So much has been going on that I’ve been putting off
blogging since I don’t even know where to begin. But.
Clearly the biggest event of the past month has been a visit from Mom!
While we had arranged for me to meet her at the resort the
day after she arrived, she was flying all the way to Costa Rica to see me…least
I could do was meet her at the airport!
Well, she saw me (after literally being the last person off the plane
just to torture me with anticipation…) and she kept on walking. Now, I’ll admit I look a bit different. My
skin is by far tanner than it ever has been and Mom has only seen my fauxhawk
in person for about 3 days before I left the states…but comeon Mom, I was even
wearing my lime green “Jersey Girl” t-shirt!
So I finally screamed, “Need some help with all that luggage?!” which
made her give me a second look and it slowlyyyyy dawned on her that it was
me. She of course broke down in tears as
I ran over for a hug and I hope I gave her a welcome to remember.
She made it!
We headed off to her resort and I proudly conversed with the
busetta driver in Spanish on the way. HE
understood me…unlike some of the people I live with. I was for sure showing off for Mom, but it
was good practice, which would continue throughout the week at the resort. While my so-so Spanish doesn’t impress people
in my site or in Santa Cruz, my attempts at the resort were a completely
different story. I suppose they’re used
to traveling Gringos who don’t speak any Spanish, so everyone seemed impressed
with my mas o menos conversational skills and then got extremely interested
when I would mention that I live about an hour away. Many of them with children thanked me for
being a volunteer in their country and I even made a few Tico Facebook friends
during the week.
While I was of course ecstatic to see Mom, I was also quite
excited for the 2 full suitcases of things she brought me. Of course there was a delicious assortment of
all my favorite foods (including 3 bottles of different buffalo sauces), but
most importantly she came bearing a much more appropriate wardrobe for me. I don’t think I would have lasted one more
day in pants and polos at school. She
did a fantastic job of picking out clothes to my specifications of “no sleeves
& it can’t touch me” and I can certainly attest that the Bermuda shorts and
no sleeve shirts have made all the difference in surviving the heat at school & in Guan in general.
Better than Christmas!
While Mom was here, she wanted to meet all my new PCV
friends I talk to her about all the time and of course make sure everyone was
well fed. My friends made the trek from
all over Guanacaste to meet in Tamarindo (a very touristy beach town that I
figured would be much more up Mom’s alley than a “real” Costa Rican town). It was a fantastic day with both friends and
family and I was so glad Mom got to meet some of the people that I’ve become so
close to over these past 5 months. My
hope for the day was that she walked away realizing that I’m surrounded by
amazing people down here that make every day so much easier than if I was going
through this crazy adventure alone.
Mom, Me, & Some Awesome PCVs
While I would consider our day in Tamarindo a great success,
I’m not sure I would classify our day drip to my site as such.
I had been debating bringing Mom to the Cac
or not, but heck, was she really going to come all the way to Costa Rica and
not see where I’m going to be living for the next 2 years?
So I hired a pirate taxi (I floated the idea
of taking public buses but I think Mom just assumed I was kidding) and we were
off to Santa Cruz.
Mom may have shed a
few tears upon seeing my actual site, but I think the warm welcome at my school
softened the blow a bit.
After the
school visit, it was on to my house for lunch with my host family and thank
goodness I
have a visiting Aunt who speaks English so my translation skills did
not need to be tested. Afterwards we
headed into Santa Cruz to walk around a bit, grab a smoothie, and chat with the
PCVs who live there, Erin & Braden.
It was a pretty quick stop, and I suspect that Mom was anxious to get
back to the resort and hop in the pool after a day of no air conditioning in
the heat of Guanacaste.
Me, Host Aunt, Host Mom, & Mom
A conversation I was realllllly hoping to avoid came later
that afternoon when Mom tried to rub what she thought was dried sunscreen off
my shoulder. When it didn’t come off,
she looked at my quizzically and I simply said, please don’t ask me what that
is. Of course, that didn’t work and I
had to proceed to explain that most of us PCVs living in the heat of Guanacaste
have a bit of fungus going on. It simply
can’t be avoided and only appears as some white dots in various places on our
bodies. I do have a bit on the side of
my face that I would like gone, but the specks on my shoulder aren’t too big of
a concern…to me at least. Mom freaked
just a bit and I think just tried to ignore it for the rest of our time
together.
Overall, it was an amazing week filled with fantastic food
(ZERO rice and beans), air conditioning, comfortable beds, a language I
can actually speak, and a heck of a lot of hugs.
I so appreciate you flying
down here to see me Mom! I loved getting
to be on vacation and enjoy some first-world accommodations but it was also
really great to be able to show Mom a bit of what my life is like down
here. Perhaps the most meaningful part
of the trip came at the end though when Mom (probably dead serious) offered to
buy me a plane ticket to just go back with her and it was in that moment that I
realized while I miss so many people and things in the US, I really had no
desire to take her up on her offer. Life
is tough sometimes down here and I certainly get lonely, but on the whole, I’m
extremely happy being here surrounded and supported by great new friends and a
community that both wants and needs me here. It’s only the beginning and there
is a lot of work ahead, but right now, I’m happy and content and that is for
sure a great feeling.
See you soon for Christmas Mom!
