Day 191 - Last post from Costa Rica: Defining my time abroad

Word of the trip: surreal -- surrealista

Percent complete: 99.5%

** Editor’s Note: Long post!  Scroll down if you don’t want to read it all to see my favorite pictures from the trip. **

** Second Editor’s Note: If you are reading this and considering studying abroad, 1) DO IT. 2) If you are a Spanish student at KU and want to do a semester program, don’t even consider anything else.  Just go to Costa Rica. **

This post will be narrated with some songs, so feel free to press play:

I think the word of the trip has to be surreal, because every aspect of my time here has felt like it was part of a dream.  And the fact that I am just a few hours away from leaving this country, after what was almost a two year process from start to finish—from first thinking about coming during my fall semester of sophomore year, to advising appointments, to applying, to finishing finals at UCR—is just that: surreal.

I’m not even sure where to start to sum up my time here.  But from the first week to the last, I know that this trip would not have been possible without my family’s support back home, my host family’s guiding hand, and our two advisers at Grupo de Kansas, Zaida and Isa.

My older brothers, especially, pushed for me to study abroad not for just a summer, but to take the plunge into an unknown country for a slightly longer stay.  It just so happened that the program I picked ended up being over 6 months long.  I’ve kept in touch with my entire family during my whole time here, and anytime I was disappointed about missing something back home or wishing that I was back in Lawrence for whatever reason, they kept me in perspective of what I was doing in Costa Rica and the opportunity before me.  To be able to say that I am 21 years old, and have lived in a foreign, non-English speaking country for over half of a year is pretty incredible to think about.  So I want to thank my family for their continued support and love from 3,000 miles away.

I could not have had a better experience with my host family.  Before coming here, I had heard horror stories from some students whose host family experiences were not exactly functional, so the fact that I got paired with amazing people who were always there to help or to teach may have been the best part about the whole experience, seeing how much time was actually spent at home.  My host family was who taught me the language, but also the culture of Costa Rica and everything that makes this country unique to the rest of the world.  They opened my eyes to a different type of living to become accustomed to, and were always quick to point out my American social norms that weren't exactly “translated” in the Costa Rican culture.  From day one with open arms, they took me in not as a tenant or a roommate, but as a son and brother.  So to Gerardo, Felicia, Milena, Tavo and Monica, as well as my host prima Maria Jose, and even to Gerardo who lives in Spain, and Melisa who is in the Dominican Republic (who both came for short stays), I want to say thank you for everything that you did for me and I will always consider you family.  Hopefully I can visit Curridabat again soon.  Until then, ¡vamos Saprissa!

From the academic point of view, this experience would have definitely been a lot more difficult without the help of “The Mother Ship”, Zaida and Isa in the Grupo de Kansas office.  From visa application to approval, and class enrollment to finals, these two women were always willing to put whatever they had aside to help any and all of our needs, however important or petty.  They both truly were like two mother figures, and I might miss their always-loving and energetic attitudes the most.  I honestly can’t say enough about these two women and what they do to make Grupo de Kansas one of the best study abroad programs in the nation, but I do think that KU should be paying them more.  You can’t put a price tag on being a mother, though.  So to Zaida and Isa, thank you from the bottom of my heart for making the last 6 months as phenomenal as they were.

** Side Note: Zaida and Isa are the main reason for the Second Editor’s Note at the top of the post. **

I also want to thank all of the fellow Grupo students on the trip with me that have made it so incredible.  From Isla Tortuga with the Early Start group, to fun nights at Punta Leona back in February, throughout the semester and to the end of finals week, you all have become great friends and I know we will be up to the same shenanigans in Lawrence soon; same sh*t, different day (for you Huskies, you’ll have to visit!).  So to Ashley, Bekah, Jen, Josh, Katherine, Rochelle, Seth, Will, Christina, Daniela, Duncan, Lainey and
Gabrielle—

¡Arriba, abajo, al centro, adentro!

