full calander

It's been a while since I've updated this thing, but not because we've been idle. During the week, Mitch stays busy with his job (oh! I haven't told you! He's a Landman--does land and mineral rights research for oil and gas companies), and I stay busy looking for jobs and being frustrated with my lack of luck. Since being back down in Bryan, we've been doing something every weekend. I'm mad at myself for not having pictures from all of our recent events, but I suppose I have enough to fill up a page for now.

We went to the Great East Texas Hot Air Balloon Race.

We floated the Guatelupe River with Josh (friend from high school) and Bugsy.

We enjoyed Dad's company on his trip down here.

We joined Becca (a good friend from college) and friends in Austin to celebrate her 25th birthday.

We went wine tasting with Becky (Mitch's mom) at Messina Hof.

We joined Andrew (a good friend from college) and friends in Dallas to celebrate his 27th birthday after which we stayed with Dillon and Alex (friends from college, Mitch's friends from high school) and got to hear some of his new and awesome songs.

We took Jax (Mitch's nephew) to the park then played in the water with him back at our house.

We canoed all day on Caddo Lake in East Texas. I didn't take my camera out on the lake because I was nervous about the possibility of dumping the canoe, but I got this picture from this website so you can see how beautiful this place is. It's the only natural lake in Texas, and the Cypress trees are unbelievable.

We've been on the go since being back, but it's been wonderful to see good friends and cool places. I missed my friends and family so much while I was away from Texas, and now that I'm back for a bit, I'm going to enjoy them as much as possible.

my resume

I'm down in College Station now on the job hunt! It's a little slow now, but I am hopeful. One important thing that I have learned over the past couple years is that I must be doing a job I love. Something I am passionate about and that is well worth my time. Something that requires helping people and not sitting behind a desk all day. Something that makes me and those I work with smile daily. Something great.
One program that I've been observing over that past 15 or so years because of my mom's involvement is CASA. It's a non-profit organization that helps children who have been removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect through the legal/social services/foster systems. I would love to be a part of it, so I'm trying to get my foot in the door with that. Other than that, I wouldn't mind moving back to Costa Rica (without having to work) for a living.

I'm picky, but I am open to suggestions!

tradition

Growing up, my mom always looked forward to the summertime, when she would get to spend the majority of the summer with her Grandma and Grandpa Heard in Guymon, Oklahoma. This is where she learned how to do many of the things that are so important to her now...like having a garden and canning.

Ever since I can remember, my summers have included lots of hours in the kitchen watching and helping my mom can all sorts of pickles, green beans, jellies, okra, peppers, and salsa. It has always been something I have looked forward to and appreciated (especially when it comes time to eating all the goodies).


This time when I was home, I was lucky enough to be there during the makings of plum jelly! More like yum jelly!

a medicine bag

A week or so before we left Costa Rica, we met Victor. He pulled up to our cabin one afternoon to ask us if he could borrow our surfboard. Since the board had some cracks in it, he was willing to repair those in return for a few days of using it. We quickly agreed, and while the board was being repaired, we were able to learn Victor's story.

He is on a journey from Michigan to the southern tip of Argentina on his motorcycle. He travels alone except when his brother flies down to meet up with him for a few weeks. He left without knowing any Spanish, but after spending some time in Mexico he's fluent. He carries a knife for protection, several wallets for when he's robbed, and a bag of medical supplies to earn his keep at various clinics and hospitals throughout the different coutries. He is a medical student taking a break from school, and he has been volunteering his time and knowledge in order to have a place to sleep and eat.

I visited with him for several hours one afternoon, and he told me all kinds of crazy stories. He's been robbed at gun point by dirty cops in Mexico, taken to jail in Belize for wearing a bandana on his head, and has come face to face with a jaguar in Guatemala (I think that's where it was). He has been on the road for about 10 months now, and he gets a bit homesick sometimes, but he is absolutely happy in life. He loves the excitement of discovering the unknown. He loves meeting people and seeing the genuine kindness that almost everyone he has encountered portrays. And he loves having the freedom to do whatever he wants to do on his motorcycle. He is certainly an interesting and inspiring person.

