Girls drink whiskey?

Day 5, Monday, July 2^nd

Oh boy – back in the Spanish saddle I go! I have to admit, I am a little nervous about reclaiming my Spanish – I should not have spoken so much English this weekend. Just so, I am running a bit late this morning, so I hastily eat my breakfast and pack my bag: no tengo que hablar con nadie.

Alicia and I take the bus, and Brooke and Bethany tell us all about their trip (Matt Higgins getting drunk, Fumi running off, hiking uphill). I was sure we had the better trip, but theirs sounds fun too! They saw monkeys and huge iguanas! So, I am excited for Manuel Antonio.

We had no homework this weekend (yay!), so I work on my journal until the girls arrive. I can never really work after they get there. It is like trying to study with talkative friends. How much studying did we get done at those history study parties with Whitney? ;) We were lucky we came out with As.

Class is class – we continue our in-depth study of the subjunctive. Whoo subjunctive!

Hannah wants pizza for lunch, so we head down the street til we see a sign saying: 1 slice of pizza and a drink = 1000 colones (roughly two dollars). It sounds like a pretty good deal, so we duck in and place out orders. It takes a while, but the pizza is huge (half a small pizza) and the tea is delicious. For two bucks? We are psyched.

Pictionary is the game for the afternoon: one of my favorite games in Spanish thus far. Ronny is a much better artist than us, but we try. We have a lot of fun. After the game we have to take some of the pictures and write a story. Mine is as follows (roughly):

There was once an indigena named Fumi. He lived in a small village and loved to talk to animals. One day, a bull in the forest told Fumi where to find a magic well where he should make a wish. Fumi followed the instructions and made his wish for eternal life. A fairy appeared and said to Fumi: “Your wish has been granted, but all whom you fall in love with will die.”

Fumi left the forest and soon forgot the wish. He grew up and married a pretty indigena named Lina. Yet as the years passed, things began to change. Lina grew older and Fumi did not.

***things I forget now***

And so the centuries passed. Fumi bought a small store, but hired others to run it so he could wander his forest in peace. And every night he would sit on his roof and watch as life was born and died in front of him.

So. Somewhere between “matrimonia” and “techa,” the story became super triste. I am not so good at pumping out stories in an hour. Yikes.

After class, it is time to dance it up. It is my first dance class, but I find I love it; it is exactly like my “Zumba” workout video at home. So fun. I just wish I had dressed more for the occasion (my skirt is fun to dance in but a bit dificil in which to workout).

I surf the web for a bit before deciding to head home. I scarf down some food there and do my homework: writing a reflection on the superstitions in CR. It is fun – you learn something new everyday. I talk to my parents for quite a while about the assignment, and at one point my mamá tica looks at my abuela tica and smiles. Then she says: “Didn’t I say? In one week, you’d be speaking much faster.” I blush. She is right; I have gotten much better.

An hour later, I am running down the street to meet the others to go to a bar to hang out. This is a first for me. I have never gone out at home, so I am all eyes and ears. We walk to Mas X Menos and wait for the rest of the gang. Then we head to Arrecifes for drinks. I refuse to get a daiquiri – the mixture of fruit and alcohol is too one-sided for me. So after thinking it over (I still can’t bring myself to order a beer – though they are better here.), I order a whiskey and sprite. And so, such passes:

Doubting Thomas Waiter: “Whiskey?”
Me: “Si, y un Sprite.”
DTW: “Sprite?”
Me: “Si, mezcla (mixed).”
DTW: “Sprite.” *Smiles and walks off*

When he returns, he has a sprite. Only a sprite. So after waiting about ten minutes, I decide to try again. I don’t want to be the only one not drinking (no matter that Hannah only ordered a coke). So I ask for a shot of whiskey. He looks at me in a scoffing manner and says: “Whiskey?” YES! “Si, whiskey.” So he asks me what type. I’m stumped. I have to ask him what type they have. He rattles off some... none of which I recognize. So I just take the one he suggests. It is probably not a great idea, but everyone is laughing (and I am about to), and I am tired of dealing with this.

So he brings me my shot. And as soon as he walks away, I pour it in my Sprite. Finally.

The alcohol is much stronger here, and I decide to stop after one drink – I have no desire to be barracha. I want to go home at ten – I am muy cansada – but no one is headed my direction. So I wait on Jackie and Fumi, and around eleven we leave. And I still end up running my street as there is no one who lives near me. Ick.

And then I sleep. That seems to be all I do now. :