Recounting my Peace Corps service

2 years 3 months.

27 months.

7.6 earthquake.

2 host families.

9 conversation clubs.

50 spelling bees.

8 cluster mates.

3 conference presentations.

36 Monday tutoring sessions.

2 sets of visitors.

3 trips home.

4 countries visited.

1 manicure and pedicure.

3 broken fans.

4 parades.

14 beaches.

3 Peace Corps trainings.

2 project working team meetings.

2 birthdays.
1 counterpart. 

2 graduations.

3 babies.

2 bee stings.

1 wedding band cut off.

3 allergic reactions.

141 teachers.

164 runs.

2 stolen items.

2 blogs.   

120 hours of language training

68 hours of Teaching English as a Foreign Language training

3 good bye parties

7 spelling bee meetings

Countless laughs

Countless hours waiting for a bus

Countless hours on a bus

1 (almost) Returned Peace Corps Volunteer

Our first day of being a PCV 

The first time we met our counterparts 

Content Wednesday

Today I am overwhelmed with gratitude about 

random facebook chats with friends 

dinners at my counterpart's house and playing with Mia the puppy 

a laughing husband in his school's uniform 

Spelling Bee meetings 

surprises from the host family 

Grateful Monday

Today I am grateful for 

the people that fill this office 

Beautiful views on my runs 

Landmarks directing visitors to our house 

Quick trips to Liberia for sushi, a movie, and air conditioning 

Movie rental store 

Random dinner nights with friends 

We went to a coyolera to try vino coyol 

Vino coyol is made from trees 

Thankful Tuesday

Today I am thankful for

Conversations between spelling bee kiddos from different schools.  

puppy time 

walks into town (they put molasses on the road to help with erosion and they dust)

grocery shopping and knowing the employees (notice how they put the carts in)

Gratitude Monday

The Hubs' Little Sister gave me a book by Ann Voskamp for Christmas a few years ago.  I devoured this book, and immediately started documenting the things that make me happy as Mrs. Voskamp encourages.  Then today I ran across this blog post by this cute couple's blog.   And just reading the short post about what she was grateful for put a smile on my face.

I have been wondering how I could document all my photos and memories from my Peace Corps   experience.  This blog is my story of this experience.  And while most post are dedicated to big events like the completion of conversation clubs, the next few will be about the little things I have come to cherish about my Costa Rica.

 This is my favorite road to walk or run down.  It is covered by overhanging trees and has a great view of the mountains. I like it so much I made my in-laws walk down it when they visited instead of taking the shorter path.  (It is not always this desolate, the Hubs was almost knocked over by a car on one of his runs here)

Seeing this dog everywhere.  Meet Three Tone.  He is a dog that we have seen wandering the streets for the last two years.  He was named as a joke towards me because I named a similar looking dog Two Tone when his coat was obviously  black, white, and brown.  (The Hubs and I tend to come up with names for random animals)

OUR ice cream shop.  The local Volunteers have started calling it that since this is the only place we take visitors for ice cream and smoothies.  The owner is extremely nice (he often gives me the leftovers from my small smoothie) and the prices are cheaper than others.   

Talking about Peace Corps

This week is Peace Corps week.  What is Peace Corps week you ask?  It is a week to celebrate the founding of Peace Corps March 1, 1961 (I didn't even have to look up the date!) as well as to celebrate those that are or have served in Peace Corps.  To me, Peace Corps week is a floor in which I can share what Peace Corps in the Hometown, in my site, and with friends and family.

Where I come from Peace Corps isn't really known.  Peace Corps is a 27 month commitment to work and live in another country.  The first three months of your service is dedicated to training you for your job, providing language training, and introducing you to the culture of your new home.  After three months, you are sworn in, saying the same thing Congressmen and women say, and move to your new home.

The time in your community is dedicated to the project you were chosen to do.  For the Hubs and I that was Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL).  You are also permitted to do secondary activities that have nothing to do with your primary job.  For us, that was tutoring sessions, community classes, and exercises classes.  While you live and work in your community, you also go to trainings provided by Peace Corps.  

As a Peace Corps Volunteer, your medical, food, living allowance (to pay rent and utilities) are taken care of by Peace Corps.  You get two vacation days a month for every month you serve.  So for two years of service you get 48 days of vacation.  (We utilized those days-check on trips to Panama, Nicaragua, and Colombia/Peru and home 3 times).  At the end of your service you get a reimbursement allowance to help transition back into life in the States.  

My Peace Corps experience has exceeded everything that I thought it would be. It has been challenging, eye opening, life changing, tearful, joyful, and fun.  

I know that when I return I will be asked questions about my experience.  At our Close of Service conference, we were encouraged to write down what we wanted to tell people about our experience on a flash card.  I will have to work on that before we return in April.  

In honor of Peace Corps week, please watch this video that two fellow Youth Development Volunteers made to show you a glimpse of Costa Rica.  Our home. 

click here to watch

Celebrating 2 years in Costa Rica

Saturday marked two years of creating a life in Costa Rica.  While I don't have a huge post planned, I didn't want it to pass without acknowledging it.

We celebrated our two year anniversary by going to Uvita beach with the group we swore in with.  Our group started this adventure with us two years and 4 days ago.  We struggled to understand the customs and language of Costa Rica together.  We struggled with finding our purpose within our Peace Corps service together.  We relied on each other.  We asked each other's advice.  We visited.  We talked.  Cried.  We laughed a whole lot.  These people became our family.

First day in Costa Rica....babies

Old pros now

Before our trip to the beach we attended our Close of Service (COS) in San Jose.  What is a COS conference?  It is a conference to prepare to finish up projects in country and to help us navigate going back to the States.  We had sessions on reporting on final projects, reverse culture shock, medical options after Peace Corps, job options after Peace Corps, interviewing, and how to write a resume.  We also had a chance to share our experience with the staff through videos, sticky notes, and games.  

The post it notes behind us represent things we have done like how many students we have reached, how much gallo pinto we ate, and how many hours of conversation club we facilitated 

Attending this conference means that we are now in the process of returning to the States.  What a weird feeling that is!  We have labs, medical appointments, final interviews, Spanish test, signatures, three major paper reports, and good byes between us and going back to the States.

Check out our legacy video...this is a glimpse into our lives while serving in Costa Rica...watch here! (if the video below doesn't work)

The Hubs and I will be returning soon!  In April!