Quick updates:

The giant spider that I thought was a tarantula and saw a few months ago, do you remember that? Well, he's been spotted again only this time he's way bigger! The body of the spider was about the size of a silver dollar and the legs made it huge! I went to open my back door in the morning and down drops the spider. I quickly yelled for my host dad, mom, Oscar, who ever to come and kill it. All three came to see what the Gringa was yelling about and said, oh, that's no tarantula that's a pico caballo (a horse bite spider) then Oscar says, no, it's not a pica caballo, it's a pica gringa. Haha. Sadly we did not kill it, it is still behind my sink but my host dad did spray a bunch of poison so hopefully it will die. I'm not a fan of this squatter. My rabbit has yet to be lost or killed, this is really saying something because everyone else that I know who got a rabbit around the same time as me has lost it or it has died. Currently I'm out sourcing my rabbit care to a neighbor who had 2 and one died so he asked if I could loan him mine so his wouldn't be so lonely. Sadly, his one remaining rabbit has been lost, but I haven't gone back for Cadburry just yet, he's got a good thing going over there but I'm guessing the neighbor is going to get sick of rabbit sitting soon. I'm impressed with the rabbit, I just let him run free almost all day and there are dogs everywhere, maybe it's because he's so big... Arroz con conejo anyone? Tigre is doing well, she's starting to settle down a little which is good because she's been super hyper. I guess this is more of an animal world update.

Faces and Places # 5 - Meet Tigre!!!!

This is Tirgre my new little kitty. I have a really cute video of her playing in a box and will post is next time I have the cable to my camera so I can transfer it. Tigre was brought to me by my host nephew who found her in the street. Apparently she had been dumped there since she was a female (nobody wants kittens and nobody spays their animals). So, he brought her to me and I couldn't resist her, she's just too cute and she was soooooo young. She was taken away from her mother much too early. Anyway, I've had her now for a month or so and she has become a really great cat. When I walk through the gate towards my house she runs to meet me and now she follows me everywhere I go around the house and yard. I'm planning on taking her with me when I leave so don't worry and also, she has an appointment to be spayed in June when she will be old enough. Which, brings me to my next and newest project, I'm currently organizing a spay and neuter your pets project for La Palma. There is a vet in Jimenez who is willing to come to La Palma for the day, sadly, it's pretty expensive to spay or neuter your pet here. I was really lucky last week to come across a donor and we are going to be able to have the clinic at a very low cost. I've been telling everyone I meet in my community that it will only cost 2.000 colones (4 dollars) per animal and everyone gets excited and asks to be signed up. Depending on how the clinic goes, I'm hoping to be able to hold a clinic every 2 or 3 months so that the puppies and kittens that are too young right now can be taken care of before they become pregnant. Hopefully this will help to reduce our street dog population and the lower the number of kittens thrown away. Depending on how the clinic, you should consider being a donor for the next (hint, hint), I'll keep you all posted.

Faces and Places of La Palma #4 – Meet Oscar

Faces and Places # 4 – Meet Oscar!

Oscar has lived at the cabinas where I live for the past 5 years or so. He is a taxi driver in La Palma, but not in the sense of I drive a marked car kind of taxi driver. He drives a big truck which he's put some wood slats down as seats and then he put a tarp over the top in case it's too sunny or it rains. Oscar was my first friend in La Palma. When I was going through a hard time in the beginning (see shingles blog) he was always there for me to talk to and he always put himself into my shoes before he said anything. He's been a great friend. Each night Oscar's 14 year old son comes to the cabinas and they sit together and talk for a couple of hour and then Oscar walks his son home. On more than one occasion Oscar has told me that he really doesn't like La Palma and that he would like to leave, but he's waiting until his son is grown because as he told me, now is the most important time for him to be with his son. That's being a parent! Oscar is surprisingly philosophical and it's not hard to have a deep conversation with him (this is rare!). As my biggest competition for the hammock, we have come to an agreement. I get the hammock pretty much all day and he gets it in the evening/night. It works out well since most of my activities are at night.

