Tyler’s Final Blog Post

Overall the trip to Costa Rica turned out to be a much greater experience than I had imagined. Although nothing epic or major happened, the difference in lifestyle made me seriously consider how we live in America. The Costa Rican culture reminded me of an earlier time in the United States when life was not quite as fast paced. To be completely honest, I actually embraced the Costa Rican way of life more than America’s. Although this is probably true in America, it seemed as though the people outside of San Jose were even more relaxed and at ease than suburban dwellers in the United States.

Study abroad trips like these should be an important part of any dedicated college student’s repertoire. For me this trip was especially important because I had never been out of the country. The University of South Florida’s Honors College did a good job of providing financial aid and making the trip accessible to all students which I think is one of the most vital parts of the trip. So I commend the Honors College for their equal access to going on these trips and think it is of utmost importance that anyone can go regardless of external factors such as major or financial aid.

One thing that I must add, is that I thought the trip benefited us by not always having an exact itinerary. This left room and time for exploring to do other things. Also I would say that the time spent in the country and speaking the language was much more beneficial to us than the lectures. However, this could just be the fact that nothing beats first hand experience in a foreign country. Thanks to Cayla and Tami and everyone else that went on the trip it was tons of fun and a great experience in a foreign country.

Precious’ Final Blog

Reflecting back on this course, I am happy to say that I really learned a lot from it. I expected to learn a lot of textbook information when I signed up for the course. That was obvious to me. I expected to learn Costa Rica’s history, government, religion, etc. However, I think once we got to Costa Rica, I learned a lot of things that couldn’t have been taught from any PowerPoint or textbook. For instance, I learned how to protest in downtown San Jose, I learned how to track down a bus during rush hour traffic, I learned how to use a handsaw to cut through metal rods, I learned how to find a tattoo/piercing store in Jaco Beach and pray that my broken Spanish is enough, and I learned how to survive a week in an 8×8 room with two classmates. I think things such as that is what made our trip to Costa Rica more than just a classroom trip, but also a learning experience.

Since we have been back, I have been trying to find ways to continue volunteering abroad. I recently decided to make it a goal to try and travel internationally once a year and do some kind of volunteer work. My boyfriend thinks that this is a goal that isn’t entirely possible to achieve, but I would like to make it happen as much as I could. There are a lot of companies such as Maximo Nivel that are looking for volunteers, and I think that doing something like that is much better than just traveling there as a tourist. I feel that if we had stayed in a hotel somewhere in San Jose and just toured Costa Rica, that many of the experiences that have stuck with me never would have happened.

However, despite all of the positive things that I have been saying, there are some negative parts of the trip that stuck with me, especially from the work site. At times, I feel like things weren’t as organized as they should have been. For instance, none of us really had any clue as to what we were working towards. If I had known that the steel that Mrs. Lanier, Jess, and I cut was going to be used to be bent into metal squares by Beth and Daniela, to later be tied onto metal rods by Jess, Laura, and I, which would then be placed into the trench dug by Lindsey, Jenny, and Jenna, then I think we would have all put in a bit more effort to make sure that things were perfect. It’s hard to do something right if you don’t know exactly what you’re doing. Also, I wish that we would have been able to talk with the people that we were doing construction for. We only really got the interact with the children on Thursday, and I never once saw the actual pastor. Having moments such as those would have really made the trip even better.

In the end, I definitely am happy that I chose to go on this course.  I encourage others to take honors trips such as this, and I am hoping that I will be able to participate in more in the future.

A self-reflection of my Costa Rican experience

Youtube this! It was a pleasure to be in a class (and in Central America!) with you all.

Best,
Jenna Dionisio

If the above doesn’t work, try: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jI419RNN3hg>

Beth’s Final Blog

https://www.facebook.com/#!/video/video.php?v=10150279012859698&comments&set=t.525469697&type=1

Welp here it is, my Final blog…

Krystyn’s final blog :)

I had a feeling that leaving my comfort zone and being able to experience a new culture would help me to grow and mature as a student and as an individual, but I couldn’t have imagined just how much growing and maturing I was really going to do.  Spending my spring break in Costa Rica was definitely one of the highlights of my first year in college.  I spent most of the semester listening to everyone else’s experiences abroad and they’re excitement gave me reason to believe that the trip to Costa Rica would be a life changing experience.  I felt like it would open my eyes to a new culture and fuel a better understanding of people I knew little about.  I expected to learn and have fun all at the same time.

After going on the trip, I now have my own experiences to share and I can definitely say that the trip to Costa Rica met most of my expectations.  Everything from tipping  little old guys who just like taking advantage of Americans and praying that our luggage manages to stay on top of the van to learning how to mixing cement and going white water rafting for the first time made my experience unique and memorable.  As one of the few students who had never done anything similar, I had nothing to compare my trip to.  During class discussions is where I noticed some of the flaws of the trip.

