Salsa and Merengue

1:12 PM Srta. Sherrick
Friday night was my own version of "Tico Night." My former teacher, and friend, Cidalice, and I went out for the night. We started off by watching a georgous sunset at Barba Roja. I had some amazing sushi while she had a spicier chicken dinner. We left Barba Roja to go to Salsipuedes where we met up with a few other teachers from COSI and a few other students. One of the teachers, Patricia, son was playing in a band. He played all types of music, from salsa, merengue, Mana, and cumbia. Many of the different Ticos danced, and I was taught, once again, how to dance the salsa and the merengue. I still stand by that the merengue is the easiest to learn how to dance to, and that the cumbia is extremely hard to learn (which I did not even attempt). The dancing here is extremly different than in the United States. It is a very flirtatious dance, with the man leading the way. Not only do they dance these type of dances to different bands in resturants, but the night clubs play this type of music. The dance floors are always full of people duing turns and enjoying themselves.

After dancing at Salsipuedes, we went into Manuel Antonio to find another friend and a club called Bambu Jam.... this is a nightclub where many tourists go to have fun. There is music to dance to, but most of it is more regeton and popular music. Although, they do play music that you can dance to like merengue and salsa at times.

We spent a short time at Bambu Jam before we went to ArcoIris, a discoteca close to my house (a block away). This disco is more of a local Tico hangout. Not many tourists go to this place. Much of the music that is played is merengue, cumbia, and salsa. I danced merenge with one of the sons of the a teacher. Much better at this than anything else! Ha ha ha!

At this disco, not only is there a nice dance floor, but there are two levels where you can sit and talk. Outside there is a little soda (a place to purchase and eat food). I had some carne asada with many other things to eat. The clubs here are open until 5 or 6 in the morning. I, however, did not stay that late, since I wanted to get up to enjoy my last day on the beach.
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Monos, Monos, Monos

3:12 PM Srta. Sherrick
Today I went to Manuel Antonio National Park. The park is at the end of the beach in Manuel Antonio and you must pay to get into the park. The park has much to offer, including some absolutly beautiful beaches, a ton of plants, and best of all, animals in thier natural environment. I got to see a two towed sloth, a couple of different lizzard, an animal that looks like a cross between a pig and a rat (rat´s face), and my favorite... MONKEYS!!!!!

I was so close to the white faced monkeys. They were within an arms lenght from where I was standing. It was a family, approximately 10 to 15 monkeys. They were jumping from tree to tree, playing, and looking at the funny things (aka... the humans). It was interesting to see them search for food. They eat insects that they can find in trees and a certian type of leaf. They also eat some fruits that can be found way up towards the top of some tall trees.







It was my favorite part of the day. I kept trying to convince one of them to hop into my bag to come home to the USA... but I don´t think he liked the idea, since he soon scurried off up a tree.

I also visited the 3rd beach in the park. This is the best beach in the area because it´s in a cove. This means that there are hardly any waves. The water was a beautiful greenish-blue and pretty clear. The sand is white because there no impurities that get washed up onto the shore. The water is also really warm. It was a beautiful spot to swim and relax for a few hours before my class.

Only 4 more days left here in Manuel Antonio. I´ll keep you updated! Keep on reading!

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El Río

3:06 PM Srta. Sherrick
This past Friday I did not have classes. I went to the Río in Londres. Londres is a small pueblo outside of Quepos. It took about an hour to get there, on one of the most bumpiest roads I´ve ever been on. It was a nice massage for my back and butt!

Once we got to the pueblo we went for a walk up the road to visit a local organic farm. The owners of the farm are German and are really nice. They grow all sorts of agriculture there, from coffee bean plants, to chiles, to aloe plants.... and many many more. We picked some oranges (i think they were like mandarian oranges) and some other fruit, gawaba (don´t know the spelling, sorry) and ate those right there at the farm. We also saw a man chopping away at some dead leaves on a banana tree.

