1. Friday- During class on Friday, all the Spanish classes had a fair. There were about 150 Spanish students and we all did skits and spoke Spanish. I dressed up as a tourist. My teacher found it really really hilarious. Normally I'm not very close with teachers because I'm intimidated by authority, but he's the first teacher I've really bonded with on a friendship level (besides Mrs. Liranzo). Anyhooters, I look forward to that class because he's so funny and thinks I'm funny and generally understands everyone in the class on a very human level.
Friday afternoon we headed to Manuel Antonio or "Mantonio" as nicknamed by our dear friend Tom (a very fitting nickname because it has a lot of gay tourists). We went in a group of 14 and stayed in one room. Going into it, I was positive I wouldn't get very much sleep because people would be up late going crazy, etc, etc. BUT it turns out they were all really cool so I wanted to stay up late with them and hang out.
On Friday night I had a ton of energy because I was really enjoying the company of everyone. Our hostel was a little far away from bars or nightlife, so a group of about 8 of us set out on an adventure to find a salsa bar. Along the way, we met two guys from Argentina who were staying at the hostel next door. They told us they were on the same mission, so they joined the pack. At a certain point, a lot of people decided they were really tired from their school week and turned around to go home. So, that left me with two girls from our group and the Argentineans. One of them, Brenda, is from El Salvador and the other one, Azul, is from Mexico. The Argentineans then suggested we go to the Carnival in Quepos (the next town over). So, we hopped in an unmarked cab (wouldn't suggest doing this although it is WAY cheaper) and went to the Carnival. It was really fun to hang out with foreigners. I also had a lot of fun because I was with people who spoke fluent Spanish and I felt really safe. They bargained with the vendors and I got a cheap pair of sunglasses and it was just great. It's funny to hear Argentineans speak because it's a little bit more like the Spanish accent. They say every "ll" as a "j", which was cool to hear in person. When we headed back to the hostel it was about 2 am, and just so everyone knows... I was the last one out (along with Brenda and Azul). That is a personal record so far on this trip, so I'm very proud of myself. It was a really good night.
2. Saturday. On Saturday we woke up early and headed to Manuel Antonio National Park. The park was cool, but at the same time a little weird. It's the biggest tourist attraction in Costa Rica. There were Americans at every turn which for me is less appealing. I like to feel like I'm in a different country. Also, the big attractions about the park are the animals and really pretty beaches. So the beach was really nice because it was calm, but there were so many people. There were also a ton of monkeys, but it was kind of sad because they're not really phased by people. For example, this was my proximity to the monkey:
A monkey.
View of the beach through the trees.
After a day at the beach/ nat'l park on Saturday, we watched the sunset and had a barbecue at the hostel.
It was really fun because everyone was interested in bonding rather than getting really drunk. Which for me is what makes these trips the best. So after hanging out for a bit, I decided to go to bed. I was settling down when my friend Azul came in on the shoulders of an extremely tall guy from Holland. It was funny at first, so I took a picture, but then it got really sketchy.
Azul said "okay put me down now", but he laughed it off and said, "no let's go to a bar". Then she said "no, no, I'm tired, just put me down" and he made a joke saying he had knee problems and couldn't let her down. Then he turned around and started leaving the room with her, and the started grabbing on the the top of the door frame and said "no, no, put me down!!". At this point, we became aware that the situation wasn't fun for her anymore. A few guys from our group went over and offered to help her down, but the Hollander started walking away. Then all 5 of us outside of our room started yelling at him to put her down. One of the guys started talking to him, saying "okay, dude, this is not cool, let her down." Then he started trying to walk away and Azul started yelling and a guy from our group grabbed on to her and we all started walking with them. THEN, he started running down the hill with her which got a little more dramatic. We collected a few more people from our group and started chasing after. FINALLY, about 100 meters up the hill, the guys in our group started getting more aggressive about the fact he needed to let her down. They stood there for a few minutes and negotiated with him and at last, he let her down. The whole time I really got the Russel Turner vibe from him. Like "I'll pretend to be cool and I'll pretend this isn't a big deal, but really, I'm super creepy".
3. Sunday- Today we went to Manuel Antonio beach where we had another fun adventure. Jen and I were lying on the beach when all of a sudden we heard screams coming from the water. I saw a girl flailing because she had gotten caught in the riptide. NOTE: this exact same thing happened when we stopped at Manuel Antonio beach our first weekend here, except there were lifeguards. So all of a sudden, I saw a guy (Steve) from our group swim really quickly over to the girl and pulled her to shore. I'm pretty sure he completely 100% saved her life. Her family was around her, but apparently they were all crying and screaming because they didn't know how to swim very well. When the girl got on shore she passed out from exhaustion. This is a picture of the scene that gathered around her. They are really into blatantly gawking here.
The bus ride home was a brutal 5 hours and I saw two people throw up from motion sickness. But as usual all the discomforts that arise during such travels quickly disappear when I arrive home to the delicious food cooked by Mama Myrna. Overall, the good company this weekend made everything so much more fun.
Also, fun fact: today, we were on a really cramped bus ride from the beach to the main bus station and people weren't scooting back. So I yelled from the front of the bus "Will you guys move back?!" then, when they didn't listen I yelled the same phrase in Spanish and a few seconds later they started moving. How fun!
Amazing tale, Raquelita. Thanks for getting it to press so promptly. Hoping to hear from you tomorrow! Love, M/V
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