Does God Hate Me to Play on Saturdays?

I don't know if I'm entirely responsible for how God plans the weather, but I would just like to point out that prior to the month of Feb. (when I wrote my paper) there was only one Saturday since Thanksgiving that didn't rain. (And on that day, I was REALLY hung-over.)Saturday is when I LOVE playing v-ball in the park. Now that I'm done, another huge storm comes to town. That beautiful weather better return soon!

So, hats off to all you nursing/medical-type/have kids people. My total gross out moment of the day...E. is a girl in my class--sticks just about everything in her mouth. They were measuring today with cubes and I went over to work with her, and she pulls a cube out of her mouth complete with a long drab of spit dangling off of it. I don't know why this totally turns my stomach. I think its the knowledge that when I get sick, it's those damn snotty kids! If I can't handle spit, those other bodily juices just wouldn't be something I could deal with on a daily basis.

But I digress...here is my List of Top Fours...You should note that the next to last Project Runway is on this evening. If you missed it, Bravo is kind enough to re-run it on a practical loop. Heidi Klum is just pretty beyond words. Seal must have one hell of a personality.

Four jobs I've had:
1. Newpaper delivery GIRL (not a boy as I was tragically mistaken for once when I was 10 and chose to wear a hat.)
2. Video store clerk. Best job in high school. Give free movies to your friends...watch movies at work...learn about sex from the slutty other clerks...(and get busted when they ask if you think they're sluts and you say yes. that's before I learned that people don't always want to hear what you really think. She told our boss what I said. I just felt I was being honest.)
3. International woman of mystery. ok, I was really just a marketing kinda girl, but since we never sold anything, I really think I fought more crime...especially on our trip to Hawaii.
4. Teacher.

Four movies I can watch over and over:
1. Shawshank Redemption (thanks TBS!)
2. Goodfellas
3. The Untouchables
4. St. Elmo's Fire. (What life after college was expected to be...)

Four places I have lived:
1. Daly City
2. San Bruno
3. Davis
4. San Jose

Four T.V. shows I love:
1. Project Runway
2. Prison Break
3. The Amazing Race
4. Law & Order, Original and SVU on re-runs.

Four places I have vacationed:
1. Costa Rica
2. Italy
3. England
4. Russian River. Not in Russia--in Sonoma.

Four of my favorite dishes:
1. Turkey dinner with the fixings (mashed, stuffing, etc.) from Thanksgiving.
2. Townsend pizza
3. Spaghetti with sausage
4. A really good sandwich on good bread...and if you can make it a panini, all the better.

Four sites I visit daily:
1. CNN
2. The sites of you people.
3. NU.edu to check to see if my grades have been posted.
4. televisionwithoutpity.com if I have missed one of my shows. Gives witty re-caps of what I missed. Not daily, but you should check it out. Good stuff.

Four places I'd rather be right now:
1. A hot beach.
2. With a hot man in a hotel on Union Square.
3. In a great dress dancing after an awesome dinner. With someone taller than me in my kickin' high heeled dance shoes.
4. In Italy. Walking outside all day, followed by a three-hour dinner with plenty of wine.

Sara and Bret--last night at Big Ben. Happy hour(s) went from 5-7 and 10-12. AND I left with a six pack from my papa Johnny. 

Our river rafting accomodations--rio in the middle, hammocks to the right, drinks to the left. Good times people. Good times. 

Our river rafting group. Fun fellas...Know how to show a group of girls a good time! 

My classroom, week 1. Sucks, don't you think? :) 

Andre (love this guy) and Ana, my mama Tica. 

My girls from CR.  

16 Can Get You 20

So I feel like I'm learning all kinds of math in CR--oh, and Spanish too. Coast Guard Bret is a wealth of information and has quite an amusing way of distributing it. I had heard in the past that I talk like a sailor on occasion, and I have to say that they are actually not as crude as I, and in his case, I think they are funnier. Por emjemplo...in the airport when we arrived there are easily a dozen signs that warn you against having sex with minors, because Costa Rica takes that very seriously. (I thought this was more of a problem in Asia, given the stories I heard from BG.) Anyway, we didn't take this seriously at all, and all found it quite amusing when the singer, who looked to be about 16 went on the stage. At that point, Bret pointed out to the other guys at the table to remember, "In CR, 16 (y.o.) can get you 20 (y in jail)."

