Costa Rica

I can't believe it's already been 5 years since I went to Costa Rica!!! CRAZY how fast time goes. I was just looking through pictures and have never really wrote about my experience...so I guess I'll do a little bit of that here before I forget!
---How I got there??---> It was my 2nd semester freshman year and I was not really enjoying college, I'm pretty sure I cried a lot and remember signing up to go after a particularly bad week....It was time to get out of Kentucky, away from UK and do something different. I had always wanted to travel and wanted to learn Spanish so bad...I left my first semester sophmore year!
---When I left---> I was scared to death. I had never traveled alone, I had never been away from my family for more than a few weeks, and I did NOT know Spanish. The plane ride was awful, I was so nervous and thought I had lost my mind!!!
---When I got there---> The first I'd say 2 1/2 weeks, I might have cried every night. I really didn't know the language, I felt SO alone, I had to live with a new family, and couldn't stay in touch with my real one that often. I didn't know many people...I definitely felt like I had made a huge mistake and was stuck there for 3 1/2 months. LUCKILY that all changed! I had some of the most amazing experiences while I was there, met some beautiful people (Mya, Keisha..etc), and gained a new love for my culture. Believe it or not I also learned some Spanish while I was there, which has changed my life...
----some pretty awesome things I got to do/see--->
- I learned how to be independent...I traveled across the country, sometimes alone!
- Bungee Jumping with Mya---funniest thing ever!
- Dancing on the beach at night, finding dozens of shooting stars.LOTS of beach days
- Message Therapy school...hilarious
- volunteer at elementary school with some pretty cool kids
- searched all night on the beach in the rain for baby turtles hatching and going to the ocean...found some!!
- tons of CHEAP hostels, yummy fruit, awesome music, lots of dancing!
- saw crocs, monkeys, waterfalls, volcanoes, some of the most beautiful country ever
- AND SOOOO much more!!!
----This experience has changed me. I can speak to my family now which is one of the best feelings EVER and I can connect with people that I never would have been able to without it. It also affirmed my LOVE for travel and has helped me continue on my path towards what I am doing today. I never thought this shy girl (that used to make my parents ask for ketchup at restaurants for me) would be able to make it...I am so glad that I made that jump despite my fears, I am so thankful for having such an amazing opportunity...for all the support I had from home and from the awesome people I met there. I just love God's beautiful plan..if it wasn't for a bad semester at UK, I might have never been brave enough to go and because of my Spanish I've been able to get closer and see God in a different way. :)