to my comfort zone with the other American students. Since this is my first international trip, I have a lot to learn. I’ve read a lot about the culture, listened to countless hours of Spanish music, and I’ve studied the language since I was a freshman in high school—now I just need to go out and experience it! To steal from my friend Hayley: “Lo qué en los libros no está, la vida te enseñará” This means what is not in books, life will teach you, and I think it’s a wonderful motto for this trip. I’ve spent a lot of time reading books and listening to lectures as a student; I’m ready to go out and see things firsthand, explore, learn from my mistakes, build cross-cultural relationships, and bring life and meaning to what I’ve thus far only learned through pages in a book.