Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Capoeira, Hiking in the Mountains, and lots of reggae

Things have been really nice here and the weather has improved. It rains everyday, but it usually comes and goes quickly. I've heard some pretty crazy thunder and lightning. I kept thinking, what are the chances that I would get struck by lightning in Costa Rica? After viewing some sweet Capoeira last week, I attended a class on Monday and it kicked my butt. Capoeira is a martial art-dramatic dance that expresses the way Brazilians fought. There is no contact, but because it's a dance, you are always moving. There are some pretty crazy headstands, one arm stands, headstands, etc. It was really cool. I am going to continue taking classes here and hopefully I'll get the hang of it. Alex and I went hiking in the mountains outside of San Jose this weekend. The weather was extremely compliant with our plans. It was cool, because we were only 20 minutes outside of the city, but there was some amazing views, houses and nature. We're going to head out to Monteverde next weekend and check out some of the cloud forests. On the bus rides I've been on, you drive through rainforest, through clouds on narrow roads with waterfalls on the side of the road. I've mainly been working to increase my understanding of spanish and to work on my Bikram dialogue for class. The classes are improving and I am teaching 95% in Spanish. There is a good group of students here and I am trying to bring more students to the studio. I am going to be posting pictures soon, but I am shooting film, and I so am waiting for Alex to email me his pics of Puerto Viejo and hiking. Pics on their way!!! There seems to be no distinguishment between good and bad music here. Everybody likes everything, no matter how they look or dress. Obviously that's a stereotype, but from what I've seen, people who have good taste in music also have bad taste in music. I like some of the reggae and dub, but there is a spanish-rap-reggae-dmx sound going on here in the bars. I'm enjoying the art and culture scene here. There are lots of artisans that make jewelry and sell them on the streets. There are lots of live music, museums, and cultural events going on, especially because I am close to the University of Costa Rica.

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