Project update:

Everything is pretty much the same, computers some day, Guias y Scouts in the near future, English is on going. I do have a couple of new projects on the horizon that I'm really excited about! First, one of my friends in the community told me that she was looking into calling in the vet to do a spay and neuter clinic in La Palma. The price is about $16 per animal for the operation and then another $14 for the medications. There are very few people in my community who can afford to spend 30 dollars on a cat or dog, most animals are lucky to see dog/cat food in their lifetime. So, I got to thinking, there has got to be another way. I'm in the process of seeing how I can fund raise so that we would be able to do the clinic for free for everyone. I spoke to some people in town and they all agree that if we do the clinic for free there will be hundreds of animals taken care of. What a difference this would make! So, I'm going to see what I can do.
Next, I've been loosely working with a woman's group that does recycling and that once had a building and a library and tourist center. Some time ago their building was burned down and they have kind of stayed in tact since, but they have really been struggling. Just recently we sold food at the fiestas of La Palma and were able to make enough money in one weekend to re-build their old building and we worked 2 weekends. So, I'm going to be working with them on bringing in books for a library and also some marketing for the tourist center. It's an exciting development and the ladies are really excited about it. That's it for now.

Bye mom and dad :(

From Dominical we moved on to La Fortuna where we saw the Volcan Arenal. If you are heading to Costa Rica, you have to see this volcano! It's active and we were lucky enough to be able to see the lava flowing and hear the rumblings at night. It was beautiful! We hiked some hanging bridges and went to the hot springs. The last day of my parents trip we went to Acosta where they got to meet my host family there. The time flew by and we had a great time. I'm pretty sad to say goodbye to my parents, but I'll be home for a visit in the next few months. No more gringo vacations for me for a while.

Bye mom and dad!

Vacationing with Mom and Dad.

I haven't really had the chance to blog for a really long time and I'm going to go ahead and blame it on my mom and dad. Since they arrived we have been super busy having tons of fun doing lots of activities that leave me totally exhausted at the end of the day. During our time in La Palma we went on Costa Rican fishing adventures with my host family, a tour of Corovado national park, snorkeling in Los Mogos, a nocturnal insect tour, lots of days at the beach in Jimenez, a day playing in the water at playa blanca in La Palma, and more. My parents got to meet and spend a lot of time with Deivin. Deivin really liked them and was sad to say goodbye and they both really liked him so that was nice. We taught Deivin how to play Cribbage (in English) and he loves. After about a day and a half of only eating Tico food both mom and dad agreed that that was enough. I just thought, ha, try 9 months straight of it with no option of escape!

We are currently staying in Dominical at a really nice place on the beach. I can't imagine a more beautiful beach, there are waves breaking on the rocks, surfers and lots of natural beauty. I highly recommend Dominical. There are options for all kinds of budgets. We're going to stay here for another night before we head on North.

In other news, I've just about hit the half way mark of my Peace Corps service. Just a couple more days and I hit the down hill stretch. My official second year begins May 28th. Time really goes by fast!

Faces and Places of La Palma #3 – Playa Blanca

Playa Blanca is the white coral beach that is 3 Kilometers from where I live. I go there almost every day, on bike it's about 10 min away. The beach is beautiful and there are ofter dolphins and whales visible (so I'm told, they always seem to be hiding from me). The beach is surrounded by a manglar forest as well as palm trees and almond trees. There is a lot of bio diversity and each day one can see many Scarlet Macaws, Ibis', hawks, etc. There is place to camp right on the beach, if anyone is interested in doing some camping on the beach it's both beautiful and affordable, just let me know and I'll hook you up.

Commenting on blog posts

Hmmm, I wonder at times if there is anyone out there in the blog world reading my posts... I wouldn't know because there are very few people that rarely leave a comment. So, that being said, please don't be shy to leave comments on the blogs, even if it's just something like wow, Laura, you're sooooo cool or you really know what you're doing (Just joking). But really, I love it when you leave comments, so please feel free to do so.

Here is just a little scoop for now, I have now adopted a little kitten that I've named Tigre and the dog that I had was returned to his owners. The zoo continues. The rabbit and cat are friends and cat especially like my host families dog. We're just one big happy family.

My parents will be here in a week and I'm super excited to see them. We'll be traveling around for the next week seeing many sites in CR and spending a lot of time on the peninsula so they can really get to know where and how I live. I'll get a faces/places up on Wed. when I'll be in SJ for a night.

