Now that I have my first twenty-four hours in Costa Rica under my belt, the real fun begins! While the language barrier has been difficult for me, I am thankful my host “sisters”, Krista and Grace, have more Spanish skills and experience under their belt. It is true that you start catching on quickly but for now it has been a lot of “sí!”, “gracias!” and “bien!” which has been sufficient so far.

But as for my first impressions of this amazing country, it has been a gift to be able to see how another culture operates and welcomes foreigners into their country and homes. I knew that Costa Ricans are know for their friendliness, but what they say is so true. Everyone has been kind, generous and patient, which is all I could ask for.

The community and city of Heredia is beautiful and lush with gorgeous culture. We toured the mercado (market) today which was incredible and right up my alley. The vibrant fruit stands and meat vendors exuded pride in their product and the trustworthy nature of customers with the vendors was obvious as well.

We toured the main square of central Heredia and watched a concert that was complete with an orchestral band and a group of dancers in flowing, colorful gowns. It was an amazing show! Sylvia, our tour guide and go-to, has been exceedingly helpful and generous with her time and knowledge of the area and entire country, which I am largely grateful for.

After our tour of Heredia and overflowing lunch in a lusciously green restaurant, our group toured a local mall with rooftop gardens that offers a wonderful view of the adjacent San Jose area. But my favorite part of today is how it has concluded. Our entire group of student travelers decided we wanted to play a pick up game of fútbol and headed to a field close to one of our peer’s homestays after purchasing a soccer ball at the mall. Now I sat aside with some others and put on my best “soccer mom” impression reminding the players of sunscreen reapplication and to be careful when jumping the fences to retrieve a lost ball. But when some kids from the cul-de-sac joined we made quick friends and welcomed them to our game. So, in all, this post is dedicated to Zachary, Ignacio, Franco and Guel(?, apologies for incorrect spelling)–here’s to more pick up games!

(Soccer moms not pictured, we were rather the ones taking the pictures in true mom fashion)