Had such a good time, and 3 Red Bull vodkas on Tuesday night, so made plans to extend my trip and hit Playa Hermosa with Bret over the weekend. Unfortunately, there was no chance because the next possible flight out of CR isn't until 8/24. Very disappointing, but on the happy side of things, I think I'm going to play in a vb tourney on Saturday. My skills should be especially sharp if there is a drinking division.

So Anna's other hijo is back from the states. Yet another good-looking guy. And totally different from Andre. Andre's skin could be Italian or something...very light, whereas Jorge is VERY dark. And he is taller, broader and doesn't look a thing like Andre. Never would think they are brothers. Cool guy. Happy to have met him.

The family dog is named Milo and (while great people) they obviously need to watch Animal Planet or take a class on dog training because they repeat the same thing to the dog, over, and over and over. "Milo, no, no, NO, NO. Milo, NO!" It is a very distinct and similar manner in which this is said, which I shared with my friends. The growly manner can be heard echoing down the halls of Ilisa. Happy to share funnies with friends.

Last night we celebrated Ayana's b-day and had a fantastic dinner--including a real salad and filet mignon. Screamingly delicious. And you know I mean screaming!

This morning, had breakfast with Andre, and we were talking about my last day and I got really sad. Looks like we'll be hanging out tonight and meeting up with some other people, but it made me realize that most of the people I met on this trip I'll probably never see again, and that just stinks. Pink, pink, Burnie...

My last entry is today due to the departure tomorrow. On my agenda for today--hitting the mercado and meeting up with school folk for a different shopping expedition at 3:30. Heading home to hang with the fam, and then the debate of what the last night should entail. I also need to come up with an amusing encapsulation of my stay in CR. I had been thinking about a Top Ten kind of list, but last night at dinner, Kelly voiced the same idea, so I'm back at square one. Maybe I'll write one for you fine people. Maybe not.

Looking forward to seeing you all. Thanks for letting me know if you read--I get a kick out of what you people think. Miss you all, and look forward to hearing what's going on!

XO--Katrina

Planets, HVs, and Helmets, Oh My!

I'm happy to report that no t-shirt contests were had on Friday. I was lucky enough to walk with my new friend Brian (19 y.o.) to the local bar and have several beers. Since it is legal here, I figure I shouldn't feel bad. Very funny guy, who uses odd Spanish phrases in the middle of English conversations. "Por ejemplo" was a favorite of his and has become one of mine now. We met up with my brother Phil/Felipe, Coast Guard Brett, and German Martin. I was the only female, so you know I was loving it. We had several drinks, and due to the early hour of our departure the next day, I returned around 7 to my house.

Once there, Andre and I had another little happy hour and we all sat down to quite a fun dinner. It was spaghetti of some sort and quite good. After dinner Fernando (the new guy living with us who is Columbian) and I walked to the store and he was kind enough to buy more beer, although he doesn't drink. I think he found me entertaining, which is good. I also showed him (in Spanish mind you) how to play backgammon--strategy and everything! Really fun night. And Andre is letting me bungee for free on Thursday, so I'm pretty happy about that!

Saturday we got up at the butt crack--5:30!! I haven't slept in a single day since I've been here. We caught the bus to downtown at 6, and we were promptly picked up at 6:35. Rose for about 2.5 hours to the rafting center. This ride was quite uncomfortable as my legs seem to be longer than the overall height of most people. This did force me to stay awake and see the differences in the country between the Eastern and Western sides. In a nutshell, they are both very green, but the leaves are broader in the East due to the elevation. Lots of waterfalls, and rivers--including one that is shaped like a Y--has a volcanic arm and a fresh water stream. Quite a sight.
We had a really good breakfast there, and got into another bus where we met our new best friend Matthew from England. Kinda quiet at first, but he turned out to be fantastically funny and was tremendous fun. Not much of a card player, but then again, that worked out well for me, so that was good. Drove for about 1.5 hours upstream and over unpaved roads (read as--no sleep) to the launching point of the boat. He had two rafts with passengers, a raft with our provisions, and a kayaker to save anyone who got in trouble. Our guide's name was Henry (28) and a guy who was training to be one, Christian (18). Henry spoke good English and was very funny.

Fernando was the kayaker, and he was just tremendous. The kayak was quite small, and he was flipping and rolling that thing repeatedly. He looked like Debbie and I in Aruba except that he was trying to roll and could right himself without flooding the boat. At one point, Sara said, "he must really like water", and this struck us as tremendously funny. The whole day was full of funny sayings, that just killed us. Totally tremendous good time.