Giving rabbits baths

Okay, so the computer lab that was going to built in January was then going to be built in March, now, I'm thinking June, if we're lucky. That's the way of the world here, one just has to deal with it. Guias y Scouts is moving right along. We had our first training the other day and are having a meeting in the next week to vote on our troupe number and the colors of our bandannas, it's kind of the first step to making it all a little less of an idea and more reality. I'm excited for the meeting. My parents are coming very soon and I'm really excited to get to show them my life here and show them how we do things Tico style.

I have some happy/sad news. My dog's owners came back for him so I no longer have a dog. I still however have Cadbury the rabbit. Here he is. Today I was forced to give him a bath. From experience I can now tell you, I don't think rabbits were intended to be bathed. He just looked so sad all wet and I actually thought for a second that I was killing him. So, if you have a rabbit that gets dirty, maybe just try and use a damp cloth to rub off some of the dirt. I'm still not entirely sure he's okay, it was seriously traumatic.

Here is a not so good pic of Deivin my boyfriend. I'll get a better one soon, but this is what I have for now.



English classes are starting soon. I'm sooooo sick of talking about them and having everyone and their mom talk to me all day about English classes. I just want to start so I can say, oh, sorry, we've already begun. Now before you start thinking "that doesn't seem very nice" well, just know that you are not understanding the situation fully. Maybe I'll write a blog on it...

Quick update:

* Tomorrow I have a Guias y Scouts training for the board of directors or "la junta". The training process can take up to 6 months, but it's totally worth it, we want to build a really strong foundation.
* I'm not entirely confident that we will be breaking ground with the computer lab this month (I was told March). Hopefully April...
* I'm thinking about trying to build a library, it's a possibility.
* English classes should start in the next couple of weeks, hopefully we will find a place to do it.
* As I was walking out the door to leave for San Jose on Monday another bat decided to move in with me, he was flying all around my head. I'll be forced to have my host dad kill him...
* A new group of 55 volunteers arrived last night. We're excited to no longer be the newbies and meet some new people, they make our super tiny worlds just a little bigger.
* I've recently read: Breaking Dawn, Redeeming Love and Captivating, all really good books.
* Rabbit is still alive and growing and my new dog friend likes to go on runs with me and follow me everywhere I go. Good stuff.

Faces and Places of La Palma # 2 – Meet Louisa, my host mom

Louisa is a very incredible woman. Pretty much all on her own she runs the cabinas, has a sewing business and a little cafe for the the guests of the cabinas. She manages all of this while assisting with the other family businesses (the buses and the micro bus taxi). I've really learned a lot from Louisa, she is so generous, strict and knows how to have a good laugh. On more than one occasion I've heard her say “What's the hurry, there's more time than life”, how true is that? Whenever I need anything or am thinking about buying anything in town or out of town for that matter, I go to Louisa first to see what she has to say, she know everyone and just about everything in La Palma. I would rarely leave the house if it weren't for Louisa and Bereno. If I see them doing something, I'll at least try it, if I see that they aren't doing something, I make sure why before I try anything. They know their stuff. Next Blog, I'd like to show you how we make Coffee Costa Rica style, it's so easy, economical and environmental and to top it all off, I think the coffee tastes better this way... Coming soon.

Oh, in other news, I think I just may have myself a dog now. I found him the other day and after running around all day trying to find his owner, he decided he was mine. I'll post a pic if he sticks around, I'm turning into Dr. Doolittle here with my many animal friends.

