Saturday, March 22, 2008

Semana Santa

This past Thursday, I witnessed a good sized battle with one of our neighbors to the north. The fighting was fierce, and I was both exhilarated and frightened. The ¨rally ´round the flag¨ effect was striking, when the fighting took place, everyone wore the national colors and flew Costa Rican banners. It was an experience that I will never forget...

...I am, of course, referring to the Costa Rica vs. Mexico futbol game that I went to the other day. The Tico team dominated the Mexican team and won 3-0. It was insane. Latin American soccer is comparable to College Football. They go crazy. For the first time, I was actually glad that they did not serve beer in the stands. Had the crowd been drunk, I could imagine that some decapitation would take place.

Four of us Gringos went with Julies´ siblings...all 8 of them. The family introduced us to our neighbors in the bleachers, who in turn taught us all of the Tico chants. When I returned to my host family belting out the chants, they went wild and declared that I was becoming a Tico.

This week is Semana Santa...the Ticos take a whole week off for Easter and Good Friday. The Peace Corps gave me Thursday and Friday. Yesterday, we took advantage of the day off and explored our vicinity. My Peace Corps buddies, Julies siblings (the whole tribe), and I grabbed our packs and water bottles and went hiking in the surrounding mountains. The views were great and made my suburban town seem purely rural. The trees swallowed everything so that the pulperias and crowded streets were erased from sight.

Church processions have been filing through the streets, and the local stations are filled with Easter movies. While surrounded by so much Christianity, I am completely at ease. My host mother is very accepting of my Judaism and seems to appreciate it. ¨No hay un differencia entre su iglesia y mi iglesia,¨ she says. ¨There´s no difference between our religions,¨ she said. ¨As long as you believe in something, you are okay in my book,¨ this seems to be her message. Most of my family members and neighbors seem to feel the same way. It is in such words that my apprehension regarding my Judaism were relieved.


I plan on taking the rest of my vacation easy. I´ve got some Peace corps Work to do, but besides that, I´m free to spend time with my host family and friends. I hope that everyone is doing well back home. Drop me a line it you have time.

Best,
Dave

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Salsa and Sun

Hi all,

This past weekend was quite the learning experience. I learned two things (both good): that I am the de facto babysitter for my Primas, and how to Salsa dance.

Learning to Salsa was one of the best experiences I´ve had here. My PC friend (and next door neighbor) Julie´s host sisters took us to a salsa club. Andrea and Lorgie led us gringos (my firends Julie, Casey and me) into a flourecently lit room, and showed us the steps. Andrea quicky saw that I had gotten the hang of it and we danced like crazy. We really tore the dance floor up, but I was dismayed to see that the middle-aged couple next to us was putting us to shame. We are all going to take lessons and try to go dancing every fin de semana.

My primas are great. We´ve been playing futbol every chance we get. It is partially their fault that I am getting tan.

I´ll let you know how the salsa classes go.

Best,
Dave

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Week Two

Hi All,

A lot has happened since my last entry. The days at the retreat were incredible. We got situated in our Spanish classes, had some technical training and bonded. By the time it was over, I had trouble believing that I had only met my colleagues just a few days prior. Everyone in Peace Corps Costa Rica is unique and has a good sense of humor. In both sadness over separation and anticipation regarding our coming adventures, we said our goodbyes and went to live with our host families.

I arrived in the town of Patarra on Sunday afternoon to a house full of small children and dogs. I had lunch with my tia (Aunt) and my Primos (cousins), because my host mom and sister were at the beach. My primas LisaƱa (about 12) and Gipsy (about 5) are the most fun in the world. We hang out and play together; they are always around.

My host mom, Ligia, is fantastic. She and my host sister are homebodies; Ligia runs the household and Cristina is pregnant. Ligia feeds me until I can´t move, and is very pleased that I like her cooking (rice and beans anybody?). Cristina is my age and really cool. We are all excited about the baby. S/he is due in August.

Overall, I am having a great time. I have Spanish classes every day with four other PCVs. My Spanish is improving exponentially, and it needs to if i am to be an effective volunteer. I hope that everyone back home is doing okay. I will try and write another post soon.

Love to all,
Dave