Over the course of the two days, we went through about 50 sets of rapids. Class III and IV. The water was kind of high too since this is the wet season. I am quite happy to report however that at this time, I have lost my fear of the white water. (As I child of 10 y.o, my parents thought it would be a good idea to try to drown Brad and I on the American River). I rode in the front, and honestly didn't scream out of outright fear at all. I did scream quite a bit though, and I think I was giving Fernando whiplash as he kept checking to see if we were all still in the boat. We stopped and hiked to a waterfall where we swam in an incredibly beautiful pool.

We rafted til about 2:00 when we arrived at our campsite. Absolutely beautiful. No roads lead to it, only access by river. There is running water but no electricity, so at night, the guides set up candles in wine and beer bottles to light the tables and the paths. The bathroom was even super cool with 3 walls and the fourth one looking out into the jungle. The guides (all men by the way) made us incredibly good food for lunch and dinner. Artfully displayed--it was fantastic. In between meals, we hung out in hammocks, read and napped.

The price of the trip included beer and wine, and of course that is when the fun really started. (In fact, en route, Fernando asked if we liked beer, and after our hardy response, we stopped to pick up more). We laughed ourselves to belly aching status. More silly talk abounded involving:

• Heidi's planets,
• My inability to knit anything other than rectangles,
• What "watchout" means in River Guide Speak,
• The need for multiple helmets to protect one's ears from incoming bugs,
• If in fact one needed to wear helmets and lifejackets into bathrooms,
• How Heidi could tell our fine wine was regularly served at the Olive Garden,
• Who/what the large mass coming at Sara actually was,
• Whether or not an H.V. really exists (Kelly said no, and Matt seemed to be a big fan--of the planets too actually).

After dinner, Michael, who was a guide and the head cook, made us cocktails (ok, shots) and wouldn't say what they were. Kinda looked like a qhite Russian, so I was brave and took the first one. Quite tasty, it was a combination of condensed milk and guave--(the local liquor). We played speed with my cards that Debbie gave me (everyone was quite impressed with the fancy case). Some people toddled off to sleep and the die harders (myself included) played asshole for a bit. I then taught them the fine game of Indian, which is great to play by candle light. We had tremendous fun betting, and I am happy to report that I left with their shirts. I'll leave it at that. :)

The next day we were awoken by rooster sounds and banging pots heralding us to breakfast at 8:30. Another great meal, and back to the boats. On Sunday it actaully rained just about the entire time. It was odd though, because we did all actually get a little sunburnt. This was rain that makes you understand why it is called a "rainforest". Buckets, baby. Buckets. We rafted 2 more hours, with a brief stop to "hike" through mud that went up to your knees and sucked the shoes right off your feet. The guides were kind enough to help the chicks, but left the men to their own devices. Martin in particular was left to crawl out on his hands and knees. I felt bad laughing, but I don't think he noticed due to the amount he was struggling. hee, hee.

Stopped to try jumping off about a 25 ft. cliff. Those of you from the houseboat know my stuggle with diving off the top. This was harder due to the height and the fact that everyone was waiting for me to go. They were cool and very encouraging. The 7th time someone said, "uno, dos, tres" I took the plunge. Then went up and did it again. Had another incredible meal riverside shortly thereafter, and wrapped up the trip. Hopped into a van that had more room--for me anyway, I got the front seat, and headed back to SJ.

That catches you up to day. Tonight we are headed to THE place to be on Mondays. In fact, our river guides are going to be there too. Henry had asked us if we liked gasolina. Heidi had a puzzled look and said, "yeah, I like caffeine." Gasolina is a type of dance, and he has promised to teach us. I think its pretty basic, but if a guy can lead, I'm going to follow. (Now who thought they'd ever hear Me say THAT?)

Taxi Stopping Secrets

I'm now at the end of week 2, with only a week left. This makes me quite sad to only have 7 more days. I know the sympathy is low out there among you fine people because most vacations are only 7 days to start. I just can't believe how fast time has gone by and all the great things I've had the chance to see, do and learn. Enough pobresita...entonces...

