On Saturday I traveled with a group
a students to Rio Celeste. This is one of Costa Rica’s most breathtaking
sights. The water is a magnificent blue color as a result of the chemical mixture
of sulfur and carbonate that comes from the nearby Tenorio Volcano. Getting to
the volcanoes was not an easy task: we traveled on an old, creaky bus, that
could hardly make it up the rocky mountain road. During our 7.3 miles on this
road (it took about 30 minutes) we saw many cowboys and some crazy
mountain bikers.
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| Underachieving road crew |
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| Tired students on the bus |
Before our tour, our guide told us
that wearing tennis shoes would do the job, but we soon found out that he was wrong.
The trail was very muddy, but it made the experience more challenging and
interesting. Our “Tico” guide also thought, that squirrels were cool and didn’t
understand, why we were not fascinated by them.
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| Most of the bridges had limits to how many people could be on them at a time |
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| International Students who I am studying abroad with (5 others from CMU) |
On Sunday we headed to Poas Volcano
and Cataratas (waterfalls) De la Paz. On the way, we made a much needed stop at
a coffee plantation “Tres Generaciones.” I learned how coffee beans are
picked, roasted and processed. Costa Rica is not known for producing coffee in
big quantities, but their coffee is known for its high quality. I tried a
coffee bean: it tasted different than I expected, yet it was good.
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| Who knew coffee beans were RED? |
We had another crazy steep drive to
the Poas Volcano, but at least this time we were in a nicer bus. Once we
arrived, we were able to split into groups and hike whatever trails we chose. A
few girls and I hiked to the top of volcano, but, unfortunately, it was very
foggy and we could see nothing at all. Later we headed to more waterfalls
and saw some beautiful butterflies, hummingbirds and frogs.
In my Alternative Health Approaches class, my professor challenges us to
live one day at time. Being here in Costa Rica, my days have been so full of
adventure, learning and soaking up the sun. Another challenge he presented to
us was to write a DREAM for the day
and then ask God to help you achieve that dream. I so entirely grateful that I
am here and I am living with Taylar because she challenges me to become a
better person every day.
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| #blessedtobewithanglegirl |
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| Learning about traditional law of energy flow in Alternative health class |
On Thursday night the University put
on a party for all of the students. It was super fun to dance with everyone but
I have a lot of improvement to do on my dancing. The dancing here is very
different from the States and it is all in the hips. The dance teacher said
that before I leave, I will master the hip movements (I don’t know, this tall
Dutch girl don’t seem to have hips like the ticos).
I just found out, that we do have mail service down here and if you would like to send me a letter, this is my address:
Universidad VERITAS / Rebecca Vander
Sluis
Center
for international Programs
Apdo.
1380- 1000, San Jose, Costa Rica
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| Our "Tica" Mom said Taylar and I never ate the food that Jessi (the house maid) cooked (mostly because it was fried) so we had to write here a list of foods we eat and don't eat. Lucky for us, we now get Avena (oatmeal) for breakfast on days that she makes fried empanadas. |
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| New food of the week: Cacao Beans |
“Un corazón apacible es vida para el cuerpo, mas las pasiones son podredumbre de los huesos.” Proverbs 14:30
