La Fortuna

First of all, my battery charger for my laptop died. I have been without my computer for 2 weeks! Luckily, my lovely roommate is coming to visit this Sunday and bringing me a replacement! I am hoping she is bringing a really big suitcase because my "needs" list is rather lengthy!

School is going quite well; my kids are really fun. The other morning some boys were playing at the window (I'm on the first floor.) One boy was 'attempting' to pull the other through the slot in the window. Well, in walks one of my students with the pane of glass in his hands. "Ummm, Ms. Knudson, I think the glass broke." "Really, you think it broke?" Boys.

 The one tricky thing thus far has been the pharmacy. The problem probably comes for the fact that we just walk in without thinking anything through. Well my first encounter went something like this: Molly and I walk in and she tells the woman I need a pill. Then they both look at me and I say, "No bebes." It got the point across!

So the crew took our first vacaction this last weekend. We went to La Fortuna to visit Arenal, an active volcano. The ride up there was quite an experience. We took the city bus and there were moments when the woman next to Liz was praying for the bus driver to slow down. I mean, we only almost went off the edge about 3 times. Pura Vida!

Ahh, Pura Vida. The official slogan for Costa Rica. We have taken to saying it for any odd occurrence. -Should my chicken be this color? Pura Vida! -What exactly is this I'm about to order? Pura Vida! (turned out to be stomach! Thank good we didn't get it!) -Is the water safe to drink here? Pura Vida! You get the point!

Our trip was amazing. We first went to a waterfall and swam in the rain. After that, we went on a hike to see Arenal. It would have been the perfect clear evening to see the lava flowing down at night, but one of our crew got bit by ants and poofed up!!! We took an emergency trip to the pharmacy where they'll take you behind a curtain and shoot you up! Luckily he made a speedy recovery and was able to join us at the hot springs. We went to Baldi where they  have lots of pools full of water from hot springs. The higher up you go, the hotter the water. That was a lot of fun. We ordered our first round of drinks and the bartender never really returned. "Should we just leave without paying?" Pura Vida! That night we took a 'party bus' to the bar and danced the night away! For some of us, the ride home the next morning wasn't so pleasant!

Tomorrow we are off to take in the excitement of the Costa Rica vs Mexico soccer game! I am sure some craziness will ensue...fear not Mom, I will look out for everyone ;) Until next time...