Happy Halloween!

Costa Rican Farming...

Last weekend all the students in the International Center for Development Studies programs went on a fieldtrip to EARTH University. We toured a paper mill, a banana farm, as well as a cocoa farm to learn about organic farming practices. It was a great weekend, and I learned about a lot of new farming techniques (not that I'll be needing to use them any time soon). I'll leave the rest of the story to my pictures...


*bananas that will end up in Whole Foods someday*

*baby cocoa plants*

*grown up cocoa*

*tasting fresh cocoa*

*cows staring at city kids who don't usually get to see cows*












***Go here http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=129521&id=698895562&l=b7381fd5f2 if you want to see all of them =)***

To Granada & Back Again

So Rhiannon, Kayla, and I decided to take advantage of the long Columbus Day weekend and head to Nicaragua. At 3:45AM Friday we hopped on a direct bus and took off for the border. I immediately fell asleep. When I woke up the bus was stopped, and I couldn't tell where I was so I stumbled off (still groggy) to buy a bottle of water. As I was walking back to the bus I noticed that there was a sign on the front that said Tegucigalpa. I looked around and saw lots of people offering to exchange money, a sign that said customs, and then had a mini-heart attack. For a brief moment I thought we had gotten on the wrong bus and somehow arrived at the Honduran border instead! Needless to say Honduras is not the place to be right now...Luckily it was the Nicaraguan border, and everything was fine (still not sure why that sign was on our bus). We made the 8 hour journey to Granada without any other problems thankfully. The hostel we picked was amazing! *See end of post for full review* After dropping off our backpacks we set out to explore the city for the afternoon. Granada reminds me of Cusco, Peru a little. It's the oldest colonial city in Nicaragua and full of history and joie de virve. Granada is a city that will try it's best to charm you be it through the friendly people, the colorful colonial buildings, or fantastic sunsets. I fell in love with the architecture! (see pics below). Anyways, on our second day there we took a horse and buggy tour and saw Granada's old hospital, a fort that was turned into a prison during the Samoza regime, as well as several of the city’s oldest churches. After a quick stop at an organic chocolate shop (amazing!), we spent the rest of the day exploring Las Isletas in Lake Nicaragua. There are over 360 islands in the lake which can be bought starting at around $100,000. Anyone feel like loaning me some cash? Haha, but really the islands are all beautiful and I would not mind living there. At the end of the day we ended up devouring 2 whole pizzas plus dessert between the three of us to our waiter's amusement =D Busy girls require lots of food!

*Nicaraguan flag flying in the center of town*

On Sunday we set off to explore the nearby town of Masaya. Our first stop was the market. It was gigantic and everything imaginable was for sale! The ground was covered with trash, squishy black gunk, vegetable parts, bits of meat, and some kind of black slime. We went up and down rows and rows of plantains, cabbage, huge hunks of cheese, live chickens, and pig heads. We had wandered around for at least 45 minutes before we stumbled upon the craft section. I felt like Alice in Wonderland; I was too big for the market haha and felt kind of out of place. There was so much to look at the three of us were all on sensory overload. We left the market drenched in sweat though happy, and negotiated for a taxi to take us to a nearby volcano. Volcan Masaya is semi-active and looks like something out of "The Lord of the Rings" (like the doors of Mordor). We climbed to the mouth of the volcano where it was strangely silent, but a heavy kind of silence that buzzed. Oh, and there's a cross at the top put there by the first priest stationed in the area when he designated it the mouth of hell. Before that the native people used to throw humans into the volcano to appease its spirit. We ended out our day with dinner beside a crystal clear lagoon in between Masaya and Granada.
All in all, it was an amazing weekend. Traveling in Central America is always an adventure! Go here (http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=128465&id=698895562&l=45ac4f5c1e)to see all my pics from this trip on facebook!

*overlooking the volcano*

*the lagoon we ate dinner by*

Hostel Oasis
This is without a doubt one of the best hostels I have ever stayed in! $8 a night, free internet, and free breakfast is hard to beat. Also it has a great atmosphere and location. If you're ever in the area I highly recomend it =)

Fútbol/Soccer & Gringas/Ticas

It sounded like a good idea at the time...so many stories start out that way haha. There was a soccer game between Costa Rica and the U.S. in Washington, DC last night. If Costa Rica had scored three goals they would be qualified for the World Cup. Oddly enough I would guess that maybe a quarter of the U.S. population knew that it was going on, and yet the entirity of Costa Rica seemed to be invested heart and soul. People just don't really pay attention to soccer in the states. Anyways, Rhiannon and I wanted to go watch the game, and I decided to wear my U.S jersey. Oh, the looks I got when I walked into a room full of Costa Ricans (men in jerseys, women in club attire and heels)! I really can't remember the last time I felt so awkward. It was like saying y'all in the north , or asking for sweet tea on the west coast, or probably more like wearing a Red Sox's jersey to a Yankee's game; regardless I was marked as an outsider (an unwelcome one at that). I think I would have felt more at ease walking around naked... maybe not, but almost. So the game ended in a tie, and then I really started feeling awkward because everyone got dead silent when the U.S. scored a goal in the last 20 seconds. The stoney silence didn't wear off as quickly as I expected it to. When it did, it gave way to muttered curses about gringos. The tied game means that Costa Rica has to play Uruguay twice in order to qualify for the World Cup, and the chances of Costa Rica winning again the Uruguayan team aren't so good. Lesson learned: everyone can be a sore loser when it's a matter of national pride & try to look less like a gringa in the future =D

A la playa por favor...

