Day Thirteen - Monkeys in the Classroom

It’s Friday, Friday, Friday! Even when I’m out of the States, that song pops into my head. Usually Friday means the end of the week and relaxing weekend; however, this Friday is a little melancholy – it marks the halfway point of our trip. Time is flying by!

This morning, our Mama Tica made Gallo Pinto for breakfast. Remember, Gallo Pinto is a traditional Costa Rican dish that is made in almost every home here. Essentially it’s rice and black beans mixed together; nevertheless, each family has its own spin on it. This Gallo Pinto was a little bit different than the dish we had with our other Tico Family. This Gallo Pinto was a little bit drier and was served with fruit and cereal rather than eggs and bread. Both were delicious and I wouldn’t mind sampling some more dishes from other families.

To end the week of classes, my maestra decided it would be good to review everything we learned this week. Let me tell you, we learned a lot! Body parts, fruits and vegetables, countries and language, articles of clothing, past and future tense, and the list goes on! Tons of information is being thrown my way and I’m trying to be like an empty cup and take it all in. My Tico Family has definitely noticed a drastic improvement in my communication skills, for no other reason than that I know more words to help me express myself.

While I’m learning at leaps and bounds, Kelly is focusing more on the intricacies of the language. There might not be as big a jump for her, but her understanding is becoming much more profound, while I’m still very surface level. That is the great thing about CPI, the programs are designed to help you grow where you need to grow.

Whilst reviewing, something very interesting happened in class. I was reciting my favorite season and why, when all of a sudden, my maestra says “Monos! Mira, monos!” Yes, outside our classroom, in the trees, were a family of white faced monkeys. They were hopping around looking for food and creating quite the ruckus at CPI. Pretty much the entire school was out watching the monkeys play in the trees. The lunch lady, for a lack of a better English word, brought out some apples and some of the students gave them right to the monkeys. It was a cool experience and a reminder that we really are living in a rain forest.

Tonight, Kelly and I got to help in the kitchen to prepare dinner. We had tostadas with guacamole, black beans and the staple of every meal, rice. It was nice to help out and learn how the different foods are made down here.

Much love,

Casey