Now that I have had the pleasure of spending one week here in Costa Rica I am convinced of this: it is beautiful! I constantly find myself enchanted by my surroundings, captivated by their ever-evolving splendour. It is a refreshing reminder of God’s glory, a minor glimpse of heaven seeping through what is known to be a greatly impoverished country. Interestingly enough, there is nothing glamorous about Costa Rica in the slightest. When one has lived life equating beauty with perfection this place does not reach anywhere near the normal standards. However, it holds its own standard altogether. Upon taking a very interesting route home from the beach this afternoon we drove through miles and miles of lush, green, mountainous terrain, floating above clouds and land while encompassed by God’s untouched creation. Flowers grew without restraint, rivers ran without disturbance and wild butterflies glided gracefully, weaving through the quiet bustle of the rainforest. Lacking the towering skyscrapers of Vancouver and the forged lighting of the city, it was an incredible introduction to something that was beautiful untouched.
One of the smaller goals of my list of things “to do in life” was to re-work my idea of beauty. This was partly because I somehow felt I did not fully understand or perhaps I did not (maybe still do not) know what beauty truly is. I feel that somehow I have been shown a poisoned image of beauty to live up to, one which is almost impossible to obtain by its own standards. Therefore, it is both refreshing and captivating to be blessed with such a beautiful location to live in. That is all!

The Mad Dash

I should actually be doing the insane amounts of homework that I have during this minor moment of free time but I have decided that after 4 straight hours of Spanish class... a day... that it would be much more productive to blog!
The Costa Rica style of driving is one that both is thrilling and life-threatening; thrilling if you are in a car and life-threatening if you are anywhere else (apart from the safety of your own home... yet even still). My first moments in Costa Rica included a very fast-paced education on the rules of the road. Firstly, a small community closed down a section of the highway in order for the children to play on it, leaving everyone to reroute and causing great amounts of traffic. It struck me as so strange that that would be allowed and even odder, that it is common. Secondly, by law, the pedestrians do not have the right of way here. Now, for those of you who know my common theory (that I am certain others share), I believe that cars will stop while crossing the road. Perhaps, not even out of courtesy but at the very least a common respect to not kill pedestrians. However, this is not so. Friendly walking icons that illuminate and chirp to signal a safe time to walk, thick white lined cross-walks providing a protected walkway of peace and bright-vested road crossing governers have all yet to make it to the lovely place of Costa Rica. Much like playing “frogger”, one must dart across the road when an opening appears, trying not to hit the cars or... let the cars hit onesself. You may imagine this as a fun sort of activity filled with laughter and good times with fellow foreigners but it actually very much resembles trying to avoid the possibility of death. Just imagine trying to cross four lanes of cars that disregard the thought to stop upon seeing a person in their path.

New Beginnings

I finally arrived! After months and months of planning and anticipation I made it. Costa Rica is not quite what I had expected it to be. The campus is a lot bigger than I had thought and the overall atmosphere is different than expected. I had this image in my mind of what it would be like, how it would be difficult to adjust to the lifestyle. However, I cannot exactly describe it, but there is a overwhelming sense of peace that cascades over this place. Upon arrival I was not nervous or intimidated but actually felt very at home here. The people are really great so far and although my language skills are not so great yet, communication between the two cultures appears to be going okay. The water tastes weird here, not bad, it just has a flavor to it. So far i have not encountered any out-of-the-ordinary wildlife but I am sure it will happen soon. I have been told that there are taratulas here (big brothers of my greatly feared friends, spiders) and so my first encounter with one of them will be more than interesting... i will keep you posted.