Though I'm still in the same spot, a lot has changed with my correspondences back in the States. First off, I'd like to welcome a trio of new groups of readers to this page: Mrs. Stonecipher's 4th graders at Clark Elementary (near Indianapolis), Ms. Hoglund's new batch of 8th graders from Howe in Chicago, and the Mr. Johnson's 6th-8th graders from Mott Haven in the Bronx. I'm looking forward to hearing your questions and learning about all of you.
To Mr. Johnson and Ms. Hoglund: feel free to supplement any correspondences with my more advanced writing on my Guineagogy blog. I'll also post some links to some of the blogs of my favorite co-volunteer writers in my 'For the Bored' section.
For now, let me tell you all a little more about Limón 2000:
It's amazing how time flies when you're speaking Spanish!
Though I'm still in the same spot, a lot has changed with my correspondences back in the States. First off, I'd like to welcome a trio of new groups of readers to this page: Mrs. Stonecipher's 4th graders at Clark Elementary (near Indianapolis), Ms. Hoglund's new batch of 8th graders from Howe in Chicago, and the Mr. Johnson's 6th-8th graders from Mott Haven in the Bronx. I'm looking forward to hearing your questions and learning about all of you.
To Mr. Johnson and Ms. Hoglund: feel free to supplement any correspondences with my more advanced writing on my Guineagogy blog. I'll also post some links to some of the blogs of my favorite co-volunteer writers in my 'For the Bored' section.
For now, let me tell you all a little more about Limón 2000:
-The neighborhood is about three hours from the San José (the capital of Costa Rica) and a half hour by bus from Limón (the capital of Limón province). Limón is right on the Atlantic Ocean and houses the country’s largest port on the Atlantic side.
-Roughly 3,000 people live in Limón 2000
-The neighborhood turned 20-years-old this year. Beforehand it was private property.
-Some common jobs people have are truck drivers, house workers, office workers or retail sales in Limón, and construction workers.
-The grade school and high school take place in the same building. There are plans to build a new high school, but construction has not yet started.
-I work closely with the equipo interdisciplinario, which is a lot like a counselor’s office in the U.S.
-For being the most diverse province in Costa Rica, Limón is often called el cresol de cultura, or the melting pot of culture. There are strong populations of people of Costa Rican, Afro-Caribbean, Nicaraguan, indigenous, and Chinese descent. In the beach communities on the coast you can even find large groups of Americans who years ago escaped the U.S. for the slow Caribbean life. The most celebrated of these cultures is Afro-Caribbean. To date there are festivals and parades celebrating the region’s African roots. Still, there is a healthy mix, and it’s not uncommon to see a person with a mix of any/all of these cultures in her blood.
-Like in Guinea, I sleep with a mosquito net to protect against critters. Mosquitos here carry malaria and dengue fever, two tropical diseases that can be quite nasty. The malaria here isn't as bad as in Guinea (nor as common), but it's better to be safe than sorry!
Here are some photos that might do a better job of telling the tale:
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My Limón host parents, Don Carlos (64) and Doña Ivonne (67) |
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| Kindergarten students on their way to the cafeteria |
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| In front of my host family's house |
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| My bed and mosquito net |
Until next time! Pura Vida, Kevin