Bunnies, boyfriend and bats

Here is the skinny on the past week or so. I've been super busy but I wanted to share a few things. First of all, just the other day I was confronted with a tarantula in my kitchen sink. It was huge I'm talking the body was the size of 2 quarters. I was not happy about said tarantula, but I was way too freaked out to take care of it myself so I yelled for my host sister to come and help me. She is crazy, let me just say that. She comes in and says, "what, what happened, oh, it's nothing" She then proceeds to try and pick it up with the bare hands, she got it into the air and then dropped it and it went behind/under my sink. I now live with a tarantula somewhere in my kitchen. As long as he stays there and leaves me alone, I'm okay with it. Okay, so the same day as my spider friend paid me a visit another wild friend decided to move in. I was laying in bed already traumatized when I here the bat squeaks and hear a bat flying around my room. Great. Don't get me wrong, I love bats, I just don't want to live in the same house with them. Bats outside, Laura inside, all is good and in order. So, I didn't know what to do, it was too late to call my host sister to come and help and I thought maybe mister bat would see that I was a bad roommate and leave. Days pass and I don't see any signs of the bat...until i lift up my bag off the floor and what do I see, mister bat has been with me all along. So, I call my host nephews, Alfred who's 13 and Joel who's 8 to come and help me with the bat problem. It was really funny, here I am jumping around and yelling a Spanish/English mix and the boys are trying help find a bag and I'm trying to sweep the bat into the bag with a broom all the while all three of us are periodically screaming and jumping. So, finally we sweep the bat out the door. I'm thinking he's not going to want to come back after that, I was wrong. Apparently once they think a place is their home, they go back to it. So, the next day I'm sitting with my boyfriend Deivin when mister bat returns. I get all jumpy and am yelling for Deivin to kill it and he grabs is and hit's it once and let's him go out the back door. I ask him, why didn't you kill it? and he says "es que, me da mucha lastima" or, it's just so sad. So, what happens a few days later? You guessed it, the bat is back, this time just like the friendly tarantula he's in my kitchen sink where it appears he spent the night. I decide it's time to call in the big guns and go and find Bereno. Bereno takes one look at my little and friend and killed him. I was sad to see him go, but the relationship just working out. He couldn't be house trained and I didn't want to be bitten. One of us had to go. Okay, onto the bunny.
So, for valentines day Deivin comes over to my house after he get's off work and tells me that he has a surprise for me. I'm thinking, oh, how nice, a surprise. He says it's something to keep me company when he can't be with me. I'm thinking, okay.... Then he hands me a gift bag. I look in the bag and suddenly a little white rabbit pops it's head out of the bag and scares the crap out of me! I almost threw the bag across the room, it's a good thing Deivin still had a hold on the bag, otherwise the bunny would have had a wild ride. So, I collect myself and meet my new rabbit friend. I've never had a rabbit before and I don't think I had every planned on having one, but we're working out. I got him a nice little cage and named him cadbury. I let him run free in the house in the mornings and he's actually pretty cool, he's used to humans and runs around. What did I get Deivin you ask? I'll tell you, I made him some brownies... Okay, that's a quick update. I'm sure you are sitting here wondering Boyfriend, when, how? Well, I don't have enough time for that. Another day. God bless.

Another quick report.

Since I've been back a lot has been going on. I'm super happy to report that after totally giving up on the idea, I actually think the computer lab is going to happen. Construction on the new building with start in March and then I can start the process of getting the computers. Life will be soooo much easier when we have faster internet and computers in town. I'm gearing up to get started with Guias y Scouts. At this point the Junta or board of directors need to be trained which can take around 6 months and once they are all ready to go it will be time to find some kids. Finding the kids will be the easy part for sure, already whenever I walk down the street kids are asking me when it's going to start so they can join. I'm trying my best to get motivated and started on my english class again. I'm only going to continue on with one and they are a great class, it's just a process of me contacting all of them, collecting money for the books and then placing an order for the books. So far, I can't seem to motivate to do it, tomorrow... Otherwise things are going better than I ever could have imagined. Everything is falling into place.

Faces and Places of La Palma #1 – Meet Bereno!

Bereno is my host dad and along with my host mom was the first person I met in La Palma. He and my host mom are fairly rare as they have been married for over 40 years and are still going strong. On more than on occasion I've seen Bereno run up and for no reason give my host mom a huge hug and kiss, he totally loves her and it's really nice to see. Bereno was once a farmer with a lot of land in and around La Palma. A number of years ago (I think like 10ish) they sold their land and made a really nice profit. With that money they were able to build the cabins (where I live), a micro bus (what we would call a mini van, but they use it for tourism) and 2 buses to run the bus line between Jimenez and La Palma. He and my host mom always seem to be a few years ahead of everyone else and I largely contribute that to their creativity. Bereno works all day long, he loves to work. If he's not busy taking people on rides in the microbus, he's working in the garden, fixing something in the cabina or using the machete on something. Bereno is super funny and always up for a laugh and a smile. I'm pretty lucky to have him on my side as he is very well known and respected within La Palma and on the peninsula. His actual name is Benadicion, but everyone calls him by his nick name Bereno. I'm pretty sure he can fix or make anything out of anything. He built the house that I'm now living in and he built the cabinas, this guy can do anything.