After the farm we went to the río. The río was very refreshing. This is the rainy season, therefore the river was a little more active than it typically is during the summer. We saw a few groups who were white water rafting and it looked like fun, but we did not do any of that. We swam in a small section of the river and climbed the big rocks. It was wierd to be in such cool waters, since the ocean waters are so warm.

The only bad thing I have to say about the río is that I didn´t drink enough water. The following day I was so dehydrated that I had a headache all day. I spent most of it trying to sleep it off. It´s important to drink as much water as possible, since you sweat most of out of your system! I can´t tell you how many times I change my clothes a day because of the sweat. Yeah... gross, I know... so I´ll stop telling about it now!

Sunday I spent the day at the beach and got my first real sunburn. I forgot to reapply sunblock during the day. I was spending so much time in the water, since the waves were not too bad, that I forgot to reapply when I got out. I know, very bad. The sun burn is not too bad, and I am sure by tomorrow it will be all gone. I made sure to stay in the shade today and I didn´t go out into the water.

Today I started my classes again, but with a different teacher and in the afternoon, instead of in the morning. I am still getting up early, mostly thanks to the rooster (fyi... roosters crow at specific times during the day... typically at 4 a.m., 11 a.m., and 9 p.m..... and another too but I forgot the time). I went to the beach to study and talk with some of the locals. My class in the afternoon went by really quick. I can´t believe that I will leave Quepos in 5 days! This trip has gone by so fast!
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Coconut

11:08 AM Srta. Sherrick
First off, I want everyone to know that I am studying my Spanish on the beach... I´m not just laying out in the sun and swimming in the waves =) I try to talk to some different people each day I am at the beach. I have made friends with some local Ticos and I typically speak with them (one of them gave me my surf lesson for free). So, I am surrounded by Spanish. It gets a little difficult sometimes when I have both Spanish and English running around in my head, like now when I am writing this blogg. It gets difficult to compose the sentences in the correct structure with the correct words. Oh... and sometimes I´m at a loss of words in both languages. I think that is what makes it great!

The past few days I´ve spent on the beach have been nice. Yesterday I went shopping at the vendors and did some bargining. The prices here in Manuel Antonio, and in Quepos too, are not that great because it is a torist location. A lot of things are the same price as they would be in the USA. For example, a t-shirt here costs the same amount as a t-shirt you´d buy in any store, especially if it is a name brand. A soda costs about $2.00 USD and water about $1.50 USD. Some food is expensive, it just depends on where you go. However, the hotels tend to be cheap (you can stay in a decent hotel for about $40-$50 USD) and to take the public bus it costs me 200 Colones, which is approximately $.35 USD.

Yesterday on the beach I had my first real coconut. They either put a hole in the top or cut off the top. The water inside the coconut was nothing like I had expected. It was pretty bland. After, you can open the coconut up and eat the inside. It was pretty good, but a little bland. I think that in most places that use coconut that they put sugar on the coconut to give it a bit more flavor.

Most of the food here is great. I am very lucky that my host mother is an amazing cook. We have fresh fish a few times a week. One day we had a whole red snapper (I´ve got pictures of it!) and it was delicious. It was funny to eat the fish while it´s eye was still in tact. You had to be careful about the spines and bones.... if you swallow one, it could result in a hospital visit!

I´m not sure of my plans this weekend. Maybe some more beach time, maybe some visits to some waterfalls. We shall see. Until next week... nos vemos (see ya).
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La Selvita

10:46 AM Srta. Sherrick
Saturday I went on a Canopy tour in the rain forest of Costa Rica. I went with a few friends from school. We got up early on Saturday morning so we could do the 7 a.m. tour. The reason we did not want to do the afternoon tour is because the weather is typically nice in the morning and early afternoon. However, it is hard to say if it will rain or not in the afternoon, around 1 or 2 pm. Therefore, we choose the early tour.

