Last Sunday morning at 4.30 am we loaded into the back of my host uncle's truck and took off for a day at the river. I'm having a hard time finding the words to elaborate the adventure, as most of the day passed just sitting wedged between rocks, letting the river run past. We did break for a traditional lunch around 10.30 am (no joke, we were all ready to eat lunch around 9.55 am)- at which we cooked over an open fire and ate enough manzanas de agua to litter the dirt ground in the open air kitchen. At one point in the afternoon it started raining- the combination of the rain and the river started a laughing contest, during which I took home el premio. My host-cousin joked that we all better hide in the river as not to get wet by the rain.

Although I have no photos to support my other recent adventures- I will give a quick overview (a recipe will be coming soon as it is now Semana Santa and I am learning to make Empanadas con Chiverre on Thursday morning).

Two weeks ago my host dad took me, and two other Peace Corps volunteers to a Saprissa y La Liga soccer game. The game started with fireworks, baby powder bombs and paper receipt rolls thrown onto the field. Marvin (my host dad) knew all the songs, and we were quickly catching on (usually just a few mala palabras were repeated again and again). For the weekend I took off to visit my mentor, Katie, in her pueblo near San Isidro. The weekend was jam packed, kicking off with a fogata, camp fire, at the nature reserve where she works. A water fair attracted the majority of the community to the reserve, and we spent the weekend running activities for the kids, playing soccer in the rain and taking a hike to a nearby waterfall. I spotted my first white-faced monkey, and am now able to identify the Costa Rican butterfly. On Monday Katie and I left at 6.15 am to spend the morning at Dominical a nearby beach. Hearing her success stories with a recycling program, an organic garden and the start of a business program for youth, got me even more excited for the next two years. We finished out beach day at noon with delicious avocado, hummus sandwiches on homemade whole wheat bread... definitely beyond rice and beans. My visit ended with observing her English class and catching a dubbed version of "Alice and Wonderland" (complete with popcorn and Pops blackberry helado).

Huevos!

Around dusk today I realized that in many ways I am living a fairy tale. I feel as if one morning I woke up, and suddenly I was surrounded by a new language, a new family and a new environment. True, this is a bit dramatic, but my walk home today took me past a white horse, eating in the forest while the sun was setting. I felt worlds apart from the last place I called home, as I greeted my host grandpa who was playing guitar on his wooden deck, a green pajaro whistling above him in a cage. So much has changed, and so quickly that it is difficult to know where to start.

I decided these photos would help give a taste for my fairy tale thus far, and later the words will come. In addition, I made my first dish this weekend with the help of my host mother, Marta, while we were visiting her sister in another mountain pueblo. I made una ensalada and have decided the second ingredient will be tomates or tomatoes.

Ensalada Simple

1 Can of Tuna

1 Cabbage

3 Tomatoes

1 Onion

2 Lemons

Salt

Combine the can of tuna with finely chopped cabbage, tomatoes and onion. Stir in the juice of the lemons and add salt to taste.

I hope anyone reading will upload a little something about their vida along with something they have recently made with tomatoes. It will help me connect these worlds...

The fotos that I have uploaded are from an array of events. We spent the first few days in a retreat in an area called Cartago (a photo from the ruinas in Cartago with a few Cuerpo de Paz Trainees is up above). After meeting the other Peace Corps Trainees (a great and inspiring group of people), learning more about the projects we will be working on (I am working with micro-entrepreneurs with a group called Community Economic Development- CED from now on) we were handed small booklets explaining the communities and families that we would be living in/with for the next three months. I am in a community called Tarbaca, with a family of five that live on a finca. The homes surrounding ours, belong to los abuelos and other family members. There are three other trainees that live very close to me, and together we walk up and down a giant mountain, el diablo, to attend Spanish classes and technical training from 8 am-5 pm every day.

A quick taste of this weekend: Saturday morning we spent selling huevos for mi abuelo in the farmers market a town over (the pictures are also above). Then we fit eight people in a little jeep and drove to la casa de una tia. The main events for el paseo were a dance in the community center, a motorcycle race and bingo.

Some days are overwhelming, but the truth is the majority of the time this vida comes easy, or to coin a tico phrase "un queque" (just like it sounds- like a piece of cake!)

Final Stateside Post- Chocolate!

Weather permitting, I board a 6 am flight to Washington DC on Sunday and begin my heavily publicized adventure. With the GMAT out of the way, I am now day-dreaming about lush green landscapes and speaking Spanish. The Peace Corps has connected me with a mentor, a young woman who has been in Costa Rica for a year now, to guide me through my first year. I've been lucky enough to chat with her a few times and gain some valuable tips for the upcoming 27 months.

First, hiking boots and Birkenstocks are essentials...and second, good dark chocolate isn't as abundant as one might think.

And so my boots and Birkenstocks lay waiting to be packed, while I present you with the first ingredient of Beyond Rice and Beans...chocolate.

With this blog's official 'first ingredient'. I made a delicious banana coconut chocolate chip cookie in an attempt to evoke the tastes of my future tropical home. I know in some places, like London, chocolate chips are very hard to come by, so please feel free to post any recipe that uses chocolate in anyway-(yes even unwrapping a candy bar counts)!

I made these the day before I took my exam, and didn't want to sugar load, so anyone not on the health food train will find these very...interesting. The recipe is adapted from Heidi Swanson's blog 101cookbooks.

Tropical Chocolate Chip Cookies

Note: The almond meal can be made by pulsing the almonds in a (clean) coffee grinder or food processor, but be careful not to go too far or you'll end up with almond butter. Also coconut oil can be softened by running under warm water.

3 large ripe bananas

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup coconut oil, barely warm (or olive oil works)

2 cups rolled oats

2/3 cup almond meal

1/2 cup coconut, finely shredded & unsweetened

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

6-7 ounces chocolate chips or slivers of a dark chocolate bar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, racks on the top third.

In a large bowl stir together the mashed bananas, vanilla extract, and coconut oil. In another bowl combine the oats, almond meal, shredded coconut, cinnamon, salt, and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until combined. Fold in the chocolate slivers/chips. The dough will be different than standard cookie dough (and won't taste as delicious from the bowl)- but don't worry! Drop spoonfuls of the dough, about an inch apart, onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for (around) 14 minutes- I like them when the oats and coconut are a bit toasty and the banana is warm... I can just taste Costa Rica!

And now your turn, what is your favorite recipe or favorite way to eat chocolate?!

The Concept

With friends and family all over the world it is getting rather difficult to stay connected. San Francisco, London, Washington D.C., Buenos Aires, New York, Taiwan, Los Angeles, Beijing, Providence, Barcelona, Boston...even constant twittering cannot bring us all together.

Enter: "Beyond Rice and Beans", a blog created to connect individuals through ingredients (thanks Isis).

While I will write anecdotes about my work/life in the Peace Corps in Costa Rica, I will also be including one ingredient a post and creating a dish with the item. Those inclined to participate can cook a recipe using the same ingredient. Once you have also experimented with the ingredient, please share for all to read! This way we can connect over tastes, and perhaps one day enjoy the dishes together.

If you happen to be the type with a fridge filled with nothing more than ketchup and a half-full liter of soda, feel free to find a dish in a restaurant that includes the ingredient. Do not fear if your cooking skills stop at boiling water, even the simplest dishes will be exciting to read about. Just be sure to share a little bit about where you are, bringing the reader with you.