I was not stressed about leaving for my study abroad in Costa Rica, which is not normal. I believe this because I’ve traveled more this year than I ever had. I went to Ireland, did a short-term study abroad in Italy, and volunteered for a month in Yosemite. Traveling is like a skill; practice makes you good at it. So I’m basically a master of getting through the security at the airport. It’s also addicting, once you start seeing what’s out there you never want to stop. Going on your first flight yourself is the scariest yet invigorating act of independence, and it just gets easier from there.
When I first arrived in Costa Rica, I took a taxi from the airport to my homestay. I looked for the address to give my driver, and it said the house was four hundred meters north of a church, with a cafe door. I then learned that Costa Rica doesn’t have addresses, which made my taxi driver’s job pretty hard. On the way there, he kept pulling over, asking people on the street for directions. I thought I would never get there when one guy said he knew everyone in the neighborhood and had never heard of my host mom. But I eventually found it. I live with my mama tica and my host sister. They are amazing and cook me breakfast and dinner every day! I don’t have any roommates, so I often get stuck when trying to communicate with them, but they are pretty patient with me. I took an immersive Spanish class three hours a day during my first month here! I spent the rest of my time walking around San Jose with friends, trying local sodas and small local restaurants with inexpensive food. My favorite area of Costa Rica is Barrio Escalante; there are many cute restaurants, stores, and coffee shops. I am also doing my yoga teacher training online right now.
San Jose is genuinely different from any city I’ve ever been to. Before arriving here, I had never gone to Latin America in general. That’s part of the reason I chose Costa Rica. Some other reasons why I wanted to come here were nature. Costa Rica is environmentally rich, with five percent of the world’s biodiversity. I love anything outdoors, from hiking to surfing, and I wanted to be somewhere I could see all kinds of nature. Another reason is that I have heard of the ‘Pura Vida’ lifestyle, which is both a saying and a way of life here. It is a common response to ‘como estas?’ saying everything is fantastic. It’s a relaxed approach to life, representing how Costa Ricans don’t rush anywhere or stress as much as we do; it’s how they enjoy the pleasures of life.
Some other things I have been up to in San Jose are cultural activities and traveling. With my program AIFs abroad in Costa Rica, we have gone on a walking tour to the national museum, the jade museum, the gold museum, and the central market, where we tried their traditional sorbet. Nearly every weekend, I’ve been able to travel to a new place in Costa Rica. San Jose is the center of the country, making it easy to find a bus anywhere in the country. It’s fantastic because you can see a wide variety of places and things. Some highlights are seeing horses running on Jaco Beach, Iguanas and monkeys in Manuel Antonio National Park, and hiking up waterfalls and volcanos. I’m super excited for all the more adventures and experiences to come here!
Katie O. is a double major in Psychology and Studio Art: Graphic Design with a minor in and is studying abroad at Universidad Veritas in San Jose, Costa Rica.
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