His website is www.dondeestavictor.com , and I think there is an online community somewhere that follows him. This is one way he makes contacts in different countries and knows where to go and even who to stay with.

CHOICES

One of the greatest things I have learned in my life is that since I am a human who was lucky enough to be born in the States, I can have the life I choose. If I am motivated, resourceful, self-disciplined, and focused I can do anything.

Life is awesome, and the world is full of beauty, but in order to enjoy these gifts, we have to make the choice to do so.

howdy

We're back in the Lone Star State, about to set sail on a 7 day cruise through the Caribbean with the Drennans. Some might say it's a tough life we live...having to leave Montezuma, Costa Rica to go on a Caribbean cruise.

bus tickets

We're packing up our cabina now. Our bus out of here leaves at 2:30 this afternoon. It's sad to pack up a place that you love so much and even though you're hopeful to return, you know there's a chance you'll never be back.I love this place. This morning, Mitch and I picked a grapefruit from the tree right next to our house and sat on our porch which overlooks the ocean to eat it. Off the top of my head I can think of lots of fruits and vegetables that grow pretty much right outside our door: lemons, grapefruits, mangoes, bananas, plantains, avocados, and papaya. Other than that, there are toucans, parrots, and parakeets that fly over us all day, iguanas that live on our roof, and monkeys that watch us from the trees above. The natural beauty here is unbelievable.

Also we've met some really great people. We met Jeff the first day we got here and immediately hit it off with him because he had just returned home from Korea as well. And Amanda came about a month ago as a new teacher at my school. We live next to each other, and she has been such a great neighbor and friend. The four of us often just sit on the porch in the hammocks and talk about how much we love Costa Rica. I'm sad to leave both of those people, but as I said earlier, I'm hopeful to return to see them again.

I guess this is just part of traveling: leaving behind wonderful places and people. It is better than never having experienced the places and met the people, though. :)

changes

Since the rainy season has begun, everything is beautiful around here (as I have probably stressed in previous posts). I love riding the 4 wheeler through the country to work every morning and looking at the amazing surroundings. It's unbelievably pretty. What I haven't realized is how much the scenery has changed since we arrived to Montezuma at the end of the dry season. It was pretty dusty, dry, and dead.


Now this place is abosolutely magical, and sometimes we just park the 4 wheeler on the side of the road to take in this place we're currently calling home. :)

a monkey video

We lived under the monkeys for 2 months. It was pretty much our evening entertainment to sit in our hammocks and watch them pass over our cabina. These are the Howler Monkeys. There are also lots of Capuchin Monkeys around here that we see regularly. In the video, you can also hear parrots in the background.

a view

The rainy season is here, and with that come a few facts that we just have to face. The first is that we often do not have electricity, which sets us free from the internet but also causes us to sleep in sweat because our fans don't work. The second is that the dirt roads here have gone from malo to terrible. These two things along with the excitement that Mom and Lindsey just spent a week here with us (more to come on that later :) ) are the reasons I haven't told you about our new cabina!


There's not much to tell about the actual cabina. It's simple and perfect. It's the location that is amazing. We sit up on a hill that overlooks the ocean. All throughout the day, we listen to the waves break over the beach. Also, the people who take care of the property are super nice. They are patient with our bad but improving Spanish, and they have an awesome dog that we've named Husk. They are always bringing us fresh fruits from the property...avocados, lemons, mangoes, and pipas (coconuts with milk still in them). Actually, the lemon tree grows right outside our back door, and Lindsey and I made freshly squeezed lemonade the other day with them. We love it here.


Only 2 more weeks before our time is up here. We have a few things that we're thinking about in order to be able to stay here for a while longer, but nothing is set in stone yet. Since being here, we have seen that good things are happening, but it's up to us to follow our intuition and benefit from those good things. Whatever needs to happen will happen. I think we neeeeed to stay here. :)

umbrellas

News Update:

No school because of 80 hours of rain is awesome, but after a while, we're all getting a little damp and moldy. This is true; everything we have is damp and our belts and shoes are even moldy. Gross. I'm ready for the sun to come out even if that means going back to school. However, it seems as though it will rain for a few more days before we see the sun.

