Mi Casa Es Su Casa.

I officially have somewhere to live and I AM SO EXCITED. Everything is finally coming together so that I can do less organizing and worrying and more sleeping and enjoying. I will be living in a house with about 3-4 other girls (and maybe Kelly. He will be so outnumbered....) and I will have a Costa Rican mommy, Oky. She lived in this house with her children, and now that they're all grown, the house is too empty, so she rents out the rooms to people like me. I have been in contact with the daughter, Gigi, since Mama Oky's English is "rusty." Gigi sent me pictures of the house and the room I will be in and it looks BEAUTIFUL. Floor to ceiling windows in the living room, big back yard, and the linens on my bed are even yellow, my favorite. Gigi says that Oky is a very kind and loving mother type, and she'll even cook breakfast and dinner for us everyday! :) I am SO looking forward to that! One of my favorite things about my trip to Ecuador a few summers ago was the meals prepared by my wonderful host mom, so I have high expectations here! We will also have a maid that helps around the house, which will be nice since laundry is my arch enemy. I don't know if she'll actually be in charge of laundry or if she just keeps things generally tidy, but I am crossing my fingers. AHHHH YAY! I haven't been able to sleep all week because I have been so excited. Here are some pictures:

The hallway

TV Room, my favorite

My future room I think

I also got in touch with my principal yesterday. He sounds very laidback and genuinely interested in what he does. I will be expected to dress like the typical teacher, no uniforms like the kids, and I even asked how I could get involved in the volleyball program there, but no response yet. Hopefully, my classroom teacher will email me back today. I can't wait to have 3rd grade, ESPECIALLY if they're studying weather this spring like they do in 3rd grade spring semester here!!! Whoooo!!

Done with finals, Costa Rica, internship, and graduation HERE I COME!

PURA VIDA,
Jessica

Guess Where I'm Goinnnnggg!!??!

Ah, COSTA RICA! The land of Pura Vida, or the simple life, where everything comes in moderation. Everything, that is, except things to do and people to see! Costa Rica lies in the skinny part of Central American, with coasts on both the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean sea, and neighbors Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the south. Ecotourism is Costa Rica's main economy, mainly because of it's beautiful and diverse landscape. Costa Rica has 4 volcanoes (2 are active!), 2 coastlines, and many national forests. In fact, ONE FOURTH of Costa Rica's land mass, which in total is the size of West Virginia, is covered in National Forests. Many activities that I will be participating in, if I have anything to do with it, include rainforest canopy ziplining, whitewater rafting, surfing, beach bumming, volcano hiking, and cultural eating and shopping! Basically, if you follow this blog, WATCH OUT because I will be doing more cool things than you can imagine!

Although, I am not quite sure where I will be living yet, I know that I will be working in 3rd grade (WhooHoo!) at the Country Day School in Escazu, just outside the capital city of San Jose. This area is generally Americanized from what I hear - there are pros and cons to that, but more of that later I'm sure. I CANNOT WAIT to start working with my kids and to find out where I live. Luckily, I will not be alone though, as my fellow Cohort C (represent!) member, Kelly, will be working at the same school! Whether he knows it or not, and whether he is prepared or not, I will probably be dragging him along to many of my explorations......Hopefully, this will provide for some entertaining footage at the least!

That's all for now, I hope you choose to follow this blog so that you don't forget about me while I'm gone! I will try to keep this updated as best I can, but since I don't know where I am living yet, I am unsure of the quality of internet I will have while abroad. Most likely though, I will not run into any problems of the sort. Keep in touch!

PURA VIDA,
Jessica