In my travels of the world I have found myself immersed in many cultures and varieties of ethnicity; I have been very fortunate to live in a day and age where such communication and experience is possible in one lifetime. I have seen La Cathedral de Notre Dame, the Statue of Liberty, the home of Da Vinci, and so many more wonderfully spiritual and historic monuments. Yet still I can say with the utmost certainty that no location has left such a lasting impact on my soul as the quaint, simple country of Costa Rica. Although many places have penetrated me with a sense of what the majestic earth and her inhabitants are capable of and have forced me to question whether or not anything is beyond the grasp of human ingenuity, none have brought me to terms with the dissatisfaction and flawed pursuit of happiness in my life like Costa Rica has. I have never imagined a group of people to be able to live in such “poverty” with such satisfaction and spiritual contentment; and as I traveled the countryside I had never before then felt closer to understanding my creator and my own mortality than I was standing at the highest point of my journey on that precipice overlooking the vast valley below me, overshadowed by the towering mountains around me. Neither, down on the beaches of the pacific, had I before then felt so powerful and yet so insignificant, swimming out past the break line while staring down some of the biggest waves in the world with nothing but my own rebellion against fear and a piece of fiberglass to conquer them with. Costa Rica changed my life, if only for a moment, like nothing or no one has since.
As I stepped off the airplane for the first time thinking of the chances that my friends at home were partying without me and...
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...th how brave you really are and what you are truly willing to risk. It is a terrible dilemma to have to make the decision that you will put everything on the line for a few possible seconds of triumph and satisfaction. How simple our lives are in such a watery light.
Returning to the city my journey began at I recognized nothing. As I stepped back onto the plane that would return me to my old life I swore I would never forget the wisdom I had seen and discovered and that I would tirelessly apply it to the life I left behind. I never again wanted to live day to day with no appreciation for what the world could be. But as I sat in that plane looking out the window and seeing my reflection mixed with the blue and white background I fell asleep. That me, the one who was born in the land of Costa Rica, would not wake up though I can remember him fondly to this day.
As far back as Rigoberta Manchu can remember, her life has been divided between the highlands of Guatemala and the low country plantations called the fincas. Routinely, Rigoberta and her family spent eight months working here under extremely poor conditions, for rich Guatemalans of Spanish descent. Starvation malnutrition and child death were common occurrence here; rape and murder were not unfamiliar too. Rigoberta and her family worked just as hard when they resided in their own village for a few months every year. However, when residing here, Rigoberta’s life was centered on the rituals and traditions of her community, many of which gave thanks to the natural world. When working in the fincas, she and her people struggled to survive, living at the mercy of wealthy landowners in an overcrowded, miserable environment. By the time Rigoberta was eight years old she was hard working and ...
In the chapter One Island, Two Peoples, Two Histories: The Dominican Republic and Haiti the present day differences of Haiti and The Dominican Republic are explained through the political, social, and ecological history of both locations. The Dominican Republic, although it is still considered a developing country, is in a objectively worse state than Haiti. Haiti’s environmental policies failed so horrendously in the past that the area is in a visible state of disarray. With only 1% of the country still forested, not only is the visual draw of the country lessened, but the prospect of wood trading that the forests once offered is almost obsolete. This greatly effects the outside world’s image of Haiti which, given the financial gain tourism
I learned more than I ever imagined on my summer study abroad trip to Costa Rica. I learned that Costa Rica is a country like no other. The country is much different than what the United States of America is like. The lifestyles, customs, and practices of Costa Rica are very different than those that I am accustomed to. As an outsider looking into the country, I saw a country that is very poor financially but very rich in spirit. They do not appreciate wealth as United States citizens do, but instead appreciate love and gratitude. I noticed that Costa Ricans have very strong family values and cultural roots.
Costa Rica, meaning “rich coast” in Spanish, was given its name for the wealth of gold found when it was first discovered in 1502 (Costa Rica, 1892). What the Spaniards may not have realized, is that indigenous communities even richer in culture had been occupying the land for thousands of years. To this day, Costa Rica is the home of eight separate indigenous groups, whose people make up 1,7 % of the country's population (Sévenier, 2003). The Bribri, the second largest tribe and the focus of this paper, have a reserve population of about 11,500. However, due to often isolated villages which make calculations difficult, some estimate their true numbers are closer to 35,000 (Bribri, n.d.). This paper will begin by exploring the traditional beliefs, food systems and way of life of the Bribri people. Next, it will focus on the ancestral lands of the Bribri and how they have been impacted by land appropriation, exploitation and deforestation. Following, we will examine ways to address these issues. Perhaps, in considering projects from the past, we can find promising solutions for the future.
