As soon as we heard the wheels of our plane scuff the uneven runway of the Juan Santamaria International Airport of San Jose, Costa Rica, we looked at each other and thought, "What in the world did we just get ourselves into...?" There we were, two 20 year old girls from Texas, blindly entering a foreign country with a pamphlet and a few instructional e-mails as our only form of guidance. Suddenly, the only familiar thing we had was each other.
In the midst of studying for finals, interviewing for jobs, and preparing for recruitment as the President and Recruitment Chair of Texas Sweethearts, we decided to quit our crazy lives for a week and a half to do volunteer work in Costa Rica during this winter break. During our time abroad, we had the opportunity to work with several orphanages and elderly care facilities, as well as hike mountains, zip line through the jungle, carbo-load on beans and rice, and navigate the city with our pathetic Spanish knowledge from high school. From Canadians and Australians to Chinese and Nepalis, we met people from all around the world and became known as "Chinita and Gringita," the "Cowgirls," "Texas," and "the-girls-that-say-'y'all'-after-every-other-word." Sooner or later, these strangers became our friends, and we finally became known as "An-Vi and Kristi." What started off as an intimidating trip with just two friends, eventually became an experience of a lifetime shared with new friends across the globe.
Throughout our trip, a common question we received was, "What are Texas Sweethearts?" Considering the fact that half of our closets consist of Texas Sweethearts merchandise, a few T-shirts from our past recruitments naturally landed in our suitcases for Costa Rica and instigated this frequent question. Having to describe what Texas Sweethearts is to strangers eventually put into perspective what Texas Sweethearts means to us. Not only did Texas Sweethearts give us our only friend to start this trip with, it also gave us the confidence and courage to step out of our comfort zones to make new friends in a foreign country. In retrospect, we are both so grateful to have gone through the Texas Sweethearts recruitment process, because it gave us the opportunity to meet new people from all walks of life and truly appreciate where they come from. Applying this experience to our trip, we walked away from Costa Rica with a family of new friends and an understanding of new cultures.
On our last night in Costa Rica, we stayed in a hostel near the airport in San Jose. As we walked down the hall wearing more Texas Sweethearts shirts, we passed a tall guy outside of his room and heard him say, "Texas Sweethearts...?" "Here we go again..." we both thought. As we prepared to start our usual speech to explain what Texas Sweethearts is, he stopped us and said, "No, I know what the Texas Sweethearts are. I was a Blazer when I went to UT!" We were baffled. Meeting this Blazer in a completely different country made us feel so fortunate to be Sweethearts, to come from Texas, and to attend the greatest university in the nation.
So in addition to being the "Chinita and Gringita," the "Cowgirls," "Texas," and "the-girls-that-say-'y'all'-after-every-other-word," we are also best friends and proud Texas Sweethearts. We hope you all will consider joining our sisterhood and making memories like these with us. We look forward to meeting you all!
Pura Vida,
An-Vi and Kristi
President and Recruitment Chair
Texas Sweethearts Spring 2014
In the midst of studying for finals, interviewing for jobs, and preparing for recruitment as the President and Recruitment Chair of Texas Sweethearts, we decided to quit our crazy lives for a week and a half to do volunteer work in Costa Rica during this winter break. During our time abroad, we had the opportunity to work with several orphanages and elderly care facilities, as well as hike mountains, zip line through the jungle, carbo-load on beans and rice, and navigate the city with our pathetic Spanish knowledge from high school. From Canadians and Australians to Chinese and Nepalis, we met people from all around the world and became known as "Chinita and Gringita," the "Cowgirls," "Texas," and "the-girls-that-say-'y'all'-after-every-other-word." Sooner or later, these strangers became our friends, and we finally became known as "An-Vi and Kristi." What started off as an intimidating trip with just two friends, eventually became an experience of a lifetime shared with new friends across the globe.
Throughout our trip, a common question we received was, "What are Texas Sweethearts?" Considering the fact that half of our closets consist of Texas Sweethearts merchandise, a few T-shirts from our past recruitments naturally landed in our suitcases for Costa Rica and instigated this frequent question. Having to describe what Texas Sweethearts is to strangers eventually put into perspective what Texas Sweethearts means to us. Not only did Texas Sweethearts give us our only friend to start this trip with, it also gave us the confidence and courage to step out of our comfort zones to make new friends in a foreign country. In retrospect, we are both so grateful to have gone through the Texas Sweethearts recruitment process, because it gave us the opportunity to meet new people from all walks of life and truly appreciate where they come from. Applying this experience to our trip, we walked away from Costa Rica with a family of new friends and an understanding of new cultures.
On our last night in Costa Rica, we stayed in a hostel near the airport in San Jose. As we walked down the hall wearing more Texas Sweethearts shirts, we passed a tall guy outside of his room and heard him say, "Texas Sweethearts...?" "Here we go again..." we both thought. As we prepared to start our usual speech to explain what Texas Sweethearts is, he stopped us and said, "No, I know what the Texas Sweethearts are. I was a Blazer when I went to UT!" We were baffled. Meeting this Blazer in a completely different country made us feel so fortunate to be Sweethearts, to come from Texas, and to attend the greatest university in the nation.
So in addition to being the "Chinita and Gringita," the "Cowgirls," "Texas," and "the-girls-that-say-'y'all'-after-every-other-word," we are also best friends and proud Texas Sweethearts. We hope you all will consider joining our sisterhood and making memories like these with us. We look forward to meeting you all!
Pura Vida,
An-Vi and Kristi
President and Recruitment Chair
Texas Sweethearts Spring 2014
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