Going Home

I've had the chance to see so many old friends and spend some quality time with my parents. However, I've found it impossible to meet up with all the friends I wanted to see, so perhaps you can understand perhaps why I haven't kept up my blog so well. It's the last day of my trip and I'm so glad to be going home!!! Home to Julio, home to our little house, home to family and friends in Costa Rica. Home where I'll be able to be reliably connected and able to keep up with my part of our great business, Boyero Tours.

I have experienced the great hospitality of friends, family, and new friends (via the hospitality network Couchsurfing.com!) However, it has been extremely frustrating at times because my laptop wouldn't connect to the wireless network, or there wasn't one, or you had to pay through the nose to use it, etc., etc. Anyway! I struggled to stay connected and work on itineraries and emails to clients and potential clients throughout the nearly 4 weeks I've been away, but it hasn't been a picnic. On my next trip to the States I'll do a few things differently – first off I'll probably buy a Tracfone (prepaid cell) and see how that works – it's just too frustrating to be without a cell phone in this day and age, especially in Portland where all my friends have one. Second, I will schedule out a chunk of time each day (when friends and/or family are working or have other activities) for working on Boyero Tours, not just expect it to happen organically - this mistaken strategy ended up feeling like I was taking time away from visiting with family and friends. Thirdly I will look ahead of time for places I can get wireless connection and maybe pay a one-time monthly fee or something for hotspot access if I won't be able to get consistent free wireless access.

Okay, so... I'm still getting the hang of this blog thing. I write differently than I would if I was writing purely for myself, say in a journal. I suppose that's good, but it is strange to write for an audience, albeit a small one.

Déjà vu

Oh my God! What a strange culture shock and deja vu to be back at AFS Intercultural Programs after a three year break! Probably anyone reading this already knows, but I worked for AFS for more than 4 years, starting fresh out of college in 2000 and continuing through most of 2004, just before my move to Costa Rica. Working for AFS was the major force in my professional development and influencing my post-college friends circle. It occurred to me that I could have some fun while helping to pay for this trip. I applied to be a temp (an Information Center Seasonal Advisor) at AFS for two weeks while visiting friends in Portland. I can honestly say that I loved it!!! I got all the good parts of AFS without the burnout factor. It was inspiring and refreshing to be back on the phones, encouraging students to go abroad and families to host exchange students here in the US. (Ha ha... if you are interested or know someone who is, call 1-800-AFS-INFO to talk to an Advisor! The exchanges are mostly high school, but there are “18+ programs” for college age and beyond as well.) I also hope that I was also able to be helpful for new staff with my combined Admissions experience and phone techniques. Thankfully, I know that I was – it was gratifying to hear a new Seasonal Advisor say in a meeting: “It's been great to be able to listen to Sarah Joy. When I overhear her conversations (with students) I keep saying 'wow, what was that?! I need to write this (phrase) down to use it myself!'”.

waste...

Another little cultural difference I've experienced after being outside the US for more than a year has to do with garbage... I have been quietly shocked at the amount of waste I have seen in the States – especially the amount of food and packaging that goes into the garbage cans and presumably to the landfills. It's only getting worse in Costa Rica too... but it's something that so many people don't even seem to think about or be concerned with. An important footnote to this is that Julio and I are environmentalists and try to live what we preach: “reduce, reuse, recycle” (including the reuse of food scraps through composting).

Thai food cravings

My favorite restaurants all seem to have changed their menus, changed ownership or aren't quite as good as I remembered them. This was particularly disappointing on my quest for delicious affordable Thai food. In Costa Rica there is one fine dining restaurant for Japanese, Korean, and Thai food in the capital city of San Jose but I don't know of any small, yummy and affordable Thai places like I was accustomed to having on practically every block in Portland. (Plus I don't like most Chinese food, though it's readily available in Costa Rica.) What I'm getting at is that when I come back to the States for a visit I'm especially interested in eating Thai food – I think anyone who has gone to a restaurant with me in the last few weeks can attest to that!!!! Here are a couple of Thai restaurant reviews:

Portland, Oregon

Sweet Basil Thai in NE Portland was a great new find for me (thanks, Anna & Rob!) and Chopsticks on Hawthorne hit the spot (thanks, Evie! It's strange we didn't ever go there when we lived 3 blocks away!) Sadly, my old favorite on SE Division, Bangkok Kitchen, has changed ownership and my favorite chicken satay and salad roll recipes will have to be savored only in memory. I didn't get to visit Typhoon, E-san or Aroy Thai (all in downtown) on this trip, but I hope that they haven't changed too much!

NW Washington

My parents took me out to The Golden Triangle on San Juan Island for my birthday but we were underwhelmed, especially for the prices. The Thai Kitchen in Anacortes was good for take-out, but didn't impress. When we ate there a week and a half later it redeemed itself and I got my last great Thai food fix of the trip with a satisfying chicken satay & creamy peanut sauce, tofu in green curry and pad thai. Mom and I would have visited Bai Tong near SeaTac as was becoming our “last dinner” tradition, but apparently it's moved to Southcenter mall and is reported to have dropped in quality – so sad!
Dear readers - please send me any great Thai recipes that you might have – I've decided it's time for me to learn how to cook great Thai-style food at home to satisfy the cravings!!!