I thought cgenster only studied for a week because I didn't see a reference to 2 weeks, just:

"I have taken conversational Spanish for two semesters at our local community college and I learned more these four days than I did then."

Ironically, my best instruction was at my cheapest school. I travel in CA mainly because indigenous cultures, contemporary and historical, fascinate me. In other words, we all have different reasons for picking the areas we love. I've been traveling to Guatemala since the 80's and have a son who is Maya by birth, a native of Guatemala, so it's my first love down there and everything else pales by comparison culturally for me. Belize and Honduras are wonderful, too, and have scuba diving, which I love. I take precautions when I travel but have never felt unsafe and prefer the less "Americanized" locations.

In other words, "1 man's ceiling is another man's floor". I'm relieved, though, that cgenster had 2 weeks of study for the price, a much better value than my 1st impression. Happy trails!

Hi hopeful,

I hate to burst your bubble, but I only had one week. I would loved to be able to take two weeks off from my school here, but that wasn't a possibility. I still think I had a bargain compared to what our Spring Break trips normally cost.

I am glad to know that the schools in Guatemala are less expensive, as I would love to go there. Since I got DH to Costa Rica, who knows, maybe next summer I can get him to go to Guatemala.

Teachergirl..I think you will be fine. Trvlmaven gave you really good advice. I am used to walking around in downtown Atlanta, New Orleans and other American touristy places and I felt just as safe in Costa Rica as there. You do have to watch out for the cows though.

We didn't see bugs, but we did see the small lizards. The locals told us to leave them alone as they eat the bugs and mosquitos. We took bug spray but didn't even use it.

We used cash and my VISA debit card. Most places take both. When you are in Flamingo there is a bank close to the school with an ATM outside. You can get dollars or colones. I always got colones because I liked to use the local currency.

I found that everyone in Potrero and the Buena Vista Lodge would speak Spanish with me if I asked. They like to practice their English too though, so I would talk with them in English if they asked.

I will be back in Potrero the week of June 21 through 28. Does that match your dates at all Teachergirl?

Teachergirl--

One more thing. If you plan to use a VISA card be sure to tell your bank that you are traveling out of the country so they don't freeze your account.

Muchisimas gracias a todos! This thread has been so helpful for me as I pack and get ready to leave tonight for CR. The descriptions are great for me to share with my students, as they get a feel for what it will be like. "Cattle on the loose" "Cgenster" How did you like the Buena Vista Lodge? Do they have a pool y La comida? As far as language schools go my expereinces have been mixed, but the more area for me that CPI has really been a standout is with the host families, at least in Monteverde. Much more engaging than in Mexico where I thought at times we were there as hotel guests and not a member of the family.

Con mucho gusto,

I did like the Buena Vista lodge. It lives up to its name. I did not like the drive up there. It is a mountainous road very narrow and rough. It made me wish I was back on the monkey trail. Next time I go though we will be on a tour bus so I won't be driving.

They do have a pool and food. The meals are in four different restaurants and are buffet style. Only one restaurant is open at a time. Example you might have breakfast at Restaurante Lago and lunch at Restaurante Montana.

The pool is very nice and it has a swim up bar and hot tub, but neither were in operation when we were there.

There were goats, horses and one lonely pig or something like a pig wandering around. You have to be careful where you step.

Have a great time. I wish I was going back with you. I miss being there.

Thanks for the good advice.
Cgenster, I will be at CPI the week of June 22, but in Heredia -- so I guess I won't see you, unless our paths cross on a weekend excursion somehow. Bummer - it would be nice to know of someone who will be there when I will. (I'm in Heredia for 2 weeks and then my third week is at the Flamingo campus.) Are you flying into LIR and just in Potrero for the week?

teachergirl, that is exactly the plan I followed back in 2003, my first time with CPI. It was a great introduction and one I knew I would be repeating. I hope you have a terrific time!

We are usually in CR by the end of June, but with a wedding on the 21st and a mission trip to Mexico the 5th of July, our trip will be later.

I hope you'll be sure to post of your adventures!

Shillmac, I'm glad you found 2 weeks @ Heredia campus / 1 week @ Flamingo to be a good first-time plan. I'm hoping it works out well for me, too.
I will definitely post a report -- in fact, y'all may here from me with questions while I'm there !

I found last summer that, when I was at the internet cafe a few minutes each afternoon, it seemed easy to keep a running commentary on Fodors. It later served as a trip report and was done when I got home! For the most part. . .

That's a good idea . . . I was thinking I might want to do some of my usual travel journaling electronically.
Did you upload pictures at the internet cafe, or did you just wait and do that once you got back to the US?

I waited to upload. But one thing I did do was go to the little camera shop on the other side of the highway and have them put my photos on disc, least something happen. I had so many this time because I was in Heredia for 3 weeks (last summer) and taking a weekend trip every weekend, birding, etc.

You might find that you don't want to spend much time in the internet cafe, though, this being your first time. I was already familiar with the town, knew the family already very well, so it seemed okay to spend a little more time at the cafe, staying in touch with family. I was even somewhat able to stay in touch with them (and others) by copying and pasting my Fodor posts and adding a few extra notes.

If you set up a blog site and buy a card reader ($10-15) you can blog as you go without having to upload - much quicker. You stick the memory card from your camera into the card reader and plug it into a USB port on the computer and the computer reads the pictures. If you take hundreds of pictures every few days like I tend to there's a bit of learning to figure out how to choose which photos you want, but then it's easy with decent internet speed. Setting up a blog is incredibly simple at www.blogger.com , the site I use. The most recent post is always at the top and and there's an archive of previous pages you can click on.

If you're interested, check out the one I did while my friend Sylvia and I were traveling and studying in Guatemala last summer:
http://sandsinguatemala.blogspot.com/

Happy trails!