silence is a survival strategy
You know how in movies and things people are told to picture themselves in their Happy Place? And they always pick a beach? I tend to shy away from things involving the exposure of skin or copious amounts of sunlight, plus I do not understand the appeal of sand, so the beach is not really my thing.
I've been happy in plenty of places, of course -- buildings, soccer fields, in vehicles, closets, houses. I've been comfortable, contented, relaxed. But there's never been anywhere that I pictured myself being in order to relax. After being in Belize last year, where it was Just. So. Hot, I was prepared for Costa Rica to be about the same, although I looked forward to seeing the higher-elevation Cloud Forest (bosque nuboso!). I was told I might even need a sweater there, which made me ridiculously happy.
And dudes - I love the Cloud Forest. I love Monteverde. I love the little town about 20 bumpy minutes down the mountain, Santa Elena. I love the little coffee shop above the little bookstore in the little town. Love.
We go to study environments, ecosystems, flora & fauna, Issues. But I found myself listening to the way people spoke - in Spanish, in Spanish-accented English, in English-accented Spanish. For the first time ever, I spoke in Spanish to people who needed me to. I spoke things I had to rehearse, and instead of saying "de nada," I said, "con mucho gusto," because that's what the native speakers say. My first-ever, real Spanish sentence was expressing the idea that I do not need a bag for that, thank you, which you would think is my favorite sentence in English.
I learned I'm bad with numbers and thus money in foreign languages as well.
I understood the slow and careful Spanish of one of our guides as he spoke for the translators - I understood most of the Spanish between an American practicing on one of our patient leaders. I could get the gist of what the Costa Ricans said to each other. A couple of times, when I said something, I was so flustered and surprised that they understood me that I forgot to listen to what they were responding, and got completely lost.
I want to go back there someday.
I've been happy in plenty of places, of course -- buildings, soccer fields, in vehicles, closets, houses. I've been comfortable, contented, relaxed. But there's never been anywhere that I pictured myself being in order to relax. After being in Belize last year, where it was Just. So. Hot, I was prepared for Costa Rica to be about the same, although I looked forward to seeing the higher-elevation Cloud Forest (bosque nuboso!). I was told I might even need a sweater there, which made me ridiculously happy.
And dudes - I love the Cloud Forest. I love Monteverde. I love the little town about 20 bumpy minutes down the mountain, Santa Elena. I love the little coffee shop above the little bookstore in the little town. Love.
We go to study environments, ecosystems, flora & fauna, Issues. But I found myself listening to the way people spoke - in Spanish, in Spanish-accented English, in English-accented Spanish. For the first time ever, I spoke in Spanish to people who needed me to. I spoke things I had to rehearse, and instead of saying "de nada," I said, "con mucho gusto," because that's what the native speakers say. My first-ever, real Spanish sentence was expressing the idea that I do not need a bag for that, thank you, which you would think is my favorite sentence in English.
I learned I'm bad with numbers and thus money in foreign languages as well.
I understood the slow and careful Spanish of one of our guides as he spoke for the translators - I understood most of the Spanish between an American practicing on one of our patient leaders. I could get the gist of what the Costa Ricans said to each other. A couple of times, when I said something, I was so flustered and surprised that they understood me that I forgot to listen to what they were responding, and got completely lost.
I want to go back there someday.
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