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Just a little of the past week in review! Last Tuesday, October 16, some friends and I went to see Costa Rica vs. Guyana in their qualifying game for the FIFA World Cup. We got the tickets for only $20, and I bought an unofficial jersey on the street before the game for $10. I was wearing red pants when I bought the jersey, so I ended up being entirely in red – a real CR supporter! Costa Rica won by a landslide – 7 to 0. The game was so exciting despite the blowout! It was in the Estadio Nacional, completed only last year in 2011. Ticos are all about their futbol, so there was plenty of yelling, and they are much better at the wave than Americans have been at any sporting event I’ve ever been to.

I was a little out of commission for most of last weekend, as all my lack of sleep and loads of activity had finally caught up with me. I took it easy all of Friday and Saturday, and by Sunday, I was ready to go again! Melissa, Jessica, and I went to a Zumbathon at CENAC (Centro Nacional de La Cultura). October is breast cancer awareness month, and the 2-hour Zumba marathon was a benefit for breast cancer charities. This was (surprisingly) one of the first times I’ve really had to find my way around San Jose for myself. The boys that we always travel with have done most of the work so far in terms of planning trips and acquiring our bus tickets, and I’ve pretty much just followed along. This time, it was up to me to find CENAC on my own! We took the bus downtown, then asked for directions, and when we saw people wearing Zumba clothes, we did the obvious thing – followed them to our final destination. We arrived about 10 minutes late, only to learn that they were full. Only one more ticket in was technically available. Luckily, the two people we had followed to CENAC knew one of the Zumba instructors. He came out to get them, and they told the instructor that we were with them!! So nice! I would have been so disappointed to be turned away, but thanks to those kind strangers, we were allowed in, and we had a great time.

After Zumba, we met up with our Costa Rican friend Elena. I was introduced to her a few weeks ago, and I found out she is a vegetarian too. She is very into organic healthy cooking, so we made plans to make lunch together. We went to her house, and she gave us a quick tour. She has an impressive garden in the backyard; they grow avocados, raspberries, basil, lemons, and more. We made our own veggie burritos, complete with jamón de soya (soy ham), tomatoes and basil, alfalfa, cheese, beans, and carrots and cabbage! So delicious. We ended this perfect Sunday walking around her neighborhood with her dog, then enjoying a cup of organic coffee together before we headed home.