8 Days From Now...

In only 8 hopefully short days, I'll be at the Houston Airport awaiting my flight to Liberia Costa Rica! It seems like the months have gone by so fast! I have to thank SPIabroad.com again for the opportunity to go to Costa Rica! I would never of thought that'd it be my first trip abroad! 

My roommate and I are getting along fine already! I can tell we will have a lot of fun on activities and during free time~ 

I received my currency already! I just used my local Bank of America to order it and it took only 3 business days to arrive! In my experience check your local bank first to see if their rates are better than Wells Fargo, if not Wells Fargo is your best bet! It has much better rates than AAA and most likely the airport. 

I've been busy practicing my Spanish and buying supplies for the trip! I have only 8 days to make sure I  have everything... Challenge accepted! 

I'm looking forward to stepping on foreign soil, discover different customs, and immersing myself in culture! 

Remember~ 

Live. Laugh. Travel. 

 

The End of the School Year marks the beginning of my summer adventure~

My last final Monday marks the end of sophomore year. I'll be a junior officially at 12 pm Tuesday. It's the end of another school year but the beginning of my summer adventure to another hemisphere! My Costa Rica trip marks my first trip abroad~ it's going to be a heart pounding experience. If someone asked me in September if I'd study abroad this school year I'd think they were crazy but it's really happening! 

2 weeks from now I'll be on a plane heading from Houston to Liberia, Costa Rica with 5 other students~ my roommate is from CT and her name is Laura! I know we'll have a blast~ all of us will~ it's Costa Rica!!!! 

My host family consists of a mother, her 14 year old son and her 5 year old daughter. I got my host family gifts this weekend~ I tried to get things that reflected what I like, my heritage, and also my state. For my host mom I got her a Bath and Body works perfume that reminded me of tropical fruits commonly found in Puerto Rico, where my family is from. For my host brother I got him a Red Sox's hat (MA; got to represent!) and for my host sister since she is only 5 years old I bought her two of my favorite things: a hello kitty bubble set and a jump rope~ these are things we can do together and she can do it by herself when I sadly leave.

I'm all packed and ready for the most part. I bought a whole bunch of clothes and it's all folded into my main suitcase. My carry on is going to have some shoes, my beach towel, and some books and chargers ^^ I have my passport all set as well~ my suitcases are all under weight surprisingly for the amount of stuff I put in them. I'll be keeping a lot of free space in my carry on for things that I'll buy in Costa Rica!

2 weeks until departure! 

Live. Laugh. Travel. ^^

SAT Spanish~~

I took the SAT 2 in Spanish this weekend. Definitely a new experience! The test was okay compared to AP Spanish~ the room was way too hot though but I lived through it~ Spanish class is quiet since the seniors are gone so I'm just planning on what to pack in my suitcases and what to bring as host family gifts. The countdown for the trip is on for me. 27 days from right now I'll be on a plane to Liberia airport!  I can't wait to meet all of my fellow classmates and immerse myself in Spanish~ 

Anyways no more shopping updates~ I'll be buying travel sized toiletries in a few weeks~

School is over June 18th~ 

Volunteering the night before leaving~ Will be a fun way to say goodbye to the U.S for 2 weeks~~ 

Live. Laugh. Travel. 

AP Spanish is over!!

My ap Spanish test is over finally~ it's been a while since it has been But I've been super busy studying for APWH -_____- all my tests are over with so I've been focusing on studying Spanish and packing for the trip~ more clothes have been bought and I bought this cool little luggage bungee cable to attach my luggage together~ I also got a floral passport cover~ the countdown is on for the trip~ I'll be getting my AP Spanish score while I'm there so I'll either be really happy or really sad~ I can't talk about specifics but the test wasn't too bad~

Suitcase Shopping and Language Importance ^o^

I took AP Spanish yesterday and it was a really rewarding class to say the least and the test wasn't too bad. I'm looking forward to using my Spanish skills in Costa Rica. Spanish is such a useful language to learn if you want to study in South America, Europe, and Central America or even in America! SPI has so many wonderful programs in Europe, Asia, and Central America for several different languages including Spanish and I recommend them to anyone looking for a great summer study abroad program that offers college credit :) Check them out @ http://www.spiabroad.com/

I'm most excited for the host family experience. I've never had a host family but my family is a typical Spanish family so I'm sure some of the customs are the same but I'm looking forward to all the differences that I'll see. My belief is that the key to peace is understanding and its opportunities like the ones SPI offers that allow to experience these differences and understand their culture so that you understand rather than think that one culture is better than another because of how they live. I can't remember the last time I've been on a plane so I'm most worried about my plane ride and navigating the Boston airport. I'm sure that with an ice coffee in hand I'll make it through with no problems. I'll have SPI staff in Houston to help me with my flight to Liberia so everything will work out ^^ so far I've just bought my suitcase ( @ Kohls) and bought some summer clothes. I'm also practicing my Spanish skills and getting ideas for host family gifts.

¡Hola!

Hi everyone! I'm a student ambassador for SPI study abroad programs (spiabroad.com) and I'll be heading out to Costa Rica this summer through their La Esperanza Scholarship. Two weeks in Flamingo Beach conversing with natives and learning about their culture. I'm a second gen. Puerto Rican and I'm currently in AP Spanish ( sophomore year). Along with this program I may be going to Seoul,Korea this summer too! Anyways, this blog will be specifically for my Costa Rica trip and my Seoul Blog can be found here: http://findingseoulkorea.blogspot.com

I'm flying out of Boston to Houston June 30th, and the same day to Liberia, Costa Rica. The return is just the reverse order,

I'm looking forward to buying shoes, backpacks, and accessories for this trip along with gifts for my host family and SPI roommate!

~Juli