Home Stay

I have nothing bad to stay about my home stay last weekend. Though it was difficult in the middle of my transition between the TAM class and my internship, I couldn’t have truly experienced the authenticity of Vara Blanca in the same way. I spent three nights with Sandra who lives about 25 minutes from the nearest road way up in the jungle. Dang, it is seriously a strenuous hike. Her gracious family took me in as an introduction to the community and my internship. Sandra is the sweetest 14 year old you might ever meet and she definitely gets it from the grace and hospitality her family offers.

It was such a humbling experience. First of all, you learn how much Spanish you don’t know when living with a family who knows no English. Second, I suddenly appreciated the ADE center’s shower, bathroom, and sleeping arrangement. Sandra and I shared a twin bed those three nights and while I slept like a rock, I’m not sure she did the same (yeah, I snore). The last night I woke up to some vicious moving and rolled over to be greeted by the dog who had wound up between us. Cassava and cow vertebrae soup could not have tasted any better than after a cold night in the jungle.

I don’t put up pictures of the Mora’s house to shame what they are living in, but to grasp the depth of the circumstances of life after the earthquake. They still had an emergency relief box from directly after the earthquake.

The back room of the house

Shower to the right, toilet to the left

I came to love this shower. While I tried not to touch the walls for the bugs, it was warm and so welcome.

Although the local tourist spot is its own world at $400 a night for a room, it employs Sandra’s dad and so many others from the community. He woke up at 5am and got back around 7pm only to go to bed at 8:30pm. On Sunday we watched Chuck and The Suite Life of Zack and Cody in Spanish. Sandra’s mom, Julia, knits beautiful things. She finished two hats while I was there and used pieces of a milk carton to support the brim. Her older brother Jorge could not have been more than 17 and works. Juan Gabriel, her 9 year old brother, the cutest thing I have ever seen, was so proud that he knew the word monkey in English.

One of the hardest parts was filling the time. We drew pictures where I could ask them how to say in Spanish the different things I came across. We also all did homework together.

The best part about their home way up the mountain is the view on the way to school every morning. The mountains are gorgeous especially before the clouds roll in. I could walk to school like that every morning. 

The strawberry greenhouses are so picturesque in front of the volcanoes.

Humor all pictures of the same thing, I think it’s beautiful.

I mean, look at that! We’re eye level with the clouds.