Fun Times

I'm back at the apartment after two nights away, and it's good to be back. We explored our part of the city a bit more today, and (gasp!) went to a different grocery store for the first time. Yay for full cupboards and full stomachs.

While out on our excursions, we went to our favorite store - Pequeno Mundo. Ha, we bought some decorative things to give our apartment more color because it needs it desperately! When we came back, we were in a cleaning/baking/rearranging frenzy. Que divertido! The living room and bedroom now have new looks, complete with lamps and colorful wall hangings.

Trish's birthday was yesterday, so our kitchen and living room are covered with flowers and cards, and our fridge is filled with cake and Jell-O (random, I know :)). Even though it wasn't my birthday, it is good to know how much Trish (and Kim and I) are appreciated. Kim L. and I went together for a cake mix and icing ($6 for Pillsbury imported brand... the only kind here) and we guessed Trish's favorite right! Trish apparently loves Funfetti cake, and we didn't know that until we surprised her with it last night.

We also went out for pizza last night -- it was like a family reunion or something! 5 teachers, the Diem couple with their 2 boys, and the Mitten family with their 4 girls. Wowee! It was such a good time.

Our tico neighbors, Carlos and Clara, are so sweet and kind to us. For Trish's birthday, they gave her a flower painting... and then Carlos showed up later with flower paintings for Kim and me too!!! Check out Kim's blog for a photo of her painting :).

Oh, and Mom, I finally had to buy some clothes. You're laughing right now because you know how much clothes are a fix for me. I only spent $14 for 5 shirts ... and one of those shirts is a gift for someone else. :)

New baking endeavor: sun dried tomatoes. Any tips?

And, funny Spanish/English story... not sure why this happened, but I was reading my grocery receipt from today, and I didn't recognize the word "caracolito"... so I typed it into Google Translator, and it came up as "snails." Ummm... I don't think I bought any snails. Hmmm...

Pictures of the apartment's new look tomorrow :)

Un Paseo a San Jose

I went downtown today with a girl from the Institute -- Laura. We had so much fun practicing our Spanish and exploring bookstores and the market. Yay for a break from my usual school routines!

I'm staying at a neighbor's house for a couple nights this week. Our apartment has become too small for the three of us, so we're taking our space this week. Nothing bad is going on -- don't worry! We're just suffering from culture shock and the need for some alone time... After 2 months with no alone time, it is vital to our survival.

Have a good evening!

Thoughts of the Day

Grades are due this week. It feels almost like a finals week in college... except a lot of people are depending on me to hand in my work. A college professor called finals week "a harmonious flourish of furious academic activity." I'm not sure how I feel about this. Overwhelmed, definitely. Excited, not so much.

Trish and I have discussed in recent days how we're basically married. I mean, we sleep in the same bed (there's only 2 beds in our apartment - a twin and a double, and Kim gets the twin), we budget together, we vacation together, we grocery shop together, we even work together. Her mom commented that we'll be really good at being married someday because we'll be used to constant compromise. Bah.

One of my students has become suddenly apathetic. He's always making excuses for why he can't do his work... "Miss Siscoe, my throat hurts." "Miss Siscoe, I'm coughing" (followed by a fake cough). "Miss Siscoe, I need a drink." I'm to the point of no patience and no compassion. Pray for those interactions.

Another student has become disrespectful. I'm not sure what's going on at home, but it seems to be affecting his ability to respond appropriately in the classroom. Pray for that one as well.

And then there's me, swarming in "final exams" of teaching (with grades being due) as well as my 16 4th graders 7 hours every day. Yup, pray for me too.

Much love!

Puerto Viejo de Talamanca

Being sick last week certainly did not stop me from enjoying life this weekend :). We have today (Monday) off and so we went to Puerto Viejo de Talamanca on the Carribbean coast. Words can not describe the beauty of the beaches and rainforest here in Costa Rica. Photos also don't quite capture the intertwined blues and greens of nature.


I had read somewhere that it was very dangerous to take cameras to Puerto Viejo because lots of muggings happen there... the other girls took their cameras, and I didn't. I will admit I was a little depressed about that all weekend, so I tried to be more observant with my own eye rather than letting my camera capture it for me. So I'll try to describe a couple scenes in my mind from this weekend.


We rented bikes both days and rode down to Punta Uva (a wealthier neighborhood) and Playa Chiquita (with coral for snorkling :))... The road was so bumpy and trucks and cars and bicycles were all competing for space. Even though the bumps were painful at times, I am thankful we had the bikes because we wouldn't have been able to walk as quickly. The sun sets fairly early, so Trish, Kim L., and I start the ride back to Puerto Viejo about 4pm... We're riding into the sun, and I am following the other two. Trees reach to the sky on either side of the road as vines hang down, almost touching the tops of our heads. Hibiscus bushes offer cheerful red flowers to cheer us over the potholes, and the sun peeks through the branches to illuminate my fellow travelers. Beautiful.


