Survived my first two weeks of training living with a host family in a town about an hour bus ride outside San Jose. I'm their fourth volunteer which makes the transition easier. They are all very nice and being surrounded by spanish can only help me learn. It's funny that no matter where you go and how different the culture is, mothers are still mothers, and kids are still kids. I've settled into a nice routine and so far all the food agrees with me, simple but tasty. I have classes Monday through Friday, and soon will have activities on the weekends too. Some times class feels like school again but thats usually just a sign that I need more coffee. It's a little weird for me to be sitting in a classroom that's not in a high school or university and to be learning to learn not just to pass a test. It's a good feeling. It's nice to be responsible for your own education and to be motivated to learn because you will need to the skills to excel in a job that is within sight. We went into San Jose in on Wednesday, it was weird being in a big city again. Especially one that's very different from NYC or Montreal, it was a good experience though and we got to go to the Peace Corps office.

Although it's only been about 3 weeks since I left it feels like more, probably because the two worlds are so different. It's hard to think that my friends and family are far away and that I'll be missing important parts of their lives. For the moment there is an internet cafe in my community and that helps. While NYC will always be my home, I'm really enjoying the change of scenery. To be surrounded by mountains instead of skyscrapers, fresher air, to see vast areas of green diversity and the odd farm animal. I've done a lot of walking, the roads are hilly because we're in the mountains but that just makes for better exercise. Even the busier road (no s) is beautiful and has its share of views, finally started to remember to always pack my rain jacket. 

I imagine that the arrival for a Peace Corps volunteer in any country must be surreal. After going through customs we were whisked to a retreat for orientation where as many questions where answered as news ones were created. The goals and methodology of our respective groups and the peace corps as a whole were drilled into our heads, as they most likely will be for the rest of training and after. It is easy to find solidarity in fellow volunteers that hail from all walks of life but are united by our incomprehensible decision to take the same path. Before we could get accustomed to what will in the months to come seem to be a cushy life at the retreat, we moved in with our host families in training communities that we will call home for the next 10 weeks. True to the Peace Corps philosphy of immersion and integration, it seems to work as I have spoken more spanish in the last couple days than in a year of class in high school. I would say more about visions and technical skills but I don't feel justified having spent barely a week here. No matter how much I would like to say different I am a beginner here, to the culture, to many of technical skills, and to the language but I'm excited and motivated to learn. Ultimately it was a week of firsts. It was the first time I considered myself to be moved out of my parent's house, because college doesn't really count. The first time I had gallo pinto and many other Costan Rican foods. So far I haven't found any that I dislike or had to deal with Montezuma's revenge, that probably isn't a politically correct term. I used my new rain jacket for the first of many times. I survived my first earthquake and my first ride on Costa Rican public transportation, both without injury. Maybe with time I'll grow tired of the rice and the beans and the rain, but for now it's all new to me and I'm looking forward to tomorrow and the days after.