Matt said it takes 21 days for something to become a habit.
I was really close with the cold shower everyday habit.
and then last night IT WAS WARM.
back to square one with that one.
Other habits come easily. I'm used to the all toilet paper in the trash can thing. I'm used to rice and beans for every meal thing. I'm used to hike up the mountain to the Institute everyday thing.
I started classes at El Instituto Monteverde two weeks ago. With me are 22 other students; 12 from Goucher and 10 from Mt. Holyoke in Massachusetts. I'm taking four classes (Environmental Sustainability, Intermediate Spanish, Field Methods in Community Health, and Development and Social Change in Costa Rica), and every Friday we have a field trip, whether to the Cloud Forest Reserve or the café farms or SOMEWHERE. I have a lot of work ahead of me, but not much to distract me besides the weather.
It's in the 20s here (CELSIUS, of course), early summer, with lots of sun and sometimes we're in these mist rains, which means we're in clouds, followed by rainbows. There are more stars than I think I've ever seen. We've got some sloths, too, and miraculous birds. The town itself, well, there are three towns connected by one main road. At the bottom is Santa Elena, the downtown. They've got the supercompro, farmacia, bar amigos, and where most of my classmates live. Walk up a steep hill and you hit Cerro Plano, where I live, and where most of the hotels are. on my way to the institute this morning i counted between 15-20 hotels in a 2 km walk. the divide between cerro plano and monteverde occurs when the road moves from paved road to dirt road. Monteverde was founded by expatriot Quakers in the 1950s and is still this ex-pat oasis of sorts.
Within this rural community there are stratifications and tensions, obscuring the definitions of ecotourism, sustainability, etc. etc. etc. Yes, it is beautiful, but this is a real area with real issues and strong undercurrents of change (but why these particular changes and what are the definitions and implications of these changes?). I will spend my semester discovering some answers to these questions.
In the meantime, things are constant. I have a great home and a great host family. They are pretty much the best family for me. From the first day we clicked and it's all very natural and I'm very much already a member of the house, not a "renter" or "student," although in third person am referred to either as "la estudiante" or "muchacha," but also in closer quarters just "mi hija." No English. I eat dinner with the family and do dishes and the other day slept in the same bed as my host mom (I'll get to that story in a minute) and while most of that doesn't sound totally odd and out of place, several of my peers do not have the same sort of familiar relationship with their families, at least not yet.
So, who are they? my mom is Maribel. She's in her late 40s abut doesn't look it, and works at the panadería in Santa Elena. She's not a huge fan of meat and is lactose intolerant, so that eases my nutritional obsession. one of the other major factors i noticed was how i know where the majority of foods in my house come from, as in, it's all real food. apparently this is a sign of class, although opposite to that in the United States. many families who work in the ecotourist industry (at least the families, again, my peers live with), eat a majority of processed foods, from the United States. With the influx of "ecotourism" in this rural town in conjunction with CAFTA, food in the world of commodity as well as nutrition is, at least to us and some of the researchers here at the institute, becoming a relatively large area of study. but back to my family. Maribel is a wonderful woman who loves taking care of me and spending time with me. It's another woman in the house. Her fifteen year-old son, Ariel, is a good-hearted teen. I've roughhoused with him on a few occasions and have been able on a few occasions to match him in strength. He's playful, for sure, but also respectful and responsible and truly good-hearted and loves his mom. our house is also the lavacar freddie(which is, believe it or not, all hand-done), which he works on Saturdays, which is the only day it's really open.
and then there's eighteen year-old Emile, who's still very much an enigma to me. He's Ariel's best friend, and in many ways Maribel's second son. He lives upstairs and eats practically every meal with us, watches tv with us, is always around except for showering and for sleeping. He walks an hour everyday to work in La Cruz. I know nothing about his parents. I've very much taken a liking to him, and to this whole family dynamic in truth, so it's good. There's always energy in the house, which is quite small, but I have my space.
They built me a new room this weekend. For my first week I lived in Ariel's room (while he either slept in Emile's or his mom's room). And then on Sunday, a man came and started building a room, splitting the master bedroom in half. None of us really prepared for this building, and it was too late before I realized that a doorway needed to be drilled out of the concrete wall of what was then my room.
