Earthquake!

What's going on: Well yesterday, as many of you probably already know, there was a huge earthquake in Costa Rica. I am alive and well. :) And now I have a little bit of time to write about what happened.

We were in Spanish class when all of a sudden the tables started to move back and forth. I didn't really realize what was going on until my teacher said, "There's an earthquake!" Our whole class got under our desks. I was grabbing onto Sydney next to me, but she was laughing about what was going on. It lasted for probably a minute, but still such a scary experience. After it was over, we continued class like normal. There was no electricity or water in our school. Our program director came to check on us, and to make sure we were all okay. People in Oregon were already concerned about us.

After class my friends and I went shoe shopping because we all needed to buy more sandles. My host sister texted me to make sure I was okay. Things fell in the shower, and a few things on the wall in our house. One of the TVs fell and broke, but other than that our home was totally fine. When I finally got home for lunch my internet was not working. I kept checking it, because I knew my mom would be concerned. Sure enough, when I was finally able to Skype her a half hour later, she was in tears. I checked Facebook and so many people had wrote on my wall and messaged me to make sure I was okay. I know I am very loved in the States. :)

The epicenter of the earthquake was around 3 hours away in Guanacaste. Here are some pictures I found online. I did not take any because there was not any damage around San Ramon, thankfully.

from: here and here
Most schools were cancelled yesterday, but not for us. :) We continued like normal in the afternoon. Yesterday we also had our first dance class and learned salsa! Yes, I have been a dancer for years, but latin dance is much different than the lyrical/jazz I have done in the past. We really should have worn yoga pants, but I did not think it was going to be as intense as it was! So I had on my same outfit from earlier...a long black skirt. Needless to say, I was very hot and sweaty.

Last night I went to another church service. I went with my host brother, and we got there a little early. He left me by myself for awhile while he went to say hello to people. I sat awkwardly by myself for a few minutes, but then the girls in front of me talked to me. I was just praying that God would give me friends and help me feel welcome. When the service started the pastor pointed at me and said, "Welcome back, Hillary." Such a simple thing as remembering someone's name goes a long way. The church is a family, and I can feel the love of eachother and for God. After singing a few songs, they divided us up by gender. The girls talked about Eve and the consequences of sin. It went a little long, but I am so glad I went. Hopefully I can meet people there who will be my friends, and good influences on me. :)

After class this morning Mariah and I went with Sydney to get a cell phone. We were talking a mixture of Spanish and English while the guy set up her phone. He complimented us and said our Spanish was good! I love getting compliments like that. We were about to leave and he told us to wait. He gave us these notebooks and pens! I was more excited that he thought we spoke Spanish well and that we got cute notebooks than that Sydney finally got a cell phone.

Tonight I am helping my host brother teach an English class and church. I am SO excited about it. I have been given amazing opportunities to grow here in Costa Rica and I cannot wait to see how God moves and grows my faith.

Con mucho amor.