Well I am in my new home! Took a long taxi drive through the pouring rain (yep "rainy season" is definitely on) up away from the city into the hills and finally we arrived at a little town: Ciudad Colon. We managed to find the house despite there not being road signs or house numbers. When we got there I thought they'd been a mistake- it is such a lvoely, huge place and my room is ridiculous after years of shoeboxes! I have my bedroom and then a whole section off it that I suppose should be a study area but I'm thinking more music/yoga/breakdance room.
Barely got through the door when Iyvonne, my land lady invited me up to her farm and then next thing I knew we were driving 11km up into the forest covered hills to her farm (46 hectares of mountain farming inside an indian reservation!). Some amazing views on the way- this is the most breathtaking place, huge rolling mountains covered in lush, green forest!
We arrived into the farm (they have 4 quad-bikes! Must restain myself, last time I went quad-biking I quickly discovered I am a maniac). Arrived into the house to be greeted by about 25 people- turns out it was Mothers' Day in Costa Rica and I had basically crashed a huge family meal! Everyone was totally lovely and very sweet to me. Some of Iyvonne's family were over from the US and her nephew and his friends were making everyone dinner. I was on garlic brad duty and only managed not to burn it all by the fact that the EZ-bake style oven was as strong as a weak candle. We ate loads of spaghetti, talked away and then had 3 types of cake! Oh yes it appears my new land lady is a master baker- jackpot. The grandmother told me I was now part of the family and to call her anytime, and I've been invited over for Christmas.
Got a lift home down the mountain with Iyvonne's son and his family- chatted away to their 5 year old about all her school activities (she said she'd teach me karate- Plan Karate Kid is coming together.) As we whizzed down hill they were also sweet enough to tell me about their brother who had come off the same road, fallen 30 metres and broken his back! (He's fine now though, but made me think twice about the quad-bikes!)
Arrived home about 9ish and met my new flat-mate Diego. He's Tico (Costa Rica) but speaks amazingly good English- he even showed me his impressive Cockney accent- he did this by using the phrase "Ahhh I shat in a turtle". I think I have found a kindred odd-mind! We also established that because we live opposite a cementary (yep not walking home alone at night!) and he was weraing a T-rex t-shirt (thus validating everything I knew about Costa Rican) that he is the ghost of a tyranosarus. We stayed up drinking horchata and comparing drunken embarrassing stories and music until our next flatmate arrived (Diego isn't a student, he works, and has lived here for 4 months so is full of good advice about where the party's at and how to escape velociraptors).
Ainura arrived at about 10pm, she's come over from uni in Manilia- there are 30 people on an exchange programme from there. She's actually from Krygyzstan so she's going to teach me Russian. So I said the one Russian phrase I know "Goodnight grandmother" which was at least half way appropriate and we went off to bed.
The next day Ainura and I hung out and checked out the town- she's so sweet and I basically got her to promise to go see turtles with me at the weekend so all is good. About mid-day our other 2 flatmates arrived and the house was complete. Maryia (Kurdistan) and Natsuko (Japan) are also from the uni in Manila so they all know each other and are here for 6 months. They're all really nice and I feel totally at home already.
Iyvonne came round and we took a drive 6.5km up into the mountains to see the uni campus- it is stunning! Up in the hills there is the the most beautiful view of the forest and hills all around. The uni grounds are full of busts of inspiring people but even better- hammocks! It turns out this year there are only 150 students in the entire place! So if I bunk off it is going be quite noticeable I guess.
The road down was just as picturesque- although we almost ran over two proper gauchos herding their horses. Made it across the rickety bridge in one piece but we all decided the first thing we are going to organise is a fundraiser to buy a decent bridge- the old phobia is coming flooding back.
Now just back at the ranch eating avocado and Belgian chocolate Ainura brought from her 2 hour stop over in Amserdam (I thought my change in Dallas was bad- these girls took 4 flights!). Soon Diego's going to introduce me to the all important liquor store. So far the cementary ghosts are keeping to themselves. I think I'm going to like it here!
Lessons learnt:
Missing the bus is not an option- 6.5k up-hill is not going to happen.
You can come to the otherside of the world and find people who find the idea of T-rex ghosts as funny as anyone back home would.
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