We had a 45 minute "Costa Rican Massage" (a.k.a. a ride in a van on EXTREMELY bumpy roads) in order to arrive at the destination, in the rain forest. On the way there we were told about the many teak trees that can be seen on the sides of the road. The government instated a program to help combat the illegal deforestion of the rain forest. Apparently teak trees grow fast, close together, and are a hard wood with very few knots. The wood is sold in the market and it deterrs the deforestion because the wood is of a higher quality and cheaper. This progam has helped cut down the deforestation of the rain forest by almost 80%! It is incredible.

In addition, we saw a lot of palm trees and the fruit of the tree, which is used in a lot of soaps and other types of daily use products. Do you know the palmolive dish soap??? That is made from the palm tree fruit (or at least I think it's a fruit).


Anyway... we finally made it to the little camp in the forest. It was so muggy because of the climate and the rain that we have been having overnight the past few days. They fed us a Tico breakfast of pinto gallo (rice and beans), eggs, and fresh fruit. It was delicious. They then suited us up with the saftey equipment, harnesses, carabeaners, helmet, gloves, and I had the first aid kit (for my allergies to bees).






The first few lines were pretty slow. Then we went to one of the longest. You had to make sure you did not put pressure on the wire (with your glove) so that you could make it all the wayacross. Many people have a natural reaction to pull down with thier hand, which the friction slows you down. I, however, did not have this problem. I wanted to go faster and faster =) All together I think we did 12 or 14 platforms (going from one to another). On one line, they had the guy on the opposite platform "bounce" the cable so you went up and down. It was pretty cool. Some of the zip lines were so high up and it was amazing to look around and see the beauty of the rain forest.



After we got back to the begining we went to nearby waterfalls called Cascadas Gemilla, Twin Waterfalls. It was fun, but by the time we got back to the house, around 1 p.m. I was exhausted. The following day, Sunday, my body ached a little from using the muscles in a different way. But, it is all good now!
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Dancing Lessons

11:12 AM Srta. Sherrick
Last night the school offered free dancing lessons to students. The first half of the hour was spent learning to salsa dance. Let me tell you... the pros on tv make it look so easy, but it´s not that easy! However, once you get the hang of the steps, it´s not that bad. It seems as if your last "step" is always back... remember that one! The second half of the hour was spent on the Bachata. The Bachata is a simple dance, always with three steps in each pass. I think this one is easy, once you get the hang of the turns.


After the hour, our lessons were finished. I stayed a bit longer and one of the workers here at COSI taught me how to dance the Marenge. This is by far the easiest, step wise. You just move your feet back and forth. The important thing is to keep your hips moving. So, the Marenge is easy, until you start doing turns.... then it can get EXTREMELY complicated! There are so many different types of turns, and I swear I felt like a pretzel with some of them. I am told that it´s easier when you have a good partner who is a strong leader.

Today, I finished my first week and I have learned so much grammar and vocabulary. I am sure that the next two weeks will be just as full of work, and fun!
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Surfing

3:50 PM Srta. Sherrick
Despite the overcast skys today, I learned how to surf. I even rode the waves a few times =) It only took me about 15 minutes before I was able to "ride a wave." Raymond, the guy who taught me, said that I have really good balance and that I once I got up, I did a good job at riding the wave into the shore.

Despite a few bumps and bruises, I think I may try again on Friday. The pros on the TV make it look a lot easier than it really is.... but I didn´t give up!

On a side note, I learned the other day that Costa Rica hasn´t had any type of army in over 60 years! Costa Rica is a peaceful country and they believe in trying to better thier country not through war, but through commerce and diplomatic relationships. The only "force" that there is in Costa Rica is the police. Since Monday, the police have been on the beach. There are many people who make thier living by selling items or services on the beach. Although they are supposed to have a permit to do this, most of them do not. This is quite common. However, they do not go to the beach when the police are there. Who knows when the police will leave, but a Tico told me it should be soon, that the police do this two to four times a year.
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