**Note: Trip was taken in October 2018, written in July 2021** After moving to Europe, my first chance to travel came very quickly. As an English teacher in Stockholm, I am provided with lots of breaks throughout the school year (honestly they are more like recovery periods, but yeah you get the point). In the fall term we have a break called Höstlov, falling around end of October/ early November…
Read about my personal experiences while teaching and traveling abroad
" We started with a simple hello and ended with a complicated goodbye." This was my last week in the school and the last week with my host family. This past week I barely taught actually, since there was testing, an acto cívico, and an intense school-wide class election. On Tuesday, they celebrated "El Día del Agricultor" where the youngest members of the school dressed as various fruits and…
“Wherever we travel to, the wonderful people we meet become our family.” -Lailah Gifty Akita, Think Great: Be Great! As of today, I have been in Costa Rica for exactly 6 weeks! I wish I could easily have another 6 weeks here. Since I’ve been here for a while, I think it’s probably time to talk about where I’ve actually been staying this entire time! I’ve been staying with an authentic Costa Rican…
"One student, one teacher, one book, one pen can change the world." -Malala Yousafzai Walking through the green, iron gate. Entering through the openness of the classroom. Hugging my students in the preschool. Hiking up the hill on the cement pavement, feeling mosquitos bothering my ankles and plants brushing my skirt. Turning the corner to come face to face with an iguana the size of my arm. A…
"Life begins at the end of your comfort zone." -Neale Donald Walsch Leaving my comfort zone has happened once again, while my three American friends who were student teaching with me all left to go back to the states. They have helped me to adjust to the culture, food, and school. So the next two weeks will be very different from my previous weeks here! Although I already miss my new friends that…
"If you don't challenge yourself, you will never realize what you can become." Everything I have posted so far has only been about the incredible, positive, and fun experiences in Costa Rica. That's typically how social media rolls. I want to share that my time here so far has of course, had its low points. Being in paradise has its challenges that's for sure. The overwhelming feelings started…
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"Some people talk to animals. Not many listen though. That's the problem." ― A.A. Milne If you didn't read part one, I highly recommend you do, as this will be discussing my second day at the turtle station so I won't be introducing as much about the place as in the last one! :) The second day, I woke up tired from little sleep, but excited. After seeing that massive, beautiful creature just a…
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"Know that the same spark of life that is within you, is within all of our animal friends, the desire to live is the same within all of us." -Rai Aren The dangerous waves crashing to my left. The rustle of the leaves coming from my right. My feet being weighed down by the constant entering sand. My face dripping with sweat from the humidity and the running. My feet tripping over each other as I…
Yes! That is actually me! I only got up and rode the entire way to the shore once, but that was my only goal- to stand up on the surfboard! Wednesday, April 11th, we had a day off of school to celebrate and remember Juan Santamaría, a national hero to the country of Costa Rica. He died on April 11th, 1856. This was the day of the Second Battle at Rivas in Nicaragua. A confederate from The United…
"It's never too late in life to have a genuine adventure." -Robert Kurson Today I learned two things: don't flush the toilet paper and my host family has roosters. But of course, I learned a lot more as the day went on. This morning the other student teachers and I met our consultant at a local restaurant/café for breakfast. We met with an American who had been living in Costa Rica for the last…
Yesterday was my first time having a connecting flight and flying internationally by myself! I'm happy to say that I made it safe and sound and arrived at the airport in San José at around 8pm (or 10 EST). The second I stepped outside of the airport my hair frizzed up so badly that I looked like Troy Polamalu or a member of Kiss. I met a girl from Austria on my flight (where I had a window seat…
Tomorrow is the day that will change my life forever. I will travel to Costa Rica to teach English for two months as part of my student teaching practicum. The last year was full of preparation and list making, especially this past week. Packing has been, as usual, a stressful activity. Am I bringing too much? Am I bringing too little? What if I need another skirt? Should I bring this one item…