I just felt my first earthquake! It’s the second earthquake that hit Costa Rica today, but it’s the first one that I felt. It wasn’t too strong; it felt more like I was in a tall building getting blown around by the wind. Apparently the earthquake hit somewhere in southern Costa Rica, and we got the after shocks.
Teaching is turning out to be a little harder than I thought it would be. I think I’m trying to cram too much stuff into each day; there’s a lot of stuff to cover in the book, but I guess I don’t need to cover every little bit. One thing that really frustrates me is the kids that just sit there and say, “No entiendo” (I don’t understand) without even trying to understand. I guess I need to work on being more patient with my students. Fortunately Alexandra, the other English teacher, is being very patient and helpful with all of the questions I am asking her. I’m also finding out that writing lesson plans takes a long time; I am supposed to write lesson plans each week for all of my classes, and I’m hoping that I will get faster as the year goes on.
This past weekend I went to the Poas Volcano in Alajuela with Theresa and her brother Joe. The volcano was an incredible sight, and thankfully it wasn’t cloudy when we got there. A little later, the clouds set in and we couldn’t see the volcano at all, but I was able to get a few good pictures before the clouds came. There was some fog coming out of the volcano that made it look really cool. The volcano is in the province of Alajuela, which is where the earthquake hit the hardest this past summer. There was still a lot of damage that was easily visible as we drove up the mountains; lots of homes had roofs that were hanging off the building, and there were lot of piles or rubble. On the bus ride there, I ran into a girl who is from Lawrence and is studying in Costa Rica for a semester. It was pretty funny running into someone from Kansas all the way down here. We stopped and got some Gallo Pinto for breakfast: beans and rice served with an egg; it’s a typical breakfast in Costa Rica. It’s kind of weird having beans and rice for breakfast, but it actually tastes pretty good.
The Poas Volcano
They had funny looking squirrels at the volcano.
A lake near the volcano
Gallo Pinto with an egg and tortilla
On Saturday night, the two most popular futbol teams in Costa Rica played each other: Saprissa and La Liga. I really wanted to go to the game, but I wasn’t sure how to get to the stadium. Hopefully I can make it to a futbol game one of these days. I was able to watch the game on TV, and it was pretty close, until Saprissa scored in the 91st minute, sending them to a 2-1 victory. Saprissa is probably the best team in Costa Rica, so I was rooting for La Liga, the underdog! I told my landlady that I was cheering for La Liga, and she got mad at me. Apparently I’m supposed to cheer for Saprissa since I live in the province of San Jose; only people who live in the province of Alajuela can cheer for La Liga. I think I’ll still cheer for La Liga, though.
Hey, Seth! It's great to keep up with you via your blog. We sure miss you at church, but we know that God is and will do great things through you in CR. We are praying for you daily!
ReplyDeleteLesson planning WILL get faster. I promise. But the patience thing, that one I haven't mastered yet. I think I've just become better at masking my impatience. Good luck with that one. Wow! What a big task you have taken onto yourself. Lots of classes keeps you hoppin' but you will also never be bored. Some days you will even dream about being bored ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing. It is too bad about the basketball, because, you know, Pitt's going all the way this year ;)
-mandi
Hi Seth, you're an American. You go ahead and cheer for La Liga or whoever you want!
ReplyDeleteIt's great to hear all about stuff in CR. God bless you with all those class preps, not to mention the teaching! I hope it's going better by now. I know you are a blessing to the kids.
Mary Jane