Everything in the house was covered in a thick, concrete dust.
So I didn't have a room for a night and slept in Maribel's bed with her, which was an idea she seemed to prefer over me sleeping on the couch.
Although I still don't have a door, I like my new room.
I also like how simple my life is. I'm back in grade school, except with a little more mental stimulation. I wake up at 6 everyday, get ready for school, eat breakfast, leave around 7 for the Institute with my ready-made lunch, spend the day at the Institute, get home by 6, shower, eat dinner, do homework, read, maybe watch a little tele with the family, and go to sleep between 9 and 10. no extracurricular to-dos, no distractions, bare bones life that I haven't had in, well, a decade. I'm hoping we can organize weekend activities that do not include going to the bars, with which I'm still not super comfortable, although as I settle in more I will probably become more at ease with the idea. I remember talking to a former roommate's mom before I left the States and she said "if my daughter has told me anything about you it's that this semester will be a much needed, much deserved break from your normal habits." Which is a compliment, I suppose, and certainly one that YES, I NEED. I needed this.
The only question, then, is how it will be when I return.
But that's not a question I have any interest in tackling anytime soon.
I kind of sort of broke my computer so I'll have a big photo post next week!
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Friday, January 23, 2009
12 (or for you letter writers.)
from now until April 25th:
Hillary Anne Edwards
Mount Holyoke/Goucher College Program
Instituto Monteverde
Apartado 69-5655
Monteverde de Puntarenas
Costa Rica
please be aware that it takes 1-3 weeks, normally, for mail to arrive.
the smaller, the better (i.e. no boxes!!)
surprise me.
today we walked through the santa elena cloud forest reserve.
i talked to matt about the difference in romantic and classic beauty.
right now, this is romantic.
in three months this will be classic.
Hillary Anne Edwards
Mount Holyoke/Goucher College Program
Instituto Monteverde
Apartado 69-5655
Monteverde de Puntarenas
Costa Rica
please be aware that it takes 1-3 weeks, normally, for mail to arrive.
the smaller, the better (i.e. no boxes!!)
surprise me.
today we walked through the santa elena cloud forest reserve.
i talked to matt about the difference in romantic and classic beauty.
right now, this is romantic.
in three months this will be classic.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
11 (or "in the clouds").
my head runs in dual scripts.
where to begin? i suppose where i left off. i met up with the group of 22 other students from goucher and mount holyoke in la sabana sur in san josé. joined by our four professors and course coordinator, we enjoyed a few days in the city before beginning our journey to other parts of the country.
that's genna. i like her lots.
first, volcán irazu. it's the highest volcano in the country. the air was thin and the land was flat but boy was it pretty.
from irazu we went to cartago, costa rica's first capital. this is the country's most important church. i love churches. i do not have the capacity to believe in god, although in many ways i believe my life would probably be much easier if i could, i know what my heart believes, and it doesn't believe in that. however, i'm still fascinated by it. watching women and children and families crawl through the nave to the alter, heads down in prayer and yearning, it makes me hold my breath.
from there we went to sarapiquí and tirimbina to spend four days in the lowland tropical rainforest, where i woke up to howler monkeys and more earthquakes. i spent most of the week in pain and at the field station, sick with some infection what went from bad to worse to worst, to the point where i had to go to a doctor in sarapiquí. and it was super rural and he gave me three medications (antidiarrheal, pain medication for abdominal cramps, and an antibiotic), the former two proved of no immediate help and i got worse (there was a lot of blood and tissue coming from a place neither are supposed to come out of). so i missed quite a bit of activity and research but got a lot of love from the group. if i never have to put electrolyte powder in my water and eat rice starch ever again it may be too soon.
thursday afternoon i finally perked up and was able to go on a tour of the Dole pineapple plantation, my introduction to monoculture:
and finally by friday my sparkle was back! just in time to enjoy the hot springs at la fortuna and see volcán arenal, costa rica's most active volcano, at night.
and now i'm in monteverde. it's colder here than i thought it would be. we're in the mountains. it's green everywhere. on my way to/from the institute i can see the nicoya peninsula, which means i can see the pacific ocean. from the mountains. i also know when we're in clouds because there are periods of time where it's clear skies but very misty. i'll have photos soon.