I entered KU with the aspiration to study abroad during my time in college, but if you had told me at freshman orientation three years ago (three years?!) that I would spend 27 weeks in Costa Rica, I would have said you were lying.  This adventure has opened my eyes to so much more in the world and has been the best experience of my life, but it’s not to go without saying that it was also the most challenging endeavor that I have taken on.  Being dumped into a new culture and having everything—literally, everything—being in another language that you are not a native speaker of is not easy, and physically and mentally it takes a toll.  The first few weeks in San José, I was still in the “can’t believe I’m here” stage.  Then came the culture shock: not wanting to leave the house because I was scared to challenge myself in this new society, always being tired even though I was getting 10 hours of sleep a night, and even being homesick.  But once I stepped back and realized the opportunity I had in hand, that’s when the real submersion began.  Now, after this long being away from my comfort zone, I am very excited to get back home to experience life in the US from a new perspective because, honestly, I feel like I don’t remember what it’s like back home that well.  It sounds weird to say, but I forget a lot of the little things; for example, it dawned on me the other day that I will have to pay for gas again… what are gas prices even at?  I’ve also missed out on a lot back in the States that it will be fun to catch up on…  What are the popular songs?  New iPhone app?  What is the latest Internet craze?  And although we have Internet access down here, you can only get so much out of the limited time spent on it.

But, experiencing American sporting events and news coverage in another country has been very interesting: having to explain the rules of (American) football to my host family while watching the college football National Championship—yes, I was here way back then—will be something that I will never forget; or watching the Super Bowl in a bar that had a soccer game on some of the TVs… no way that would ever happen in the US of A; trying to find a bar that was showing March Madness games during Semana Santa, when my family visited, so that we could watch the ‘Hawks, and having to follow half of it on ESPN GameCast via iPad is definitely a memory that sticks out; and watching all of the golf majors and tennis grand slams with a Spanish broadcast was something new to experience as well.  From a sports side of things, though, my appreciation for soccer has definitely become more refined, especially while watching the World Cup qualifiers, UEFA league play and FIFA Confederation’s Cup matches, as well as the amount of soccer I played here being probably 10 times that of what I have played previously in my whole life combined.

But then there are other news stories and pop culture happenings that will define my time here as well.  Anytime that something pops up about the Boston Marathon bombings, I will think back to the time that I saw the headline while studying in the UCR library and just wanting to have more answers than I did.  And then coming back home and being glued to the TV for the two-day manhunt that ensued.  Or having stories in La Nación about President Obama’s second inauguration, and then his visit to San José when the whole country seemed to shut down for a meeting with Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla that no one could actually go to, but rather just watch on television.  And thinking back, there is the meteor that hit Russia; the Harlem Shake craze, and the KU basketball team rendition (complete with Ben McLemore’s now-famous dance); Hugo Chávez dying; the resignation of a Pope for the first time since 1415, and then having the first Latin American Pope being appointed to replace him; “Kimye” naming their baby North.  Well, not that I will remember my time here for that last one, but it’s too ridiculous to exclude.

My time in Costa Rica has also allowed to me make new friends from around the world; thinking about it, I’ve met students and travelers from all over the US, as well as Costa Rica (obviously), Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Panama, Colombia, Brazil, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, England, Scotland, Spain, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Norway, China, Taiwan and Australia.  I think that is all, but some may have been left out.

Reading break—enjoy.

One thing that has definitely formed during my time in Costa Rica is an addiction to photography.  I have always wanted to get into it as a hobby, but never really had the camera to do it.  So last fall I bit the bullet and got a Canon DSLR… it may have been the best decision of my life.  I have gotten to see such unbelievable wildlife and scenery here that I’ve been able to document—numerous national parks, multiple waterfalls, three volcanoes, ten different beaches, and probably a couple hundred species of exotic animals—that otherwise would not have been possible (or, at least, in much lower quality).  I will also go back to the US with a slight obsession with birds as well (with over 900 species here, many of which you can only see in a zoo back in the States, it’s pretty easy to fall in love).  So, below are a few of my favorite of the 6,827 pictures I have taken in the last 6 months:








The first picture that I took of Costa Rica, from the plane in.  I knew little about the adventure ahead of me.














Not a very good picture, but especially during the first couple of months that we were here, we played soccer quite a bit (before semester classes started).  Definitely a fun experience, especially when Ticos would join in.

