Sometimes, I drag myself up out of my Deep Pit of Things to Do, look around me, and marvel that — oh God! — it’s not June anymore. I know they say that time flies when you’re having fun, but sometimes I wish I could rip the wings right off Father Time’s back, throw him over my knee, and tell him to behave himself. But alas, Father Time is entirely unaffected by any beating and so the days march by, quicker than I can count.

A brief update on my life is as follows:

Fabi, Shrish, Bronwen, and I visited Costa Rica’s one and only amusement park, the Parque de Diversiones. We dined on heavily-overcooked french fries, downed copious amounts of liquids, and ran through the rain in between rides. Our first stop was La Torre, as pictured. (If you understand Spanish, don’t miss this YouTube video where a tico complains about the ride right before it drops him to the ground, screaming like a girl.) We also waited in line for over an hour to ride the Bocaracá, the park’s biggest and most terrifying roller coaster. One word: whatever. A fun 20 seconds, but hardly worth the wait.

However, there was one ride that truly surprised me: a rather benign-looking ferris wheel ended up being my favorite ride EVER. Shrish and I, the insane daredevils, positioned ourselves in a little ferris pod with the bar of death gripping our legs to hold us in. (I guess this was our first clue that this was not your average ferris wheel.) As we started our ascent into the sky, we had wonderful views of the valley and mountains all around us, which we enjoyed for 0.3 seconds before beginning to cause trouble. We were equipped with a wonderful lever that locked the pod into whatever position we desired, and so we swung backwards, into a perfect inversion, like two pre-Scientology Tom Cruises in Top Gun. We dove down, backwards, FAST, screaming our heads off. This was the first time since I hit the double digits that a ride has made me scream. It is the best ride in the whole world and next time I go back, I’m doing it three hundred times. After such an adrenaline rush, we went to visit Pueblo Antiguo, beautiful section of the park which is a walk back in time to what Costa Rica used look like. Old furniture, agricultural equipment, farm animals, an old church, an old firehouse, and a several other quaint buildings dotted the truly retro landscape. Loved it.

After the Parque, we went to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, an event in and of itself. Costa Ricans are, to put it tactfully, completely and totally bonkers for movies. Prepare to arrive at least three hours early to buy your tickets and at least two hours in advance to get in line. Otherwise, you’re sitting in the first row, all the way to the left, behind the curtain and next to the air conditioning duct, where air so cold that it crystalizes on your nose will blow on you for the duration of the movie. Of course, lines for the movie were nothing in comparison to the evening of June 20th, when seemingly every Costa Rican in the Central Valley waited for the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Tico Harrys and Hermiones roamed Terramall (where we chose to get our books), the previous movies played on a screen inside the bookstore, clowns and wizards amused children, and a full on magic show was performed (fiery juggling included) as we counted down the minutes approaching midnight. We finally purchased our prized books, and they felt like gold in our hands as we pranced out of the mall, determined to read the entire thing before we fell asleep. All six of us were away in the land of Nod within 20 minutes of getting home.

Other days have been spent frolicking around San José, enjoying the city with the friends I hold dear. Shrish and Bronwen, two of my homegirls from Can”eh”dia, are leaving us next week, and we’re going to miss them! Which brings be back to my point: time moves far too quickly for my liking. It really seems like only yesterday I set foot on Costa Rican soil for only the second time, eyes wide, wondering, and very excited for everything that surrounded. How can it be that I’ve been here almost seven months and that, in such a short time, this far off land has ceased to be completely foreign and become my home?