Costa Rica was first settled in 1522 (Michigan State University (MSU), n.d., para. 1). It was settled as a colony by the Spanish in 1563 (CIA, 2013, para. 1). In 1821 along with the other provinces in Central America, it proclaimed its independence from Spain (MSU, n.d., para. 3). Then in 1838 Costa Rica proclaimed itself sovereign (CIA, 2013, para. 1). In 1899 Costa Rica began its democracy by having the first true e...
Costa Rica lies in the tropics and originated as a land of peaceful people and lush ecosystems. The Costa Rica of today is much different than a simple ideal tourist location. It is a country that ranks among the world’s highest in biodiversity. In addition, there is no separation between church and state. It is a country with a woman president and no army. The economy of Costa Rica is challenged on a daily basis and the education of its residents is recognizable. The purpose of this paper is to introduce readers to the many unique facets of the small Spanish speaking country of Costa Rica. My intent is to present information about the country’s geographical facts, biodiversity and ecotourism, religion, education, government and economical status.
Stepping out of my first plane ride, I experience an epiphany of new culture, which seems to me as a whole new world. Buzzing around my ears are conversations in an unfamiliar language that intrigues me. It then struck me that after twenty hours of a seemingly perpetual plane ride that I finally arrived in The United States of America, a country full of new opportunities. It was this moment that I realized how diverse and big this world is. This is the story of my new life in America.
I walked around unsteadily all day like a lost baby, far away from its pack. Surrounded by unfamiliar territory and uncomfortable weather, I tried to search for any signs of similarities with my previous country. I roamed around from place to place and moved along with the day, wanting to just get away and go back home. This was my first day in the United States of America.
What I hope to gain from living and working in the United States is a lot, I hope to be more open to the world culture and people, to be more global citizen than before, to challenge myself more and be developed but the most thing that I hope to gain is the feeling that I felt in Brazil.
After reviewing my life, I have decided my life defining moment was when my family and I moved to Texas from Oklahoma. I consider this move my life changing moment because it changed so many things in my life. This move set the stage for an entirely new life for me. Moving six hours away from the only home I knew certainly called for many changes.
Culture is everywhere we go and involves everything we do. There are different cultures all around us, weather it be where we are, whom we are with or what events are happening around us. One of the main identifiers of culture is based on which country we are in, as each and every country has its own unique culture dynamics within in. Throughout this paper two cultures will be compared and contrasted, those two being the countries of Canada and Costa Rica. These two countries have many differences yet still have similarities among them. To compare these different cultures, they will be looked at in light of three of the cultural dimensions identified by Geert Hofstead (Cultural Insights). Not only will these countries be looked at in regards
It has been around 14 hours since I have gotten back from the Freshmen Retreat, and I happy to be able to write about the success of the trip in all parts, regarding my personal goal, what I learned about my fellow advisory peers, and realizing a bit more about myself.
Some people, some great people deserve to live forever, or at least die in a worthy or in a fulfilling way. I just got the short end of the bargain, I just got one of the worst things on this earth, cancer. Anyone can get the disease, but the way I see it, it seems unfair and unruly that pure souls could end up with a painful and undeserving demise. Unfortunately, I was one of those pure souls.
Once I was able to dig deeper I found out that Costa Rica is a very interesting country with fun and exciting adventures waiting like; hiking next to a volcano at night, rappelling down a waterfall, or ever soaking in a hot spring. I do not know about you but my bags are packed and I’m headed for the airport right now. If only I did not have class tomorrow, I can dream right? Well the first major topic I am going to start with is the general overview of Costa Rica, so let us get started shall we.
There have been tons of things that I have learned and been taught in my life, by a number of people such as family, teachers, or even friends on occasion. The things they taught me vary from math and other related subjects to just some truly simple yet meaningful life lessons. However, there is nothing quite as unique, quite as special as a person teaching themselves a life lesson. It really is an amazing accomplishment for a person to teach themselves something. It is not quite as simple as another person teaching them something because it is not just the transferring of information from one person to another. The person instead has to start from scratch and process the information they have in their mind in order to come up with a new thought