What a difference a trip home can make

I had no idea how much I needed to see my family and friends and how just spending three weeks with them would change every thing for me. When I arrived in La Palma and saw my host family and my friends here it was like I was seeing it all with renewed eyes. Before I left I was so sick and tired of everything here and was thinking that another year and a half was going to be torture. Now, I'm here and I'm so happy to be here and I'm so excited to see what the next year and half will bring. What a difference!

I'm officially moved into my new little house here are some pics “Cribs Style”

This is my little green house from the front. I love my little house!

Kitchen/living room area.

Room with a view and Platanos that are growing into my house. It's just easier that way...

My bed room. I just bought the mattress and it's been so nice to have a comfy bed!

Vaulted ceilings. This is very normal in Costa Rica. They finish the ceiling last, it's a lot cooler in the summer to have a ceiling, but if you can't afford it, you can live without it. I'll post more pics via flicker, posting through the blog is a pain!

Also, I don't know how it happened, but I hadn't been here for a full 24 hours and suddenly I had meetings to go to and a group that actually wanted to work with me. I've had a meeting every day since I've been here and spent all day Monday in Golfito (that is where all the governmental work is done) and the development association and I were able to get a ton of work done. Now it's looking like we are going to get the computers after all. I had given up on it, but now that I have some people to work with, I think it's going to happen.

Okay, so I'm going to start a new series in the blog called the Faces and Places of La Palma. I'll try introduce you all to the people in my life and the places so that everyone can have a better idea what life is like here. More to come on that. God is good and he change a situation over night, you just have to wait on Him. His timing now ours.

I'm baaaack!

My flight left Colorado at 12:15am and let me tell you, sleep was not easy to come by. The seats were just really uncomfortable, nobody was loud or annoying, it was just simple uncomfortable. I arrived in San Jose at 6:20am and boy was I tired. While we were getting off the plane I saw that a fellow volunteer from my group happened to be on the plane with me and we were able to tag team the first bus from the air port to SJ center which was a big help since we both had a ton of ridiculous luggage. I brought back soooo much stuff and I was really regretting it at various time throughout my journey from the baggage claim to Acosta and I know I will further hate the trip from Acosta to La Palma, but, I will thank myself for it in about 3 weeks. I brought back some peanut butter, some dried fruit and nut mix from costco, some new shorts and a toaster. I know I'm going to be loving that toaster for the next year and a half. Anyway, luggage sucks.

I'm excited to be back and to get started again. I'm hoping that my new house will provide me with some much needed privacy and tranquility. I'm hoping Guias y Scouts is able to start up soon and I hope to be able to pick up my friendships that we forming where they left off. After 3 weeks of eating a ton of yummy holiday treats and gringo food, I'm also ready to get back on track with eating healthy and working out.

Thoughts on 2009

This was a really really really hard year for me and I know for many of you. Every single thing that could change in my life has, which is both really good and really hard. I think we sometimes we need change and difficult situations to push us toward what we can be. With out change/adversity it's really hard to challenge oneself and to grow as a person. Basically, when life kicks you while your down, it's usually for your own good in the end. This year, I was kicked multiple times while I was down, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I have lot's of hope for this coming year. It will be a full year dedicated to the Peace Corps and La Palma. I have a lot of hope that some of my projects will work out. God has me there for a reason and I hope that in this next year I'm able to realize that reason. Life is good. I love, love, love the United State! I'm sad to have to leave in just 2 short weeks, but I'm happy that I had the opportunity to visit. It's been a real treat to have a cell phone, internet, my car, a 'real' bed, hot showers, the mountains and my family and some friends. I'm seriously blessed and I hope that all of you out there can see the blessings in your life. God is good all the time.

