The second half of training is going by a lot quicker than the first half. I went on a weekend trip to San Jose a couple weeks ago, it is really bustling in the day but at night the downtown area gets empty. I feel like I generally know my way around it now and feel comfortable getting around on my own. It was nice to get away from my training community for a bit and hang out with the other volunteers. The weekend after we used our other out-of-site weekend to go to Puerto Viejo in Limon, and that's how after over 2 months in Costa Rica I finally made it to the beach. It was interesting to see Limon, even if it was at more of a touristy spot. The beaches were beautiful and the weather was more or less agreable. I won't go into the bus ride, lets just say it was long but some things can't be helped, and there are going to be many more to come so there's no use complaining.

It's weird to think that 6 months ago I was still in Montreal. I miss it sometimes, the people, the city, not the winters though, it all feels so long ago and that makes me think about the things I did and wish I had done. And just when I was set on becoming a New Yorker again, bam I end up in Costa Rica. I don't mean to give off the impression that I'm anything but excited and happy to be here. I guess I'm only reminiscing because I found out my site for the next 2 years, and its hard to think about the future without considering the past. I like my training community and my host family, but I'm really excited to move on to the next part in my journey. I'm going to be living in the South of Puntarenas, in Piedras Blancas in the Osa Province. I'm excited about it just from looking where it is on the map and reading the info they gave me on the community, I can't wait to actually see it and live it.

Possible goals/non-work related ways to pass the time over the next 2 years: learn to surf, learn to play the guitar, study for the CFA (kind of boring but might keep me sane), get Messi good at futbol (thats soccer for you gringos), suggestions are welcome

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Went on a site visit to Guancaste last weekend. It was enlightening to see how different life is in more rural areas. It was good to talk to a current volunteer and get an impression of the challenges and opportunities that I may have to face in the future. I think what struck me the most was how people can adapt to technology but keep other elements, for example everyone seemed to have a TV but they still cooked on wood fires. It was also important to have something to compare life in my training communities to. Here everyone commutes to San Jose to work while the people in the town in Guanacaste still rely on fields and pastures to make a living and have a different set of economic and social issues. Guanacaste is beautiful too, a lot hotter though. I also got my first exposure to how much Costa Ricans love soccer. I heard it a million times but I didn't really believe it until my 2 hour car ride to another town, where they played and watched soccer for 6 hours, stopping only when it was too dark to see the ball.

The trip was exciting and informative. I thought that being in the campo and meeting new people would be my "welcome to costa rica," turns out my real "welcome costa rica" would be the trip back to my training community. A 6 hour return trip turned to 14 when the river flooded onto the road and the only bus leaving the site I visited decided that it wasn't up to crossing that day. After wading through the thigh high water, waiting for an hour for a bus to Santa Cruz, and waiting an another hour to get on the bus to San Jose I thought that I would at least be home in time for dinner. Only to be disappointed when a semi broke down at the entrance of bridge forcing the bus to find another way around, a detour that added 2 hours to the trip. The battery in my Ipod ran out shortly after. I got home late and tired, but not dejected or disillusioned instead proud that my spanish didn't fail me when I needed it and prouder still that when push came to shove I rolled with the punches and made it back.

I'm writing this on the 4^th, exactly a month after I got on a plane to Washington and started this 2+ year adventure. I found that I've really settled into life here. Heavy rains have caused all sorts of problems in Costa Rica, the least of which are that Peace Corp training classes have been canceled for the rest of the week. While school children nationwide are probably rejoicing I found myself disappointed. I was rather looking forward to the classes, so that I could work on my Spanish, see the other volunteers, and learn more about the country. I don't think 2 years will ever stop seeming like a long time but with each day I feel more prepared, more excited, and more confident that I will be a good PCV.