Estoy en Costa Rica!

I am FINALLY here and not only healthy but so excited and happy to be here doing what I am! Here is a quick rundown of the past week to get you up to speed:

I made it to Washington, DC on March 9 for staging after a slight anxiety attack that morning before leaving. Though it was very sad to say my final goodbyes at the airport and the days leading up to it, I was excited to begin my adventure.

In DC, it was so fitting and exciting to have the time to explore the Mall before getting started. Seeing the Capitol building, Lincoln Memorial, and White House for the first time was great, just before I left the country for over two years. The other exciting part about staging was just starting to meet the other 52 amazing people who would make up Tico 19.

After a 1:30am (!) checkout of the hotel, no sleep, and lots of waiting at the airport (the fun scene to the right), we were on our flights to Costa Rica. We arrived in the late morning of March 11 in Costa Rica, sleep-deprived and weary, but so thrilled. We were finally there after all the endless preparations!

They loaded us and our luggage to take us to our retreat in the mountains (pictured to the left) for a few days of introduction to Peace Corps and what the next 27 months would hold for us. They were days full of information and questions. Though we were definitely sheltered and didn’t get to experience much of Costa Rica during this time, it was so amazing to get to know the rest of Tico 19. I can see how they will be a great source of endless entertainment, support, and friendship these next two years and beyond. There are some very astonishing people here with me! I also got a little bit of information about the program I will be working with – the Community Economic Development program. It sounds like it will involve work with micro-financing, small businesses, and entrepreneurs. It sounds like such a perfect fit for me and I am so thankful that I am getting this kind of opportunity to use my skills in such an amazing way!

The amazing Tico 19!

Then sooner than I realized, we were off to our training communities, where we will be staying for the next 11 weeks until we swear into PC officially on May 29. Here we will be getting intensive language, technical, cultural, etc training. I am so excited about my new Tico family! My ‘Mama Tica’ is younger than my sisters and so spirited and kind – I already love her. And I also finally have some younger sisters! I now have little sisters that are 8 and 3 years old. They are so cute and fun, I love being a big sis. They have made me feel so welcome, and I am so thankful to have such an awesome family!

These are my cute little sisters

And mi Mama Tica

The community itself is so precious. It is in the mountains (1,800 meters altitude) and there are beautiful views everywhere I look. It’s pretty small (I’ve heard estimations of the population ranging from 500 to 1,200) with some really neat small businesses. There are 3 other PCVs from my program here and the rest of the PCVs in my program are in the surrounding communities. I am very excited for all our training and I can already see how much my Spanish will improve here. While I still get frustrated or can’t understand sometimes, I often find myself thinking in Spanish and understanding most conversations. But I have lots to learn about Spanish, as well as all the technical subjects and the culture and everything else. I am so excited for everything that lies ahead and am so thankful that I have this opportunity. I really feel like I am in the best place for me in my life right now.

I miss you all! Please keep in touch! Pura Vida!

Bienvenidos

Welcome to my blog! I am leaving for Peace Corps Costa Rica next month and I figured this is the best way to keep everyone updated on my adventures without flooding everyone’s inboxes. I can’t promise how much access I’ll have to the internet, but I’ll try to keep it up to date.

So now for the details to get you up to date on what in the world I am doing:

First of all, for those of you who don’t know, the Peace Corps (PC) is a governmental agency started by JFK in 1961 to promote international understanding and peace. PC sends educated Americans to participating countries to aid in development in a wide variety of areas including Education, Health, Agriculture, Environment, Business, and more. Each volunteer serves for 27 months, living with the locals, speaking the language, and hopefully helping the community in which they serve. For more info: www.peacecorps.gov

For those of you who know me, know that I have wanted to do this for quite a few years now. I first started seriously considering PC when I went on Semester at Sea and experienced some new cultures, saw a lot of need, and wanted to have a more immersive and significant experience in a foreign community. I really decided PC was for me when I went on a 2 week trip to the Philippines with a group to help a Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) who was stationed there. It was great to see how integrated she was in the community, speaking Tagalog, interacting with the community, and really making a difference.

Now I am going to be serving in Costa Rica as a Micro-Enterprise Advisor with the Community Economic Development (CED) program. I will be leaving March 9, attending a brief orientation in Washington DC, then flying with 52 other volunteers to Costa Rica for 11 weeks of intensive language, technical, cultural, etc training. During training, they will interview me and match my skills to the needs of a certain community where I will be placed for 2 years.

While I have a ‘job title’ I’m still unsure what my exact duties or projects might be until I arrive. But in general the CED program promotes entrepreneurial development by helping develop skills or enhance access and interest, especially for women and youth. They also stress the importance of environmental and social responsibility. I could be helping entrepreneurs start up a business, helping improve small businesses, teaching English or technical skills, or any myriad of other possibilities. I am so excited to be able to use my Industrial and Systems Engineering degree (which is basically a business and engineering degree in one) for something that seems to match my passions for international awareness, environmental responsibility, and mico-financing principles.

As for location, as I mentioned, I will not know where I will be living until training. But I will be in a rural or semi-rural community so it will most likely not be in the tourist hot-spots or ultra developed areas. I just hope that I will be able to access the internet and maybe some salsa dancing every once in a while. I definitely can’t wait to experience the Pura Vida I’ve heard so much about.