Thrift stores, Target and r-ball

Colorado is so great. Today I went to Target and was able to find a bunch of really cool things. I can't believe how easy it is to find stuff here. I then went to my local rec center and played r-ball (aka - racquetball) with my best good friend Mandy. After some serious games of the r-ball Mandy and I went to a thrift store and let me tell you, I was amazed. It's just so easy to have anything here. Lamps with lamp shades are so cheap. I saw a really nice looking couch for $25, that's crazy! I'm blown away by how much we as Americans have and can get a hold of. It just blows me away. At least I know when I get back from CR I'll be able to find a lot of nice stuff for really cheap. Yes, I'm talking thrift store shopping. Reduce, reuse, recycle.

Home for the Holidays

I arrived in Colorado on the 22nd at about noon and I was so excited. A few days earlier I had spoken with my best good friend Mandy and she had told me that she was going to go skiing the day I was getting in and might not be able to make it to dinner that night. I was pretty bummed, but I was just hoping that she would be able to stop by when she was done skiing. As I exited the international passenger area I was looking around for my mom and got quite the surprise when I saw Mandy standing next to my mom. My brain was like- does not compute, does not compute. I couldn't believe it. I said "but you were going skiing" and Mandy said, oh that was just to throw you off. What an awesome surprise!! As we drove home we headed to Jim's Burger Haven for some good old fashioned American food and then we had a spaghetti dinner with my whole family and Mandy where I got to meet my brand new baby nephew. He's just a little button and about 3 weeks old. I spent probably 3 hours yesterday just holding him and plan to get some serious baby action with both nephews every day for the next 3 weeks. I'm sooooooo happy to be home. I feel like I haven't really slept for 9 months. I'm just so happy to have my family with me. I love them so much, this time so far has been totally perfect. It's going to be really hard to leave them, but I'm not going to think about that for now. God bless you all and please, show your family how much you love them. Happy holidays!

Random stuff

On December 3rd my new nephew James was born. This little guy came a week late and had to be forced out of the womb. James is 9 pounds 5 ounces and a little chunk. I can't wait to meet him in person in just 2 and a half more weeks and I'll be home in Colorado.

In La Palma we are moving out of the rainy season "winter" and into the dry season. It's so hot, you have no idea. Yesterday I worked out and was literally wringing my cloths out, literally. I'm talking it's hot. 2 showers a day, you sweat all day long kind of hot. I don't know how people can live like this. I make it because I know I'm leaving in a year and a half, but forever? I think it would kill me.

Last night I watched the movie P.S. I Love You and I think that's the most I've ever cried at a movie. I cried throughout the entire movie. Super sad, but good. So if you want to cry a lot, check it out.

That's all for now, not much going on since things kind of shut down in December.

Thanksgiving in Costa Rica

Many people have asked me how I spent my Thanksgiving in Costa Rica, so here it is. The Peace Corps was nice enough to ask the US Embassy if they had any families willing to host volunteers for the holiday. There were quite a few families willing to host and I was able to celebrate with my fellow volunteer and friend Becca and 3 families (2 from the Embassy). We stayed with an Embassy employee named Julie, her husband Mauricio and their 4 year old Claudia and 6 month old Lucia. Their home is beautiful and they made us feel right at home from the start. For the actual holiday another Embassy employee and his family came over for dinner along with another American family. The food was beyond good, we ate the traditional Thanksgiving dinner and everyone shared what they were thankful for that year. It was a really nice time. One of the things I'm thankful for this year (among many) is the generosity I've encountered since I've arrived in Costa Rica. I have never had more people offer their homes, food, exercise equipment, rides, etc. to me in all of my life. There is such an attitude of look, I have this, you can have some too (or more often than not, I really want to share this with you, please let me). It's been a really important lesson for me. I hope that is something I will take away with me when I go. I hope to write further on the subject as it is so important to me. Happy Thanksgiving to all of you. Here is a list of what I'm thankful for:

Generosity, so many people have given me so much in this past year.
Shingles, I know that sounds weird, but I am thankful for it. God has taught me so much about him, about me, about life through shingles so I wouldn't change that.
God, for not allowing me to go blind.
Clinica Biblica, for helping me when I needed it most.
My family, for keeping me sane when I was losing it and for being my greatest support.
My friends, for getting me through.
Jesus, for making the ultimate sacrifice for me.