Never coming home...

Hello all!
I’ve made a little change of plans- I will be staying in Costa Rica/Latin America until January 12th. I’m very excited to be here for a month after my studies end. It will also give more people time to visit if they are so inclined! This last week was fun, but I am still a little sick, which sucks. I learned to make chicken and onion tarts- more tasty food. You will all reap the benefits when I get home. Right now, Josh, Agata and Eric are getting the leftovers, since they live in an apartment and don’t get food provided by a family. It is getting rainier- October is the wettest month of the year. We had a massive tropical storm after dance class on Wednesday. We watched from our covered 2nd story patio at the school- it looked just like a storm from a movie. Pouring buckets- blowing through palm trees, lightning striking everywhere. The thunder was the loudest I have ever heard- so loud it made us jump several times. Most of us waited it out at the school the restaurant/bar next door. I finally rode home in the rain when it let up. We were going to have a short class on Friday so Stephanie, Tony, and I went to Heredia (near the capital, San Jose) to meet other USAC students (USAC has a program in Puntarenas and Heredia) and our dance instructor, Carlitos, to go practice our dance skills. We went up to this place in the mountains that had a live band that played mostly merengue and salsa, not reggae tone like most bars here. Carlitos brought local friends to dance with us, and we had so much fun getting thrown around on the dance floor. It is so much fun and so easy to do if you have a strong lead. It is much more difficult for the men, who have to know what they are doing. We had a very late night, but stayed with Kirby, an Heredia USAC student, who has his own apartment there. We had really hot showers, which were incredible since Heredia is much colder than Puntarenas. Did I forget to mention Puntarenas is probably the hottest and most humid spot in Costa Rica? I thought the whole country was like this, but the mainly is much cooler and more crisp. Funny. I really wanted a jacket in Heredia. On Friday we met up with Josh, Loren, Kelly, Alicia, Jason, and Aaron in Alajuela, the 2nd biggest city in CR. We really didn’t enjoy the city, but it had access to Volcan Poas, which we visited on Saturday. It is an active volcano and you can peer into the crater (the 2nd biggest in the world). There wasn’t much hiking there, but we walked up to a little lake and had a nice stroll through the jungle where I photographed a terrified squirrel (see pics to the right). We all went dancing again on Saturday night- I really want to continue Latin dancing when I return home. It’s great exercise and so beautiful! We were pretty tired from our late night out- we stayed with Kirby again- 9 people in a tiny apartment!! It was fun. Today was my brother Mario’s birthday- he turned 17. I bought him a Quicksilver shirt in Alajuela on the recommendation of Fernando. He still doesn’t talk to me much, but I think it’s because I can’t really understand him and when I talk to him it’s very simple sentences. I was feeling like a failure last week when he brought me my laundry and said nothing to me. I don’t want them to cook me meals and do my wash- I really want to be part of the family. The next night I talked with Sandra, my mom, for a long time and she said that I was speaking much more and learning very quickly, so I felt much better. The advanced students also encourage me and I try to communicate to bus drivers/hotel workers when we are traveling as much as possible. Tomorrow I have my final exam for Elem. Spanish I. Did I mention I got 100% on my midterm? It was pretty easy and I kinda wish the class was moving faster. Anyway- I’m ready for tomorrow and hope to get a high A. Don’t know if I will get 100% because I am still struggling with the use of por/para. I’ve struck a friendly competition with Aaron- the only other student to receive 100%. I have been reading an extra book my politics teacher gave me on Haiti’s slave revolution. I am really enjoying it- I don’t think many of the students are even doing the required reading for that class which is disappointing since they are really interesting. This week we are talking about Mexican politics- particularly noteworthy because of the recent complicated election. I’m excited to hear my teacher’s thoughts.
I hope some of you are able to visit this lovely country- it will be very hard for me to leave here after 4 months. Many study abroad students and other Americans have come back to live here- most of them teach English. I may just want to live abroad after this experience. I love you all very much- send me a note at kenzikat@gmail.com sometime!