Today was a prime day to catch up on our sleep because we had a four hour bus ride to Monteverde, up in the mountains of Costa Rica. It was quite a beautiful scenery , especially towards the higher parts of the mountains. Close by, you could see all the green trees and stunning landscapes. If you look further into the distance, mountain ranges and clouds filled with raindrops could be seen. One thing that really stood out to me as we drove up the mountain, was that there were some street paintings/graffiti that were exhibited on the sides of the mountain. Along with that, the locals were not really outside, even when the weather is nice out, from what I could see.

As my stay in Costa Rica progresses, my understanding and perceptions of Costa Rica hasn’t really changed, but more confirmed. The longer I stay here, the more places I get to explore and really learn about the different communities. But in all the different communities I’ve visited or seen, they had a few similarities. For example, throughout the various communities, all the Ticos live off of rice and beans for their meals. They eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Also, another similarity that was prevalent throughout the different communities in Costa Rica was that the streets were very unclean, broken, and contained pieces of trash. It’s strange though, because the insides the homes and buildings in Costa Rica contain expensive-looking furniture and fancy decorations. It’s intriguing to see the contrast between the cleanliness inside and out of public and private infrastructure.