Creativity is Contagious: Festival Nacional de las Artes Costa Rica

I really do love a good festival. This week just outside of San Jose was the annual Festival Nacional de las Artes in Santa Ana, Guayabo de Mora, and Ciudad Colon. It is a festival that features completely local talent. 

Here is some of the things I found:

So get this: I was just browsing around, admiring the beautiful, hand-crafted jewelry when I hear "Lauren!" I turn around and find a friend of mine (Ashley, pictured above) from the University of Georgia in the US. Remember, I am in Costa Rica right now. Of all the places in all the world, we were in the same country, same town, same art fair at the exact same time. It was so surreal! 

Carrying our bags of new art treasures!

Last year, I decided to be a mug collector because of my love for coffee & tea.
I was OBSESSED with this beautiful handmade/painted pottery that I found at the festival! And obviously, so was my sweet but mouthy furry friend.

So we might have gotten a little carried away with the pottery...

There aren't many things that I like more than "hecho a mano" or handmade art. It inspired me to do a little crafting this weekend as well! I will include those creations in an upcoming blog post. Stay tuned!

So how’d this happen anyway?

Somehow I got a job as an Elementary School Teacher in Costa Rica without a degree, without knowing Spanish, and without even applying. Sounds like divine intervention to me, don’t you think?

And as after obstacle after obstacle turned into open doors and green lights, I ended up here in Santa Ana, San Jose, Costa Rica ready for the adventure of a lifetime. 

This year, I will be working in a Tri-lingual International School that teaches English, Spanish, and Mandarin. My position will be as a 2nd and 3rd grade teacher teaching English, Math, & Science. I don't officially have a degree yet but I finished the Early Childhood Education Program at the University of Georgia December of 2012 and will be completing my Teaching English as a Second Language minor via online classes this 2013 Spring semester.

Packing seemed like a monstrous challenge at the time but now it seems like a molehill that pales in comparison to my tasks in my teaching job & assimilating to the local culture.

Things that I made sure to include:

--My MacBook, obviously

--My Mountain smith bag

--Chacos (tan lines are cool)

--My new quick dry pants for the rainy season

--A large supply of contact lenses and way too many other toiletries

Things that didn’t make the cut:

--Art supplies (I may be regretting this)

-- My favorite red pea coat, my new sweater dress, and a pile of other cozy winter clothes

--French Press & coffee grinder (big error)

Things that I forgot:

--Retainers (hello, buck teeth)

--Nalgene Water bottle (I’ve been dehydrated ever since!)

--Spanish book (looks like I’m winging this one)
--And more that I haven't even realized yet..

And, after a literal race to gate to make our 6AM flight (not advised), we made it on the plane and on our way.

In just a few short days here, I’ve been reacquainted with the Costa Rican culture and managed to see a little bit of my new community. My parents came along to help out the first week and I know they’ve enjoyed the experience as well. But lets be honest, nobody actually reads a blog post that’s more than a few paragraphs- so I’ll catch you up on that next time.

Pura Vida!