As I stood in the Kitchen yesterday morning pouring my coffee, I felt the ground tremble. It was only for a few seconds, but I knew that it wasn't my imagination because all the dishes started rattling and the trees above us dumped a wave of water onto our cabin. My heart thumping so hard, I ran into our room to see if Mitch felt it, and he had no idea what I was talking about. He heard the water pour from the trees, but he didn't know why. It was an earthquake! No worries, we're all okay. :)

We're moving! One of the families that has their kids in my school owns some cabins, and they're giving us a really good deal on one. We will have to move out from underneath the monkeys, but we will have an ocean-view from our porch. Plus we get our own kitchen, a toaster (Mitch can make cookies!), a microwave, proper kitchen utensils, and a ceiling fan! All of these things are a big move up for us.

lava!

Mitch planned the most awesome birthday weekend for me that anyone could ever ask for. It started with a rental car which was a blessing in several ways: 1. It allowed us to drive anywhere (our 4-wheeler isn't street legal) without getting bugs and dirt in our eyes. 2. It had air conditioning! 3. We could bring as much stuff as we wanted instead of limiting it to a little backpack like usual.

He picked me up from school and we headed to Paqueres, where we barely caught the ferry to Punterenas. From there, we headed up to Lake Arenal where we had a room reserved at the Arenal Volcano Observatory Lodge. After lots of junk food and a few wrong turns, we finally made it to our destination. As we were checking into our lodge, we looked up and saw red lava and rocks pouring down this gigantic volcano! As we stood there in excitement, we could even hear the explosions of the rocks hitting the volcano. We fell asleep watching and listening to this unbelievable sight. And when we woke up, it was the first thing we saw.


The next morning, we had a delightful breakfast at our lodge, then we set off on an adventure through the jungle to a waterfall. We saw leaves bigger than Mitch's head!


A bug that could have eaten my hand for breakfast. This picture may be too small for you to see him, but he's latched on to that bright pink flower. He's called a Hercules Beetle. He was about 6 inches long!


And we fell in love with these trees that we called "Rainbow Trees". They look like they've been painted all colors of orange and green. They're beautiful.


We made it!


We kept saying that it's impossible to capture the magnificence of what we were seeing in a picture, and I feel sure that words don't do the trip justice. But it was truly amazing. Best birthday ever. :)

a book

I'm reading a book called Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel now. It's a magical book about love, romance, and food. It's such a wonderful book, and I highly recommend it. I read a passage today that is so perfect that I need to share it with you.

"My grandmother had a very interesting theory; she said that each of us is born with a box of matches inside us but we can't strike them all by ourselves; just as in the experiment, we need oxygen and a candle to help. In this case, the oxygen, for example, would come from the breath of the person you love; the candle could be any kind of food, music, caress, word, or sound that engenders the explosion that lights one of the matches. For a moment we are dazzled by an intense emotion. A pleasant warmth grows within us, fading slowly as time goes by, until a new explosion comes along to revive it. Each person has to discover what will set off those explosions in order to live, since the combustion that occurs when one of them is ignited is what nourishes the soul. That fire, in short, is its food. If one doesn't find out in time what will set off these explosions, the box of matches dampens, and not a single match will ever be lighted.
"If that happens, the soul flees from the body and goes to wander among the deepest shades, trying in vain to find food to nourish itself, unaware that only the body it left behind, cold and defenseless, is capable of providing that food. "

wings

Over the past week, we have been fortunate enough to enjoy Costa Rica's wildlife LIVE in the convenience of our own room. It started out with a huge moth (about the size of my hand) clinging to one of our walls. We were able to coax him out using a flashlight and a basket.

Then a couple mornings later we were enjoying our breakfast out on the porch, and a bird flew into our room. We always leave our door open during the day to light up the room. Mitch safely got the bird out using a broom, but we thought the bird was going to croak before he was able to find his way out. He actually passed out a few times before he flew out the door.

Then a couple evenings later, I walked into our room and a bat followed me in and started flying all around my head! Yeek! He was easier to persuade to leave after turning out our light...he just followed his ears to the next bright light with a bug party happening around it.

