Second day in Costa Rica: meeting with families

Our second day in Turrialba started similar to yesterday, waking up and eating breakfast together. We ate a hearty breakfast of a ham and cheese torta(sandwich) and a fruit + yogurt bowl. We all walked up the long journey to the gate and separated into four groups with four leaders, two going the left and two the right. The houses were very quaint and homey, unlike the American suburban houses you all might be used to seeing. Clothes lines on the backyard and a beautiful porch overseeing the Turrialba volcano with a mild fog sweeping over the land with lots of space to run and play around

When my group got to the houses we were greeted with an already cooked meal of rice, chicken, potatoes, and minced zucchini along with fresca de crema(cream vanilla drink, a lot like ice cream) and peach tea. Doña Mila was incredibly friendly with us along with her husband and two kids, a little girl and a boy. Although the kids seemed shy, they still brought us mangoes with salt(highly recommend) and helped bring us the food. They even prepared a postre(dessert) for us consisting of mature plantains and cheese. We then went on a journey throughout the property and got to see butterfly greenhouses, pigs, chickens, and cows.

Following the tour of the farm area, we got to meet up with the other house across the street and steal some of their dessert which was similar to a shaved ice with powdered and condensed milk layered in between. After settling down food with gathered for games commonly played in the community between the two houses and had a heated set of games between the two teams, mine being the Fuglers(fuhglers) and the Yo Gabba Gabbas. Suffering defeat, our group went to cook tortillas and sweet Costa Rican style arepas with Doña Mila with a very healthy dose of Turrialba cheese.

Our time in the houses really reflected to us that we were very similar to the other families but also different. We as humans all like to cook in groups, its how we’ve always survived, and its still something that brings us all together. Especially when some of us dont speak the same language we still find a way to be the same in all the ways that matter. Being a part of the community was scary but also very comforting because I think we all kind of miss being a part of a family being abroad like this. The families were so welcoming to us knowing that we don’t speak the language and them not knowing how we would react to all of the new food and traditions. Even the games were similar to things we have played before in school and brought us together a lot better.

Today we visited Doña Carmen, Doña Mila, Doña Rosario y Doña Johana house in Costa Rica. We all got separated in groups of four with four or five people in each group, each group went to visit there homes and during that time visiting we were getting to know each of the señoras and learn about them, for example if they had any kids or nietos (grandkids) and how many do they have as well as just getting to know more about them personally and vise versa.

My group went to Doña Carmen’s house in San Rafael, Turrialba Doña Carmen welcomed us into her home, we learned some things about Doña Carmen and how her daughter lives near her with her son which is Doña Carmen’s nieto. Doña Carmen mentioned that she lives alone and has no pets although her daughter has a cat and a dog that visit from time to time. Doña Carmen had already prepared lunch for us, which was arroz(rice), frijoles(beans), carne con champiñones(meat and mushrooms),fried platanos( fried banana), and salad with a side of avocado. Once we had finished lunch we helped Doña Carmen wash the dishes and help her clean the table, after we had clean the dishes we relaxed for a bit and we had a visitor who was a worker or knows a lot about Guyana Mountain and told us stories and just things to know about that place. Our special guest was named Alejandro and he talked to us for an hour and about how he is a professional photographer and he took pictures of coyotes.

Towards the end of the trip Doña Carmen taught me and my group how to make empanadas and tortillas, we all learned how to make tortillas from scratch and shape them and for the empanadas we learned how to fold them gently and make sure they did not break. After we all finished making empanadas and the tortillas we all sat together at the table, we all ate and while we were eating we were also playing Bingo with Doña Carmen and her family. Finally at the end when we were all done eating and playing games, me and my group took one last picture with Doña Carmen and her family as well in front of her house.We left Doña Carmen’s house and as we were walking back to the base we stopped by a pulpería to buy even more snacks, after we bought snacks we finally walked back to the base to get back in time for the next thing to do on the agenda.

Overall the time I had Doña Carmen’s house with my group I had fun because it had reminded me of back home and helping my abuela at her house back in Mexico. I reflected towards the end how being at Doña Carmen’s house and my house back home are and were similar and how I connected with Doña Carmen and her family as well as if it were my own family. I was really glad that I was able to be welcomed into her house and learn how to make empanadas, a big thing of me was translating for my group when they did not understand and supporting them throughout the whole trip and making sure they didn’t feel left out.