I will always remember this day... if you missed the post (back in January), this is at the Central American Games final between Costa Rica and Honduras.  I took my camera to the stadium, but little did I know that DSLRs were not allowed in.  It turned into the game that I went to, but didn't attend.  Josh and I ended up watching it at a Burger King across the street.  I didn't have much of an opportunity to go to another game after this, which is one of my regrets, but you live and you learn.

Isla Tortuga, one of the first trips that we went on.  It ended up being a whole day package, complete with an incredible breakfast (with an "island" band), an hour-long catamaran ride (complete with a bar and fresh fruit) to the beach, and then snorkeling, banana boat rides, and more amazing food with music.  That afternoon we relaxed before taking the catamaran back while watching the sun set on the water.  It was a great way to spend a Sunday.

La Basilica de los Ángeles in Cartago.  It was a super old church with a very interesting history.  The woodwork inside the church was quite impressive, which is why I ended up really liking this black and white.

Graffiti is absolutely everywhere in San Pedro and San José.  I hate calling it graffiti though, since that has somewhat of a negative connotation... "art" might be better.  Duncan and I took a morning to go capture it all the best we could (or at least part of it), and I thought this particular wall was pretty amazing.

I had a few attempts at surfing while I was here, and this ended up being the most successful outing, in Puerto Viejo.  Luckily, some Canadians on the beach were nice enough to snap some pictures (he was taking some of his son at a surf lesson as well) and then share them with us.












This was my first ever attempt at long exposure photography.  Normally this is done with a tripod to stabilize the camera, but I did not have one available so I did my best resting it at an awkward angle on a railing and trying to keep it completely still for 2.5 seconds.  It ended up turning out alright, but could have been better.  This is from Las Cataratas de la Paz.

A palm tree somehow started growing sideways at Punta Leona, which always makes for a good photo opportunity.  Punta Leona ended up being my favorite beach that I went to because of the water, the beach itself and the wildlife.  I had another one of my "step back" moments while sitting in the surf looking up at a mountain side of rainforest, while a pair of wild scarlet macaws flew overhead.  Not something you experience everyday.





These little guys were all over in Punta Leona as well.  It's fun to be surrounded by wildlife that we only know as being the inhabitants of a zoo.

The university did not have any classes during Semana Santa (Holy Week), so my family (and girlfriends) decided to take the opportunity to visit.  It was an unbelievable week and I am very happy that they could come.  It split the 6 months in half, essentially, and made being away from home much easier.  I wish my other brother Tom and soon-to-be sister-in-law Mallory could have made it, though!

During that week, I went canyoning with my brothers and the girls which ended up being one of my favorite things that I did during the whole trip.  We followed rivers through the rainforest, and when we came to a waterfall, we repelled down/jumped off of them.  It didn't seem like it was real.

The Larkin family rendition of the "You Could Be Here" ad...  

Submit applications for the "empty spot" HERE [link].

Volcán Arenal, from Semana Santa as well.  It is the most picturesque of the three volcanos that I went to, and probably the most popular in the country.

 

My favorite mammal, the howler monkey.  I saw three different types of monkeys while I was here, but I liked these the most.  They are super loud and kind of scary-sounding, but I think that's why I like them.  Speaking of, if you missed my wildlife compilation from a few posts ago [link], feel free to check out my favorite species of everything that I have encountered.  It's at the bottom of the post.

Manuel Antonio National Park: one of the more touristy places in the country, but for good reason.  It's a fantastic combination of rainforest and beach, and the nightlife was great.  Manuel Antonio was both my first and my last trip; a fitting way to go out.

A picture of the Pacific coast near Jacó from the drive back from one of my Natural History field trips.

Hummingbirds comprise a big part of my newly formed bird obsession.  This picture is from Las Cataratas de la Paz, where they had a few exhibits of various mammals, birds and reptiles, one of which was dedicated to hummingbirds.  I waited for about 30 minutes to get this picture... time well spent.

The most incredible sunset I have ever seen was at Santa Teresa.  I ended up taking about 300 pictures of it, and on a return trip to Mal País (just down the road, literally), I took probably another 400 between two nights.  The towns by these beaches were also my favorite because they were super relaxed and run by surfers.  Lots of European and American influence as well.  If I could choose where to live in Costa Rica for a year, it would be in this area, where I would work at a hostel or little restaurant while learning how to surf.  That's my fallback plan anyway, should dental school not work out.

