JVs, meet FrancisCorps

Zach!

Last week, I had the pleasure of hosting six friends from JVC in Costa Rica.  You might remember hearing about my housemates from Casa Dorothy Kazel in LA - John, Zach, Julie and Cara. All four of them, plus another LA JV, Ben, and Julie's friend, Rosemary, came down to Costa Rica for their very own Spring Break 2012.  The first crew arrived on the evening of Thursday May 3rd. The following day, we got up early and hopped a bus North of San Jose to a national park where we went ziplining. First we got a little tour of the rain forest, from our trusty guide Juan Miguel. We then spent about two hours flying through the clouds and enjoying the beautiful scenery in the park. I knew that our trip was off to a good start when Rosemary told me that was one of the coolest things she's done in her life :)

Me, Rosemary, Julie, Cara, & Zach

That evening, John and Ben joined us and we threw Zach a birthday party at my house, pinata and all. We invited some of our other friends over, but the JVC crew stuck together, singing Colder Weather and catching up on the past few months. I enjoyed introducing my JVC and FrancisCorps communities to each other, especially because they have both heard a lot about the other and could now put faces to the names and funny stories I've shared. I also really enjoyed being able to share my life in Costa Rica with my JV friends, since they - more than anyone - have a solid context to understand this whole life-in-community/volunteering/being-far-from-home thing.

Reunited with the Pacific

birthday boy!

On Saturday morning we hit the road to Manuel Antonio, the absolutely beautiful national park about 3 hours south of San Jose. As soon as we got to the hostel, we changed into bathing suits and practically ran down to the beach. It was still a gorgeous afternoon on the beach, and the gang was happy to be able to swim and relax on the Pacific. I made friends with a rather pesky man who was trying to get us to buy happy hour drinks from him. Even though we kept declining, he told me I should bring all my friends back to Manuel Antonio (so if you're reading this and still want to come, I've got just under two months left here!)  After a yummy dinner and some birthday flan for Zach on Saturday evening, we hung out at the hostel catching up on life and 'breaking down the issues,'  as Casa JD would say last year. I really miss the kinds of conversations we used to have over dinner and at parties last year - they were ridiculous, intellectual, and hilarious, and passionate - so it felt good to have a dose of that here in CR.

nature walk!

On Sunday, we walked through the park and saw tons of animals: deer, sloths, lizards, monkeys, etc. We camped out on the beach for a while and swam, but eventually had to call it quits because the tide was so strong, and was coming in quickly. Before we knew it, one wave snuck up on the side of us and literally washed us out. Though we initally lost some shoes and books, the boys did an excellent job of chasing everything down. Unfortunately not everything made it back in great condition, so we decided to go back to the first beach for a bit. After a little more swimming, an attempt at drying out our stuff, some monkey-watching, and a brief photo-shoot, we headed out of the park and back to the hostel to change for dinner. Again we found a great happy hour and just sat for hours enjoying each other's company. Everyone seemed quite content.

Casa DK Reunited :) :) :)

On Monday morning, we stole a few more hours in the sun and surf before heading back to San Jose. When we got back, Margie - the MVP of the weekend - had dinner all ready and waiting for us. The next morning, everyone but Zach and Cara hit the road back to the airport. I couldn't believe how quickily our time together went! After getting them off safely, Zach, Cara, and I walked the length of San Jose twice seeing some sights, meeting some crazy people (namely the bathroom attendant in La Sabana who hummed the entire US national anthem for us in a way that eerily sounded just like a trumpet)  and filling each other in on life. The both took off the next day and I was quite sad to see them go. JVC was such a beautiful experience for so many reasons, one of which being that my housemates are like four more brothers and sisters. I'm so grateful that of the friends that came to visit, half live in DC and will be a relatively short drive away come this summer. John Don lives in NYC so I hope to see him lots since I'll be right across the river. Zach is a bit farther away in Nebraska where he is in law school. Regardless, I felt like one lucky lady to have so many visitors this spring!  One of the best parts of being in Costa Rica has been sharing my life and this beautiful country with people I love when they've come visit. Now it's back to full weeks of work (this will be my first since February between all the traveling, visitors, and holidays in the last 3 months!) for less than two months. Then it's back to the states and off to Newark, NJ where I will finally begin my teaching career!  

  

FJVs do Costa Rica