09/08/2013 Site Assignment Day

Hi Everyone, I thought I would help my husband CJ by posting to tell you about our experience with site assignment.  We traveled with all of our Tico 26 group to a Country Club in Heredia.  Iphones were pumping 00s and 90s music in the bus, people were laughing, talking, dreaming, and everyone was smiling like it was Christmas Eve.  How exciting to find out where we would be living for two years!

When we walked past tennis, foosball, and other sport courts to an area with (my favorite) three pools!!  We entered a little cabana meeting area and there was a giant map of Costa Rica in front.  Our project staff set to work putting little tags on the side of the map and getting folders ready with all of the information we would need to know about our communities.  Since it was Manuel's birthday, he went first, being blindfolded, spun in a circle and then we as audience had to scream left, right, up, or down, until he found where his marker was.  Next was Marlee.  And then they asked for one of their married couples and we volunteered.  My husband was blindfolded and I closed my eyes.  We held hands and listened intently to what our friends were telling us...are they saying right? left?  We don't understand!  And then all of the sudden, I felt the tag and told my husband to stop, we have it.  He took his blindfold off and we discovered we're heading to....

Pejibaye!!

Our location is in the mountains, south of volcanoes, famous for a fruit with the same name.  Many of our friends are heading out to beaches, mountains, farming communities, and a few are heading to the outskirts far north and far south in border communities.  We're joining a group of professionals that have already established themselves in many communities in Costa Rica, working hard to improve the lives of individuals by enabling others to see the inherent skills, assets, and abilities present in these small communities.  We hope to do the same!  

Much more to come on our site after we visit it, but we were able to enjoy the pools, meet some of the amazing volunteers in Tico 24 and 25, eat hamburgers at a BBQ, and share an evening of fun with our friends in San Jose.  We had even more fun sharing our site assignment with friends, family, and of course, our Tico host family.  It has been a truly magical experience!