ICADS

Here are some happy photos of my school for the next 5 (+) weeks in San José, the Institute for Central American Development Studies. After that time, since I am in the Field Program, I will be out traveling for the subsequent 5 weeks with a group and coming back to San José most weekends. And then after those five weeks are over, I'll be completing my own project independently, either in Costa Rica or Nicaragua.

At this point it really looks like it could go anywhere, though I'm hoping to work on an indigenous reservation here. Costa Rica is the only other country in the world besides the United States that has reservations for its Native peoples. Another interesting thing is that I didn't even know they existed, because of all Central American countries, Costa Rica has one of the most enduring myths of their land being uninhabited pre-conquest.

It is based on some fact - that there were possibly fewer people here, and also that they had left being less heavy marks on their land (unlike the Aztecs, for example..), so introduced disease had passed through (many Natives having fled to the mountains and forests to save themselves) and the conquistadors eventually came back to check in on the folks they'd met a couple years back, they quickly surmised that no one really lived here. And it's been a strong belief ever since! Sadly, archaeology has a way of digging up inconvenient truths.

But even many contemporary history books still reflect that same fraudulent belief. I'm hoping I could do health or education work - since I think, like in the U.S., there are different programs for different groups, or study the relationships between different Native groups and the Costa Rican government..Too many choices. I'll gain a clearer perspective once I've done more field work though, I'm sure.