classes started yesterday but this week is all introductions to my sociology/ecology classas and intensive spanish every morning. i'm really bored and want to be in a higher level, possibly. my spanish professor this week starts off every morning with stretching, in class we listen to classical or jazz or some sort of calm music, and then we end the class with a meditation. she's cool but i want to be challenged this semester. maybe next week when classes officially start with Cristina it will be better.
i live in cerro plano, closest to the institute. two other students live in my cluster. my host family rules. i think the boys run a car wash on saturdays. my mom, maribel, is a baker and we get along really well. she feeds me too much, however she is not a huge fan of meat and is lactose intolerant, so food-wise i'm doing very well. her son, ariel, is 15 and the sweetest boy. emile, also fifteen, lives upstairs but eats every meal with us and is always around, so i think of him as another brother. there's a great energy to the house but the dynamic gives me a lot of space. i like it. i'm on my second book since i arrived here.
and my spanish skills improve everyday, of course.
and then there's today, january 20th. the inauguration. we all went to the lodge up the hill from the institute to watch the events. it's very surreal to watch from abroad. everyone around me was crying and clapping and listening and it was a very positive moment, one that's still very hard to believe since we are away and separated. especially for me, seeing dc so chaotic and filled and not being in my city for it. i have a lot of thoughts about the whole thing but very little motivation to write extensively about it, so i'll just say it was a great experience to be a part of here and i know i'll see some good to come in the next 100 days, at least in optimism and hope.
-h.
where to begin? i suppose where i left off. i met up with the group of 22 other students from goucher and mount holyoke in la sabana sur in san josé. joined by our four professors and course coordinator, we enjoyed a few days in the city before beginning our journey to other parts of the country.
that's genna. i like her lots.
first, volcán irazu. it's the highest volcano in the country. the air was thin and the land was flat but boy was it pretty.
from irazu we went to cartago, costa rica's first capital. this is the country's most important church. i love churches. i do not have the capacity to believe in god, although in many ways i believe my life would probably be much easier if i could, i know what my heart believes, and it doesn't believe in that. however, i'm still fascinated by it. watching women and children and families crawl through the nave to the alter, heads down in prayer and yearning, it makes me hold my breath.
from there we went to sarapiquí and tirimbina to spend four days in the lowland tropical rainforest, where i woke up to howler monkeys and more earthquakes. i spent most of the week in pain and at the field station, sick with some infection what went from bad to worse to worst, to the point where i had to go to a doctor in sarapiquí. and it was super rural and he gave me three medications (antidiarrheal, pain medication for abdominal cramps, and an antibiotic), the former two proved of no immediate help and i got worse (there was a lot of blood and tissue coming from a place neither are supposed to come out of). so i missed quite a bit of activity and research but got a lot of love from the group. if i never have to put electrolyte powder in my water and eat rice starch ever again it may be too soon.
thursday afternoon i finally perked up and was able to go on a tour of the Dole pineapple plantation, my introduction to monoculture:
and finally by friday my sparkle was back! just in time to enjoy the hot springs at la fortuna and see volcán arenal, costa rica's most active volcano, at night.
and now i'm in monteverde. it's colder here than i thought it would be. we're in the mountains. it's green everywhere. on my way to/from the institute i can see the nicoya peninsula, which means i can see the pacific ocean. from the mountains. i also know when we're in clouds because there are periods of time where it's clear skies but very misty. i'll have photos soon.
classes started yesterday but this week is all introductions to my sociology/ecology classas and intensive spanish every morning. i'm really bored and want to be in a higher level, possibly. my spanish professor this week starts off every morning with stretching, in class we listen to classical or jazz or some sort of calm music, and then we end the class with a meditation. she's cool but i want to be challenged this semester. maybe next week when classes officially start with Cristina it will be better.
i live in cerro plano, closest to the institute. two other students live in my cluster. my host family rules. i think the boys run a car wash on saturdays. my mom, maribel, is a baker and we get along really well. she feeds me too much, however she is not a huge fan of meat and is lactose intolerant, so food-wise i'm doing very well. her son, ariel, is 15 and the sweetest boy. emile, also fifteen, lives upstairs but eats every meal with us and is always around, so i think of him as another brother. there's a great energy to the house but the dynamic gives me a lot of space. i like it. i'm on my second book since i arrived here.
