Reverse Culture Shock and Reflection

Our Ecology professor told us something like this about the reverse culture shock, "For the first two or so weeks you will be glad to be back, everything will be different. But that feeling of new, will soon go away and you will realize it is not what you have used to. You will be disappointed and frustrated by somethings that now will seem strange or wrong to you." I am sure I added a little extra to that quote. Of course, everyone will feel different after coming back from study abroad but for me and many others the very first thing that hits you is reverse culture shock, and not a week or two later.

I have been back from Costa Rica since Sunday, almost for a week. When driving from the airport, this sadness washed over me when I realized that I am not in Costa Rica anymore. My first longing was to go back. A desert is starkly different from a tropical climate but never is this is this difference felt as acute as when you just come back from a tropical country into a desert one. As more and more days go on however, I come to terms with being back more and more. While in Costa Rica, I absorbed the surroundings - culture, language, nature - here I must work from the inside out and share my new experience with everyone around me.

I feel like this experience have matured me. I learned so many new skills, got rid of fears, and made some achievements.

• The jungle is no longer this scary unknown place where anything can jump out and bite you. I have seen, smelled, touched, and got to know not just the jungle we typically imagine but all types of tropical forests from the rain forest to the dry forest, on an intimate level. 
• I have conducted independent research on my own time and developed from my own idea and idea of other professors. By the way, I haven't really told you about my independent research. In the beginning I wanted to study how the forest edge effect affects herbivory on a particular plant. However I could not find the same species of plant that grew both inside the forest and on the forest edge. I ended up comparing plants that grew not too far from the forest edge, but nevertheless in shade, to plants (of the same species) that grew in more open habitat, completely exposed to the sun. I studied herbivory and epiphyll cover. In the end, herbivory did not differ between the two habitats but epiphyll cover was more abundant in the shaded habitat.  I might have not gotten the results I wanted but the greatest achievement from this study was actually writing a scientific lab report the way it is supposed to be written, the serious way. 
• We also presented our study in a symposium to our teachers and classmates. For me it was an achievement presenting my investigation without stumbling and actually knowing what I am talking about.
• Made Costa Rican friends while learning the local slang. I really want to come back and visit them.
• Met many inspiring peers! Made very good friends. 
• Hiking! I never really hiked a lot in my life before but when I did hike in Costa Rica..wait..this reminds me of that poster with the the guy who drinks dos XX.

• "I don't usually hike, but when I do, I hike mountains for five hours straight with a 100 lb on my back."

Thank you Vera for the pic.

Lol, I exaggerated about the 100 lbs. But it truly sums up how I feel about my study abroad experience. There are so many things I have never done before going to Costa Rica. And in Costa Rica I did so many things for the first time, even things I have never thought of doing, and I did it all to the max. Still, I feel I have not done enough. I have not climbed the fig tree, or ziplined, or visited big cities like Alajuela and Heredia.

If you ever plan to go travel or better yet study abroad in a country unfamiliar to you and in an intensive academic program, it will be a big leap. It is like jumping into a pool of cold water. You could do it it painlessly, step by step but it would be without adrenaline. Or, you could just jump in without imagining how cold it would be. Yes, you will shudder and feel the freeze but in the end you will even start liking it and will want to do it again and again. I am not saying don't prepare, that is a given but nothing can fully prepare you to the point where there will be no surprises. By the way, this philosophy helps with taking cold showers.

So if you want to study abroad, I would recommend CIEE. Go ahead! You will not regret it.

I saw a Tapir! and other sightings

 Hi there, I think this dog is from a little town called Sierpe, but I am not sure. Dogs were a cute common sight. They all followed us, begging for attention and food. I am sure he saw something interesting there. Sightings are unplanned and unexpected and that is why many photos don't turn out that great. So I apologize. The important thing is that I got proof that I saw these animals up close! Even if you can't see them so well in the photo...

This is the common potoo, sleeping. Do you see it? It is right between the two lower branches that create a corner.It sits at the end of branches and blends in to escape predators. It  is very difficult to spot a potoo, since it sits there motionless. So we were really lucky to see it. At night, this bird can open its mouth very wide, while also sitting motionlessly, to catch prey like insects.

                                             Humming Bird! There are tons in Costa Rica.

