My name is Loren Coontz and I am currently studying abroad here in San José, Costa Rica. For my first blog post, I will give a little introduction about myself. I am currently a senior at Marietta and this is considered my final semester. On campus, I have previously served as an EXCEL leader, orientation leader, ARC exam proctor, and president of the sorority Alpha Xi Delta. I will be happily returning in June to attend Marietta's Physician Assistant Program!
I chose to study abroad in Costa Rica for multiple reasons. The first being that my program offered a Spanish course specifically for health care professionals. I am finished with my Spanish class now, but I learned how to assess patients in Spanish, which was pretty cool. I am also taking another health-related course. I also enjoy tropical areas and this program will allow me to return in time for graduation.
This blog post will mainly be a recap of my month and a half spent here so far. During this time, I have traveled to various locations in Costa Rica. My favorite places have been Manuel Antonio, La Fortuna, Monteverde, and Cahuita. I will include a couple photos from these places!
The first couple of weeks here were the most difficult in my opinion, but also the most exciting. I live with a host family who only speaks Spanish. My host mother is the sweetest person ever! She has taught us how to make empanadas and we helped her with a party for her grandson's baptism. When I refer to "we", I am referring to the other students who live with me in my home stay. In January, I had two Australian roommates who were amazing! Here is a photo of the three of us.
For February, I have another Australian roommate who is also wonderful. For meals here, I eat breakfast and dinner with my host family. I have been exposed to a lot of the Costa Rican food and I like it a lot! For breakfast, I usually eat an egg with gallo pinto. Gallo pinto is a typical Costa Rican breakfast food that is just a mixture of rice and beans. Another dish I really like is called a casado. It has rice, beans, plaintains (my favorite!) and your choice of eggs, fish, or a type of meat.
During the week, I attend classes Monday through Thursday at Veritas University. Last month I had Spanish in the morning every day from 8am-12pm and it was interesting since I have not taken Spanish since high school. I managed to still do well, even though the professor only spoke Spanish. The language barrier is probably the most difficult aspect of studying abroad that I have had to face so far. I have improved immensely though, especially since my host family is very understanding and helpful. They truly make me feel like family, which I believe is part of the Latin American culture.
In my free time, I enjoy going on runs and exploring the city with my friends. Surprisingly, a lot of students from the United States are also studying abroad here. I tend to hangout with them most of the time, but also try to make Tico friends! The word "tico" is another term for Costa Rican people. A lot of the ticos here speak English, but some do not.
Here is a photo of a park where I usually go on my runs!
There are a few of major differences compared to living in the States that I have experienced here. To set the scene, San José is the capital of Costa Rica and the largest city in the country. For one, the university highly suggested we do not walk at all on the streets during the night time. I can understand why, since we do look like tourists and this makes us a visible target, but I do miss being able to walk somewhere after sunset without having to take a taxi. Another huge difference is the way the houses are built. Every window has security bars and most houses have large gates/walls/ fences in front. Almost all buildings are no more than a couple stories high due to the large number of earthquakes that occur, which I have felt! I was woken up in the middle of the night and my bed was shaking, which was quite scary at first. I can cross feeling an earthquake off my bucket list now though!
I believe this is all I have to share for now. I am looking forward to seeing the responses regarding the LEAD 203 class! I hope everyone's semester is going well :)
Best regards,
Loren
