Reflecting on Experience

As McIntosh says a lot of white males think of their lives a morally neutral, normative, and "ideal", but now that I'm here in Monteverd, Costa Rica I feel very far from the norm and the privileges I took for granted in the states is much more apparent to me now that I'm here living in a much less-developed country. Even though, Monteverde is a pretty big tourist town I still can see that I don't fit in here and people easily tell that I'm from the States. The standard of living in Costa Rica is much lower than I am used to but the cool thing is it doesn't really affect my overall satisfaction with my time here. As an American that sticks out like a sore thumb I actually don't feel anxious or nervous about the increased attention I receive. In fact, I care less about the the general opinion of myself because the obvious cultural oddities I'm sure I exhibit here are dismissed much more freely solely because I am an American.