Museums on Saturday & Río Pacuare on Sunday

On Saturday, Ben and I spent the day exploring San José, museum-ing at the Museo de Arte y Diseño Moderna and Museo Nacional, and eating some delicious Tico food. My favorite exhibit in the art museum as a series of beaded ropes hanging from the ceiling that formed a 2 meter wide face when you stood back from it. Most of the beads were made out of gigantic seed pods about 10 cm in diameter and everything was painting bright happy colors. It reminded me of a larger version of a toddler's mobile. And, for the Spanish professors, we also saw an artwork with a poem that includes a whole slew of different verb tenses and perfectly demonstrates their implications. I've included the poem at the bottom of this post. I would absolutely recommend this museum; admission is incredibly cheap and all the exhibits are put together really well. After a walk down to La Sabana, large city park, we went to the Museo Nacional. We arrived late in the day, so we didn't get to see everything, but we did see a nice exhibit of pre-colonial gold jewelery and stone carved metates, or stools. The museum overlooks the Plaza de la Democracía and gives a beautiful view of the city. It's housed in Costa Rica's former army barracks; remember, Costa Rica abolished its military after the Civil War. So it is a strong symbol of Costa Rica's decision to invest in education and healthcare rather than maintain a military.

In the evening, we met a few friends at the Teatro Nacional and saw Lope de Vega's Las Biazzaras de la Belisa. I really enjoyed having a chance to see the theater again; it is such a gorgeous building. The troupe was Spanish and spoke with strong Spanish lisps, but, even so, I could decently follow some of the dialog. It was a fun play about young couples in love (a very original theme throughout the history) and the costumes were really exquisite. So it was very worthwhile--and only 5,000 colones ($10). Again, San José makes cultural events affordable. What a great city.

Today, Ben and I went to the Pacuare River for rafting through class III and IV rapids. The river winds through an indigenous reserve with virgin wet rainforests, so its gorgeous. The green was a nice change from the city. The two of us were in a raft with three lawyers who had all gone to school together at Michigan State and our English-speaking Tico guide. Despite my general clumsiness, I did not fall out of the raft. Ben did, though. He survived beautifully and enjoyed a little float before getting hauled back into the boat. Ben went on this trip last week as well, so check out his blog for more details.

So it was a great weekend! This week I have my last four days of language classes (including an oral presentation and short exam), my last two ultimate frisbee pick-up games, and my last chance to learn how to salsa before our spring vacation. I'll be spending my break adventuring through Costa Rica with three Iberles. It will be great fun!

And here's the poetic grammar lesson:

Te tuve.
Te perdí.
Cuando te tuve, yo te había tenido
desde siempre
y cuando te perdí
ya no te había tenido
nunca.
No, no te tuve.
Nos tuvimos. Se nos tuvo.
Lo teníamos. Nos tenían.
No, no te perdí.
Nos perdieron. Los perdimos.
Se perdió. Lo perdimos.
Te quiero. No te quiero.
Nos quisimos. Nos querían.
Lo quisimos.
Tú lo quisiste y yo sigo queriéndolo.
Vuelves. Me voy. Te vas.
Regreso y la herdia más fresca cada vez
el corazón más viego y cada vez
más joven la alegría porque
te tuve, porque te quiero.

Álvaro Gómez, Costa Rica