Grow Where You're Planted!

My dear friends, family, & anyone else who happens to be reading along--

Let me introduce you to Melissa. Melissa is one of my sorority littles, one of my bridesmaids in my wedding next January, and one of my best friends! She is a bundle of love, joy, and fun stories that she can't wait to share. Just when I was feeling like I would never see any of my Georgian friends ever again, Melissa arrived on my doorstep! Let me tell you about how she helped me explore more of the Rich Coast (That's Costa Rica in English for those of you who are slow on the uptake). 

When she arrived Friday afternoon, I couldn't believe my eyes! Melissa was here, in person, at my school. When she walked into my classroom, she instantly became a celebrity. The kids gave a few cute guesses about who she was (your sister? your cousin? oh I know! the sister of the boy you're going to marry?). Then, this dear lady helped me get through the worst part of the entire school week: Friday afternoon. 

Once we had pushed the last kiddo out the door, we headed on to San Jose to catch a bus to Ciudad Quesada and then another bus from there to La Fortuna. When we arrived at the bus stop, we were greeted by a taxi driver who told us that we would be too late to catch the connecting bus in Ciudad Quesada. I believe that this was probably a lie, but nonetheless we were happy for an excuse to get to our final destination faster. Melissa eloquently haggled the taxi price and then we were on our way!

When we got to La Fortuna, we directed our taxi driver to one of the nicest resorts in town:  

The Springs Resort and Spa

When we arrived, they greeted us by name, gave us a tour, and complimentary cocktails. We did the best that we could not to squeal until the door to our room closed behind us. We were in heaven! This was potentially the nicest place that either of us had ever stayed.

You may be wondering how we could possibly afford a room that cost $600 a night? Well, you may remember when I mentioned how I met the owner of La Paz Waterfall Gardens. As it turns out- he owns the The Springs Resort and Spa as well! So we were blessed with a complimentary night and day at the resort to enjoy the 20+ hot springs as well as all the resort accommodations. See for yourself!

 

After our luxurious nights' stay and day spent in the hot springs, we were exhausted. Who knew relaxing could be so tiresome? We spent one more night in La Fortuna at a hostel and even had the chance to check out the sketchy local discoteca! Sunday morning we took a bus to Ciudad Quesada and then a connector to San Jose. On our way from Ciudad Quesada to San Jose, we lucked out got the last two tickets! Or so we thought. Unfortunately, that meant sitting on the floor. But, we just laughed, worked our way back to the stair well, sat down, and enjoyed the ridiculous experience. 

It wasn't easy saying goodbye to Melissa the next day. I felt a pang of homesickness that I don't think I have ever felt before. But, as she often does, Melissa left me with one piece of valuable advice--

"Grow where you're planted"

God wants me to be effective where I am, with the people that I am surrounded by. No matter how I feel at one time or another, I am supposed to be here and I am growing.

"Each of you should continue to live in whatever situation the Lord has placed you, and remain as you were when God first called you." 

1 Corinthians 7:17

That weird feeling like I'm starting college again.

I arrived in Costa Rica just a little less than 2 weeks ago. My parents were kind enough to travel down here with me to help me get set up. [Or maybe they were just smart enough to take advantage of a free place to stay in this popular tropical vacation spot! :)]

In a sense, it took me back to that first day of my freshman year of college... all the way from moving in to my new place [except a little bigger than my dorm room] to hitting the stores to find some needed supplies. We also had a chance to explore the new town and try the get our bearings. 

These were some of our findings:

El Teatro Nacional de Costa Rica

On the bucket list: Before I leave Costa Rica, I will go see a show here.

The Doka Coffee Estate

My collage of the coffee life cycle!

Poas Volcano National Park 

Unfortunately this was the best picture we got. Overcast would be an understatement. Maybe next time we'll see something worth bragging about..

La Paz Waterfall Gardens 

One of those times that you're glad your mom embarrassed you: 

Lets flashback to the airport really quickly. I was standing in the Immigration line with my parents in San Jose, waiting to be officially let into the country. We weren't sure if we had properly filled out our forms so my mom boldly asks the man in front of us to explain the whole process. He responds cordially and gives me his business card in case I need any help while in the country. I stow it away and promptly forget about it.

Just a few days later: Our tour bus takes us up to the La Paz Waterfall and Gardens for the day. When my dad sees the sign, he says "I recognize that name- could it be from that man's business card?" When we return home, I pull out the card only to find that we had met the OWNER of the in the airport line. I need to start making more friends along the way!

La Feria de Santa Ana

Where I will be getting my groceries. 

We realized that our 1-100 Spanish number education doesn't help very much when the lowest bill in Costa Rica is 1 Mil (or 1,000 colones). Perhaps I'll be able to negotiate better deals once I know my numbers in Spanish better!

Our produce from the day.

Drinking refreshing coconut water from an Agua de Pipa!

Jaco Beach

A beautiful way to end the week with mis padres.

And as their week here ended, my new life here was just beginning. 

I remember that when I started college at UGA, Athens, GA felt like such a big town. It felt impossible to get my mind around where things were in relation to one another. Isn't it crazy how fast a town can shrink? I can't wait to discover the ins and outs of Santa Ana and watch it shrink before my eyes. 

Most of all, more than anything, I remember how hard that first month of college was. Searching for my place in that town made time crawl like molasses. But once that month was under my belt, college disappeared in a blink of an eye. Something gives me the feeling that this experience is going to be quite similar. Two weeks has felt twice as long. I feel like home is a lifetime away. But I have to be careful and not wish this away. Pretty soon I'll wake up and it'll be December- it always seems to happen that way.