Duel Citizen

Above: Ellie with her two brand new passports.

Well today we completed the final step in getting all of Ellie’s paperwork. In addition to getting her two passports, we also picked up her Consular Report of Birth Abroad of a Citizen of the USA from the US Embassy, and her permission to leave the country, from the Costa Rica government. All-in-all, a very successful day. Only 32 business days (including the day after she was born, Thanksgiving, and a visit from the Chinese president that shut down the government for a day) from her birth to her becoming an official duel citizen has to be some kind of record.

Now all that is left to do is pack and head out, we’ll be on US soil in 8 days!

Summer Vacation Road Trip: Playa Hermosa

Above: Lucy and Lindsey watching a beautiful sunset.

The second leg of our road trip brought us through the beautiful Costa Rican province of Guanacaste to some of the best beaches in the country. Astute blog readers may remember that we have already been to Playa Hermosa, but that was a different one. This one is located in the northern part of the country, is on the Pacific coast, and consists of of a small bay with calm, warm water.

Above: Here is our only attempted family shot with the camera timer overlooking the sunset. Caleb, Uncle B, Aunt KK, Lindsey, Sean, Lucy, Necy, and DaBo.

We reserved a small sweet for the whole family and from there we could see the bay and the beautiful sunsets. We enjoyed some fun times on the beach, great food, and more fun swimming in the pool for the cousins.

Above: And of course, the new BFF’s.

The trip was quite a relaxing time of seeing the country and spending needed time with family. Although we are sad to see them go, we are excited about starting our last trimester at language school next week.

Summer Vacation Road Trip: Volcano Arenal

Above: Lucy grinning in front of the beautiful Arenal Volcano.

Two days into our summer break from school, Lindsey’s family all flew down for a whirlwind tour of Costa Rica. We rented a van, loaded up, and headed for one of the most famous spots in Costa Rica, Vocalno Arenal. The volcano is active and you can see the steam coming off the top during the day and the red lava shining at night. We stayed at a hotel at the foot of Arenal for two nights and enjoyed hot-springs heated pools, beautiful wildlife, and the constant view of the massive volcano.

Lucy of course loved the time with family, especially her cousin Caleb. Though the hadn’t seen each other in 6 months, Skype kept them close and they were soon bonding like siblings. The loved chasing each other around, mimicking what each other said, swimming together, and talking about “big volcano.”

This first part of the trip was great, and we loved seeing more of our temporary home country.

Above: Lucy and cousin Caleb playing on Caleb’s bed on morning.

Vacation to Punta Uva

Above: Lucy and Sean on the small stretch of beach between the Caribbean ocean and the jungle.

This weekend we went on a trip with other missionaries at our language school to a beach on the Caribbean coast, Punta Uva. Punta Uva is a small beach town on the northern coast of Costa Rica, near the Panama border (to the west). The school set up the trip and the bus travel (6 hours each way) and we had a great time on a much needed break.

Lucy especially loved the water. It took her a little while to get used to the ocean, but soon she was swimming and squealing with joy. She also enjoyed the pool and the bathtub, only her second “real” bath since we’ve moved here.

Although the beach was small, and the water was filled with coral, we had a great swimming spot. We also got to do some snorkeling, played on the beach, and enjoy some fun time with friends.

All in all a great trip, and a beautiful place for Lucy to have her first ocean swim.

English as a Second Language

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Above: A view of San Jose from the hills north of Alajuela. (The picture has nothing to do with the classes, its just pretty!)

Over the past two months here in San Jose, we have been volunteering at a local community center teaching English to Costa Ricans with a desire to learn. The students have been great and they all speak much more English than we speak Spanish.

The classes meet every Wednesday night for two hours, with a 20 minute break for coffee, singing, and a bible message. We have been alternating teaching the same class, intermediate English. Usually Lindsey goes for the first hour, Sean brings Lucy for the break, and then the girls go home and Sean teaches the second hour. Though we have taught certain themes and subjects, by far the favorite thing for the students is to talk, talk, and talk. Unlike us, who interact with Spanish speakers constantly throughout the week, most of our students only speak English on Wednesday nights.

