I went to a concert at the Teatro Nacional Tuesday night. A piano prodigy, Jonathan Duarte, was playing selections by Chopin, one of my favorite composers. I went, of course, and really enjoyed it. He is a very good musician, and is only 16! He played a Nocturne I learned in high school, so that was fun to hear. His other pieces were very well done and I thoroughly enjoyed the evening:).

The other day in class, I found out one reason why foreign adoption is closed/extremely difficult here in Costa Rica. It's because of 1.) child trafficking and 2.) selling the children's organs. Isn't that just horrible??? I could not believe my teacher when she told us that in class. Her brother and his wife are working to adopt a child and she answers our questions. It makes me even more thankful that the orphanage is being built and that the Tatum family will be a family for the orphans. I can't think of a better family suited for such a purpose:).

It's been pretty hot lately, but today it has been raining almost all day! It's a really nice change right now, although I imagine I will be sick of it in several months;). But for now, the sound and smell are quite nice, so I think I'll go read and enjoy it!

A group of women from Memphis, Tennessee came here and put on a Women's Retreat for the women at the language school. It was held at a resort about an hour and a half from San Jose. The theme was "Love Connection." It was a wonderful time to be with a group of women and have fun and learn. And of course the setting was absolutely beautiful! It also made me realize that living in a city and on a busy street can overwhelm a country girl with noise! So today has been a nice time to simply sit in silence, since there is no traffic today, and just listen. I've been doing a lot of praying lately without stopping to actually listen! And who likes a one-sided conversation? So yes, today has been very good for me:).

the resort where we stayed

It looks like Meredith and I will be getting some nice furniture soon! Since Kim has decided not to return, her church has kindly given the things she bought to us for our own use. I find this really exciting since I've been wanting some new pots and pans that would last a while and a rug for the living room! And Meredith can't wait to get her bed!

We will finally begin our work at Colegio Metodista this week! We spoke with Teacher Lidda last week (that in itself is a miracle!) and we all are anxious to finally be working with the kids! Since we're in language school, we will be doing some assisting-type work until school is out, then English tutoring. All of our work is in the primary school to expose the children to native English speakers early on.

Meredith and I cleaned the apartment today. Amazing, I know! And it was time, too:).

There's a piano concert this Tuesday put on by a missionary's son. He's playing Chopin, one of my favorite musicians, and I'm really hoping to go hear it. I've missed all the musical opportunities I had in college. This will be a nice treat, and it's only $5 at the door! Crazy, huh?

So keep your fingers crossed for our furniture and the concert!

Paz

flower variety

big kitty!

smaller kitties

another flower

waterfalls!

Me at a waterfall! I was getting wet!

more flowers...

monkey-tail fern

a weed apparently...seems too pretty to be a weed...

pretty!

another waterfall!

another student and me riding in a cattle cart
The decoration is very traditional. The cart was the first "vehicle" and is a national symbol.

poisonous frog!

non-poisonous frog

even more flowers...

peek-a-boo!
he's a big one!

uh oh...

run away!!!

hummingbirds...

butterflies!

me feeding a toucan

the smallest monkey in the world (I think), from Brasil

birds!

ferns, covered by tarp-like stuff

coffee!!!

Saturday a small group of students from the language school went to a resort about an hour outside of San Jose called La Paz Waterfall Gardens. You can go for a day and see all the neat stuff they have. The pictures above were taken there (don't worry, the snakes were in their cages!). It was a wonderful day! This particular place is tropical rainforest and also a cloud forest, hence the misty quality of some pictures and the fact that it's cloudy-looking:).

I had my first lesson with April on Friday. She's another student at the language school and has kindly agreed to give me some help with some contemporary styles of piano playing. I was practicing today and had a lot of fun. I can't wait to put it to use in chapel!

I received my lunchbox (thanks mom!) on Sunday, along with some movies I had forgotten. There was also a little Valentine's surprise inside:). And the best part was I actually got it on Valentine's Day! It was a wonderful gift from home. Thanks Mom and Dad!

Now I must go and do my Spanish homework!

Chao!

Last Thursday a small group from the language school went to a nearby suburb of San Jose called La Carpio. It's an area populated mostly by Nicaraguans, although their children are considered Costa Rican since this is where they have been born. La Carpio is an extremely poor area with the people living in poverty. Their is a missionary who is working there called "Lalo." He has been encouraging volunteers from the language school to come out once a week and just hang out with the kids there, do some work around the place, and help get programs going for the people there. So we got to meet some of the kids and see the area. We walked across a bridge they built there this past year. It serves the whole area. Many people use it to cross the river (which is beyond filthy) to get to work. I don't even know how far they had to go before the bridge was built.

"Nelson" Bridge, La Carpio

Lalo is the man on the left.

We were also invited inside a woman's home. Two of her sons are doing a lot of work for Lalo and were some youth that he has served. She babysits her grandchildren and takes care of her own children in a small, one-room house with a small area to the side for the kitchen and a small closet where I believe the bathroom was. There is a hammock strung across the room where a baby was resting. The floor is a dirt floor that is covered in tile to make it cleaner and nicer. The mom even apologized for the house being dirty, saying that she doesn't have clean, running water to clean with. There is only one actual door, the front one, and then a doorway to what I assume is the "backyard." No windows. All families have shrines in their homes where they show off the things that are special to them. This one was a larger one because the kids go to McDonald's and get Happy Meals. There were about 10 of those toys and then some trophies the sons have won through the futbol (soccer) team Lalo started.

View from the bridge in La Carpio

It was after we crossed the bridge and could see more of La Carpio that you got an idea of how many people were living in such poverty. Over ten people many times in one one-room house that is only tin pieces put together. Some people do not see Costa Rica as being a third-world country. I happen to live in an area of San Jose--Sabanilla--that is really nice for many Ticos. So it was very good for me to be reminded of how some of my students live. But to realize the scale of poverty...that is when you start wondering how that many could live like that for so long, knowing there is better. But that is something missionaries here are working on--improving the lives of Ticos and helping them not only set high goals but accomplishing them as well.



I went to the beach this past weekend with Beth and her kids--Jesse, Drew, and Kirsten. We had a really fun time! The national park is very nice and clean, and they got to see the monkeys! We played in the waves the next day and got more sunburned, but overall it was a wonderful trip. Colegio Metodista starts school this week! So Beth and Bryan decided it would be good for their kids to have one last "hoorah!" before going back to school.

Can you see the iguana???

White-faced monkeys


I think this is a coconut farm....

Language school is going well! It's a lot of vocabulary to remember, but it's getting there:). I have a test every day this week except tomorrow (Thursday), so that's not much fun, but we also had a birthday party today in the second half of Grammer for Yung. He's from South Korea, and his wife made a special dish they serve on special occasions. It was veggies, sausage, egg, and cheese surrounded by white rice, all wrapped in seaweed! That's the first time I have ever eaten seaweed:). It wasn't too bad. Really different, but not too bad (mostly because of the sausage, I think!).

We are still waiting for our washing machine to get fixed, so please pray that something happens soon. The Women's Retreat is coming up next weekend. The language school and a mission team from the states is putting it on, and I'm really looking forward to it!

Sorry for the length of this one:). It's been a while!

Paz