A gringa in Heredia

<- view of a sunset from my house

So last week I forgot to mention that my first week in Heredia (my 2nd in Costa Rica) I went and saw the new Harry Potter movie with my younger brother, dubbed in Spanish. I was really glad that not only had I read the book, but that I had read the book numerous times. It made it really easy to follow the plot. Also, you never quite notice how often a movie uses a particular word until you are watching the film in a foreign language. For instance, Harry Potter used the word "obscuro" a lot.

It may seem strange, but I keep forgetting that I'm in a foreign country. Aside from the obvious differences (most everyone is darker than me and don't speak English) there are a lot of similarities. Most of it is just how things are structured, that I look down the street and see McDonalds, Burger King, Papa Johns, etc... But then I look further and see the blue ridges of mountain tops and I remember where I am.

Despite the similarities there are a couple of really interesting differences about Costa Rica. For one, addresses here are completely different from those in the states. There are street names (sometimes) mostly in downtown Heredia, the two directions being either Calle or Avenida with a number after. However, no one ever actually uses them. Addresses are more to do with what is around the location relatively. For instance, when I was in Liberia my address was the name of my barrio and that it was in front of a minisuper named Gaucalito. That was it. Sometimes they will also add some amount of meters north, south, etc... but for the most part its just relative terms. It makes it difficult to get your barings on where you are. One day one of the program students wanted to know where to buy a map with streets and such and one of the program advisers summed it up pretty well: "We are a culture more of asking for directions than of detailed instructions."

Classes started last week and so far I am enjoying them, though I only have two days to read 70 pages in Spanish for my business class...There is a cultural and legal difference that as a student, I actually happen to like. Textbooks are really expensive here, so instead the professor will tell you the name of a copy shop (there are tons here) and you will go there with the professors name and they copy the book for you. The book for my business class cost me 3500 colones or a little less than $7. As a broke college student, I am definitely happy about this.

As for the classes themselves, they are pretty much the same structurally as the U.S. although there are lot more people who arrive late to class without the professor even really blinking (Tico time). Also, most students start out at the university in whatever carrera they plan to spend their 4 years in. They don't spend a year or more on general studies (not typically). Interesting tidbit from the day, a girl from another exchange program came up to me today to ask me a question about class and she didn't realize that I was also in an intercambio. I thought that was amusing because I feel like I stick out so much as an American (North American).

Please let me know if there is anything that your curious about in regards to Costa Rica, its culture, the people, etc...

¡Hasta Luego!