Thoughts, Updates, and Advice.

--I’m not a fan of the bus system. Too complicated.

--Never cross the street unless it is VERY clear in both directions. You will get hit otherwise.

--Do not confuse ombligo (belly button) and hormiga (ant). Especially when you are trying to explain that you found 100 ants in your closet this morning. It will cause mass confusion since they are trying to figure out how 100 belly buttons got there.

--I have classes at 8am Mon-Thurs. Yuck. But no classes on Friday:)

--When trying to open the house room, apparently is common to have to pull it back as you’re turning the key to unlock it. I did not know this and spent a good 5min trying to open the door while my brother sat inside, drinking lemonade, laughing at me.

--My last name went from McKibben to Mukibben to Muckibben to Mc Kibben. They only time it was ever right was when I sent in my application. After that, not so much.

--Never fall asleep while watching a move in the living room. You never know who is sneaking around the house with a camera.

--I have yet to sleep in past 8. I usually get anywhere from 4-7 hrs of sleep a night. And I’ve only taken ONE siesta. I’m a changed woman.

--I have perfected “the nod”. I know how and when to do it. It comes in handy when people are talking and you don’t have the slightest idea what’s going on. So you follow their movements and nod along. Works like a charm.

--I love coffee. I came to the right place.

--I still have bug bites from 2 weeks ago when I first arrived. And I keep getting news ones. Perfect.

--Classes start tomorrow. Oh. No.

--I have dressed in nice clothing (aka no gym shorts/tshirts—except for beach) for an entire 2 weeks now. Be impressed. I know I am.

Well, that’s all my randomness for now! I took pictures of the family and house. I will post them here soon.

Pura Vida.

--I spent 1 week in Liberia, Costa Rica, living with a family that wasn’t exactly the best experience I’ve had. But it's okay because I'm in CR:)

--My family in Liberia informed me that I was one of those “modern girls” who never eat anything. If you’re reading this, I assume you know me. It is quite the contrary. What I eat in the US is usually considered quite the decent amount, but here it’s not enough. For breakfast on the first day I ate a 2 pieces of toast, a big thing of yogurt, a café, and orange juice. I told the lady that this was a lot of food and I normally don’t eat this much…I didn’t want her to make so much next time. Bad idea. So for the remainder of my stay, they would make comments about how I never eat, but the exchange student next door always ate 2 or 3 plates of food. Aye!

--New Host Family. They are super great. They are all very nice and have a lot of patience. They also talk a very good rate, lol. I’m very happy with this family. The mom is very loving. The whole “mi casa es su casa” phrase applies.

--Mi hermana is getting married in November! And guess what? I’m going to be here for the wedding. They have already told me I’m coming:) She’s very friendly and I can’t wait to get to know her better.

--Mi hermano is in his first year of college. He’s going to be a gym teacher, lol. He’s very social and loves to talk, which is all to my benefit. The more I hear the more I learn. Whenever I don’t exactly understand something, he is like my translator….only he keeps it in Spanish. He finds different ways to say what others are saying. Super helpful.

--Mi mamá y mi papá are fabulosos. The dad likes to talk a lot and half the time I’m not even sure how he got himself on these random topics (Abraham Lincoln, the school system here, butter v. peanut butter….we had a 10 min discussion about what the difference was!).

--I now have a pet dog. Coqueta. She’s pretty and doesn’t bark or anything. She just sits there and lets you pet her.

--I start classes on Monday. Today we made our schedules. I won’t have classes on Fridays for the first time, and probably last time. I’m excited to get into a routine. Now I’m not even sure what to do, so I’m blogging while mamá is making some lunch.

--My Spanish is horrible, but I’m trying to practice as much as possible. I have learned a lot since I arrived a little over a week ago. I can’t imagine how much I’ll learn before I leave! Super exciting.

--Okay, it’s time to eat! Yummm. I’ll update ya’ll more later on.

Costa Rica.....only 8 days away!

So that I can keep more people up-to-date on what's going on with me while I'm down in Costa Rica, I will (hopefully) be able to post weekly updates.
Here's the latest:

Host Family.
I'm really excited about the family I was paired with! The mom is stay at home. The dad is an "agricultor" (farmer...ironic, huh?!). Not sure what kind though, but it should be interesting!
They also have two kids. A girl, age 23. A boy, age 18. I'm glad that the kids are around my age. I think it will make things a bit easier. They both are students also...even better!
The best part is I don't have to memorize too many names. The dad and son are both named Humberto. The mother and daughter are both named Yolanda. haha...I got off pretty easily there!

People.
As it turns out, another girl from Indianapolis is going on this same trip. We worked it out so that we will be able to fly from Atlanta to Costa Rica together. SSOOO glad. I can't even imagine trucking it through an airport in a foreign country alone. We have also just found out that there are 2 other girls on the same flight! I'm sure we will have lots of time to get to know one another on the 4 hr flight.

Fun.
We stay in Liberia for a week. Here we are going to start our intensive advanced Spanish class...whatever that means. We will also have a chance to hike up a volcano, go horseback riding, and go to a beach. Then we will have a 4-ish hr bus ride (motion sickness meds are highly recommended...yay) to Heredia (right outside of San Jose) where we will move in with our host families. During that week, we will be touring the town and university, schedule classes, and really just get familiar with everything.

Other.
I'm pretty sure my Spanish is nowhere near enough to get by. My current plan is to just hope that it will all "come" to me once I'm fully immersed. That's the best option I have! haha
I'm not sure how much internet access I will have, so I might not be able to update the first few weeks.
I will have many opportunities to do volunteer work during my stay. I'm probably most excited about that aspect of it. During orientation, we will receive info about all the various choices we have. Cannot wait!

End.
I think that's enough for now! I'll keep you guys updated on everything. Thank you for all of your support and prayers! They mean the world to me:)