We have really enjoyed our time teaching, it has been great to make some friends in the neighborhood, practice our Spanish, and learn more about a ministry we hope to implement in Honduras.

Tubs and Taxis

Above: Lucy enjoying her first real bath in 4 months.

This weekend we had a couple firsts in our time here in Costa Rica. One of the tougher adjustments for us and for Lu is the lack of bathtubs in this country. Lucy has had to adjust to bathing in a Tupperware bucket that is fast become to small for her. This weekend we went to a hotel near San Jose, and were thrilled to find a tub! Lu wasn’t quite sure what to do at first, but then enjoyed just hanging out and bathing herself in her newfound, roomy tub.

Above: A taxi line in Central San Jose

Another first for us this week was chatting up various taxi drivers. Of course we’ve taken dozens of taxis since we’ve been here, and we’ve talked with most of the drivers, but this week was different as we actually conversed and held long conversations without the driver kicking us out for butchering his language. For some that might not seem like such a big deal, but for us it was an assurance that we might in fact learn Spanish after all.

Mountain Vacation

Above: Lucy, Sean, and Lindsey in front of Volcano Poas.

Sorry for the lack of posting early this week, we’ve just returned from a family vacation to the mountains and volcanoes above San Jose. Sean’s parents, Gannie and Mac, flew down Thursday for a quick vacation and some much needed time with grandparents. We rented a car, escaped the San Jose traffic and rain, and made it out of the city and into the hills.

One of the stops on our trip was Volcano Poas, a volcano with a huge crater, aqua blue lake, and constant steam rising from the depths. Despite the constant sulfur smell, we had a great time hiking around the Volcano.

Above: The family huddled together under one of many waterfalls at La Paz.

Another morning, we headed to La Paz, a park full of gardens, animals, and trails along many waterfalls. Lucy loved especially enjoyed the bird and butterfly houses, the monkeys, and the soothing sounds of the waterfalls, which put her right to sleep. The park is filled with all the nature and wildlife Costa Rica has to offer, and we throughly enjoyed hiking around and exploring all morning.

Above: Mac, Gannie, Sean, and Lucy in front of the toucan cage in the bird house at La Paz.

Despite all the beautiful sights and fun walks, the best part of the weekend by far has been time with family. Lucy has truly loved being around her Gannie and Mac, and we cherish the time we can all spend together as family.

Spanish Word – Pájaros

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Above: A couple birds outside our door.

Simple translation: bird. There are lots of birds here in Costa Rica and we have gotten used to seeing them everywhere. One of our first weeks here we heard some loud squawking up in a tree and looked up to find some parakeets like the ones pictured above. We thought it was so cool to see such pretty birds out in the wild that we stopped and watched for 5-10 minutes. Unfortunately, the novelty soon wore off. We originally thought these were parrots, but upon further research, they look to most likely be parakeets, Crimson Fronted Parakeets to be exact. Though we are not entirely sure what they are, what we do know is that they are loud and apparently never sleep! I cannot tell you how many mornings we have been awakened by a pair of these green guys screaming away outside our window. They usually travel in loose flocks, so where there is some noise there is a lot of noise. The other day in the rain these two guys settled on the power lines outside our front door and proceeded to let the world know they had arrived. We still love to see them and try to take pictures (they are lightening fast), but their squawk is something we could live without.

Above: The Yigüirro, or the Clay-colored Robin, the national bird of Costa Rica.

This bird above is essentially the polar opposite of a parrot/parakeet. Compared to the brilliant green and red of the parakeet, this bird looks downright dull. But what is lacks in beauty it makes up in song. There are lots of these guys around school, so we hear their song while are in classes and it is a great relief from the ugly sounds of our struggling Spanish. And after the squawking of the green terrors, we can see why this unassuming yet beautiful bird is the national bird of Costa Rica.