Another picture. I sit on top of a cliff, overlooking the ocean, 20kilometers north of Panama's border. Straight down in front of me, waves crash onto the layers of limestone, and I am in terror and awe at the same time. Hermit crabs scurry past me, and the endless trail of leaf cutter ants are persevering in their endeavors. I turn back around to the rainforest to climb down the dirt path offering tree roots and vines to keep me from slipping. Tiny yellow crabs peek out at me from their comfortable crevices, but none have the courage to approach me. I reach the rainforest floor, thankful to be on solid, flat ground again.


Alright, so I also have photos from the other girls, so I'll show you some visuals :). We teachers have to offer both auditory and visual options. :)






Trish and me with our rented bikes. This was a trail through the forest that led to a beach.
Kim L. and I looking ridiculous with snorkel gear. We saw different kinds of fish swimming in schools and sea urchins! The coral looked like twisted rope coiled into rocks.
Trish and I going out to sea, ha, again with sweet headgear for breathing.
The view from the end of the cliff I described earlier.
My spot on the cliff. I like this photo a lot :).
Beautiful clouds on Playa Cocles
More beautifulness.
The sunrise this morning. We got up at 5 for special viewing from the dock!
We stayed at Cabinas Jacaranda, and there were mosaics all over. Here's only one of many.
Puerto Viejo is a colorful town, that's for sure!

Nausea + Teaching = No Can Do 3 Days In A Row

I'm home sick for the first time ever during a teaching job. I didn't take any sick days during student teaching (I understood that it wasn't an option) and this school year, this is my first day stuck at home. It's pouring rain and I'm toasting flour tortillas in the oven... I'm going to try eating. You know when you have the flu and you're not sure if it's safe to eat yet? That's my dilemma.

I'm going to eat my tortillas and go to bed. Quite the plan at 9am.

Alright, that's plenty of rambling in my current state of mind. Pray for my students that they will survive today with the sub... Or maybe you should just pray for the sub that she will survive the day with my students. Ha.

Nausea + Teaching = Probably Not Very Healthy

I had a good day, believe it or not. Despite waves of nausea, my students were relatively well-behaved and I remembered everything I needed to do... I think. Here's some events out of the strange day...

My student Diego is quite the character. This morning in Chapel, Miss Loosa asked the question, "What man were we talking about on Monday that had a baby?" (She meant to say "What man had a son"... but it came out weird. The answer she was looking for was Abraham had a son named Isaac... Ha, I've said things the wrong way before too.) Diego fixated on the fact that she said a man could have a baby and asked me about it for five minutes straight. His mind just wouldn't go anywhere else!!

Then later, Diego is laying on his back on the cement floor. I had told him repeatedly to sit up, and finally, I decided I really meant it. I started counting down for him to sit up and he stuck his arms and legs in the air and begins to sway his body back and forth... "Look, Miss Siscoe! I'm a turtle and I can't get off my shell!!" Great, Diego, please sit up.

Then there's Gabriela. She reminds me of myself so much because she is always drawing or thinking outside the box. Her answers to oral questions are usually right on target, but she says it in such a different way. Today, during the read aloud (We are reading the book "Chocolate Fever" about a boy who has chicken pox of sorts but oozes chocolate...) , she was doodling and drew a great picture of the main character with chocolate spots all over him... oozing chocolate into the shapes of candy bars. Perhaps she thought this boy could start a business with the candy bars? Who knows!

Esteban was on a roll today. He had his hand raised for every question and was in the zone with his English. Way to go!

Yena has been part of our class now for 3 weeks. Today, I asked her to erase the board, and she was so determined to erase the WHOLE board that she jumped and bounced and flailed until she had the out-of-reach areas erased. Ha, I was cracking up just watching her have so much energy for such a simple task. Yena has a smirk that she gets on her face when she's thinking something funny, and I almost always have to call on her when I see the smirk. Last week, we were creating a plan for writing a story, and the title was "Volcano in My Backyard!" The class decided that the main character was home alone and was going to the fridge to eat a snack. Through the kitchen window, he catches a glance of red lava shooting up into the sky. I ask, "What is the first thing our main character should do in response to the volcano?" Yena had the smirk, and I called on her. She says, "He should roast marshmellows until his parents come home!" Ha, the whole class was cracking up.

And that's only 1/4 of my students.

The Funniest Day Ever

Oh man, good thing I'm still laughing.

Synopsis: Wake up this morning to our random Italian radio station. Bed breaks as usual (one of the legs repeatedly falls off). Shower, half awake. Stumble to the fridge to find breakfast. . . the freezer door falls off. Realize we have to defrost the freezer at 6am. Begin boiling water to put in freezer. Eat an orange while staring at the pot of water, still in a tired daze. Water boils, place pot in freezer. River begins flooding kitchen floor from defrosting ice... Call my mom so she can witness the chaos... She laughs. I tell her I am domestically unsatisfied; She has no pity.

Go to school at 7:10... students arrive at 7:15... the craziness begins.

Kind of a crazy morning, I won't go into the details... Then after lunch, I begin to feel the stomach flu coming on, if you know what I mean. And that is my current status. Blah and laughing gently.