30 Day Writing Challenge: The Night of My 21st Birthday

On October 14, 2015, I turned 21. In the United States, turning 21 is treated as some sort of rite of passage into adulthood, celebrated by the legality of consuming alcohol, often times ending in a severe hangover the next morning. In Colorado, the same intent goes with weed. In Costa Rica, those rites of passage have already been completed at age 18. When I told others that I would be turning 21 during my time abroad in Costa Rica, people were excited, citing how lucky I was and how cool that would be. I didn't think much of those comments, until my birthday actually happened.

My birthday present to myself:
lunch from the local soda.

For those that know me well, I'm not a huge birthday celebrator. When I was younger, I used to plan halloween-themed parties with piñatas. As I grew older, I felt like I had fewer and fewer real friends, and less and less reason to celebrate. My methods of celebrating transformed, from crazy costume party sleepovers to movies and dinners with close friends. When I started college, I would go out to dinner with friends and continue the rest of my day as normal. I've never been super big about celebrating birthdays. So, as you can imagine, when I would picture what my 21st birthday celebration would be like, I pictured a small dinner with friends, enjoying a drink with dinner. This is way different than how most celebrate their 21st birthday: going to bars or clubs and getting wasted. Bars and clubs can be chill sometimes, but they're really not my scene. I'd rather go on a night hike, or stay in and watch a movie, or go to a festival of some sort. When I imagined my 21st birthday, I did not picture how my birthday was actually celebrated here. And for me, I have mixed feelings about it.

What happens when your roommate is
a cosmetologist and it's your birthday

Those lights tell it all

Back to those comments. I shouldn't have felt like my 21st birthday was not that great. After all, I was lucky to be celebrating my 21st birthday in a foreign country often thought of as "tropical paradise." It was cool that I would not be celebrating my birthday in the United States. It is true that I have fallen in love with the country that is Costa Rica and that it has many beautiful, rich cultures that I've been able to explore. I'm so thankful for this opportunity that I have been able to access. But for me, what makes my birthday special is when I get to celebrate it with the other special people in my life: my best friends and my pets. My two best friends are back in Colorado, as are my two cats. I envisioned celebrating my "rite of passage" into adulthood with my them, enjoying a drink with dinner at a restaurant and then catching a movie, or taking a stroll in the parks. I didn't get to do that. Instead, I ended up at a reggae bar with my housemates that I've only known for a couple of weeks with an endless stream of drinks expected to be drunk. I am grateful to my housemates for their enthusiasm in celebrating my birthday and taking me out. I appreciate everything they've done for me. And my feelings are all me and have nothing to do with them. Their celebration was great and I really am thankful that they went out of their way to host it for me. But that celebration, that place, that's just not me. That scene, that type of celebration, is great for many people, but just not for me. And I'm okay with that.

30 Day Writing Challenge: My Morning Routine

My morning routine is basically just like that of every other college student, except for the living and studying abroad part. I wake up half an hour before I have to head down to breakfast with mi familia tica, because I am not a morning person. I shower, put on my acne cream, put on my face moisturizer, brush my hair, and get dressed. At 7:30, I head down to have breakfast with my housemates and mama tica. She usually makes us a sandwich or eggs and toast with a bowl of fruit, orange juice, and coffee. The first two months of my abroad experience, I used to leave five minutes before 8am, when my first class would start, since I only live a two minute walk from the university. Since I no longer have a Spanish class, I don't have my class on Mondays and Wednesdays until 6pm, and my class on Tuesdays and Thursdays until 3pm. I usually spend my morning relaxing, working on homework (just a bit though, since I don't have much), browsing the internet and reading emails, or running errands. On Fridays, I have no classes, so that makes my weekends longer.

30 Day Writing Challenge: Bulleted List of My Day

Bulleted List of My Day (how boring)

Friday, September 20th

• woke up at 6am to work on my final presentation for Spanish class
• got ready in like 5 minutes to head down to breakfast
• ate eggs and toast and drank coffee and orange juice with my housemates and mama Tica
• headed to Spanish class
• listened to the other students present their presentations
• presented about allowing refugees from Syria into the US
• waited for my profe to grade my final exam after class; only two of us did not get our final exams back that we had taken yesterday
• received my grade for my final exam: 84
• briefly chatted with Danielle, a friend of mine, about our trip to Tortuguero that we were planning
• headed back to my homestay to drop off my backpack and computer
• walked to the mini supermarket to buy bread and snacks
• made myself a sandwich for lunch
• browsed my emails and Facebook for a little while
• started to edit my resume to apply for internships for the spring and summer
• updated my Grad Plan with my final grades for my two Spanish classes, 93 and 90 respectively
• updated my spreadsheet where I have my budget and spending for my time abroad
• edited my resumes a little more
• researched about education policy in the US compared to Costa Rica to write an article for DU Roosevelt
• worked on some blog entries
• made a map for the Art City Tour so I would make sure to hit all the museums and galleries -- I ended up not going because of the pouring rain, and sadly, it's the only one that happened during my time here :(
• did a 30 minute workout
• edited my resumes a little more
• put away my school stuff
• ate dinner with one of my housemates and mama Tica
• read some of my reading for my communications class
• went to the bar with my housemate and a friend
• stayed there for a bit, then went home to catch some zzz's before my trip to Tortuguero

30 Day Writing Challenge: My Commute

My Commute

My homestay

My commute from my homestay in San José, Costa Rica, to my study abroad university, Universidad Veritas is easy and fast. I live right around the block from the school. It's easily a two-three minute walk. I head downstairs, unlock the double lock with my key, head out the door, and then turn around to double lock the door once again with my key. The amount of security and locks at my homestay is interesting, but I definitely feel safe I take a left at the stop sign, and I'm basically on campus. I usually leave my homestay at 7:58am, even though class starts at 8am. One, because it is part of the culture for Ticos to run late due to conversations and other priorities, my profe is never there on time. Also, since I live two minutes away, I can make it to class right on time. Today, this morning it was nice and cool out. It felt great. I also saw a couple of stray cats. Seeing stray animals is very normal here. It's sad, but normal. I always make sure to give them some love. Side note, the animals here are much smaller than in the U.S., especially the cats. I still haven't figured out why. 

Stray kitty!

I almost always head back to my homestay when my morning class lets out at noon, since I don't have class until 3pm or 6pm depending on the day of the week. Buying groceries and making my own lunch at my homestay is a lot cheaper than eating lunch at the nearby restaurants every day. Every once in a while, I'll definitely go with some friends. Once again, I have to open the double lock and then double lock it behind me.

view from my university

When I leave for my afternoon class, I usually grab my umbrella because it typically starts to rain about 3 or 4 o'clock. Sometimes it also rains at like 8pm, so an umbrella is great for after my 6 o'clock class. Once again, I open the double lock and double lock it behind me. Today, I left early for my 3pm class. I felt that after my difficult Spanish final this morning, I deserved a treat. I got some skittles and a coke from the on-campus deli and headed to class. Soon after I arrived in class, the rain started pouring. If you've ever been to Costa Rica, you know the rain is no joke. The picture below was from the other day when I forgot my umbrella. In my two-three minute walk home, I was drenched. Today, I just missed the downpour. As it often is, it was hard to hear my profe because the sound of the rain overpowered her voice. Nevertheless, I'll take the rainy commute over the snow going on back at home right now. 

The rain here is no joke