Hello Friends,

It´s amazing what not being around people for 24-7 can do for your tolerance level of their personalities. It's even more amazing, considering, that it's possible to be around my roommates and parents for 24-7 for many extended periods of time and not have any frustrations (or many, at least :)). I think being at La Selva, being confined into little cabin rooms with 2 bathrooms for the entire twenty-five person group, exacerbated the negative aspects of everyone´s personality. Now that we´re back in San Jose and into more of a routine that resembles a school schedule in any country, my harsh words for people seem exactly that -- harsh. I still stand by most of my previous statements, but at the same time I´m feeling better about the group as a whole and their potential to entertain me (hehe, I know the world doesn´t revolve around me). I´m still having a great time, even in the midst of the two midterms we took, BIO yesterday and INTA today. The tests were not bad at all, and now that they´re over, we´re getting into the relaxing portion of the trip with lots of traveling. Tomorrow I´m leaving to go to Puerto Viejo, a funky town in the very southern Caribbean coast, only 20 miles or so north of the Panamanian border. The plan is to go kayaking, hiking, and snorkling in the national park in Manzanillo that is 9 miles from Puerto Viejo. I´m traveling with the cool people, too, so the trip should be that much better :) Next Tuesday, the class goes to Manuel Antonio until Sunday, after which we´re back here and then in Monteverde and Arenal for another few days. By then the trip´s almost over! The time has floooown by.

I haven´t had much insight to share in the past few days, except for that a new girl arrived in my house. She´s attending COSI, which is a Spanish school down the street, and staying for 2 weeks. She just graduated from high school and will be attending Duke in the fall. Although she´s only 2 years younger then me, and a very nice, cool girl, it´s incredible to see the difference in mindset and maturity (if you could call it that, maybe there´s a better descriptor I´m going for here) in my self, looking back on "when I was that age..." hehe and seeing, very dramatically it seems, how much I´ve grown into who I am and who I want to be. It´s reassuring, kindof.

Being here has also made me realize how much my friends mean to me, a thought that it is always nice to be reminded of. I can´t wait to be with my roommates again (207 woot woot) and hang out and have fun and talk and party and eat and talk more. *sigh* :) I also need to start seriously considering my future though...preparing grad school applications and researching job opportunities. oye.

In the meantime, check this out: A sampling of pictures I´ve taken so far in Costa Rica

Have a great afternoon, World! And a big shout out to my friends who I love and miss :)

It's easy to see how people can spend great quantities of their lives here in the rainforest, where the days pass languidly by without superficial defintion. Only the rising and setting of the sun and the timing of the increased frequency of bird calls let you know that another day has passed, that you're one day older and one day closer to that great discovery that set you on this path to be immersed in lianas and trees with secrets older than creation. It's easy to forget that more life exists outside of these green borders, when they are your entire focus and periphery, and when you know that some 90% of the world (biodiversity wise) is here.

I've been having a pretty good time here in Costa Rica, this being my 14th day of residency, and I like that being here makes me think a lot. Nothing like being slapped in the face with nature to make you cogniscent of your place on the planet (how miniscule we all are, how miniscule and unimportant so many things are). Right now I'm at La Selva Biological Station, a world-reknowned research facility that's about 1.5 hours from San Jose, but seems like it's in an entirely different world.