I haven't forgot about my blog or my readers (if I have any). Mitch and I have been busy wheeling around on our new ride, working, and studying Spanish. One reason that we chose to come down to Latin America was so that we could improve our Spanish. We mostly study alone, but we have been meeting one of my co-workers once a week for a language exchange (he is studying English). We're having lots of fun studying, but we're far from bilingual. :)

Hasta luego! More to come later...

keys!

Mitch picked me up from school on our new 4-wheeler today! This is such a relief because we don't live in town. We live about 2 miles from Cobano (where I teach) and about 1 mile from Montezuma (where the beach is). Doesn't sound like far, and it's not if you have a bit of time to kill. But it has made things like going to the grocery store a pain. Usually we are able to hitch rides into town, but you can't always rely on that! With our new wheels, we'll be able to zip all over this place.

Actually, we already did some exploring this afternoon. We rode up to some waterfalls that overlook the ocean and spent the afternoon lounging, swimming, and jumping off the rocks.

a sock

One of my favorite things to do in the morning, for several years, has been making coffee. I love everything about it. I love grinding the beans (when I can), scooping the grounds into the maker, listening to it brew, picking out my favorite mug, pouring the coffee, and sitting in peace to drink my coffee. This is a ritual that I look forward to doing every morning.

The process here is a bit more intimate. Our kitchen is just a screened-in porch with bats living on the back screen, and it's pretty scarce of electric appliances. So in order to make coffee, we boil the water and pour it through a strainer (which is a rigged-up sock and hanger).

It's delicious and peaceful just like I can make at home, but I have to say this is the first place I've ever had coffee with monkeys and iguanas!

markers and a spanish guide

In my week of observing my new school, I have not only been watching to see what the teacher does in class, but I've also been watching how the students and different teachers interact. Wow. The school seems to be almost opposite of the way Korean schools are ran, and it is quite different than anything I've ever imagined happening in a school at home. I don't know if it's just this school, or if it is Costa Rican schools (I'm told that it's just in this area), but I get the feeling that school is kind of optional. And if the kids do decide to come to school, class is optional. And if if the kids do decide to come to class, listening to the teacher is optional. So, as you might can imagine, the classroom is almost chaotic. Luckily, it's a private school, so there aren't too many kids. In most classes, there are 4 to 6 students. The small number of students make the chaotic feeling a little easier to control; however, no matter how many or few people you're trying to talk to, it's always frustrating when you have to dance to get their attention every time! It's not that the kids are bad--there are some really cool and sweet kids there; they just have a different idea of what school is I guess. And it doesn't help that "respectar" and "disciplina" aren't commonly used words or thoughts.

The school itself is a pretty neat place: concrete building painted green, no air-conditioning but fans in every room, not too many windows that close, a big open court in the middle that all the kids go play basketball, ping pong and foosball during their breaks. It is exactly how a school in a tropical area should be. Kindergarten through 10th grade attend. Kids from all different backgrounds. It really is a diverse and interesting environment.

baby monkeys

We arrived in Montezuma, Costa Rica yesterday evening. We were picked up by Stephanie (the girl who set me up with the job), and she brought us to our little cabina. We took a dirt road to get here. This morning we walked to the beach, and it took about 15 minutes. It's a quiet beach with a handful of shops and restaurants and bars scattered around. It's a beautiful place...well worth a visit!
Throughout the night, we heard monkeys howling. Actually I didn't believe they were monkeys until this morning when we went outside and saw about 6 of them hanging out in the trees that surround our cabina. As we watched them closely, we could see that several of them have little babies hanging on their bellies and backs!

#@$!@!$##^

3 days to go, and.....I GOT A JOB!

Dad says that's what he calls "cuttin' it close!"