Here are some pics from my trip to the beach in Montazuma (Pacific side)the weekend before last. It was a great trip, but not my favorite beach...so far I think Puerto Viejo and Manuel Antonio share that title. Midterms are this week and next, so I'll just let the pictures do the talking for once and save my words for later.






*taken on the ferry ride over*




*we fell asleep in the sand =)*







*ps. these photos would not be possible w/out my early birthday gift! thanks again dad ;)*

It's times like these that you want to plot a coup...

*brownie points if you know what song i stole this title from ;)*



So, in case Central American politics haven't been on your radar lately, here's a quick refresher about the situation in Honduras..... President Manuel Zelaya was removed from power on June 28th, and taken to Costa Rica by the Honduran military. Zelaya claims that he was tortured while in custody. I've also heard a rumor that the U.S. ambassador made a call to Panama requesting permission for Zelaya's plane to land after he was detained by the military. Many people are certain that the U.S. had something to do with this coup, and really it wouldn’t be surprising given our history in the region. *Quick background info. --> Zelaya, a democratically elected president, is an ally of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. The U.S. and Chávez tend to disagree* Somehow Zelaya managed to get back into Honduras, after a brief stay in Costa Rica and Nicaragua, and has been in the Brazilian embassy since September 21st. From his protected position within the embassy walls he has called on his supports to riot in the streets. On Sunday rights to free speech and assembly were suspended by the de facto government headed by Roberto Micheletti, in part to keep said riots under control (http://www.fsrn.org/audio/honduran-crisis-continues-de-facto-government-suspends-civil-rights/5512). Micheletti's government has also closed down several TV and radio stations. Additionally, representatives from the OAS (Organization of American States) have been denied entry to Honduras. Elections are scheduled for the end of November, but there is infighting over whether or not Zelaya should be allowed to run, as well as Micheletti’s future position in the government. Only time will tell if the international community will allow a 21st century coup d'état to go virtually unaddressed.

I remember learning the word for coup d'état in Spanish (golpe de estado) freshman year at GWU, and thinking "when in the world am I ever going to need to know this?". That was before I took a history class about Latin America haha. Coup d'état’s are part of the political reality here in a way that I could have never imagined in the U.S. Because the coup d'état in Honduras happened while I was in Panama, and I am now learning more about it in my classes in Costa Rica ( a country whose government is heavily involved in the peace negotiation process because of President Oscar Arias), I’m definitely getting a different perspective on the issue than I would at home. My professors are all integrating it into our class discussions, which has been great. It’s also personal matter for some of them; one of has been attending protests to show solidarity with Zelaya supporters, and another has family who have been waiting in the Tegucigalpa airport for two days now trying to get a flight to Costa Rica. It feels as if all of Central America is holding its breath, waiting and watching to see how this new turn of events will play out in this region so accustomed to political turmoil.

More info. here:

Honduras
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ho.html

Concise breakdown
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5g1ejO3g3MVSOrGhmgIIPExxxEsQQ

Sen. Kerry getting involved?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/01/AR2009100105015.html

¡comida, comida, y más comida!

So the question eveyone has been asking is "but what are you eating?". The answer.... everything! Well, more or less haha. My host mom is an amazing cook, and works very hard to come up with new vegetarian dishes to surprise me. So what is Costa Rican food like? One dish typical to Costa Rica is gallo pinto, which translated literaly means spotted rooster (see picture and recipe below). It's usually eaten for breakfast with eggs, toast, and natilla (kind of like sour cream). Even McDonald's and Subway serve it here! I have yet to try gallo pinto from a fastfood place, but doubt it could be better than my host mother's recipe (which I still need to steal). Another popular item is sopa negra, black bean soup served with a hard boiled egg. Other great things I've eaten here include: platano maduro (ripe plantains cooked with a little butter and sometimes sugar), yuca (a root vegetable), cas (a type of fruit), guabana (another type of fruit), fresh coconut water, and of course the coffee. So no worries I am not starving! In fact I am getting spoiled rotten. Every morning I get a plate of fresh fruit as well as coffee, and usually either eggs, a breakfast sandwhich, or banana pancakes. Yes, life is good ;)

Here's a link to a blog about Costa Rican food if you're intersted in learning more!
recetasdecostarica.blogspot.com



Gallo Pinto
Makes 4 to 6 servings

•Oil 2-3 tablespoons
•Onion, finely chopped
•Bell pepper, finely chopped
•2-3 cloves minced garlic
•Cooked black beans, drained, liquid reserved -- 2 cups
•Salt and pepper to taste
•Hot cooked rice -- 2 cups

Method
1.Heat the oil in a large skillet or sauté pan over medium-high flame. Add the onions, bell pepper and garlic and sauté for about 2-3 minutes, or until cooked through.

2.Stir in the drained beans, some of their reserved liquid, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and continue to simmer until heated through.

3.Add the rice and stir into the beans and heat through. Adjust seasoning and add a little more bean liquid if necessary. Serve hot.

Variations
•On the Caribbean coast coconut oil is commonly used instead of regular vegetable oil, and chili peppers are added
•Stir in some chopped cilantro.
•Add a few dashes of bottled pepper sauce or Worcerstershire sauce for added flavor.

(Stolen from http://www.whats4eats.com/grains/gallo-pinto-recipe)