Miercoles... yep that's Spanish!

I think today is Wednesday. It's hard to keep track since I am still feeling like I'm in some kind of whirlwind... or cloud forest. We were supposed to go to Spanish class today but our teacher forgot so we sat at her house with her son for 40 minutes before giving up and heading to breakfast. Guess what I had... rice and beans with eggs and ham and cheese. Yep, my heartburn is gone and my appetite is back. Last night Ryan, Ran, Shannon, Daniel and I went to an awesome restaurant called Sofias. We'll all have to go there when you visit. On Monday night Shannon and I went out to Taberna and shook our booties a little. It was fun!

Today Ryan and I took a taxi to our future new home. We gave our landlord our deposit and we should be moving in at the beginning of November. The first is Ryan's birthday and we are going to pick out her bunny. Daniel is building the bunny hutch and Ryan is going to be thrilled. We walked to the co-op after visiting with our landlord. Ryan fell twice. She'll have to get used to the rocky roads--- gotta pay attention to where you're going around here. I met with Lorena and we talked about my new job which I start next week. I'll be making coffee and telling people about the co-op. Their website is under construction but you can find out about it www.texascoffeetraders.com . Funny how things are so inter-related.

We are going on a two-day vacation to Los Lagos. We'll be taking a taxi-boat-taxi ~it's just what it sounds like it is~ and we'll go to the volcano, swim in hot pool, etc. We're looking forward to it!

Ryan is being great singing as I type this blog at an internet cafe. I don't want to push my luck, though. We're still stressed out from the transition but we are glad to be here. I'm still trying to figure out what everything is at the grocery store and I continue to look for things that don't exist... like a can of cream of mushroom soup. We bought Ryan bandaids with dragons and dinosaurs on them. She keeps falling down but she's a tough chick.

My time is up. Ryan said she needs to go potty. Our Spanish is getting better little by little and we're looking forward to taking Spanish classes. Daniel ~ Shannon's boyfriend~ starts English class on the 1st. (Oh, I finally found parentheses on the keyboard... yahoo!) Oh and I've been offered a job teaching English. We'll have to see if I can juggle Ran's schedule at the Pension with Ryan being at home and me having two part-time jobs.

So much to tell, so little time. More to come...

pura vida

Looks Like We Made It

Well, here we are in Costa Rica. It's hard to believe that we live here now. Considering how much stress we went through to get here, you'd think this would feel more real than it does! Our flight was a breeze-- Ryan was awesome on the plane-- and we got through customs very quickly. We spent last night at a pretty hotel in Alajuela and we came up to the village early today. We're exhausted but thrilled.

I have had heartburn for four days but I think it is finally subsiding. We're going check out some houses tomorrow and Ryan will go look at her school next week. Reality will kick in soon, I'm sure. It's a beautiful day today... life is good.

I'll have to get used to going to an internet cafe for a while since we don't have access at home and we are not likely to get it any time soon. I'll keep you all posted!

On Our Way

At this time next week we will be on a plane heading to Costa Rica! Reality is setting in and I am getting excited and sad. We're going to miss our family, friends, home, food... so many things! But I know we will have tons of visitors (hint hint) and just think of all the cool stuff we'll get to show you. Ran and I are celebrating our 8th wedding anniversary the day after we arrive and we are looking forward to the new life we have ahead of us. Ryan will be four soon and as you all know she is really wanting a baby brother or sister. We're planning to get her a bunny for her birthday (don't tell her---it's a surprise). The sibling and pony will just have to come later.

So what will I miss? Besides my village, my peeps, my ohana, mi gente? Well, I'll also miss English reading material, queso, high-speed internet, MGGTs, going out to eat, quick trips to the mall just in case there's something waiting there for me that I didn't know I'd been missing. And I imagine that, at least on occasion, I'll miss speaking English and having everyone generally understand me. But you wanna know what I'm most looking forward to? Having a cool, bilingual kid(s). Living in a rain forest again. Sleeping through the night (it's all about the little things). Meeting new people. Really knowing what pura vida means.

More to come...
Nic
www.pensionsantaelena.com