I'll be teaching English at a school in Cabano, on the Peninsula de Nicoya (near Montezuma). All morning I've been thinking about how relieving it would be if I just had a job for sure...to take care of so many questions I have. And Pop! Stephanie emailed me and offered me the job! She's even helping us find a place to live! Cobano looks like a beautiful place...

days

5 days to go. Still no real plan. A couple of promising job options:

1) English teacher, $600/month, near Montezuma (on the Pacific Coast)
2) Bakery manager, $300/month, near Puerto Viejo (on the Caribbean Coast)

Hope to know more answers by Friday!

weight

There are six Grand Sumo tournaments every year, three of which are held in Tokyo. It was just our luck that one of them started the day we landed in Tokyo. Not knowing what to expect, we arrived at Ryogoku, the stadium, at 7:30am so that we would be sure to get tickets. The first bout started at 8, and the last was over around 7. You better believe that we stayed the entire time! 11 hours of pure entertainment.

The roof over the clay ring is designed after a Shinto shrine, Shinto being a spiritual practice in Japan.


These guys are gigantic, and one of the many interesting things about this tournament was that there is not a weight class. They divide the wrestlers into classification by experience. This meant that there were many bouts where there was at least a 100 pound weight difference between the opponents. We quickly learned that the winner of the ring was not always the biggest, and often it seemed like the bigger guy was at a disadvantage because he couldn't control his body movements.

Sumo wrestlers are very well respected and are almost regarded as royalty in Japan. This man turned and flashed a smile for us before his bout.


Having never seen a Sumo match, but knowing that they were a big (haha) deal, watching the ceremony and rituals for the first time was amazing. The wrestlers in the same class sit around the ring to wait for their turn to wrestle. Before the wrestler steps onto the ring, the referee (dressed in a traditional Samurai uniform) announces the wrestler by chanting his name. Each wrestler then steps onto the ring to begin his ritual. There is a box of salt in both wrestler's corner. They stretch, stomp their feet, slap their legs, and throw handfuls of salt into the ring in order to purify the ring and prepare for their bout. This ritual lasts anywhere from 15 seconds to 4 mintues (getting longer as the classes get more advanced). Finally, they stand on their designated marks and give each other the stink eye before they collide. A wrestler loses the bout by letting any of his body touch the clay mound on which they fight, whether it's his finger or his entire body or by stepping outside of the rope around the ring.

These are some of the top dogs. Their silk wraps they are wearing cost up to $6,000.

Here's where I was going to post a video that portrays some of the things I've tried to explain, but it's been uploading for about 7 hours now and still not complete. Maybe I'll try posting it on another day...

After the exciting day at the Sumo bouts, we walked out of the stadium to realize that it was raining, and we were without rain gear. We searched the perimeters for something that would work, and we finally found a man to help us (after a great sign language performance from Mom). With his help, we found some trash bags, tore holes in the top of them for our heads, and set out on our journey home in the fashion city of the world. We got quite a few looks and giggles. Actually on the way back to our hostel, we stopped at a McDonalds and ate a Texas burger! Do they even have those in Texas?


I think I fit right in with those Sumos.

a ticket

Mitch and I bought plane tickets to Costa Rica yesterday! We will be flying out of Texas on April 3. There are still a few important things we must do before these next two weeks are up:
1)figure out where in CR we want to live
2)find potential jobs (as Costa Ricans do not like to hire over the internet like Koreans do)
3)find potential apartments
While these things sound a bit overwhelming when talking about them, they are still do-able in two weeks. We've done lots of research and emailing to get a feel for what it might be like once we arrive.

More to come on our progress....

women of vietnam

On our trip into Vietnam, all four of us were in awe of the women--their strength, beauty, and grace. Loose-fit clothing, conical hat, strong shoulders, long black ponytail, curious eyes, bright smiles. They seemed to be the hard workers of the society, carrying around goods to sell or barter or working in rice fields while many of their male counterparts lounged on motorbikes or in hammocks.

Running the meat market in My Tho.



Selling handmade broomsticks and feather dusters in Ho Chi Minh City. Mom actually made it all the way through Vietnam, Thailand, and Japan with her broom!



Sweeping the sidewalk in Tay Nihn.



Cleaning the streets and gathering recyclables in Ho Chi Minh.



Giving boat trips through an area of the Mekong River in My Tho.



Selling fruit in Ho Chi Minh: lychees (red) and unknown (yellow)



Women working in a rice field. On the bus ride back to Ho Chi Minh City from the Cao Dai Temple in Tay Ninh.