Global Glimpse Day 3

Today was day 3 of our journey in Turrialba and it was also the first day of having a leader of the day. We four, Dharyana, Crismel, Christian, and Gilbert, were the first volunteers. The main activity of the day was visiting local homes and our task was being the translator for our group. It was a great way of showing initatiative and being in touch with our culture. We were each assigned to different homes to share a cooking experience. These were the homes of Doña Mila, Doña Rosaria, Tia Carmen and Doña Johanna. They each welcomed us with open arms and immediate hospitality. We were told prior that a way of showing love in Costa Rica was through sharing meals and it is true. After introducing ourselves we were shown seats and offered sliced fruit, and sugarcane.

Crismel Perspective

We sat down at the table while some of us tried sugarcane for the fist time and others talked to dona Rosaria. It was a good experience to talk to her and learn about her daily life in Costa Rica. Then we started off by cooking mash potatos with cheese, saled, chicken ,fried patains and ate together at the table. Dona Rosaria served us homemade icecream. She got to show us her garden and started to talk about her family. We sat down at the table while some of us tried sugarcane for the first time and others talked to Doña Rosaria. It was a good experience to talk to her and learn about her daily life in Costa Rica. Then we began by cooking mashed potatoes with cheese, cutting up vegetables for salad, seasoning and baking chicken, fried plantains (Tyra cheffed up!) and learning more about Doña Rosaria’s life. She told us about her children, her love for her country, her experiences studying and working as a cook, and much more. After we cleaned up, we ate our meal together at the table, with fresh pineapple juice to drink. Doña Rosaria served us homemade sour guava ice cream on her porch, and we enjoyed the view of the mountains as the clouds began to roll in. She told us about a nearby volcano that you can see on clear days! She also got to show us her garden where she grew the cilantro that we used in the salad and told us about how much she loved plants. We ended with making tortillas and empanadas to take down the hill for our rainy walk home. We had such a great time with Doña Rosaria, and she invited us back to stay any time we wanted!

Christians Perspective!!!!!!

On the way to Tia Carmens house my group Mat, Tahlia, Emily and Summer passed through multiple unique plants and bugs that are typical to Costa Rica. One of the plants we passed was a hallucinogenic plant and one bug we saw was a butterfly. Before we entered Tia Carmens house, my group was hit with how vibrant her house and area was, there was lush plants, there were cats and dogs and Tia Carmen had some plants outside. Inside Tia Carmens house we were welcomed with open arms, she had food ready for us which consisted of rice, beans, picadillo, meat and fried chicharon. The plentiful and yummy food made everyone full and happy, Tia Carmen decided to help us digest the food by walking to her catholic church that she works at which was downhill from where we were at. The church looked very well built and the inside also showed that, we then went to pass by a school which looked small but comfy, and when we passed it we ended up at a soccer field where we saw Costa Rican people ages 13 to 16 playing soccer. It looked very intense and fun. As we were walking back to Tia Carmens house we were suprised by a giant spider it scared everyone in my group. Then when we were in Tia Carmens house we started cooking empanadas. For a lot of people in my group it was their first time making an empanada so they took initiative and took turns cutting. When we finished cooking, we played bingo and ate the empanadas we made. We left Tia Carmens house with a new view on how people live.

Gilbert’s Perspective

When first meeting Doña Mila and her husband and two kids, they showed us a butterfly farm with many butterflies and caterpilars. After that, we went to talk with the family–asking them different questions about how their life in Costa Rica is like–and helped prepare our lunch. We helped them by cutting various vegetables as they prepared some chicken. For lunch we had rice with chicken mixed with it, black beans and a salad consisting of lettuce and beets. After lunch, my group met with Dharyana’s group and looked at a farm nearby the houses. There were many chickens and pigs, even some baby pigs. After that, we all played some bingo together and won several snacks from Costa Rica. The games ended and my group went back into Doña Mila’s house and prepared some handmade tortillas by mixing flour, cheese, salt, sour cream and water and forming it into flat disks. We ate our tortillas with coffee and sweet water and said goodbye as we went back into our accomodation.

Dharyana’s Perspective

Before meeting Doña Johanna we had to wait for her to arrive so we were invited to explore Doña Mila’s butterfly pavilion. Being able to be around the nature and even being able to interact with some of the butterflies was a really memorable experience for everyone in my group. Afterwards we were able to enter Doña Johannas home and start with the meal. We were assigned to chop up onions, peppers, cilantro, and tomatoes for the pico de gallo. We were having fun laughing at our bad knife skills, but we definitely improved as we went on. Cutting up different ingredients for each meal was a great bonding experience for my group. We shared our backgrounds and what our own families were like. We were able to talk to Doña Johanna, her husband, and son about our lives back home and our experiences in Costa Rica so far. After we shared a delicious meal of white rice, picadillo, pico de gallo, and beef we were able to ask Doña Johanna’s family more questions about their life here and their favorite memories. She expressed her love for Turrialba and its peacefulness. She adores the wildlife and the bird songs in the morning. We also learned that everyone around this property was family and for fun they often reunite together to share a cup of coffee. Once we finished cleaning our table, me and Gilbert’s group reunited for a game of bingo all together. Our prize was a snack and pin from the adorable neighbor’s son, Mateo. Nelson, Doña Johannas husband, led us to the farm where we saw pigs, cows and chickens. We admired the baby pigs and took pictures of all the animals. We then moved on to make tortillas and we were actually all good at it. We enjoyed the tortillas with a homemade cup of coffee. Lastly, we shared our last few moments with Doña Johanna and took a group photo.