If you have read my other posts, then you already know this little guy: the Blue-jeans poison dart frog.  Definitely my favorite that I saw, since I never got the chance to see a Red-eyed tree frog [link].  All the more reason to make a return trip (well, that, and to go to Corcovado National Park, which I didn't get a chance to go to... let's not talk about it, there's a good chance I will cry).

Our trip to Mal País surprised us with a surf competition for two days.  Some of these guys were amazing (not that it comes as a surprise).

Mo' monkeys, mo' problems.




If you are still reading and the last song is over, here is one more [link], should you want more music!  Probably will be the song that I drive into Lawrence to. #kubball #FOE

Here is a fallen tree that we came across during another one of my Natural History field trips that made a bridge over a creek.  It was really interesting to learn about the dynamic of all of the different types of forests in the country, as well as Central America in general.

The Violaceous Trogon, cousin of the Resplendent Quetzal [link].  The Quetzal is the other species of animal (other than the Red-eyed tree frog) that I did not see, and really badly wanted to.  Just adding to my list of "Why to come back to Costa Rica"...  Needless to say, the list is too long to even write out.

What is studying abroad without taking Wheel staff shirt pictures?  The one on the left is from a National Park during one of my field trips, and the other is on a beach inside Manuel Antonio National Park.

Another one from Santa Teresa.  God has a pretty remarkable canvas to work on, and he is quite the painter.

Some international students watching a Costa Rican soccer match.  We are at a friend's apartment, Arthur, who we became good friends with after a few of the others in Grupo had a language class with him the first month.  Hopefully I get a chance to go visit him in Germany someday.














Fun fact about the UCR campus: most schools have squirrels, they have sloths.  I took this right outside of the biology building right before leaving for our last Natural History field trip.  Again, not something that you can see in Kansas (or, at least that I know of).

Last weekend, a few of us went to a nice dinner at a restaurant that looked over the San José valley.  Lainey was leaving a little earlier than us, so we all went to celebrate our time here and indulge a little with steaks, wine and cocktails.  The view was absolutely beautiful, and I ended up having some fun with the reflections on the window of the table inside.

Definitely one of the cooler things I have participated in in my life was the hummingbird field study that we did for another Natural History field trip. We caught the birds, measured their beak length, wing length and shape, and weighed them.  We also took pollen samples from their beaks and neck to compare with pollen samples from flowers in the area.  The report was all about pollination by the hummingbirds, so we factored in their beak size, etc. to tie together which species were pollinating which types of flowers, and which were visiting feeders more often.  These birds were unbelievably colorful, and being able to handle them is something that I will never forget.

One more from Santa Teresa, and possibly my favorite.  Getting to catch surfers on their way home after an evening surf session with this sunset in the background was a fun challenge, and made for a great setting for a picture.

The whole Grupo (with our "parents") at the coffee plantation in Cartago.  I'm going to miss every one of these people (as well as Zaida and Isa), but know that we will all be together soon.  It has been an experience that I really can't put into words and these are the people that made it so special.

Again, I cannot say "thank you" enough times to these people.  This has been the best experience of my life, and a large part of that is because of my host family.  I'm so fortunate to have met them, and very thankful that I will always have family in Costa Rica.  Pictured from left to right: Monica, Tavo, Milena, Gerardo and Felicia (and me).

And so, after consuming about 75 total pounds of rice and beans, close to 100 liters of coffee and more fresh fruit than I could ever hope for, it’s time to depart from the country that has given me so much more than just a place to live (and to eat) in 2013.   The “pure life” philosophy, however, will be something that I will be taking back to the United States…  a simple reminder to step back every once in awhile in this crazy world to realize all of the wonderful things in life and to not take them for granted; to slow down a few moments every day to appreciate the company of friends and family and to make the most of those memories together; and most of all, to explore this planet as a whole, to see all of the places and cultures it has to offer, each with their own unique version of la pura vida.

So thank you, Costa Rica, for the wild, life-changing ride, and hopefully see you again soon.

Why do you go away?  So that you can come back.  So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors.  And the people there see you differently, too.  Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving. 

--Terry Pratchett