One of those flaws was with the service aspect of the trip.  Because I had never built outside of Habitat for Humanity, I did not notice certain things such as the way they did not take care of their tools by cleaning them at the end of the day.  I had also not thought in the beginning to ask what exactly we were working on.  And because they never told us how our work would come together, we were left to make our own assumptions as to what the finished product of our labor would be.

Other than that, I thoroughly enjoyed the work.  It got pretty hot outside, but it was a lot of fun working with everyone.  Going on the trip definitely became a huge bonding experience. We became a family while we were in Costa Rica.  The first couple of days, I was extremely homesick.  If it hadn’t been for everyone around me, I probably would have been that way the entire trip.  But everyone was so friendly and supportive of one another.  Everything was a team effort.  When we had to build the wall, it took teamwork.  When the girls helped wash dishes after dinner, it took teamwork.  When we had to flag down a bus to Cedros in the dark, it took teamwork.  Needless to say, we got to know each other’s strengths and weaknesses pretty well by the end of the trip.  My trip definitely would not have been the same without everyone I went with. 

One of the expectations I had about being in Costa Rica would be the prominence of the language barrier.  For the most part, we were forced to practice the native language.  However, some of the areas were pretty Americanized.  One thing I did not see coming was the five-star McDonalds we passed on the way from the airport.  I had also expected to hear more salsa-like music.  And the only time I heard any Enrique Iglesias was when Tami sang it.  I did enjoy the reggae and the Shakira that we did hear.  And much like at home, the same songs were played over and over.  Good thing we weren’t there long enough to get tired of them.

Actually, one of the first things some of us did when we got home was search for the songs that we heard in Costa Rica.  The very first thing I did when we touched down in Miami was take advantage of the ability to flush my toilet paper.  It was funny because I caught myself thinking and saying “permiso” and “gracias” before realizing that everyone around me spoke English.  It felt different for a little while.  Waking up in my own dorm room the next morning felt odd because I had become so used to waking up freezing on the bottom bunk of our bed.  It also took some time to get back into the regular routine of things at home.  My sleep and eat schedule was off.  I had also been spoiled with home cooked meals in Costa Rica so the dining hall food hit me a little hard.  It was good to be home, though.  Having gone to Costa Rica, I am now more aware of the Tico Lifestyle.  I am able to understand their culture and their beliefs better than I did before.  The combination of the class lectures and the trip has left me with one of the most amazing experiences I have had in college so far.

Dani’s final blog

I apologize for my stumbling and stuttering >.<

Christine’s Last Blog

I had an amazing time in Costa Rica! I was surprised to see how different the culture was compared to Peru. To be honest, I thought that since they are both Spanish-speaking third world countries, they would be similar. I knew it was ignorant of me to think this way which is why I am happy to have experienced a little bit of the unique culture of the Ticos.

The country itself is a very peaceful one. Even the protests we witnessed seemed passive aggressive in that the government officials and people in the downtown area didn’t look very alarmed. Nothing seemed to get out of hand. The museum we visited had interesting sculptures, amusing statues and several stone spheres. Hiking through the rainforest was definitely a highlight of my experience. It is incredible how large the plants are in Costa Rica! The trip was a great way to get to know my fellow classmates and experience a taste of the culture. The memories we made will definitely last a lifetime  :]

Although I had a ton of fun and enjoyed being among the Ticos, I wish I got a stronger understanding of the culture. The trip was a great first impression of Costa Rica, but I wanted to get to know the country on a more personal level. I was really hoping to go beyond just trying the food and dancing to the music. I wanted to experience their way of life and to understand why they do the things they do. I wanted to truly experience the essence of the people and what makes them so similar to and different from me. Looking back on it, I wish I had made more effort to talk to our host family and learn about their lives. I am sure the Ticos have a ton to offer as far as insights and values are concerned. I want my next trip abroad to be longer and more integrated with the daily lives of the people.

My experience did push me more towards the direction of ethnorelatvism in the developmental model of intercultural sensitivity.  Before going to Costa Rica, I was in the Minimization stage in that I was aware of the existence of different cultures but often times combined them into categories such as the Latin, Asian or European cultures. After Costa Rica, I moved more towards the acceptance stage in that I now view the culture of the Ticos as unique, and my own culture as one of many different cultures.

I hope one day that I can return to Costa Rica and experience their way of life and values. It is easy to say you know the facts about something, but it is completely different to say you have experienced it. This trip has inspired me to search for opportunities to experience new cultures through study abroad programs and backpacking adventures. There are so many countries to see and cultures to experience.

Thank you Team Guanabana for an amazing experience! I think my favorite part of the entire trip and classroom experience was getting to know you all.

Christine