Yes a group of students from out study abroad program saw a Baird's Tapir and we were very lucky. They are the few of the mammals like camels an rhinos that survived the Pleistocene and did become extinct (most likely due to humans over hunting them). This is the largest land mammal in Central America (Wikipedia).This species is considered endangered and right where we saw it, in Corcovado, there is a tapir conservation project going on. While we were hiking up, the professor told us all to look around, and there, right behinds us, the adult tapir was nibbling on some greens and standing right on the path. It was amazing. Some of us kept on saying, "Oh my god!"

Lead by our professor, we followed this mammal intently as it was browsing for fruits. It was an intense couple of minutes stepping silently, with cameras ready. In the end, the professor confessed, "I like to make things fun." It was an actually a white-nosed coati, very common in Central America. 

Didn't get the face...

Scarlet Macaw, Toucan, and a quetzal related bird seen on the hike through Corcovado primary forest.

 Scarlet Macaws are endangered because their nests are robbed by humans for sale as pets. However they are a common sight in Corcovado. Their screams are obnoxiously unmistakable. Think chicken but 3 times more annoying.

Bye friends, a blog about sunsets and bird watching coming up!

Packing, Flight, First Night in San Jose

Packing was the most stressful day of my journey so far. The plan was to fit my frame pack and everything else into one bag, which turned out to be impossible. So with countless packing and unpacking, trying to spread out the weight, I managed to stuff two suitcases full.

To my surprise, I met many fellow "studyabroaders" who were in the same study abroad program in the Phoenix airport. It turns out flight from Phoenix was a prefered (cheap?) connecting flight with San Jose.
On the airplane, I sat by an interesting character. He was a retired game and fish worker from Alaska who traveled multiple times to Central America. Now he was escaping the cold. He told me and another student many travel and biology stories. Our landing, delayed by 40 minutes, was quite bumpy and strange.

The weather was gorgeous, the jacket - unnecessary. We stuffed into an orange cab and arrived to hotel Balmoral with many comments about the roads without lanes and little shops. "Pedestrians do not have the right of way", our program assistant warned us before tomorrow's street adventures.

Pictures in next post...

Pre Study Abroad 4

not today's sunrise but also beautiful

Today's sunrise was marvelous. I wonder, will I see many sunrises or sunsets in Costa Rica? Probably not, since I will be surrounded by tall trees with lush foliage. Well maybe only when I will go to the beach. Less than a month is left and I have so many things left to do. I am reading books, saving up money, going to doctor appointments, catching up with friends, practicing Spanish, and shopping.

I've been also thinking a lot about my independent research that I will have to do in Costa Rica. It is the hardest thing to come up with, the research question. Of course it is even harder when you haven't seen what you will research on but I can't even come up with what I will exactly study, which type of organism. I've been telling myself birds but why and how? So many research topics interest me that can be applied to any organism

• camouflage vs bright appearance what is more beneficial? what matters more, protection or sexual selection? Although some organisms can change their appearance from bright to dull in order to blend in but stand out during the mating season.
• a relationship between plant and insect, bird and insect, or bird and fruit...whichever one
• Which native or non native plants/animals populate a disturbed area and why?
• competition between native and non native species

For now I'll just get back to reading about Costa Rican birds, hoping to convince myself to study them. Then I'll change my mind when I get to Costa Rica. At least I am starting ahead of time.

Pre Semester Abroad in Tico Land: Costa Rica

*tico is the slang term costaricans use to call themselves.


Tickets are bought. Finances are more or less figured out. One study abroad scholarship received!  CIEE has finally posted the guide book, which I read halfway.


Studying abroad has been my dream since early childhood. I have traveled before, and every time it was a magical experience for me despite the long wait in airports, stomach aches, and restlessness on the plane. The books and shows I've watched about rain forests lured me to pick a country with a rain forest as the top destination.


In Costa Rica, I will take ecology classes and one Spanish class. There will be a lot of field work and traveling from coast to coast and I will even visit Panama's coast. For 2 months I will live in a research station in Monteverde, for one month I will hike and for another, I will live with a costarican host family.


I think my expectations of this study abroad program matches up with reality. There won't be much comfort, insects will accompany us everywhere,  our legs will be tired, and the workload will be large. I am worried that I won't even have enough time to do other things besides studying, like dance at night, or visit museums. I am also worried about my physical strength, I am not a very athletic person. But I have enough time to prepare. I am excited for the challenge, which without a doubt this trip will be.


Once I am in Costa Rica (Feb 8th), I'll try to post as often as I can, at least once a week. However, there will be weeks during which I won't have access to a computer.

my waterproof map of Costa Rica and camera case