Dia Numero Uno!

Today was not only my first day in Costa Rica but also my first day outside of the United States. Needless to say, it was very exciting! With that being said, it has also been very exhausting. I did not sleep much last night because I had to leave by 4AM in order to arrive at the airport on time. I am also a very nervous flier so I did not sleep on either of the flights. After our flights and the long lines at customs in the chaotic San Jose airport, I think we were all extremely exhausted but we all perked up because we had finally arrived in the beautiful country of Costa Rica. We were greeted by Justin and Christina who work for CPI. They’re energy and cheerfulness also helped pull us out of our exhausted state. The first thing we did was go get lunch – we were all starving! Seeing the town of Heredia as we drove to the restaurant was my first glimpse of Costa Rica. I have seen some pictures of Costa Rica and have heard lots of stories about how friendly the people are here but I still did not really know what to expect. The town is extremely populated and there were tons of little stores along with some American ones – Denny’s, Wal-Mart, Pizza Hut, etc. But at the same time, it seemed like they still had a very distinct culture of their own. The restaurant we went to for lunch had some tico dishes as well as some American ones. I order the quesadilla and it was muy delicioso! Our waitress was so very kind and patient. I work as a server myself and I imagined how frustrated and difficult it would be for me to wait on a table that only spoke Spanish. I really appreciated her patience. After we ate lunch, we went to the bank which is an extremely different experience than going to the American Bank. First of all, you have to walk through a detector on your way in and on your way out. There were guards and it was extremely quiet. Our next trip was to the market – this was my favorite part of the day. Under a large covered area there were dozens of individual vendors selling their fruits and vegetables that they grew themselves. There were so many tropical fruits that I had never even heard of and many of the fruits that are expensive in America (mangos, pineapple, bananas, melons) were sold for a very cheap price at this market. We all walked around and many of the people gave us samples of their fruits and vegetables. I tried so many new delicious fruits! Justin talked to us about how important a market like this is for Costa Rican culture. While there are American stores here like Walmart, where people can go buy any of the same goods, most ticos choose to buy it here. It preserves their culture and helps to keep the selling of locally grown produce prosperous. We finished the night off with a nice dinner and now I can barely keep my eyes open. In just one day here I have tried so many new delicious foods and gotten a glimpse at this beautiful city. I am truly excited to experience all the great things the rest of this trip has to offer. Buenos noches y Pura Vida!