¿Qué me dice, mai? ¡Pura Vida!

Tonight's dinner: arroz, frijoles, papas, carne, ensalada

            The food here in Costa Rica is amazing! Imagine flavor, variety, and greatness in one cuisine, and then you have all of "la comida de Costa Rica"! Costa Rican food is its own style, which is influenced by the food of myriad other countries. The style can spread from tasty “platanos” (plantains) to common “panqueques” (pancakes) to the original Costa Rican “gallo pinto” (white rice and beans). The drinks are amazing, too. We have never experienced such a wide spectrum of juices, ranging from star fruit to blackberry to passion fruit to ­guanabana. The pure awesomeness of these exotic nectars overwhelms the taste buds. This is a little wordy so just assume that the food and drink are great.

Harmony, Emma, and Jamel: interns at the ecolodge who have been feeding us

After the long rant of our attempt at food critique, let’s take a step back and recount the day. The morning started with our second trip to Escuela Cristo Rey. We came back and had a good lunch of spaghetti and garlic bread. By the way, yes, even this had a special Costa Rican influence to it.  The afternoon was a fun contest where five groups of kids (and one of teachers) had to compete in six different challenges. One challenge was to milk a cow, which was one of the most, shall we say, interesting to our fellow classmates.   

Mr. Bixler milks a cow

Another was to make tortillas. We also interviewed a Costa Rican family, learned to dance merengue, and learned some river rafting skills. The competition was for the most rubber bands, which were awarded after completion of an activity. The teachers, assuming victory, of course received the contrary.  [Editor's note: Actually, our team, Las Cucarachas, tied for first with Los Perros, captained by Adam!] The activities were fun, and we had a great time. Most of the events were based in local people’s houses, which was very interesting because it provided an insight into Costa Rican life. We met many people, and we had many conversations with them. Our very descriptive conclusion about today is that everything was amazing.

Thank you, thank you, and goodnight.

Charlie y Ian 

¡Pura Vida, Mai!

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