Friday, May 13, 2011

The plane ride down

Well here I am on the plane to Costa Rica finally. The weeks leading up to today seemed to take forever to go by. I am ready to take an adventure in life like I have never taken before. I always wanted to study abroad but I was always intimidated by the semester long stays in another country, I do not think I could be on a vacation for that long. Then coming to Wilmington and finding this short trip with cultural immersion, learning another language, being able to teach and also explore another country sounded like just the right amount that would work for me. So, here I am on a plane to Costa Rica.
I have to say that I am a complete nerd when it comes to learning about the ways in which other people teach others. I am always wanting to know how they teach a certain lesson or a certain skill and then take it into my own life and try to apply it when I am teaching others. Since I work with special needs kids and will become a special needs teacher I am most excited to see what a different country does for special needs children. I have, in my 23 years of life, lived in three different states and in each state there are always different ways in which the state teaches the special needs population. I had thought that because of laws and regulations being so strict that all schools and states would be the same but I have since been proven wrong. Since Costa Rica has taken away their military to put more money back into their education I am excited to see how and what it is that they changed and what the teachers still feel needs to be changed.
Another part of the trip that I am really looking forward to but at the same time am scared about is the fact that I will be living with host families. I am nervous that the language barrier will get frustrating and will be hard to communicated beyond the usual greetings. I would really love to get to know my host families and hear about their lives and also share mine with them. I also love to cook and would love to be able to take home with me some recipes that I can then share with friends and family. I think that the main reason I am a bit apprehensive about the experience with living with others is that I have no idea what to expect. Sure as a class we talked about what others have experienced or previous trips and what they went through but it was not me and I did not experience those things. Yet, as I want to become a special needs teacher a large part of that is being able to adapt to surroundings, people, ways of life, learning abilities and so much more therefore this experience will force me to adapt which will be a great learning experience.
Well I better get some sleep since I chose to stay up instead of getting some shut eye before the flights today. I am sure I will want to write more once I get to Costa Rica later today and get to experience the city and some of the culture. Hope you all enjoy the blog!

1 comment:

  1. Glad you made it safely! It will seem weird not to text or talk to you everyday but I guess I can adjust! I hope you have a great experience and am looking forward to hearing all about everything you do! Get some sleep and let the adventure begin! Love ya - Mom

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