and my spanish skills improve everyday, of course.
and then there's today, january 20th. the inauguration. we all went to the lodge up the hill from the institute to watch the events. it's very surreal to watch from abroad. everyone around me was crying and clapping and listening and it was a very positive moment, one that's still very hard to believe since we are away and separated. especially for me, seeing dc so chaotic and filled and not being in my city for it. i have a lot of thoughts about the whole thing but very little motivation to write extensively about it, so i'll just say it was a great experience to be a part of here and i know i'll see some good to come in the next 100 days, at least in optimism and hope.
-h.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
10 (or earthquakes.)
i felt three earthquakes in less than thirty-six hours.
SUP EARTH.
on tuesday we went to volcán poás and la lechería montaña.
poás was the epicenter of at least two major earthquakes in the past two days.
yesterday's 6.2 earthquake completely destroyed la lechería. totalemente.
such destruction in 30 seconds.
nature is much stronger than mankind.
stuck between romanticism and realism. i walk outside underneath the citrus trees and smell the orange blossoms, hear the river and the birds. i don't know if my eyes have ever seen so much green during the day and at night houses light up like constellations along the mountainsides. where coca cola and café run like water and i sit at a kitchen table set for 10 for afternoon tea. yes, it is as beautiful as it sounds, but it isn't exotic. it isn't a fantasy. this is a country. a small country, a strong country, an independent country, and a stable country that has simply welcomed me more heartily than i ever predicted. one where the president stands among and with his citizens during times of devastation. one where you don't see advertisements at the movies for the national guard. one of sustenance and cooperation.
and it is my nation for the next four months.
tomorrow the prologue ends and the expedition begins.
my spanglish already improved.
vámonos.
SUP EARTH.
on tuesday we went to volcán poás and la lechería montaña.
poás was the epicenter of at least two major earthquakes in the past two days.
yesterday's 6.2 earthquake completely destroyed la lechería. totalemente.
such destruction in 30 seconds.
nature is much stronger than mankind.
stuck between romanticism and realism. i walk outside underneath the citrus trees and smell the orange blossoms, hear the river and the birds. i don't know if my eyes have ever seen so much green during the day and at night houses light up like constellations along the mountainsides. where coca cola and café run like water and i sit at a kitchen table set for 10 for afternoon tea. yes, it is as beautiful as it sounds, but it isn't exotic. it isn't a fantasy. this is a country. a small country, a strong country, an independent country, and a stable country that has simply welcomed me more heartily than i ever predicted. one where the president stands among and with his citizens during times of devastation. one where you don't see advertisements at the movies for the national guard. one of sustenance and cooperation.
and it is my nation for the next four months.
tomorrow the prologue ends and the expedition begins.
my spanglish already improved.
vámonos.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
9 (or buenas.)
currently in curridabat, san josé.
today i felt my first earthquake.
carolina and tristan leave tomorrow.
i already learned to "let go."
...i like it here.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
8 (or good bye, baltimore.)
I thought we'd keep our veins tangled
like a pair of mic cables,
And if there ain't enough slack to reach
that we'd solder them together
and across oceans they'd stretch.
good bye, baltimore.
Friday, January 2, 2009
7 (or less than 72 hours.)
two thousand and nine
two thousand and fine
two thousand and shine
two thousand and slime
two thousand and whine
we'll come up with something good.
the remnants of 2008 are currently:
a temporary tattoo half-sleeve
an incredible mix swap
a hoodie from ohio
a satisfactory farewell to dc on new years.
moshed out the year.
alex left last night for israel and jordan. godspeed.
my to-do list finally fits on an index card.
two thousand and fine
two thousand and shine
two thousand and slime
two thousand and whine
we'll come up with something good.
the remnants of 2008 are currently:
a temporary tattoo half-sleeve
an incredible mix swap
a hoodie from ohio
a satisfactory farewell to dc on new years.
moshed out the year.
alex left last night for israel and jordan. godspeed.
my to-do list finally fits on an index card.
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