Saturday, July 27, 2013

Un baño, por favor?

Today was our girl's day. Arielle, Paige, and I all went out on the town together. We walked downtown and looked in all the shops. I got a super nice dress, and Arielle ended up getting the same one. I loved walking down the streets, seeing the culture, hearing the music, it was great. After a while, we decided to head to the Artisan Market.

I was so excited to be back! Some of the guys remembered me and I hung out with people. I had one man tell me all about his life, about how he fights for everything he has, how his wife left him, and what's important to him. I was also able to see guys from yesterday. "Claire! You're back! Hola!" I especially became good friends with this boy Kenny. He's nineteen and he makes all this stuff out of a sort of clay. He's really talented and we chat a lot when I'm at the market. Today, he let me come to the "VIP box" behind the counter. He let me make stuff and sell to customers. It was a lot of fun! I love walking through the market and hearing people say, "Hola, Claire! How's it going?" "Hey, Claire! High five." "I'm so happy you're back!" This is one place I will be so sad to leave.

To me, the Artisan Market has a magical spark. There is something about that place that makes me feel so comfortable. There's so much life and every color you can imagine. There is so much creative energy being thrown around, it's almost overwhelming. Everyone is so open and friendly, they want to hear about you and they want to tell you about them. They remember specific people and love their work. I want to go every day but I don't want to seem like I have no life. As crazy as it sounds, it's probably my favorite place in Costa Rica. I've never experienced such an intense connection with a place before.

After the market, we all headed to food. After searching high and low for a Thai restaurant, we had Japanese instead. The food was good and the conversation was great. After lunch, we headed back to Maximo to get a few things. As we were leaving, we found my other roommates, Kendria and Shawanda! It was so great to see them because they had gone on a coffee plantation tour that day. We all decided to go get Sweet Sensations cupcakes and Arielle and I were maybe going to get a mani/pedi.

However, on our way over, as we were walking, I saw some policemen. Right as I said hello, I felt something. Please, God, let that have been a raindrop. But I knew. I knew what had just happened. I looked at my shoulder, and saw the poop that the bird had so graciously left for me. I didn't want to say anything but I knew it was on my sweater, scarf, and worst of all, on my head. Right when we got to the mani/pedi place, "un baño?" The woman showed me to the bathroom and I tried my best to clean up. When I came back out, everyone was trying to figure out what to do since the shops appointments were filled. "Um... guys? I have to tell you something. A bird shit on my head. I would love to shower." "WAIT WHAT?! WHEN?!" I told them what happened and we headed right back to my house.

I showered and felt so much better. We decided to go to Chicago, which is the bar my host family owns. It was a lot of fun. By this point, we had also met our new roommate who is taking Shawanda's place, since she is leaving tonight. The five of us had a great time at the bar talking and singing. In that moment, I realized how much I loved these girls and just how connected I felt to them. I'm going to be so sad next week when half of them are gone. My host parents also showed up to the bar and chatted with us. My host dad even played a prank on us and spooked us. I loved the culture and the love that I felt in Chicago.

We caught a taxi and headed home so Shawanda could catch her taxi. Ivannia was so cute when we got home. "Home so soon! More beer is better!!!" We all said our goodbyes to Shawanda and have been chilling ever since. I will miss her a lot but I do love our new roommate, who is from Toronto! I'm excited to meet new people and see what the next week will bring!

1 comment:

  1. Claire! This is so awesome! Thank you for keeping us posted. Enjoy every moment. Hugs from England!
    Kela

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