Week #2

After reading over the questions for this week’s blog, I thought over all the meals that I have had in my home here in Costa Rica.  My reflections from these experiences are that eating supper in my home in the U.S. is much different than the comida I eat for cena every night here in Costa Rica.  The “native” foods here in Costa Rica are those we went into detail about in last week’s class: rice, chicken, beans, fruit, potatoes, etc. These are foods that my family has in some variety just about every night for supper. I also eat rice for breakfast some mornings and fruit every morning. In the U.S., I eat a wider variety of foods, and don’t typically eat this much fruit.

            Something I have appreciated while in Costa Rica is that my family does sit down every night to eat. This is similar to how my family would eat at home, all together with the television off. We have more food here for dinner than I am used to, which is something my Tica mom does not understand and tries to keep feeding me. Here, all of the prepared food is placed in dishes on the table and we serve ourselves. At home, it was much more informal and we would go fix our own plates in the kitchen and then sit down to eat.  I asked my Tica mom and her granddaughter if lunch was similar to supper here and they said yes, with around the same amount of food. I feel like they mainly eat the leftovers from dinner for lunch, or sometimes my mom goes out to eat with friends. I have eaten out three times for dinner here with my Tica family, which is different than what I have heard from some of my other classmates. I guess my parents have just gotten used to eating out since all of their children are grown and moved out. This is similar to my real parents, too; they eat out more since they don’t have kids at home now because they say it is cheaper and easier.  For breakfast, my mom just places a plate of food and fruit for me on the table, and she sits with me while I eat. I typically have eggs and toast, cereal, or ham and toast. There is always fruit and orange juice served with it. My Tica dad has never eaten breakfast with us, and I guess it has to do with a different schedule

            

Breakfast: Cereal, fruit, and juice

Dinner: Potatoes, rice, chicken, Juice

           

            Having a nice breakfast prepared for me and waking up with time to eat it and not rush, unlike how I used to eat before rushing off to school in the U.S., sets a nice, ready-for-the-day feeling. Sitting with my Tica mom here at breakfast is a good time to talk and try to explain what my day will be like in Spanish. In the U.S., I always ate breakfast alone because everyone else had to be at work or school and was in a hurry. Here, my Tica mom stays at home all day, and over breakfast she sits and reads the paper. At supper, the conversation starts with how our days were, then the Spanish gets faster, and I just sit back and listen. We sit for a while even after we are finished eating, and they just talk. In the U.S., normally my family would eat then leave the table and go hang out in another room, or go do something else.  Meals here are a place for conversation and are definitely intended to draw families closer together.