Monday we had another dance class where we finish learning the meringue and started in on salsa. I realize that learning these dances may only lead to frustration on my part since the woman is not supposed to lead, and I seem to have a shortage of male aquaintances in the States that salsa with any frequency. Fortunately, such a shortage does not exist in Latin America...more on that later. :)

Tuesday was a holiday here (not for estudiantes like us though) in which people from all over the country walk to a church that is about 20km from my house. Its a yearly pilgrimage, and all day long we would see people of all ages walking on the main street. Teenagers making out, older folks, families, all types. As I was stopping to buy beer on my way home, I even saw some Latin Nazis. I assume they are Nazis because one had a swastika etched onto his back. (I was very thankful for my very dark, polarized sunglasses that covered my eyes completely. ) Very neat tradition (the walk, not the Nazis), and we couldn't think of anything similar in the states (maybe bay to breakers?) that you don't pay for, but that everyone does. The benefits of a religous society I suppose.

Wednesday was happy hour, and as I mentioned before, we all went home and rested and put on some ta-ta tops to impress the locals with. And impress we did. (Sara has shown me a whole new world of tops and the undergarments required to produce impressive results.) Went to dinner with about 15 people where we were repeatedly shushed by waiters, and then went to TerraU for some drinks. Our group split off there--I went with 4 others to a dancing place and then returned to TerraU. I amazed my new friends with the ability to stop cabs in an instant (short skirts seem to be the secret). I am pleased to report that I did my good deed for the day around 12:30 when I broke up a fight before it could start. While I was happy to do so, I was not happy with the resulting person that followed me around the bar (three floors) the rest of the night. I ended up hanging out with my "brother"--Phil--the only person taller than me at school, who I convinced my new fan was quite protective of me. Of course, Phil is Swiss, and has quite an accent. Apparently, if you don't speak English, its not that noticeable. So Phil saved the day. Really like that guy.

This weekend 7 of us are going on a rafting trip for both days. Class III and IV rapids. Should be quite the time. I am hoping it is not a Meatgrinder experience.

This experience has been similar my freshman year in college--everyone wants to meet new people, hang out, have fun (and learn spanish of course!). I realized that I never really thought about the impression people had of me was...everyone I know just seems to know me so well already. You forget about how new people see you. Ayana and Kelly say they are impressed with my ability to meet people, and how I can seem to talk to anyone in any situation. I never really thought that was anything super special, but they seem to think so. I don't know if that makes any sense, but it really struck me, and I just don't want to forget they said it.

Its pouring rain now, I don't have an umbrella or a jacket, so I'm going to see what my options are for not winning t-shirt contests. Wish me luck!

Me Gusta Juevo Papas

So on Friday we stayed at Los Lagos, quite the swanky hotel at the top of a hill/mtn. that I foolishly climbed in the dark with Kelly so she wouldn't walk alone. Stupid good samaritan! Did see fireflies for the first time ever which was quite cool. So the weekend zip line...we got picked up at 7:30 and taken to the canopy which was about 10 minutes away. Once there, we got strapped into harnesses by a group of guides, and then hiked a good distance into the forest. I, alone with my friends were in the first group that was comprised of 10 people. The others were missionaries (of course--they find me everywhere) from Atlanta. Super nice people who needless to say were impressed with my ability to say Jeee-sus Key-ricet! (Hey it was better than the things one normally says when terrified.

Some instruction at the base of the tree was given. We were told not to touch the equipment and that our primary responsibility was to keep our legs bent and crossed and to brake. You use one hand if strong enough, or two in a modified pull-up if necessary (hear that Ready? already training!)

We climbed some astonishingly steep stairs to a platform that was built around the trunk of a tree. We were so high and the forest was so dense, we couldn't see the ground. Our harnesses were clipped to a ring around the tree. The guides then hooked us one by one to the cable (after the person ahead of you had arrived at the next platform) and off you went.

That morning it was raining, and with the rain, the distance and the downward slope of the cables, we were hitting speeds up to 45 mph. Braking initially was quite hard and exhausting because they did not give us any brake between the first 4 platforms. You'd finish one and they would instantly hook you to the next cable and off you'd go. I (along with others) had some problems braking initially, but quickly picked it up.

The whole thing was totally thrilling, and we just had so much fun with our guides and our group. At the end, which was about an hour, we hung out in the forest and waited for the others to finish. Got to know the people in our group and the guides (who incidentally offered to let me go for free another weekend. Or go splunking--cave crawling--which I've always wanted to do. Yeah! Love the hook up!)

