As of today, I have been here for two full weeks. Time is flying by. My days are full, and they go fast.
We spent the past weekend at the beach!
The beach was incredible. I had so much fun learning how to surf. We were in the middle of the jungle and got to see monkeys, sloths, lizards, and iguanas. I felt like I was in an episode of Wild Kratts (haha the siblings know). We did karaoke at our hotel, and that was a blast. Hilarious. It didn’t rain the whole weekend until we got in the car to head back to campus. A rainy season miracle!!
On Monday morning we started Spanish classes. It began with oral interviews with the Spanish teachers to get placement in classes. There is a wide variety of levels in this group of students. I was placed in a Bible class that is in all Spanish. So far, it has been difficult yet rewarding. This class lasts three hours every day. It is a long time to pay attention for while listening to another language. But, I am learning so much! My Spanish is improving, and it is super cool that I get to learn about Jesus in another language.
This week we started to visit the ministries that we will eventually choose to serve at every week. On Tuesday we visited a day care. I got to learn about their program and how we would be helping there. Then, we spent an hour meeting kids and hanging out with them. On Thursday we visited a senior care center. Again, I learned about the program and spent an hour playing games and talking with the people that live there. We get to visit the next two ministries in the upcoming week. I’m excited to serve and share the light of Jesus in these really dark places. It is another opportunity to grow my Spanish speaking abilities. It was a challenge trying to speak with all of the people that I met.
We also have continued in both Worldview class and Spiritual Disciplines class. They are both super interesting. We have covered things like the redemption and restoration of the Kingdom of God, silence and solitude, and bible reading and memorization. I often feel like my brain is going to explode because I have been learning so much.
In between classes and ministry visits we have spent time going on caminatas, having worship nights, learning Australian games, and jumping in our pond. Today we rode the public bus into the city of San José. I loved getting to see the city, look at markets, eat at a Costa Rican restaurant, and get coffee from a cute shop. The people here make everything we do so much fun. Tomorrow I am headed to a hiking spot to see what is supposed to be the best waterfall in Costa Rica.
