One month down, twenty-six to go…

April 8, 2009

I have now been in country for one month, which is strange because I definitely feel like I have been here longer. In spite of this feeling, each day passes very quickly. I only have 2 more months left in training, which is exciting because I’m eager to get to my site, but also sad because I get closer to my family here in Fatima every day. I told my host mother today that I cannot imagine being closer to another family here in Costa Rica, and that it will truly be difficult to leave so quickly.

Last week I decided to start jotting down random thoughts in a little notebook that I carry with me everywhere. Instead of making sense out of them, I’ve decided to just share them here. Here’s a little sample of what goes through my mind during a typical training week:

1. Jumping rope may be boring, but it will make your arms pretty.
2. My back patio smells like poop, baking in the sun. That is probably because there is a lot of dog poop out there, and it is baking, all day, in the sun.
3. Anyone who ever said that Peace Corps Costa Rica is “not the real Peace Corps” has no idea what they are talking about. The Costa Rica that you saw on vacation is not the Costa Rica known to its inhabitants, and the jobs we are expected to do over here are no joke. While teaching people to brush their teeth is extremely important, that isn’t exactly what we’re doing over here. Oh, and international development is hard…I learned that the other day.
4. If my Spanish improves enough, I feel confident that I can be a successful volunteer here. Anyone who knows me also knows that I don’t usually make those kinds of admissions.
5. I want to talk to friends and family at home, but it can be frustrating because there is no way to truly describe what our lives are like during training, and it can be difficult to relate to anyone that is not here.
6. Our medical officer (i.e. the doctor for all PCVs in Costa Rica) led a session on common diseases the other day. She is completely adorable and brilliant, and her broken English often produces my favorite quote of the day. While showing us a frequency chart of diseases contracted by PCVs in Costa Rica compared to PCVs in other countries she said, “You will see that we are winning in the gina-cological conditions.” I would be perfectly happy listening to her all day long.
7. The houses here have a lot of doors. There is the first portón, which is basically a big cage outside of the house, on the other side of which you can park your car. Then there is the second portón, which is another big iron cage directly in front of the front door. Then there is the front door. A separate key is needed for each, and you need to turn the key around twice to double bolt each one. My point is that when I arrive home and really have to pee, none of the other challenges faced that day can compare to the challenge of making it to the bathroom in time after unlocking and relocking all of the doors.
8. My host parents took me to the Férria last weekend, which is like a huge farmer’s market, so that they could buy fruits and vegetables. I was so excited about the prospect of eating fresh produce that I got a little teary eyed.
9. There is a Will Smith movie on TV here every hour of every day here.
10. Our Malaria medication gives us the best dreams ever. It tastes like poo though.
11. I have now seen the mouse that lives with us twice. I think he has every right to live, but I would like for it to be somewhere else.
12. I became buddies with the guys who work at the mechanic shop that is on the way to Spanish class. I’ve decided that having big, strong Tico men on my side in this town is definitely a good thing.