We had a ride back to San Jose at 1:30, and the rest of the day was spent in transport and resting. This is a fun tidbit. On Thursday I ran out to see the naked men and missed dinner. Well, the chicken legs I was supposed to eat were still on the stove (cooked) when I returned. One guess what I had for dinner Saturday night. Yep...luckily no ill effects, so I'm pretty sure this refrigeration thing in the States is a passing fad. (I do relate to Rambo now though--"I can eat things that would make a billy goat puke"--plus I look good in headbands).

Sunday we were at the bus stop at 5:30 (de la manana) to catch the bus for the beach/crocodile river. We had a small bus with a total of 8 passengers--including a HOT guy from Uraguay (Nicolas) and two people from Intel. The guy from Intel was a total asshole and a Mormon. Of course he sat next to me. *sigh* He knew more about everything than anyone, because he was married to a Columbian. Do you follow this logic? Nope? Us either. He did tell Nicolas that beautiful women in the states are incredibly high maintenance and they require a lot of wining and dining. He suggested marrying someone not so good-looking, and save yourself some money. What a lucky woman he married, wouldn't you say?

Stopped for breakfast, and in attempting to order pineapple juice (jugo pina), I said the title of this blog--I like to play with potatoes. The waitress was quite confused.

The river we visited is the 3rd most highly populated area for crocodiles--50 per square km. We went on a 2 hour boat ride where we saw many birds, and several crocs. On two occasions, the driver got out and went into this mud that went up to the middle of his calves and slapped the water with a large piece of fish. The croc would come over and he would have it snap it out of his hand. Then he would touch the nose and kinda pet it. Needless to say, I was a wreck. And they insisted on us being still and quiet. Luckily, Nicolas was there to comfort me! Yeah!

On to the beach we went, where unfortunately it rained. The ocean was still great to swim in, and bar still had cold drinks, so all was not lost. It is quite difficult however to get a tan in the rain, no matter what Gary Blucher says. We left at 4, and made it back in record time to SJ.

That brings you to Sunday night, and me to lunch time. Today is happy hour, and if last week is any indication, we will have quite a time. Already scheduled a siesta into my equation of the day, so I's got's to roll. Adi! (that's short for adios--I made it up, and we all like it. I think the others think its really slang here. I should clarify that...)

Can 4 = 3? In Costa Rica, yes it can...

We had quite a weekend. It started on Thursday at 6:00 when I had to run out of the house to hop in with the girls to drive like mad to the "Solo Para Mujeres" Espectaculo show. I thought it was going to be a relatively small club like setting. Oh, no. This was easily 5000 screaming women, with with two troupes of dancers. The opening act from Costa Rica (who Heidi and Sara saw practicing by chance at a local gym) and the pros from Mexico. It was funny because the one that all the women were super nuts for was bald, had a mustache and had an oddly gay aura about him. Everytime he would solo, the crowd just went insane. We didn't get it. The others were hot (in our opinion) and didn't seem nearly as gay. The show was really good though, and with every other song being in English, we really enjoyed it. It lasted about 3 hours, with a mix of comedians and rap artists, which we didn't get much out of. We kept waiting for them to take off their clothes. We were quite confused, then felt kind of lecherous. Oops!

After, we went to a bar where Sara, Heidi and I impressed the locals with our drinking and math skills (3 girls = 4 pitchers). Some VERY friendly hombres in that bar. It was fun because I'd be talking in broken Spanish, and they'd respond in broken English. It was fairly romantic, except for the tequila shot glasses and squeezed limes that littered the area. Ah, good times.

We returned at 3:30am, slept for about 3 hours, then caughtt he bus for the Arenal volcano/hot springs tour. Took about 4 hours (included a couple of stops) until we arrived at the hot springs. (Unfortunately the volcano was socked in with fog all weekend, so we never saw the eruption). The hot springs are basically a resort/hotel built around this incredible waterfall of pools. The water is hotter than a hot tub. It was incredibly beautiful, and is a must see if you come here. (I also got a facial at the spa and the woman "cleaned" my face so well I thought she was going to break my nose.) The buffet dinner was great and we were so pooped from the night before, we had to head to bed shortly after.

Saturday morning we went on a Zip line through the canopy. It was raining that morning, so we went up to about 45 mph down these lines. Unbelievable.

My dance class is starting now, so I'll finish up tomorrow with more. Very full days here!